Khirbet Qeiyafa
31°41′47″N 34°57′26″E / 31.69639°N 34.95722°E
Western gate | |
Khirbet Qeiyafa | |
| Alternative name | Elah fortress |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 31°41′47″N 34°57′27″E / 31.6963°N 34.9575°E |
| Grid position | 146/122 PAL |
| History | |
| Founded | 10th-century BCE |
| Periods | Iron Age, Hellenistic |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 2007 – |
| Archaeologists | Yosef Garfinkel, Saar Ganor |
| Condition | ruin |
| Website | qeiyafa |
Khirbet Qeiyafa (Arabic: خِرْبَة قِيَافَة, romanized: Khirbat Qiyāfa), also known as Elah Fortress and in Hebrew as Horbat Qayafa (Hebrew: חוֹרְבָת קַייָאפַה), is the site of an ancient fortress city overlooking the Valley of Elah and dated to the first half of the 10th century BCE. The ruins of the fortress were uncovered in 2007, near the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh, 30 km (20 mi) from Jerusalem. It covers nearly 2.3 ha (6 acres) and is encircled by a 700-meter-long (2,300 ft) city wall constructed of field stones, some weighing up to eight tons. Excavations at site continued in subsequent years.
The two excavators, Yosef Garfinkel and Saar Ganor, have identified the site with Sha'arayim ("Two Gates"), because of the two gates unique to the site. This is based on their conclusions that the site dates to the early Iron IIA, ca. 1025–975 BCE, a range which includes the biblical date for the biblical Kingdom of David. Others suggest it might represent either a North Israelite, Philistine, or Canaanite fortress, a claim rejected by the archaeological team that excavated the site. The team's conclusion that Khirbet Qeiyafa was a fortress of King David has been criticised by Israel Finkelstein and associates.