Khirbet Huriya - Monastery (?)

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Monastery name, type, category

Site Name:

Khirbet Huriya

Monastery name:

Monastery (?)

Monastery type:

Cenobium

Monastery category:

Pilgrims

Location

Coordinates, ITM system:

20,400.00

64,596.00

Coordinates, ICS system:

15,400.00

14,593.00

Geographical region:

Southern and Western Samaria

Provincial affiliation:

Palaestina I

Bishopric:

Diospolis

Topographical location:

The site is located on the western slope of a hill.

Distance from nearest bishop-seat:

ca. 15 km (Lod-Diospolis)

Distance from Roman roads:

ca. 0.5 km south of the the road connecting the coast with Jerusalem.

Source of knowledge

Archaeological remains

Surveyed site

Surveyors:

Name	Date
Conder and Kitchener	1871-1877
Kalai	1967-1968
Fischer	1980
Magen and Finkelstein	1986
Staff Officer of Archaeology- Civil Administration	2004

Excavated site

Excavators:

Name	Date
Har-Even and Greenfeld	2005

Bibliograpy:

Conder, C. R. and Kitchener, H. H., 1882

Kallai, Z., 1972

Fischer, M., 1980

Magen, Y. and Finkelstein, I., 1993

Har-Even, B. and Greenfeld, U., 2012

Magen, Y. and Kagan, E. D., 2012

Dayan, A., 2015

Abbreviation for Journals and Series

State of certainty:

Uncertain / Questionable

General description

State of preservation/which parts were uncovered:

The parts uncovered included a church, a row of rooms adjacent to the southern wall of the church and a row of rooms in the south-eastern corner of the complex. The structures were in a poor state of preservation, to a great extent due to later construction. The western part of the church did not survive.

Illustrative material:

Illustrative_material

Photos

Rooms along the church's southern wall (Har-Even and Greenfeld 2012: 324, Fig. 22).

Figures

Khirbet Huriya- plan (Har-Even and Greenfeld 2012: 310, Fig. 1).

Kh. Huriya- detailed plan (Har-Even and Greenfeld 2012: 311, Fig. 2).

General description

Enclosing walls:

The compound is surrounded by walls (41 x 38 m.) encompassing an area of 1,558 m². The walls are 0.80 m thick.

Gate/s:

The approach to the complex is from the west, where an outer courtyard was constructed in the second phase.

Courtyards:

A courtyard was located west of the church. The courtyard is estimated to be 19 m wide but its exact measurements are not known as most of it has not been exposed. The floor of the courtyard was built on two levels with a difference of 0.30 m in height between them. The northern part was paved in a coarse white mosaic. East of the northern rooms, a small section of another courtyard was exposed.

Churche/s:

The church is a basilica (27 x 14 m) comprised of a prayer hall, an inscribed apse, flanked by two pastophoria and a courtyard or narthex to the west.

Dwellings:

Some rooms were uncovered adjacent to the southern enclosing wall of the complex. It might be assumed that these served as dwellings. The sizes of the rooms could not be ascertained. The longest among these rooms was the easternmost (5.5 m), while the others were 3 , 3.80, and 2.80 m. Remains of pilasters in the westernmost rooms indicate a vaulted roof. The row of rooms south of the church consisted, in the first phase of two spaces. The western room (5.90 x 4.80 m.) had a doorway that opened into the courtyard to its south. The eastern room was larger (~9.5 x 4.80 m.). The location of its entrance is not known.

The excavators state that these rooms present only a small part of the monastery complex which covered the entire area surrounding the church.

Baking oven:

In the western part of the courtyard an oven (tabun) and a plastered stove installation were located.

Hostelry:

The complex apparently served as a hospice for pilgrims travelling on the road to Jerusalem.

Water installations:

West of the complex, there is an irregularly shaped pool that has not been investigated.

Small finds

Small finds:

Category	Description
Pottery
Glass
Coins
Stone vessels	Marble liturgical objects.
Other	Tools (not specified)

Detailed description

Dimensions:

Total area (sqm)	Size class
1,557	Medium

Structure

Materials applied (walls):

Limestone

Components

Enclosing wall

Courtyard/s

Monastery church:

Church type	Diakonikon	Link to church section	Church location
basilical	Diakonikon		Ground floor

Dwelling type:

cells

Number of stories:

Baking oven

Hostelry

Water installations:

Cisterns

Architectural evolution

Phase 1
Phase 2
Abandonment

Phase name (as published):

Phase I

General outline:

The church perimeter walls and the rooms to its south were constructed, probably along with other rooms in the complex that have not been excavated.

Dating material:

The monastery was apparently founded in the fifth century C.E. The dating of the first phase is based on the mosaic pavements of the church.

Phase date

Century:

5th c.

Phase name (as published):

Phase II

General outline:

In the second phase some changes were made. The large eastern room along the southern wall of the church was divided into two spaces measuring 4.80 x 4.80 m (the central room) and 4.80 x 4.70 m (the eastern room). The original entrance to the western room was blocked. The whereabouts of the new entrance are not known. A second story existed over this part of the building but it has not been determined if this was added in the second phase or pre-existed it. Some changes were made in the rooms at the southwestern part of the complex.

Phase date

Century:

6th c.

Within century:

Second half

General outline:

The complex ceased to serve as a monastery in the Umayyad period when a new way station was constructed near the road.

Phase date

Century:

7th-8th c.

Post Arab conquest history:

Ceased to function