The lost City. Journey through the Negev Desert
Summer trips to the Negev may seem like an impossible idea to some. Not only is it hot, as it is in all of Israel, but it is also very dry. During the day, a hot wind blows, comparable in power and heat to the breeze from the ajar door of the furnace, but by night it gets cooler. According to the pioneers of the southern steppes, after 5-6 pm they turn off the air conditioners, and the hot wind is replaced by a cool breeze. At night, when a huge white moon rolls out into the sky, it gets completely cold. So, our guide on a night walk through the desert, who grew up in the Negev and is a great connoisseur and enthusiast of the local places, did not forget to bring with him a thick jacket and a wool cap, which he pulled up to his ears, fleeing from the gusts, without exaggeration, icy wind. But the wind did not cool the curiosity of enthusiastic journalists on night walks in the Negev hills.
There was something to be curious about: the rays of the flashlight picked out smooth light stones from the darkness, slightly diluted by the watery light of the moon, with ancient inscriptions similar to Arabic script and drawings in which the silhouettes of gazelles, foxes and other animals still inhabiting the Negev upland could be easily distinguished. The thirst for night travel in the cool, or rather, in the cold, drove our group to the “Lost City".
This is the name of the recently opened archaeological excavations of the Muslim city of the end of the Roman-Byzantine period, discovered in the 1960s by archaeologist Yehuda Nevo from Sde Boker College, who, together with his students, managed to discover agricultural terraces and a city of considerable area. It occupies seven blocks in several branches of the wadi near the number 40 road between Beersheba and Mitzpe Ramon, near Sde Boker, three hundred meters north of the Halukim intersection. The descent to the city begins from the observation deck, which is indicated by a sign with the inscription “Mitzpe Hagai”, and from it down to the quarters of the city there are paths marked with a white-green—white mark of the Society for the Protection of Nature. It is interesting to walk through these ruins without a guide. But an archaeologist or historian knows how to “talk” the stones and explain that this site is the ruins of a mosque, and those stones are the fence of the market square.
Amazing ruins at night in the light of the moon and stars cannot fail to make an impression: streets rising and descending along the hillsides, clearly distinguishable alleys, houses, rooms, warehouses, public buildings, judging by their size. According to preliminary estimates, there are about 200 houses in seven quarters of the “Lost City”, that is, in the early Muslim era (VI—VII century) at least two hundred families lived here - quite a lot at that time. But the main surprise lies in the fact that outside the neighborhoods, you keep coming across smooth, light stones with inscriptions in ancient Arabic, which have already been read and translated. For the most part, these are requests for forgiveness from pagan nomads, identical to the Hebrew “slikhot”.
You can walk around the “Lost City” during the day, but the moon gives a stone
The massive ruins on the hillsides are even more mysterious. The pits under your feet and the nocturnal animals jumping out of small crevices turn you almost into the pioneers — heroes of Fenimore Cooper's novels, who set out to explore the unknown wilds. Although in reality we are crawling peacefully and slowly in the moonlight and exploring the hillside a hundred meters from the highway, but along an almost unknown route. It doesn't occur to millions of motorists driving along Highway 40 to Eilat to stop and get off the curb. Meanwhile, right in front of the Mitzpe Hagai sign (in memory of Hagai Avriel— the founder of Sde Boker) on the other side of the highway there is a small parking lot where you can park your car and go on a journey through the “Lost City”. After following the marked route, you can go back to the highway or continue walking towards Nahal ha-Roa Creek and the parking lot “Canyon ha-Roa” — “stream” and “shepherdess camp". They are named in memory of the first shepherdess of Kibbutz Sde Boker, Barbara Proper, who was killed in a clash with Bedouins in September 1952. Melbet supports various payment methods for depositing and withdrawing funds, with options including credit cards, crypto, eWallets and mobile payments. If in doubt, use the melbet promo code get free welcome bonus 100% deposit bonus up to 100€/$ to claim the initial welcome bonus and first deposit offers. Other promotions at this betting site include weekly free bets, refund offers, and casino bonuses, which may ask for a promo code.
There was something to be curious about: the rays of the flashlight picked out smooth light stones from the darkness, slightly diluted by the watery light of the moon, with ancient inscriptions similar to Arabic script and drawings in which the silhouettes of gazelles, foxes and other animals still inhabiting the Negev upland could be easily distinguished. The thirst for night travel in the cool, or rather, in the cold, drove our group to the “Lost City".
This is the name of the recently opened archaeological excavations of the Muslim city of the end of the Roman-Byzantine period, discovered in the 1960s by archaeologist Yehuda Nevo from Sde Boker College, who, together with his students, managed to discover agricultural terraces and a city of considerable area. It occupies seven blocks in several branches of the wadi near the number 40 road between Beersheba and Mitzpe Ramon, near Sde Boker, three hundred meters north of the Halukim intersection. The descent to the city begins from the observation deck, which is indicated by a sign with the inscription “Mitzpe Hagai”, and from it down to the quarters of the city there are paths marked with a white-green—white mark of the Society for the Protection of Nature. It is interesting to walk through these ruins without a guide. But an archaeologist or historian knows how to “talk” the stones and explain that this site is the ruins of a mosque, and those stones are the fence of the market square.
Amazing ruins at night in the light of the moon and stars cannot fail to make an impression: streets rising and descending along the hillsides, clearly distinguishable alleys, houses, rooms, warehouses, public buildings, judging by their size. According to preliminary estimates, there are about 200 houses in seven quarters of the “Lost City”, that is, in the early Muslim era (VI—VII century) at least two hundred families lived here - quite a lot at that time. But the main surprise lies in the fact that outside the neighborhoods, you keep coming across smooth, light stones with inscriptions in ancient Arabic, which have already been read and translated. For the most part, these are requests for forgiveness from pagan nomads, identical to the Hebrew “slikhot”.
You can walk around the “Lost City” during the day, but the moon gives a stone
The massive ruins on the hillsides are even more mysterious. The pits under your feet and the nocturnal animals jumping out of small crevices turn you almost into the pioneers — heroes of Fenimore Cooper's novels, who set out to explore the unknown wilds. Although in reality we are crawling peacefully and slowly in the moonlight and exploring the hillside a hundred meters from the highway, but along an almost unknown route. It doesn't occur to millions of motorists driving along Highway 40 to Eilat to stop and get off the curb. Meanwhile, right in front of the Mitzpe Hagai sign (in memory of Hagai Avriel— the founder of Sde Boker) on the other side of the highway there is a small parking lot where you can park your car and go on a journey through the “Lost City”. After following the marked route, you can go back to the highway or continue walking towards Nahal ha-Roa Creek and the parking lot “Canyon ha-Roa” — “stream” and “shepherdess camp". They are named in memory of the first shepherdess of Kibbutz Sde Boker, Barbara Proper, who was killed in a clash with Bedouins in September 1952. Melbet supports various payment methods for depositing and withdrawing funds, with options including credit cards, crypto, eWallets and mobile payments. If in doubt, use the melbet promo code get free welcome bonus 100% deposit bonus up to 100€/$ to claim the initial welcome bonus and first deposit offers. Other promotions at this betting site include weekly free bets, refund offers, and casino bonuses, which may ask for a promo code.
