Ancient Town Dor (דאר)

Dor is mentioned in ancient Egyptian writings as the “City of the Tjeker” and also appears several times in the Old Testament. The Greeks attributed the city's founding to Doros, the ancestor of the Dorians. In the time of Ahab, Dor had a city wall with four-chambered gates. After the Assyrian conquest and destruction in 733/32 BCE, Dor was rebuilt around 720 BCE and became the capital of an Assyrian province. The city received a new, mighty city wall based on the Assyrian model. Assyrian rule ended around 630 BCE, and from 603 BCE, Dor was part of the Babylonian Empire, with the Assyrian city wall remaining in use. Persian rule began in 538 BCE and brought with it a new construction of the city wall. Later, from 296 to 201 BCE, Dor was under Ptolemaic control and received another city wall based on the Greek pattern. The city was known for its fortifications and was unsuccessfully besieged by Antiochus III in 216 BCE. From 200 BCE to 104 BCE, it was Seleucid, then Hasmonean until 63 BCE. Archaeological finds such as lead sling bullets attest to sieges. Later, Dor became an independent polis with the right to mint coins.

The ancient city of Dor is located in modern-day Nahsholim, in the Haifa district of Israel, approximately 6 meters above sea level.

The ancient city can be visited today and offers insights into its long and complex history.

• Crusader Castle Merle (Tantura, الطنطوره) (Ancient Buildings), approx. 0.1 km away
• Crusader Castle Cafarlet (كفر لام‎) (Fortress), approx. 2.9 km away
• Crusader Castle Château Pèlerin (Fortress), approx. 10.0 km away
• Crusader Castle Le Destroit (Fortress), approx. 10.5 km away