Ottoman Era Fisherman’s House and Implements Discovered in Israel
Federico Kobrin, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, near the lookout tower in Ashkelon. Image by Clara Amit, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority
By Naomi Zeveloff September 22, 2016
Remains of an Ottoman-era fisherman’s house and tools were among the findings of recent excavation in Ashkelon, a southern Israeli coastal city which has been used as a port for thousands of years.
The three-room house house was full of fishing implements such as metal hooks, lead weights, a bronze bell and a stone anchor. The building’s entrance is on the north side in order to block off high winds from the sea.
Archaeologists also discovered the remains of a lookout tower nearby, which archaeologists think could have been a lighthouse looking over the beach and the Mediterranean Sea.
Federico Kobrin, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, near the lookout tower in Ashkelon. Image by Clara Amit, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority
The excavation was conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority with the help of a youth program meant to expose young people in Ashkelon and the surrounding areas to their city’s long-distant past.
It was in an area of Ashkelon where a new neighborhood is slated for development. According to the Israel Antiquities Authority, the fisherman’s house will be preserved and showcased in the new development.
Contact Naomi Zeveloff at [email protected] or on Twitter @naomizeveloff
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
