Tel Hadid is an ancient settlement town, identified with the biblical city of Hadid. The earliest remains that were discovered in the tell are a tomb from the Middle Bronze Age.

The settlement is mentioned in the list of settlements occupied by Thutmose III (fifteenth century BCE). There is also a settlement from the time of the Kingdom of Judah in the 7th and 8th centuries BCE.

In 1955 archeological excavations were conducted there, and a mosaic floor was probably found in the sixth century CE, depicting a ship sailing on the Nile, a fortified city, on the banks of the river, the inscription “Igifatus” (Egypt). The mosaic floor was removed from the site and displayed in the National Maritime Museum in Haifa.

In the Bible, the town of Hadid is mentioned as one of the places in which the Shavei Tzion settled (Ezra 2: 3, Nehemiah 7: 37). Later, the place was mentioned as a city fortified by Shimon the Tarasi of the Hasmoneans in 143 BCE. Josephus wrote that Chasepianus captured Hadid in the Great Revolt. In the Mishnaic period, the Sages included the Tanna R. Yakim Ish Hadid (Mishnah, Tractate Ediot, 7: 5). Hadid is also mentioned in the tomb of Eusebius of Caesarea (3rd century CE) and appears on the map of Madaba (the earliest map of the Land of Israel dated from the sixth to the seventh century CE) and the first to describe the landscapes of the country and its settlements.

Rabbi Ashtori Haparchi wrote in 1322 that Hadid was about two hours from the city of Lod on a circular mountain, and was named by the Arabs as Hadita. The city existed during the beginning of the first millennium AD and was considered important during the Roman and Byzantine periods. Numerous rock-cuttings and a Roman-period tomb cave with the inscription “Hannah Matityahu from Beit She’arim” were discovered in the area.

The entrance road to Tel Hadid, at the beginning of the route near Route 444, is also the road to the memorial site for the fallen soldiers of the maintenance corps at the foot of the tell. A path marked with black will lead to the top of the mound, which offers a spectacular view to the west.

For lovers of flowering – around February – March, spread on the mound charming carpet of Iris Eretz Israel, a beautiful flower Iris family that blooms only in Israel and Syria, especially recommended.