Exhibitions

The Late Chalcolithic culture flourished in Israel during the second half of the fifth millennium and the first half of the fourth millennium BCE (c. 4500–3600 BCE). Remains of this period have been found throughout the country, from the Golan Heights in the north to the Judean Desert and the Negev in the south. Settlement patterns are diverse, including hundreds of occupation sites and dozens of cemeteries and cult sites.

The Chalcolithic culture was dynamic and innovative, with unique features that differentiate it from the preceding Neolithic cultures and the following Early Bronze Age cultures. During the Chalcolithic period, a complex, hierarchical social system emerged, new manufacturing technologies were developed, and regional and trans-regional trade relationships were deepened, in particular for the production and distribution of raw materials. In this period, copper was first smelted to be formed into work tools and status and cult objects, some of them produced with the ‘lost wax’ technique. This ‘metallurgical revolution’ brought with it economic and social benefits that tremendously impacted the history of mankind. Alongside the production of copper, other specialized industries flourished, such as the stone and basalt, and the ivory and shell industries, which created status and cult objects such as bowls and pedestal vessels, sculpted altars, figurines, beads and pendants. With the invention of the slow wheel or ‘tournette’, and improvements in firing techniques, the ceramic industry now took on an industrial nature. In addition to common household vessels, the ceramic industry specialized in the manufacture of burial containers such as ossuaries and burial jars, in a variety of shapes, sizes and decorations.

Research into the Late Chalcolithic period in Israel began in the 1930s with the excavation of the caves at Umm Qatifa and Umm Qala‘a in the Judean Desert, and the cemetery at Hadera. Over the years dozens of sites have been excavated, yielding tens of thousands of finds that are stored in the national treasures storerooms of the Israel Antiquities Authority; most of these have never been exhibited. For this exhibition, some 800 finds have been chosen for display, enabling a glimpse into the everyday life and spirituality of this unique culture in all its aspects: daily life, cult, belief and ritual, and burial practices. The exhibition is dedicated with honor to the archaeologists, the curators, the conservationists, the restorers and the graphic artists who, for the last 90 years, have excavated, conserved and documented the Late Chalcolithic culture of Israel. This exhibition is the fruit of their labors.

The Glass Industry

Glass is a man-made material produced by a prolonged process of heating sand (silicon and calcium) and salt (sodium or potassium). The map in front of you indicates the sites where glass kilns, chunks of raw glass found on land or at sea, and glass vessel manufacturing debris were discovered. The most ancient kilns for producing raw glass were discovered in Egypt and date to the mid-second millennium BCE. In Israel, the earliest kilns that were exposed are from the Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods. These were large kilns, each of which capable of producing ten or more tons of glass. Glass production was one of the major economic sectors in the Land of Israel in the first millennium CE. Most of these products were intended for export and the remainder was marketed to local workshops.

Glass Vessels from Tombs in Israel

Since the dawn of human existence people have buried their dead together with funerary offerings: cosmetic vessels, jewelry, tableware and drinking vessels, weapons and cultic items. Glass objects were intended for funeral ceremonies or for use by the deceased in the afterlife. Initially, they were discovered in small quantities in the tombs of kings or dignitaries. During the Roman period, after the invention of glass blowing, the use of glass vessels in tombs became much more widespread. This practice was common in Israel and many tombs, mainly from the Roman and Byzantine periods, included a variety of glass vessels that were produced in local workshops. The glass vessels that were discovered in tombs are generally well-preserved as opposed to those found in settlement strata. The list of sites in the exhibit: Hurfeish, Nahariya, Kh. ‘Alya, Shubeikha Makr, Manawat, Castra, Mishmar Ha-ʽEmeq, Hadera, Palmahim.

The Artist’s Hand

Here the emphasis is on the finds from the Castra excavations, which represent a variety of techniques and artistic styles. Many workshops across the country produced glassware for different uses, according to the fashion that prevailed at the time. There were craftsmen and there were artists of amazing expertise. The artists created new kinds of vessels or added special decorations, leaving their personal mark. The vessels, which were found in the cemetery at Castra from the Late Roman period, represent an artist or group of artists that was well-versed in the current modes; yet they adorned and enhanced the vessels with intricate handles and decorative trails. The group of hexagonal vessels from the Byzantine period reflects a unique style of a workshop specializing in vessels that were filled with water, oil or soil and which were purchased as souvenirs by pilgrims visiting the holy sites in the Land of Israel. Most of the vessels are mold-blown and decorated with symbols: Jewish, Christian and free style design. Only a few of them were uncovered in excavations. The glass vessels on display here are part of a large and very diverse collection, a gift of the Shlomo Moussaieff family.