Khirbat en-Nahas / Faynan Copper Complex
The site provides unusually substantial evidence for Iron Age copper production, fortifications, and organized economic activity in the region associated with Edom. Its early dates are central to debates about when complex political communities emerged there.
About the Discovery
Khirbat en-Nahas is a large ancient copper-production center in the Faynan district of southern Jordan. Archaeologists have excavated a fortified enclosure, smelting installations, and deep heaps of copper slag left by repeated metalworking. Radiocarbon dates show that the site was active centuries before the period when scholars once thought Edom developed into a complex society.
Faynan and Timna formed important parts of the wider Arabah copper industry. The findings reveal organized labor and metal production, but researchers continue to debate how these activities relate to the formation and political organization of the kingdom of Edom.
Scripture Reference
Genesis 36:8–9; Numbers 20:14–21; 1 Kings 9:26 (regional biblical background; none specifically names Khirbat en-Nahas).