A ship that wrecked off the coast of Dor circa 600 BC was carrying chunks of iron after they had been smelted, providing the first evidence that iron was traded in this form.
“Dozens of rare coins dating to about 2,000 years ago were seized from a Palestinian doctor attempting to smuggle them through the Hizma checkpoint between the West Bank and Jerusalem on the first Friday of Ramadan.”
Oded Lipschits and colleagues have published an article in Palestine Exploration Quarterly about a mass grave of young children from the Persian period at Tel Azekah.
Ruth Marks Eglash writes about the politics of Israelis excavating in the West Bank.
Yesterday’s Jerusalem Tracker lists the latest books, book chapters, and articles about the Holy City.
“T’OMIM (Tanakh Observable Matches of Intertextual Mimesis, from Hebrew תאומים meaning “twins”) is an open-access dataset of labeled parallel passages in the Hebrew Bible, compiled for computational and literary research on inner-biblical intertextuality.”
The long-awaited Gospel Companion from Biblical Backgrounds has arrived. The resource is on sale now until the end of Passover ($29.50).
The first two episodes of Season 1 of The Sacred Thread was released this week. Remaining episodes will release one a week through April on Angel Studios.
“A new theory is drawing attention to Malaita Island in the Solomon Islands as a potential hiding place of the Ark of the Covenant.”
Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer discuss the best archaeological finds of 2025 on the Biblical World podcast.
Denny Sissom will be teaching a new online class entitled “Revealing the New Testament through the History, Politics, and Customs of the Inter-Testament Period.”
New release: The Raging Torrent, 3rd edition, by Mordechai Cogan (Carta; $88)
New release: When Israel Was Young: A History of the Jewish People from the Beginnings to the Roman Conquest of Jerusalem, by Lester L. Grabbe (Bloomsbury, $25-$90; Amazon)
Legends of the Lost Ark will be in movie theaters on April 12, 14, and 15. A richly illustrated companion book by Chris McKinny and Roy Brown will soon be available. The pre-order sale price is $32.
HT: Agade, Explorator, Paleojudaica