Khirbet Badd 'Isa

Khirbet Bad 'Issa or Khirbet Bad-'Issa is an archaeological site located in the central West Bank, within Modi'in Illit. Archaeological evidence suggests that the site was founded in the 3rd century BCE, during the Hellenistic period, as a seasonal agricultural settlement. It developed through the Hasmonean period into a permanent village in the first century CE. The settlement was depopulated during the First Jewish–Roman War (66–70 CE) and again following the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132–136 CE). It was resettled about a century later, in the 3rd century CE, but did not expand during the Byzantine period. In the early Islamic era, its spaces were reused by nomads and shepherds. Excavations revealed a planned district containing six structures, including an ancient synagogue with a finely dressed ashlar façade, columns and arches, a large decorated lintel, and traces of wall frescoes. Other features include an olive press and an adjacent mikveh (Jewish ritual bath). Finds include abundant 1st–2nd-century CE ceramics (one bearing a Hebrew inscription), numerous stone vessels, and 365 coins spanning several centuries, 195 of which were discovered in two hoards.

Khirbet Badd 'Isa, situated at about 301 metres (988 ft) above sea level, lies atop a low hill in the northeastern Shephelah (Judean Foothills), at the center of the Israeli settlement of Modi'in Illit. The site covers an area of approximately 4 dunams (0.4 ha). The site is situated roughly 500 metres (1,600 ft) northeast of Khirbet Abu ad-Danin, another Jewish village from the late Second Temple period. In antiquity, a branch path from the Bethoron road, which connected Jerusalem with the coastal plain, passed nearby.

Archaeological evidence indicates that the settlement was founded in the 3rd century BCE, when Judea was under Ptolemaic rule; initially it functioned as an agricultural site with temporary structures for guarding local produce. During the Hasmonean period—and perhaps already under the Seleucids—it operated as a seasonal agricultural hamlet centered on caves, rock-cut installations, and orchards of olives and grapevines. In the 1st century CE it developed into a permanent settlement, probably wi

Archaeological site data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).