Biblical Tamar Park

Blossoming Rose has been intricately involved with Biblical Tamar Park since its first discovery back in the 1980s when it was heavily buried by sand. After raising support for the archaeology dig and working hand in hand with the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), Blossoming Rose was later named the caretaker of Biblical Tamar Park.

This 55 acre historic site is still continuing to be discovered with rare and priceless treasures being unearthed and stored for future display. The dedicated men and women of Blossoming Rose not only coordinate archaeological restorations, create related educational programs, but they also provide the staff who help beautify and maintain this important site.

Blossoming Rose provides Tours to Israel, which all include a visit to Biblical Tamar Park. We also have many volunteer and donation opportunities for those who are interested in helping out with Biblical Tamar Park. If you are in Israel and want to visit Biblical Tamar Park, here are directions.

“If only these rocks could speak” is a phrase often heard in Israel. But the rocks do speak at Tamar, and they tell us about the place and the people who lived there, only faintly remembered and recorded in biblical writings. They are a visible reminder of what happened when nomads first wandered across the region, followed by Canaanites, Phoenicians, Hebrews, Arabs and other Semitic tribes who settled the land, and who left behind distinct layers of sediment and stone to form the Seven Periods of archeological history we see today.

What we find in this desert oasis are ancient roadways converging near the tip of the Dead Sea at En Hatzeva (or “strong spring”), located at the base of a giant Jujube tree where its cool waters quenched the thirst of weary travelers as the demands of commerce gave employment to local residents and taxes to kings, princes and emperors. Whether by design or accident, it was a convenient stopover for camel caravans carting trade goods along the now famous “incense and spice route,” a commercial enterprise reaching from the Far East, on down to the port city of Gaza and beyond. But it was much more important than that. Major figures of the Hebrew Bible were also part of the picture.

Now, of course, new highways run beside the old ones, but Biblical Tamar Park stands as a monument to the past and a resting place for modern travelers. It is an active tel designed as an educational center for Israeli students and tourists.

Our goal has always been to use interactive displays to show who was there, what actually happened and when. You will see the oldest Israelite four-room house ever found, dating to the days of Abraham, huge openings where Solomonic like gates once stood, Roman baths, aqueducts and fortress walls, as well as evidence of earthquakes and the all-too-frequent foreign military conquests. Reconstructions reveal information about people living at Tamar during the critical Seven Periods. As the site is analyzed and slowly rebuilt, the truth slowly emerges. We begin to see what life was like back then, from the times when early Hebrews first arrived, to present-day Israelis now living in the Land of Israel.