Dwellings and Burial Complex from Ramat Matred (Negev Highlands)

Middle Canaanite (Bronze) I Period, 2200-2000 BCE
Dwellings and Burial Complex from Ramat Matred (Negev Highlands), Middle Canaanite (Bronze) I Period, 2200-2000 BCEDwellings and Burial Complex from Ramat Matred (Negev Highlands), Middle Canaanite (Bronze) I Period, 2200-2000 BCEThe complex consists of a circular courtyard surrounded by several circular living and working areas. At some stage, two dwelling rooms became tumuli (from the Latin tumulus, meaning a mound). The tumuli graves in the Negev Highlands are made from a chest whose floor and walls are constructed from flat stone slabs. The deceased was laid out in this chest in a fetal position. The chest was covered by stone slabs, and stones and earth were piled on top and around the chest.