Necropolises and funerary practices of Middle Bronze Age Palestine. Typological and functional characterization, chronological framework, and spatial analysis

This dissertation examines necropolises and funerary practices of Middle Bronze Age Palestine (MBA, 2000/1950-1500 BC) through an integrated typological, functional, and spatial approach. By combining large-scale synthetic analysis with detailed contextual study, the research aims to reassess mortuary variability across the region, moving beyond traditional interpretations focused primarily on social ranking and wealth. A comprehensive database of 622 funerary contexts from forty sites forms the empirical foundation of the study, allowing for comparative analyses of tomb architecture, burial practices, treatment of the body, and grave assemblages. Particular attention is devoted to the spatial relationship between the living and the dead, investigating intra- and extra-mural burials, rural cemeteries, and isolated necropolises within the broader framework of MBA urbanism. The results suggest that funerary practices in MBA Palestine were not merely passive reflections of social structures, but active instruments in the construction and negotiation of social identities within an increasingly urbanised and interconnected landscape.