Hebrew name: Mitzpor Tel Nagila
Location: Nahal Shikma scenic route
Description: The tel rises above the Nahal Shikma channel that goes deep until it reaches the ground water here, as testified by the reed stalks filling the lake. These waters were drunk by the primordial inhabitants of the tel. The tel is identified by a single tamarisk tree growing at its peak, a wonderful vantage point over the surroundings. In summer, the scene of harvested fields bedecked in a golden hue at twilight spreads out before you.
Excavations were carried out, at a limited scope, at Tel Nagila in 1962 and 1963. The findings show that the main settlement in the site existed in the second middle bronze age (1750-1550 BC). In those days, a large settlement was thriving here, protected by a tall battery with a thick brick wall in its inner side. In the Mamluk period, a road of the Khan lay at the top of the tel, and during the War of Independence, the site became a post that was instrumental in the battle against the Egyptian invasion.
Directions: Drive along the Kiryat Gat – Kama Junction road (road 40) and turn westwards by the 215th km, according to the signage of the Pura Nature Reserve (only those coming from the north may take the turn). The large square is the beginning of the Nahal Shikma scenic route, which is passable for all vehicles. Pass by the Pura Reserve, the Pura recreation area, the Turkish train bridge over Pura lake and the Nagila well, with its nearby recreation area with benches, and you reach the Nagila tel, after driving for about six kilometers through pleasant rolling fields.