The role of highland regions in interregional connectivity: Upper Galilee in the Early Bronze Age

Abstract

The Early Bronze Age I–II transition in the southern Levant (c. 3000 BCE) is attested by significant changes in the organization of settlement systems, and economic modes of production and distribution. This study examined settlement patterns in the mountainous Upper Galilee and adjacent regions during the Early Bronze (EB) I–II. The regional settlement history was studied using a systematic survey of archaeological sites, as well as an analysis of all available archaeological data from previous surveys and salvage excavations. This study demonstrates that, despite the complexity of surveying multi-period mountainous sites, a systematic survey can contribute to reconstructing individual site histories and the region’s history as a whole. In the Early Bronze Age, the Mountainous Upper Galilee, usually considered peripheral to the large, newly-established urban centres of the lowlands, played a significant role that has previously been overlooked. In addition, this study offers an integrative highland–lowland model for the changing settlement landscapes at this transition.