The cultural biography of two volute capitals at Iron Age Hazor

ABSTRACT This article deals with two volute capitals discovered in secondary use at Hazor in the late 1950s and with their significance to the study of the conflicts between Israel and Aram-Damascus during the 9th and 8th centuries bce. A fresh look at the ‘cultural biography’ of these monumental artworks in light of the architectural and cultural development of the Iron Age city challenges the conventional explanation of their unique findspot as the result of squatter activity. It is suggested that the two capitals were removed from their original location and placed nearby in a highly visible context as part of an attempt to contest their previously intended meaning and to demonstrate the power of a new political entity.