ABSTRACT
Imported pottery is more likely to be found near trade routes, the important of which crossed the coastal plains and the valleys. An interesting feature of the finds at Iron Age II Israelite sites is the almost complete absence of imported pottery. The most obvious archaeological manifestation of this trade is ceramics imported pottery of various foreign origins is found in many sites throughout the Mediterranean and the Levant, with types uncovered in Israel including the Bichrome, Black on Red, and Akhziv Wares. While Jerusalem and Beersheba have indeed participated in interregional and even international trade, this is not manifested in pottery, since imported pottery was not culturally accepted in these sites. Another feature of Israel and Judah of the Iron Age that accords well with the absence or rarity of imported pottery is the lack of decoration on pottery, suggesting a general propensity to avoid other kinds of pottery.
