Ir Ovot - History of The Hatzeva Fortress

History of The Hatzeva Fortress

First observed and documented by Alois Musil in 1902, the Roman fortress was identified on Fritz Frank's 1932 travels in the region. In 1934, Nelson Glueck identified the location as a Nabatæan caravanserai coopted by the Romans, but the site's true significance was noted by Benjamin Mazar and Michael Avi-Yonah's 1950 discovery of sherds from the First Temple period. In the 1960s, it was first suggested by Yohanan Aharoni that the site might be the same as Tamar of the Book of Ezekiel 47:19 and 48:28, and Eusebius of Caesarea's Tamara.

The first salvage excavation took place in 1972 under Aharoni and Rudolph Cohen's direction, but much of the work was carried out by Cohen, Yigal Yisrael, and recently Tali Erickson-Gini, following the 1986 involvement of "Blossoming Rose" in partnership with the Israel Antiquities Authority, Jewish National Fund and Tamar Regional Council. Known in addition to Tamar as the Hatzeva Fortress, or alternatively identified with Solomon's Tadmor, the site has six strata which indicate Early Israelite, Nabatæan, Edomite, Roman, and Early Arab occupations. It includes a 1,000 year old shade tree, and the largest Paliurus spina-christi in Israel.

The area was used for training crews in site conservation before their work on the Masada site.