During road construction, two sites, c. 500 m apart, were damaged (Fig. 1:226, 230); both sites were surveyed in the past. Remains of a settlement from the Middle Bronze Age II were identified at Site 226 (Kochavi and Beit-Arieh 2013: Site 226); and Site 230, featuring The remains of a massive structure from the Hellenistic period, was identified as a fortress (Kochavi and Beit-Arieh 2013: Site 230).
 

Site 226 (map ref. 1948–50/6623–4). The excavation comprised 15 squares and 14 half-squares, revealing a single stratum with the remains of a rural settlement dating from the nineteenth–seventeenth centuries BCE. Two clear construction phases were discerned: only plaster floors survived from the early phase, while walls (height 0.5–0.6 m) were preserved from the later phase. In addition, several installations, some rock-hewn and others built, were uncovered throughout the excavation area.

 

Site 230 (map ref. 19528–32/66226–65; Fig. 2). Nine squares were excavated on a hill (100 m asl), revealing the northern part of a massive structure from the Hellenistic period. Its walls were built of large stones (0.6 × 0.8 × 1.0 m), which were roughly hewn, and in most cases set across the width of the wall; The largest stones were placed in the corners. The walls were preserved to a height of four or five courses. Two to three rows of rooms were exposed along the western and eastern walls of the building, and a large courtyard was exposed in the center of the building. Pottery, including numerous storage jars, as well as glassware, metal objects and bronze coins were found on the floors of the rooms. It seems that the structure belonged to a farmstead and not a fortress.