Khirbet el-ʻAqd (Arabic: خربه العقد) or Horvat ʻEqed (Hebrew: חורבת עקד) is an archaeological site in the Latrun salient of the West Bank,[a] approximately 22 km northwest of Jerusalem.

[2][3] Khirbet el-ʻAqd is believed to be the site of the Hellenistic and early Roman-period town of Emmaus, with the name later shifting to a newer, larger city situated on the slopes, 2 km away from the original location.

[3] The archaeological site was initially surveyed in 1873 by C. R. Conder and H. H. Kitchener from the Palestine Exploration Fund, who recorded the presence of "[f]oundations of houses, traces of ruins, and caves".

The work during this period was concentrated on the southeastern section, revealing portions of the southern and eastern walls that featured six towers spanning approximately 170 meters in total.

[3] Gichon and Fischer propose that the site corresponds to the Hellenistic-period Emmaus, which, according to the Book of Maccabees and the historian Josephus, was one of several locations fortified by the Seleucid general Bacchides around 160 BCE.

[3] This fortification formed part of a broader campaign to suppress the Maccabean revolt by controlling critical passes leading to the Judaean Mountains and ultimately to Jerusalem.

However, it remains unknown whether these were local civilians who resettled the area, newcomers who established roots there, or Hasmonean soldiers who continued to occupy the fortress following the defeat of the Seleucids.

[3] Khirbet el-ʻAqd exhibits a well-documented presence of Jewish rebels during the Bar Kokhba revolt, as evidenced by hiding complexes as well as artifacts such as arrowheads, pottery, and coinage typical of the period.