On May 12, KKL-JNF held an educational event at Adulam-France Park, where children and their families got to learn about the significance of the newly uncovered Burgin Ruins through fun, educational activities, and were entertained by popular television character Kofiko the monkey.Kofiko, Israel's funniest and best-loved monkey, put on a show for hundreds of children from the schools of the Mateh Yehuda region, and their parents, during their visit to the Burgin Ruins in
Park Adulam France on Friday May 12. The performance was the culmination of an adventure-filled day of exploring ancient ruins, crawling through underground caves and walking in nature. This event was produced by the KKL-JNF Events Department in the Public Relations Division, to raise awareness of the ancient site among the general public as part of the organizations’
115th year celebrations.
KKL-JNF
guides were on hand to lead the visitors through the excavations while providing explanations. Burgin Ruins (Hirbat Burgin) is situated on a hill in the magnificent Adulam France
Park, which today is a well-known venue for Israeli nature lovers and cyclists. The park, which covers some 50,000 acres of gorgeous rolling natural hills and farmland, is dotted with archeological sites that date back to biblical times. According to the bible, King David hid there in a cave, when fleeing from Saul. The site has been developed and preserved by KKL-JNF thanks to the support of Friends of
KKL France, earning the park its name.
At Hirbat Burgin, while crawling through the myriad of underground caves - which thrilled young and old alike - the visitors were told of the fate of successive communal settlements which existed there from the Byzantine and Ottoman periods.
Some of the caves were used by Jews for burial at the time of the Second Temple. In the walls were “kokhim”, or niches, where the bodies of the dead were laid. The caves also had hiding places hewn in the rock that were used during the time of the Bar Kokhba revolt against the Roman Empire. Above the caves, ruins of homes and public buildings have been uncovered, including what was a church and a Roman villa.
The days’ activities ended with a ceremony held under the auspices of the three organizations that are responsible for the development and upkeep of Adulam-France Park Adulam -KKL-JNF, the Israel Antiquities Authority and the Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. Also in attendance were President of KKL France in Toulouse,
Flavien Sellem, and
Reuven Naamat, former KKL-JNF Emissary to France.
KKL-JNF Judean Hills Forest and Community Director
Gidi Bashan told the audience that just 17 years ago, the area looked like the unkempt “Wild West” of the state of Israel.
“Nobody had the slightest interest in visiting this area. We at KKL-JNF decided to create a
park for public use that would emphasize all the natural elements that are present here including the amazing scenery and ancient ruins. The creation of this park averted various commercial and industrial initiatives that were underway which would have ruined the entire region. It is a victory for nature and ecology and for the preservation of our heritage. It is also a victory for the people of Israel.”
Dr.
Haim Messing, KKL-JNF Central Region Director, said that the beautiful park is a “clear statement of what KKL-JNF does”.
“Our goal is to make all open spaces in Israel
accessible to the public, at no cost, and to enhance love of the land for the people of Israel. The result we see here before us is the product of a lot of work carried out by KKL-JNF and the Israel Antiquities Authority. I want to express our gratitude to French Jewry and KKL France for helping us to make all this possible. I also want to thank the President of JNF Toulouse, Flavien Sellem, for coming here, to be with us today.”
Anna Eirikh, who is Chief Archeologist of the Yehuda Region at the Israel Antiquities Authority, said that before Adulam-France Park was developed the entire area was subject to massive archeological robbery.
“As an archeologist I can tell you that 20 years ago, this was the “Wild West” underground too. Hundreds of artifacts dating back to the bible were stolen by grave robbers. It was only once KKL-JNF and the Israel Antiquities Authority began work here that the looting stopped. I hope that our work with KKL-JNF will continue because there are still many archeological sites in this region that we have not yet touched.”
Eran Ohana, Head of Tourism at the Mateh Yehuda Regional Council, spoke of the oil shale industry that was thwarted and the urban development plan that was stopped.
“Protecting an area like this from industry and commercial development is not easy and besides thanking from KKL-JNF for the part it played, we must thank local residents for their unremitting protest campaign as well. Today it is clear just how important it is to preserve these places. And not only because of the intense beauty we see all around us, but also because of the inherent values that are embedded here and are connected to education, heritage, history and love of the land. I invite one and all to come here and share these values with us.”
The visitors were then invited to walk up to the
observation point at the top of Burgin Ruins where it is possible to see the Jerusalem mountains and the Hebron hills, as well as Tel Azeka in
British Park, Moshav Nehusha, Beit Shemesh and Gush Etzion.