| Tell el-Maqlub | |
| Condition: | In ruins |
| Public Access: | Yes |
| Native Name: | تل ٱلْمقلوب |
| Map Size: | 250 |
| Map Type: | Jordan |
| Location: | Ajloun Governorate, Jordan |
| Coordinates: | 32.4024°N 35.6823°W |
| Type: | Settlement |
Tell el-Maqlub ('Over-turned mound') is an archaeological site in Ajloun Governorate, Jordan. It is dated to the Bronze and Iron Ages.
Tell el-Maqlub is situated atop of a hill overlooking a bend in Wadi Yabis, in a region known in biblical times as Gilead. It is located 35 km from the Sea of Galilee, 75 km from the Mediterranean Sea, 11 km east of the Jordan River, 3 km northeast of Halawah, and 20 km south-southwest of Beit She'an, Israel.
Tell el-Maqlub is commonly identified with biblical town of Jabesh Gilead.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] This identification is thought to be in accordance with the account of Eusebius, who described "Iabeis Galaad" in the 4th century CE as a "village beyond the Jordan located on the mountains six miles from the city of Pella on the road to Gerasa."[6]
Some biblical scholars, including Nelson Gluck, preferred to place Jabesh-Gilead in Tell Abu el-Kharaz, located further east along the Wadi Yabis. This identification is based on the account given in Book of Samuel, which mentions Jabesh as being a night's march away from Beit She'an.[7]
Tell el-Maqlub was once surrounded by a massive defensive wall, parts of it are still visible today. Potsherds from the Early Bronze Age (I-II), Middle Bronze Age (I-IIA), Iron Age (I-II) and Roman-Byzantine periods were found here.
Based on archeological surveys conducted at the site, Tell el-Maqlub was a large, fortified town during the Iron Age, and when the nearby hills were first terraced for agriculture.