Economic Strategies of Two Early Bronze Age Villages in the Southern Levant: Explaining Coastal Abandonment Versus Inland Urban Development

The southern Levantine coast was settled continuously for three millennia, from the Neolithic period until its abandonment in Early Bronze Age II, in sharp contrast to inland sites that developed into urbanized cities. This study examines this phenomenon by investigating the pottery production component of the economic systems of two contemporary EB I villages: a shoreline coastal site that was abandoned (Dor South) and an inland site that evolved into an urban center (‘En Esur). This pilot ceramic petrography examination shows two distinct strategies, with ‘En Esur producing pottery primarily from local raw materials and Dor South relying mainly on imported pottery, potentially weakening the once-resilient coastal system.