Mount Ebal site
Aerial photo | |
Mount Ebal Site Shown within the West Bank | |
| Alternative name | Mount Ebal Altar Iron Age structure on Mount Ebal |
|---|---|
| Location | West Bank |
| Region | Mount Ebal |
| Coordinates | 32°14′22″N 35°17′15″E / 32.23946°N 35.287396°E |
| Type | cultic site |
| Height | 785 m |
| History | |
| Material | fieldstones |
| Periods | Iron Age I |
| Cultures | Israelite |
| Site notes | |
| Discovered | 1980 |
| Excavation dates | 1982–1989 |
| Archaeologists | Adam Zertal; University of Haifa and the Israel Exploration Society |
| Condition | In ruins |
| Public access | Limited |
The Iron Age I Structure on Mt. Ebal, also known as the Mount Ebal site, Mount Ebal's Altar, and Joshua's Altar, is an archeological site dated to the Iron Age I, located on Mount Ebal, West Bank.
The Mount Ebal site was discovered by Israeli archaeologist Adam Zertal during the Manasseh Hill Country Survey in 1980. Zertal, who later excavated the site for eight seasons, suggested to identify it as Joshua's altar as featured in the Book of Joshua of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). This identification was fiercely debated during the 1980s. Today, many archeologists agree that the structure was a site of an early Israelite cultic activity; however, its identification with Joshua's altar is disputed.
The site and its possible archaeological significance in Jewish history became a political issue in 2021 after a portion of the site was damaged by municipal workers of the Palestinian National Authority. This followed zoning changes that placed it under Palestinian jurisdiction. The damage to the site in turn promoted calls from the Israeli right to transform the site, which is currently not marked on maps as being of archaeological significance, into an archaeological park.