Tel Qana (Arabic: Tell el-Mukhmar, Hebrew: êàçàÃÂ) is an archaeological site and historical mound situated in the Yarkon river basin, near the confluence of Wadi Qana and the Yarkon. It is situated 3 km east of Ramat HaSharon, 5 km south of Ra'anana, and 4.5 km northwest of Tel Afek. The mound spans an area of 25 dunams and rises to a height of around 12 meters its the surrounding, and includes finds from the Early, Middle, and Late Bronze Ages, Iron Age IâÂÂII, and the Persian, Roman, and Byzantine periods.
The Crusader name of the site was Filie de Comar. The site is mentioned in a boundary description in Hasseki Sultan imaret's endowment deed, dated to 1552. The name is listed as Tall bin muḫmÃÂrrecte /Tall il-muḫmÃÂr/ âÂÂthe mound of Mukhmar.â MuḫmÃÂr might be an ancient Canaanite/Biblical Hebrew survival of mkmr âÂÂsnareâÂÂ.
The modern Hebrew name of the site derives from Wadi Qana, near which it stands.
A sizable Late Bronze Age II cist grave that is distinctive in its size, plastering, and eastâÂÂwest orientation is the main find at Tell Qana. A young adult's was found buried in the grave with funerary goods made of metal and ceramic. The ceramic vessels, which belong to the latter part of the Late Bronze Age II, are made locally. The distinctive elements of the cemetery, such as the excellent lime plaster, hint at the potential social standing of the deceased and imply influences from other civilizations, including Egyptian. But nothing related to Egypt turned up in this burial.
In 2024, a 12-year-old girl was hiking below Tel Qana when she found a beetle-like stone used as an Egyptian amulet about 3,500 years ago. Two scorpions appear on it, standing head to tail. According to Dr. Yitzhak Paz of the Israel Antiquities Authority, âÂÂThe scorpion symbol represented the Egyptian goddess Serket, who was considered responsible, among other things, for protecting pregnant mothers. Another decoration on the amulet is the nefer symbol, which in Egyptian means âÂÂgoodâ or âÂÂchosenâÂÂ. There is also another symbol which looks like a royal staff.â Such scarab amulets found in IsraelâÂÂâÂÂsometimes used as a sealâÂÂâÂÂare evidence of Egyptian rule in the Israel region about 3,500 years ago, and its cultural influence on the region.