Khirbet Jarra'a | |
Map Type: | West Bank |
Location: | West Bank |
Coordinates: | 32.1586°N 35.1952°W |
Type: | ruin |
Epochs: | Crusader/Ayyubid to Ottoman period |
Condition: | In ruins |
Grid Name: | PAL |
Grid Position: | 168/173 |
Khirbet Jarra'a (Arabic: الجراعة) also Khirbet Jerr'a is an archaeological site located in the West Bank, containing remnants of a medieval settlement.
The site was surveyed by Porat and then by Finkelstein et al. Potsherds found here date from the Crusader/Ayyubid, Mamluk and early Ottoman periods, alongside two potsherds from Iron Age II.[1]
Described as "well-preserved" by Finkelstein et al., the site features scattered buildings, some retaining their original vaults.
Porat's observations include the presence of a mosque. Records from the Mandatory Antiquities department also make note of a mosque with a mihrab.
Khirbet Jarra'a is the site of Gerraa, a medieval town mentioned in a Frankish text dating back to 1166. The town is documented alongside several other nearby sites. Conder and Kitchener identified Khirbet Jarra'a with Garia, as depicted in Marino Sanuto's map.
Es-Sakhawi mentions a prominent Hanbali scholar born in Khirbet Jarra'a in 1422.
Ottoman defters list Khirbet Jarra'a as a small settlement, possibly an izba.
According to E. H. Palmer, the name means: "The ruin of the sandhill on which vegetation thrives."[2]