Mi'ilya: Archaeological Evidence and Olive Oil Tradition
Accommodation in Mi'ilya
Mi'ilya brings together archaeological evidence from several periods and a traditional olive press that still produces oil. If you are looking for a hotel in Mi'ilya, these themes give the destination a distinctive character: you can explore traces of settlement and historic structures, or focus on the continued oil production at El Maazara. The examples also span different periods: alongside finds from Roman times are structures from the Crusader period and a production method still in use today.
Excavations and Historic Cellars
A 2022 report on an excavation in Mi'ilya mentions settlement layers from the Crusader, Mamluk, and Ottoman periods. Based on the finds, a cistern was built no later than Roman times. The excavated remains also include a structure with an eastern wing (Area A) and a western wing (Area B), which was used as a winery. To understand the findings, it is useful to distinguish between the dates and the building's layout: the dates refer to the settlement layers and cistern, while the wings describe the layout of the winery.
The cellar of the Chateau du Roi contains a 12th-century Crusader-era winery and a Roman cistern. After dining at the Chateau du Roi, you can view the antiquities found in the cellar. The winery and the cistern represent different periods and uses.
El Maazara: Olive Oil Made Using a Traditional Method
El Maazara offers a different focus. The 400-year-old, family-run olive press still produces oil using a traditional method in which a donkey turns the millstone. Unlike the excavated structures, the focus here is on production that is still practiced. If you would like to visit the press, check visiting arrangements directly with the operator.
Archaeological Highlights in the Wider Northern District Destination
In the wider Northern District destination, Tel Hazor preserves significant remains of an underground water collection system, considered a sophisticated engineering achievement adapted to the geographical setting. In the water system, steps three meters wide are carved into the walls of a vertical shaft. A visit to Tel Hazor focuses on the Upper City. Tel Hazor includes Solomon's Gate, a six-chambered gate with two towers dating to the 10th century BC. The palace's history also spans different periods: a Canaanite palace was used by the kings of Hazor in the 14th and 13th centuries BC; the Late Bronze Age palace is considered the most elaborate in Israel and one of the most important in the Levant. Tel Hazor's fortifications are considered the finest example of their kind in the area from southern Turkey to the northern Negev.
In the wider Northern District destination, Tel Megiddo offers a different archaeological focus. As a biblical tell, it preserves significant remains of a city associated with biblical accounts. Its Early Bronze Age temple complex is exceptional for the number of its temples, the continuity of cult activity, and the documented ritual practices. An orthogonal city plan dating from the Iron Age also has few parallels in the Levant. This makes it possible to distinguish Tel Hazor and Tel Megiddo by their different themes: water collection, palace, and fortifications at Hazor; religious structures and urban planning at Megiddo.
Discover more destinations: Kfar Blum, Yehud-Monosson, Giv'at Yo'av, Kfar Ruppin, Odem, Kalia Beach, Nir Akiva, Bethlehem.
View the wider travel guide: Israel.
