Elusa / Haluza
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Elusa (Haluza / Halasa) was a Nabatean (then Roman and Byzantine) town in the Negev.
Overview
The city was established by the Nabateans in the Negev as a road station for their caravans along the Incense Route connecting Petra with Gaza.
Like in the other Nabatean cities in the area - Oboda, Mampsis, Nessana, Rehovot-in-the-Negev, and (perhaps) Sobata - agricultural project were carried out to sustain the population.
The Roman conquest of 106 CE brought about new periods of prosperity that continued in the Byzantine period. The city was destroyed, probably by earthquake, and abandoned in the 7th century.