Adulam
Khirbat esh-Sheikh Madkur / ʿAīd el Mâ | |
![]() Pine-covered hill of Adullam, seen from northwest | |
Alternative name | 'Eîd el Mieh (Kh. ‘Id el-Minya) |
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Location | ![]() |
Region | Shfela |
Coordinates | 31°39′40″N 34°58′40″E / 31.66111°N 34.97778°ECoordinates: 31°39′40″N 34°58′40″E / 31.66111°N 34.97778°E |
History | |
Founded | Canaanite period |
Abandoned | unknown |
Periods | Early Bronze, Chalcolithic period to the Ottoman period |
Cultures | Canaanite, Jewish, Greco-Roman, Byzantine, early Islamic, Ottoman |
Site notes | |
Excavation dates | 1992, 1999, 2015 |
Archaeologists | Y. Dagan, B. Zissu, I. Radashkovsky and E. Liraz |
Condition | Ruin |
Public access | yes |
Adullam (Hebrew: עֲדֻלָּם) is an ancient ruin, formerly known by the Arabic appellation ʿAīd el Mâ (or `Eîd el Mieh), built upon a hilltop overlooking the Elah Valley, south of Bet Shemesh in Israel. In the late 19th century, the town was still in ruins. The hilltop ruin is also known by the name Khurbet esh-Sheikh Madkour, named after Madkour, one of the sons of the Sultan Beder, for whom is built a shrine (wely) and formerly called by its inhabitants Wely Madkour. The hilltop is mostly flat, with cisterns carved into the rock. The remains of stone structures which once stood there can still be seen. Sedimentary layers of ruins from the old Canaanite and Israelite eras, mostly potsherds, are noticeable everywhere, although olive groves now grow atop of this hill, enclosed within stone hedges. The villages of Aderet, Neve Michael/Roglit, and Aviezer are located nearby. Access to the site may be obtained by passing through the cooperative small holders' agricultural villages (Moshavim) of Aderet or Neve Michael (known also as Roglit). The ruin lies about 3 kilometers south of Moshav Neve Michael.