A
Byzantine lintel was found in the village in the 1870s, with "a Greek cross inscribed in a circle, and having its four arms ornamented with curious facet-work."
Crusader era Charles Clearmont Ganneau suggested al-Burj as the site of the Castellum Arnoldi, near
Beit Nuba, 'in primes auspices campestrum,' built in 1131 A.D. by the Patriarch of Jerusalem, to protect the approach to that city (
William of Tyre). It is the remains of a tower, with 5-meter thick walls, and a door to the east. It is possible the
Crusader castle called
Tharenta, under Muslim rule since 1187. While nearby
Bayt Jiz often has been identified as the Crusader village of
Gith, some scholars (Schmitt, 1980; Fischer, Isaac and Roll, 1996) have suggested that
Gith was actually at
Kŭlảt et Tantûrah.
Ottoman era in al-Burj during
Operation Dani, July 1948 armoured vehicle captured by
Yiftach Brigade at al-Burj In 1838
el-Burj was noted as a
Muslim village, in the
Ibn Humar area in the District of
Er-Ramleh. It was also noted as a being small, "situated on an isolated hill surrounded by open vallies and plains." It was further noted that "there are here evident traces of an ancient site, apparently once fortified." In 1863
Victor Guérin found the village to have no more than 200 inhabitants, and noted that the Crusader fortress was in ruins. An
Ottoman village list from about 1870 showed that Al-Burj had a population of 139 in a total of 31 houses, though that population count included men, only. It was further noted that it was located one hour from
Beit Ur al-Tahta. In 1873–74
Clermont-Ganneau noted that the village was closely connected with
Bir Ma'in. By the beginning of the 20th century, former Bedouins from the
'Arab al-Jaramina tribe settled the in the village in and neighboring
Bir Ma'in.
British Mandate era In the
1922 census of Palestine conducted by the
British Mandate authorities, Al Burj had a population of 344; all
Muslims, increasing in the
1931 census to 370, still all Muslims, in a total of 92 houses. In the
1945 statistics, the village had a population of 480 Muslims, while 12 dunams were built-up (urban) areas. An elementary school for boys was completed in 1947 with around 35 pupils. In 1992 the village site was described: "Only one crumbled house remains on the hilltop. Cactuses and wild plants grow on the site. The nearby settlements uses the village for hothouse agriculture." In 2002 a woman, Kawthar al-Amir, published a 64 page long book about Al-Burj. According to Rochelle Davis, the book is "innovatively styled for children, the descendants of the village who do not know about the village," and it is a "question and answer format, as a conversation between her and her granddaughter Bahiyya." ==References==