Khirbet Minya

The name Khirbet Minya, as it is widely known from English-language academic literature, is derived from the Arabic name Khirbet el-Minya or Khirbat al-Minya, depending on the transliteration convention used. It means "Ruins of Minya". ==History==

Umayyad construction Khirbet Minya was likely built during the reign of the Umayyad caliph al-Walid I (705-715 CE) and an inscription on a stone found at the site mentions his name. The supposed patron of the palace was al-Walid's son, Umar ibn al-Walid, who served as the governor of Tiberias during his father's reign, but fell out of favour when his uncle Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik became caliph in 715. Khirbat al-Minya served as a local administrative center for a subregion of the Jund al-Urdunn ("District of Jordan") and as a contact point for 'Umar and local Arab tribes. It may also have served as a caravanserai for merchants travelling along the Sea of Galilee or northeast from the lake shore to the coast, as a winter retreat for the governor of Tiberias or a summer retreat for the governor at Baysan. It is likely that the building was used as a khan in this period, due to its position at a cross-road between the main Damascus-Cairo route, dubbed "Via Maris" in modern times, and a secondary route to Safad via Khan Jubb Yusuf. A Khan al-Minya was constructed 300 m due north of the palace by Saif al-Din Tankiz (reigned 1312–1340), the Mamluk governor of Syria, during the reign of Al-Nasir Muhammad. Parts of Khirbat al-Minya might have been used as building material for the new khan; baked bricks and a marble capital found during excavations of the khan were assumed to be taken from the palace. Parts of the ruin were used as a water reservoir (likely for a mill) and later a large brick oven was built in the south wing and used to process sugar cane from nearby plantations. In the 19th century locals built huts on the rubble heaps. Post-1948 excavations During July–August 1959, the western section of the palace was excavated by O. Grabar in collaboration with the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). Several rescue digs were later conducted by the IAA in the environs of the palace, revealing a bath from late antiquity/Early Islamic times (1963), a medieval caravanserai (1988) and the remains of a medieval settlement between the palace and the lake (2011). In 2001, a study by the Getty Conservation Institute found severe structural damage to the ruin, caused by the climate and by vegetation. A lack of funds has since prevented countermeasures as well as investment in making the area more accessible to visitors. ==Architecture==

of black basalt stones Enclosure walls and gate The palace of Khirbat al-Minya is contained within an irregular rectangular enclosure (66 by 73 meters) oriented north–south, flanking the basilica hall. To the north are the residential quarters. Masonry and decoration The building is constructed of finely dressed limestone blocks laid in regular courses with a lower course of black basalt stones. The mosque had a simple decoration, but the domed gateway chamber and the southern rooms were richly decorated. The top of the walls were decorated with large stepped merlons and the interior was decorated with a variety of glass and stone mosaics. Marble panels covered the dadoes of the walls and stone mosaics combined with glass cubes were set in geometric carpet-like patterns on the floors of the five southern rooms. A well-preserved floor mosaic has been discovered in the western part of the palace. Based on the foundations of the gate house, parts of the palace were at least 15 metres high. ==Today==

The Israel Nature and Park Authority has erected a sign at the site which states that the protected monument was an Early Islamic palace built by Al-Walid I or Al-Walid II. In 2012, the Institute for Prehistory and Early History of the University of Mainz, in cooperation with the Deutscher Verein vom Heiligen Lande, presented a plan to the Israeli authorities. A guide was published and with financial support from the German Foreign Ministry, and the university is currently working with the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and the Israel Antiquities Authority to protect the masonry from further damage. ==See also==