Palace/Temple Courtyard

View looking northwest at the courtyard and entrance to a Late Bronze Age palace or temple on the summit of the citadel of Hazor.  Left of the center there are four black basalt steps that lead up to the entrance to the structure.  Note the two modern, truncated, wooden columns.   In the original building, massive Cedar of Lebanon columns would have supported the roof. To the right and left of the stairs, the lower row of carved basalt stones have been placed in their original setting.  They in turn would have supported a mud brick wall.

In the foreground note, the pebbled courtyard and in the right portion of the image note the altar/podium located in it.

The design of this palace is very similar to the one found at Alalakh 215 miles [345 km.] north in Turkey.

Zuckerman, Sharon.  "Where is the Hazor Archive Buried?"  Biblical Archaeology Review, vol. 32, no. 2 (March/April, 2006):28–37.