An Oil Press at Nahal Haggit

Oil and Wine Presses in Israel from the Hellenistic, Roman

and Byzantine Periods

Edited by

Etan Ayalon Rafael Frankel Amos Kloner

BAR International Series 1972 2009

This title published by Archaeopress Publishers of British Archaeological Reports Gordon House 276 Banbury Road Oxford OX2 7ED England [email protected] www.archaeopress.com BAR S1972

Oil and Wine Presses in Israel from the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine Periods © Archaeopress and the editors 2009 ISBN 978 1 4073 0505 9 Printed in England by CMP (UK) Ltd All BAR titles are available from: Hadrian Books Ltd 122 Banbury Road Oxford OX2 7BP England [email protected] The current BAR catalogue with details of all titles in print, prices and means of payment is available free from Hadrian Books or may be downloaded from www.archaeopress.com

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23. An Oil Press at Nahal Haggit

Jon Seligman

(1.3×0.95 m and 0.3–0.4 m thick), one alongside the oil press and one at some distance from it (Fig. 4). The weights were slabs of rock with a small perforation on the top by which a rope attached them to the beam. At the western end of the weight pit were two small sockets in the bed-rock in which were fixed uprights that prevented the beam from moving from side to side during operation. This was a lever and weights press, the beam probably anchored in the wall east of the press-bed and weighted down by stone weights that were hung on it.

The second pressing installation was of a different type (Fig. 5). It was located 3.5 m north of the crushing basin. All that remained of the press were the parts of the installation that were hewn in the bed-rock. The press-bed consisted of a flat area of bed-rock with a diameter of 0.95 m, surrounded by a shallow channel. The channel branched to the south towards a small lateral collecting vat cut into the bed-rock (diameter 0.4 m, depth 0.5 m). The collecting vat was covered by a stone with a hole in its centre that was mortared to the bed-rock. On either side of the press-bed were key-hole shaped central dovetail mortices hewn into bed-rock.4 Wooden posts were fixed by placing them in the round holes and were then slotted into the narrower rectangular part. It is clear that this was a direct frame screw press. The posts supported a wooden screw that provided the pressure on the frails of olive pulp placed on the press-bed.

In the immediate area of the presses were three round pits. Each was plastered to prevent the seepage of any liquid stored within. Large broken amphorae of Spanish origin were found in the pits. We suggest that these were vats in which the oil was separated from the watery lees.

Discussion

The crushing basin with a concave profile is extremely uncommon in Israel. From the many examples of crushing basins listed by Frankel (1984: 31–35; 1999: 68–72) only a very limited number have this profile. Two examples of basins with a concave profile and a raised central socket are listed: Kh. Clil (Frankel 1984: 332) and Kh. Hamoud (Ibid.: 334). To this should be added the basin from Khorazim (Yeivin 1966: 58). Most crushing basins in Israel have a flat crushing surface, though it must be noted that in the Aegean and Italy the concave profile was predominant and is found from the Hellenistic period onwards (Frankel 1984: 124; 1999: 73). The crushing stone at Nahal Haggit

The Site

The site (MR 1539/2245) is set on a hill between Nahal Haggit (Haggit Stream) and Nahal Tut (Tut Stream), 4 km north-east of Bat Shlomo and commanding a good view over the Zichron Ya‘acov–Yokne‘am road. This was probably also a major route in ancient times. Excavations were conducted here during 1993 due to the construction of power station1 (Seligman 1997; forthcoming).

Three levels of settlement were uncovered, the oil press belonging by the coins and pottery to the second level that is dated to the 2nd-early 4th cent. CE. The remains of the site during this period consist of a square enclosure wall (90×90 m) enclosing a number of separate residential units, rooms and an oil press complex at the centre of the site. While this site seems to be an agricultural complex it clearly shows central organization and may well be a settlement of Roman army veterans.

The Oil Press

The oil press consisted of large crushing basin, two separate pressing installations of different types and a number of separation vats (Figs. 1–2).

The crushing basin was cut from a single block of limestone with a diameter of 2.2 m. It had a concave profile and raised socket.2 The basin was set on a base of stones raising its surface 1 m above the bed-rock floor. No crushing stones were found though we suggest that these probably had rounded edges to match the opposing profile of the basin surface.

The use of a friable limestone probably meant that the olive pulp resulting from the crushing contained grains of the rock that certainly reduced its quality. The working surface of the basin was heavily worn, showing a long period of use.

10 m east of the crushing basin was the first of two pressing units (Fig. 3). All its components were also carved in the bed-rock. The press-bed was an oval shaped stone slab 0.8–1.0 m in diameter with radial grooves leading to a hole in its centre.3 The slab was set above a pear-shaped collecting vat some 0.6 m in diameter and 0.6 m deep. No evidence of press piers was found in the vicinity of the press-bed. To the west was an elongated pit with tapered sides, 3.1 m long and 0.7 m deep. This pit contained the weights that were hung on the beam. Two such weights were found

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was probably not convex, as in many Aegean examples, but rather had the usual wheel shape with rounded edges.

The lever and weights press was common from the Hellenistic period until the modern day. The press-bed with radial grooves and central collection has no clear regional distribution and this type is known from a number of sites.5 The nearest known examples are from Meggadim, Shalallah and Bet She‘arim (Frankel 1984: 38–39; 1999: 85).

