Wadi al-Hammam | |
|---|---|
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  Wadi al-Hammam  Wadi al-Hammam | |
| Coordinates:32°49′42″N35°29′32″E / 32.82833°N 35.49222°E /32.82833; 35.49222 | |
| Country |  Israel |
| District | Northern |
| Council | al-Batuf |
| Population (2023)[1] | 1,749 |
Wadi al-Hammam (Arabic:وادي الحمّام;Hebrew:וַאדִי אל-חַמָּאם), orWadi Hamam, is anArab village in northernIsrael, located near theSea of Galilee, at the foot ofMount Nitai and across the Wadi Hamam valley fromMount Arbel. It is the easternmost part of theal-Batuf Regional Council. In 2023 its population was 1,749.[1]
In 1948, some of the Arab inhabitants of Wadi El Hammam fled toLebanon.[2] It contains one fairly modernmosque and the trail head for the steep ascent of Mount Arbel.
Khirbet Wadi Hamam is an archaeological site on the outskirts of Hamaam.[3] It was registered asKhirbet el-Wereidat in thePEF's 1870Survey of Western Palestine,[4] from which the modern Hebrew name-Hurbat Vradim, also spelled Hurvat/Horvat Veradim-was derived.[citation needed] The site was excavated between 2007 and 2012 by a team under dig director Uzi Leibner ofHebrew University and yielded the remains of a large Roman-period Jewish village that was abandoned after a decades-long process of decline around the year 400, at the beginning of the Byzantine period.[3][5] The village was situated at the foot of Mount Nitai and thus on the ancient road connecting the centralGalilee, through Wadi Hamam, with the Sea of Galilee.[3]
An ancient synagogue exists on the site with a partially preserved mosaic floor.[3]
The fortifications atop Mount Nitai, which is anature reserve and off limits for visitors, have also been surveyed and partially excavated with the purpose of dating them and placing them in a historical context.[3]
