Heritage Site with Rebel-Era Hideouts Opens at Horvat Burgin

In depth

A heritage complex featuring underground hideout tunnels from the Great Revolt against the Romans, about 2,000 years ago, was inaugurated at Horvat Burgin in Adullam Park. The site was restored after excavation and preservation work, and remains of an ancient settlement and burial caves were also uncovered there.

At the center of the complex, a Byzantine church with a colorful mosaic floor was exposed. Excavations at the site, which functioned as a large village and may be identified with "Kefar Bish" mentioned in the writings of Josephus, reveal a settlement sequence that was destroyed during the Bar Kokhba revolt.

The site suffered for years from intensive antiquities looting, and after a struggle against the looters it was secured and made accessible to the public. The site was developed in cooperation with the Israel Antiquities Authority, KKL-JNF and the Mateh Yehuda Regional Council, and the Heritage Minister said: "a living testament to our deep roots in this land."