Shunem: History and Origin of the Ancient Biblical City

• The Bible makes reference to a small town called Shunem, sometimes spelled Shunaam.
• Shunem was under Issachar’s control, one of the tribes that founded the Kingdom of Israel.

Located south of Mount Moriah and north of Mount Gilboa, the village of Shunem was referenced in the Old Testament by Joshua: “And their territory went to Jezreel, and included Chesulloth, Shunem” (Joshua 19:18). East of Afula, near the Arab hamlet of Sulam, lies the site that has been identified as the city of Sulam, where Jews continued to live throughout the Mishnah and Talmud periods near the Jezreel Valley.

Evidence on Shunem from the Past

1

The name Shunem (or Shunaam) appears in the Bible on many occasions. After Samuel’s death, the Philistines assembled at Shunem, while Saul set up camp at Gilboa in preparation for conflict with Israel:

“The Philistines assembled and came and set up camp at Shunem, while Saul gathered all Israel and set up camp at Gilboa.”

(1 Samuel 28:4)

The term “person from Shunem” (Shunammite) is sometimes used interchangeably with “Shulamite,” the bride of Solomon.

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2

One of King David’s trusted servants in his later years was a Shunammite or Shulamite called Abishag. She was from the city of Shunem (or Shulem):

So, they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought her to the king.

(1 Kings 1:3)

3

The prophet Elisha visited the city of Shunem, where he was welcomed by a rich lady (the Shunammite woman), who conceived a child with Elisha’s blessing and gave birth to him. Elisha performed a miracle to revive her dead son.

One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there. He said to his servant Gehazi, “Call the Shunammite.” So, he called her, and she stood before him.

2 Kings 4:11-13

4

Shunem was one of the towns that the Egyptian pharaoh Thutmose III captured back in the 15th century BC. Amarna Letters 250 and 365, written in the 14th century BC, make reference to the city as well.

These documents claim that the city was conquered and then destroyed by Labaya, a monarch of Shechem. The reason for this attack was Biridiya, the ruler of Megiddo, who grumbled about having to labor in the king’s fields in Shunem alongside tax officials.

5

The new pharaoh of the Israelites, Shishak (Shoshenq I), led an invasion into Israel and captured at least fifteen towns in the 10th century BC, Shunem being one of them. Shishak only took the vast riches of King Solomon.

6

Even after the construction of the Second Temple almost 500 years later, the city maintained its Jewish character, as shown by the Mishnah and the Talmud. The Shunem-born rabbi Yosta bar Shunem is recorded in the fifth canon of the Jerusalem Talmud.

7

The present site of ancient Shunem was first named as such in Eusebius’ Onomasticon (early 4th century CE). According to Ishtori Haparchi’s book “Kaftor VaFerach” (written in the early 14th century), the ancient city of “Shunem” is linked with the modern settlement of “Sulam.”

Sulam, Tel Shunem Today

Tel Shunem is a hill fort in the northeastern section of the settlement of Sulam, covering an area of around 6.2 acres. There is a community cemetery atop Tel Shunem and along its flanks. Early Bronze Age I, Middle Bronze Age, Late Bronze Age, Iron Age, Persian and Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, and Early Islamic era artifacts were discovered on these hillsides.

Significant historical strata were uncovered during excavations at Tel Shunem, which took place between 2002 and 2011. From December 2009 to January 2010, archaeologists conducted a salvage excavation on the northern slope of Tel Shunem, uncovering artifacts from the Byzantine, Roman, and Iron I eras.

Two wall fragments and many pits were uncovered in Layer I, which dates back to the Byzantine era. Part of a wall and a floor from a dwelling room were uncovered in Layer II, which dates back to the Roman era. A 100-inch-deep excavation of Layer III uncovered what seems to be a circular stone house from the ancient Shunem settlement.

Byzantine, Iron I, and Late Bronze Age III were among the five time periods included in the 2010 excavations. Two structures’ foundations and walls were located here; a devastating fire had collapsed them, effectively sealing the stratum and preserving whatever was within. Bowls, cooking pots with handles, and juglets with olive pits were among the artifacts unearthed. This layer’s ceramics indicate that it dates to the end of Egyptian control in Canaan during the Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt, from 1189 BC to 1077 BC.