Pliny (317, 74, 18) notes direct frame presses in the 1st cent. CE and it is thus clear that this type existed outside Israel during his time. The presses in Israel are dated mainly to the Byzantine period (Frankel 1984: 178). Indeed Frankel (1999: 117) is most forthright on this chronological foundation and states that “…no screw weight has been recorded that dates to the Roman period...”. Gichon (1979–80: 232–241) suggests that the related upright pillar press is associated with military settlement from the 2nd cent. CE. The very organized nature of the Nahal Haggit enclosure suggests a military connection and this may strengthen the argument and explain the early date for our press. It should be noted, though, that Gichon's evidence for this connection and dating is circumstantial and not stratigraphic.6 The earliest press in Israel of this general type from a stratigraphic context is found at Khorazim and is dated to the 2nd-4th (Yeivin 1966: 52) or to the 3rd cent. CE (Ibid.: 6*). Of our specific type the earliest example known previously is from Kh. Jalame (Site 20) and is dated from 350 CE (Davidson-Weinberg 1988: 15). Thus the direct frame press found at Nahal Haggit is the earliest of its specific type found till now in Israel.

This type of press has a wide distribution (Frankel 1984: 65–66, 175; 1999: 130–137) though the specific type with a central dovetail frame socket is known from a limited number of sites: two oil presses at Jalame (Davidson-Weinberg 1988: 15–16, Fig. 2–5), Mishkena (Frankel 1984: 65, 371; 1999: 135–136) and er-Rama (Frankel 1984: 65, 371; 1999: 135 [Site 9]). All these sites are in the Galilee, Jalame located not far from Nahal Haggit. It should be noted that the central dovetail socket is often used to fix single screws of wine presses, especially in the north of the country (Frankel 1984: 176; 1999: 144–145).

A number of questions arise from the existence of two pressing units of different types in the same pressing complex. Are the two units contemporary? Certainly they belong to a single layer that ceased its existence in the early 4th cent. CE. If they were built at the same time then why use two different pressing technologies? As Frankel (1984: 178) notes there are other examples of different pressing technologies found together in a number of sites and he suggests that the beam and weights press was used for initial pressing while the screw press was utilized for secondary processing.

It has been suggested that central and lateral collection of the expressed liquid was a regional feature, lateral

collection being predominant in the north and central collection being a feature of Judaea (Frankel 1996: 205). The lever and weights press at Nahal Haggit displays a southern characteristic as the collection vat is central while the collection in the screw press is lateral. Thus interestingly, both collection types appear together, a fact that needs further explanation.

The direct frame press found here is out of its usual chronological framework. It is clear, as stated above, that the press went out of use in the 4th cent., thus making it the earliest known press of this type in the country.

Notes

1. The excavation at Nahal Haggit was conducted throughout 1993 under the auspices of the Israel Antiquities Authority (permits 1935 and 1984). The excavation was directed by the author with the assistance at various times of: Bella Davidson, Iskander Jabbour, Maha Derouche, Camil Sari, Nurit Shaharon, Gideon Surger, Samuel Wolff and Vladimir Zbenovich.2. The crushing basin with a concave profile and a raised central socket is defined by Frankel (1984: 34, 1999: 69–70) as type 3.3.2.3. The press-bed with radial grooves and central collection is defined by Frankel (1984: 39, 130) as type 4.1.8.2.4. The press-bed with two closed frame mortices is defined by Frankel (1984: 17, 65, 1999: 135–136) as type 7.4, of which ours is of sub-type 7.4.3 that has key-hole shaped mortices, a sub-type named the Rama and Mishkena Presses.5. Frankel (1984: 39) lists eight examples of this type of press-bed from all over the country.6. Indeed Kloner (1989: 74) gives a 4th cent. CE date for the same pillar presses.

Bibliography

Davidson-Weinberg, G. (ed.). 1988. Excavations at Jalame, Site of a Glass Factory in Late Roman Palestine. Columbia.

Frankel, R. 1984. The History of the Processing of Wine and Oil in Galilee in the Period of the Bible, the Mishna and the Talmud. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis. Tel Aviv University (Hebrew).

Frankel, R. 1996. “Oil Presses in Western Galilee and Judaea – A Comparison”. In: D. Eitam and M. Heltzer (eds.). Olive Oil in Antiquity, Israel and Neighbouring Countries from the Neolithic to the Early Arab Period. Padova: 197–218.

Frankel, R. 1999. Wine and Oil Production in Antiquity in Israel and Other Mediterranean Countries. Sheffield.

Gichon, M. 1979–80. “The Upright Screw-Operated Pillar Press in Israel”. SCI 5: 206–243.

Kloner, A. 1989. “The Upright Pillar Press in Caves in Judaea”. NZ 15: 66–74 (Hebrew).

Pliny the Elder, 1958–1963. Naturalis Historiae (10 vols.) (Trans. H. Rackham). London and Cambridge.

Seligman, J. 1997. “Nahal Haggit”. ESI 16: 61–63.

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Fig. 23.1. Nahal Haggit, plan and sections of the oil press.

Seligman, J. Forthcoming. “Nahal Haggit – A Roman and Medieval Farming Community in the Southern Carmel”. 'IAA Reports. Jerusalem.

Yeivin Z. 1966. “Two Ancient Oil Presses.” ‘Atiqot (HS) 3: 52–3 (Hebrew).

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Fig. 23.2. Nahal Haggit, general view of the oil press looking south.

Fig. 23.3. Nahal Haggit, the oil press, view to the west.

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Fig. 23.4. Nahal Haggit, oil press weight.

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Fig. 23.5. Nahal Haggit, the northern oil press, view to the south.