The site, roughly , shows evidence of human settlement throughout the
Late Bronze Age, and
Iron Age I and II. The city was destroyed by fire twice, in 1200 BCE and the ninth century BCE.
Hazael of
Aram may have been the military leader who ordered the destruction of the city in the ninth century BCE. The Arameans' siege tactics are known from the
Zakkur stele, which records that Hazael's son, called Ben-Hadad, employed spectacular siege warfare against his enemies. The
Hebrew Bible records that Hazael devastated cities in the Shephelah during the ninth century BCE, including the
Philistine city of
Gath. The similar siege and destruction in 9th century BCE of
Tell es-Safi, a nearby site usually identified as Gath, has been cited by archaeologists as possible evidence of Hazael's campaign. Work at Tel Zayit began with a preliminary survey in 1998 by a
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary team led by Ron Tappy. During the 2005 season, archaeologists discovered the
Zayit Stone among the ruins of a fire dating to the tenth century BC. Alternatively, a 9th-century BC date has been suggested. The stone includes an inscription identified by some scholars as an
abecedary, among the oldest ever discovered. ==See also==