Tell el-Far´ah (Süd)

Tell el-Far’ah (South) is among the sites in southern Palestine where W.M.F. Petrie searched for Egyptian material culture in order to further our understanding of the diverse relations between Egypt and Palestine. Besides a number of graves bearing Egyptian treasures he also discovered an entire house he claimed was the residence of an Egyptian governor. Pivotal in this interpretation were engraved ivory panels found in this building which once adorned a wooden object of some sort. However, Petri presented his conclusions in only a few sentences, without dwelling on comparisons or detailed explanations. Other scientists who shared or defended his interpretations have rarely dealt directly with the findings themselves. Erika Fischer offers the first detailed analysis of the ivory panels as well as the residence.The stratigraphy and architectural history of the building remain controversial. In order to properly judge the house in its cultural and historical setting of the Late Bronze Age Levant, the author critically discusses the so-called Governer´s Residences and shows how contradictory previous classifications and interpretations of such buildings have been. A detailed iconographic study forms the basis for dating and classifying the engravings and their main subject. Finally, the author demonstrates the relationship between the contractor, the panels and the house in which they were found.