event · evt_hazor_final_late_bronze_destruction
Final Late Bronze Age destruction of Hazor
A severe destruction horizon affected the Late Bronze city and palace, including intense burning and damaged cultic and elite contexts.
What is the evidence?
observation
A severe destruction horizon affected the Late Bronze city and palace, including intense burning and damaged cultic and elite contexts.proposed causes
The destruction is secure, but absolute date and attacker identity are not.
Inspect the sources →Review and provenance
Specialist reviewer: not recorded. Review date: not recorded.
Dataset workflow: proposed. This is separate from specialist review.
Confidence describes the stated assessment; it does not certify expert approval. How review works.
Chronology
Dating intervals may describe uncertainty or phases; their width alone does not establish event duration.
1250 BCE–1180 BCE
Precision: approximate range
Chronology model: best current range
highThe destruction is secure, but absolute date and attacker identity are not.
- informs · provides archaeological observation
Hazor at the End of the Late Bronze Age: Back to Basics — Amnon Ben-Tor, Sharon Zuckerman (2008)Supports destruction evidence and one interpretation.
Locator: final Late Bronze destruction discussion - informs · dates
The Destruction of Late Bronze Age Hazor — Shlomit Bechar, Amnon Ben-Tor, Ido Wachtel, Daphna Ben-Tor, Elisabetta Boaretto, Philipp W. Stockhammer (2021)Provides recent alternative chronologies and process scenarios.
Locator: radiocarbon, stratigraphy, and two scenarios - informs · proposes interpretation
Remembering the Destruction of Hazor: Historiography and Cultural Memory — Brendon C. Benz (2019)Tests later narrative memory separately.
Locator: memory-model analysis
1250 BCE–1220 BCE
Precision: modelled range
Chronology model: earlier hazor destruction scenario
moderateOne integrated scenario places the destruction earlier within the thirteenth-century transition; calibration and context association leave a range.
- informs · dates
The Destruction of Late Bronze Age Hazor — Shlomit Bechar, Amnon Ben-Tor, Ido Wachtel, Daphna Ben-Tor, Elisabetta Boaretto, Philipp W. Stockhammer (2021)Supports the earlier scenario.
Locator: radiocarbon and scenario 1 discussion
1220 BCE–1180 BCE
Precision: modelled range
Chronology model: later hazor destruction scenario
moderateA later scenario remains compatible with parts of the sequence and regional synchronisms; it does not identify the destroyer.
- informs · dates
The Destruction of Late Bronze Age Hazor — Shlomit Bechar, Amnon Ben-Tor, Ido Wachtel, Daphna Ben-Tor, Elisabetta Boaretto, Philipp W. Stockhammer (2021)Supports the later scenario.
Locator: radiocarbon and scenario 2 discussion
Interpretation and caveats
A major violent destruction ended Late Bronze Hazor; the date and responsible agents remain unresolved between plausible scenarios.
Event context
Classification
Event type: settlement destruction
Evidence layer: archaeological
Timeline role: regional core
People and places
Locations: Hazor, Galilee and northern valleys, Hazor, Galilee and northern valleys
Affected entities: Canaanite city communities
Why it matters to the timeline
Hazor is a key test case for conquest, local conflict, Egyptian withdrawal, destruction chronologies, and possible cultural memory.
Alternative interpretations
- Destruction by emerging Israelite/highland groups as later remembered in Joshua.
- Internal revolt or local conflict.
- Attack by another regional coalition during imperial fragmentation.
Research notes
- Supports destruction evidence and one interpretation. Role: provides archaeological observation. Locator: final Late Bronze destruction discussion.
- Provides recent alternative chronologies and process scenarios. Role: dates. Locator: radiocarbon, stratigraphy, and two scenarios.
- Tests later narrative memory separately. Role: proposes interpretation. Locator: memory-model analysis.
Evidence and sources
- informs · provides archaeological observation
Hazor at the End of the Late Bronze Age: Back to Basics — Amnon Ben-Tor, Sharon Zuckerman (2008)Supports destruction evidence and one interpretation.
Locator: final Late Bronze destruction discussion - informs · dates
The Destruction of Late Bronze Age Hazor — Shlomit Bechar, Amnon Ben-Tor, Ido Wachtel, Daphna Ben-Tor, Elisabetta Boaretto, Philipp W. Stockhammer (2021)Provides recent alternative chronologies and process scenarios.
Locator: radiocarbon, stratigraphy, and two scenarios - informs · proposes interpretation
Remembering the Destruction of Hazor: Historiography and Cultural Memory — Brendon C. Benz (2019)Tests later narrative memory separately.
Locator: memory-model analysis
Referenced records
- Galilee and northern valleys · entity
- Canaanite city communities · entity
- Hazor · entity