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The artifacts pictured here were brought to Mevorakh by Phoenicians, the ancient seafaring people whose native territory was the coastal region of today’s northern Israel, Lebanon, and southern Syria. One of the indicators of the expansion of Phoenician settlement and commerce is their vessels and votive objects, distinctively shaped and decorated.

These black-on-red bowls were imported to Mevorakh from Cyprus—another area of Phoenician settlement. They date from the 10th century B.C. the time when Mevorakh was probably an administrative center in King Solomon’s district of Dor. The red bowls decorated inside and out with black bands are also found at many sites in northern Israel and mark the extent of Phoenician expansion eastward from the Mediterranean coast.