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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

After finding a bare shrine at Abel Beth Maacah, archaeologists are suggesting that the “wise woman” of 2 Samuel 20 was a “local version of the divine oracles known from other cultures around the Mediterrranean.” (Haaretz premium)

Jonathan Klawans explains why the Tower of David Museum is the best place to begin a tour of Jerusalem.

Carl Rasmussen takes readers on a tour of less-visited sites in Roman-era Jericho, including the stadium and a balsam plantation.

Israel’s Good Name found some wildlife in his nighttime excursion through the Holon Dunes.

Shmuel Browns shares some of the latest discoveries in excavations at Masada and Herodium.

John M. Vonder Bruegge writes about “Josephus’ Galilee and Spatial Theory” at The Bible and Interpretation.

Wayne Stiles describes the history of sacrifice in Jerusalem.

The Israel Antiquities Authority Library Catalog is now online.

Dan Koski looks at the legacy of the stonemasons of Beit Jala.

Leon Mauldin explains the importance of the Theodotos Inscription.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Joseph Lauer

Tagged Discoveries, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Jordan Rift, Judah, Museums, Temple Mount, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists believe they have found ruins of the church building where the First Council of Nicaea was held.

“Turkish archeologists have found an eye cream jar in a 2,200-year-old tomb during their excavation works in an antique city of Aizanoi in country’s west.”

A cache of gold coins dating to the 5th century has been found in an old theater in northern Italy.

A full-scale replica of a Roman triumphal arch from Palmyra will be on display in Washington DC later this month.

Museums are full of fake cuneiform tablets, and Sara Brumfield suggests a few ways to identify them.

An ancient Torah scroll in Brazil’s National Museum was spared from the fire because it was being restored off-site.

The August 2018 issue of the Newsletter of the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities includes information about recent discoveries, meetings, exhibitions, and fee increases.

John DeLancey is posting daily summaries of his tour of Greece.

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Steven Anderson, Gordon Franz

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Greece, Italy, Museums, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Stanford University researchers believe they’ve found evidence of the world’s oldest brewery in the Raqefet Cave, near Haifa.

Miriam Feinberg Vamosh writes about an ancient convent discovered at a possible site of Hannah’s tomb (Haaretz premium).

Haaretz (premium) has an article on the history of the pomegranate.

Aren Maeir will be teaching a MOOC entitled “Biblical Archaeology: The Archaeology of Ancient Israel and Judah” and a trailer is now out.

There is a conference today on Ctesiphon, and Ferrell Jenkins shares a photo from his visit to this city in Iraq.

Luke Chandler explains why there is an island in the Sea of Galilee now.

Leon Mauldin has written an illustrated post about the revolt of Libnah and Edom.

The Institute of Biblical Culture is offering new courses in October, including the Samaritan Pentateuch and Ancient Near Eastern Texts.

New from Oxford University Press: The Oxford Illustrated History of the Holy Land, edited by H. G. M. Williamson and Robert G. Hoyland.

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Steven Anderson, Gordon Franz

Tagged Discoveries, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jordan, Lectures, Mesopotamia, Resources, Shephelah, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Egypt has announced the discovery of an ancient village in the Nile Delta.

A 3-D topographical survey of the Lisht necropolis area in Egypt has been completed.

Archaeologists made some important discoveries in the port of the Greek island of Kythnos.

The fire at Brazil’s National Museum destroyed millions of items, including the entire collection of 700 Egyptian artifacts.

Biblical Archaeology Society has limited space remaining for its Bible History of the Nile tour in February.

Unlike many of the reviews of the Museum of the Bible in D.C., this one by Alex Joffe is intelligent and balanced.

Seetheholyland.net has compiled a list of more than 120 tour operators who offer pilgrimages to the Holy Land.

Accordance is running a High Holy Days Sale that includes discounts on significant works from Carta, including The Quest, Echoes from the Past, and The Raging Torrent.

Appian Media has just released a sneak peek for their upcoming series, “Searching for a King.”

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Joseph Lauer

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Greece, Museums, Resources, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

More than 1,000 Hellenistic-era seal impressions were recently discovered in excavations at Maresha.

Underwater archaeologists are searching the sea near Dor in advance of the construction of a gas pipeline.

US military veterans are participating in excavations at Beth Shearim in a program providing therapy for PTSD.

A plan to build a cable car to transport visitors to the Western Wall in Jerusalem is not making everyone happy.

The Tower of David Museum in Jerusalem now offers a virtual reality tour that visits nine vantage points in the Old City.

The IAA is opposed to plans by the Temple Mount Faithful to hold a concert in the excavations area south of the Temple Mount.

The 12th annual conference on “New Studies in the Archaeology of Jerusalem and its Vicinity” will be held next month. Aren Maeir has posted the program.

Joel Kramer has announced the dates of his next study tour in Israel.

Carl Rasmussen links to two videos from Kathleen Kenyon’s excavations of Jericho.

The Methuselah date palm tree is male, but six more ancient date seeds have been planted in hopes of raising a female for Methuselah to pollinate.

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Joseph Lauer

Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Jordan Rift, Lectures, Shephelah, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Seminar on United Kingdom at Lanier Theological Library

A little-advertised seminar is occurring next week in Houston, and if you’re able to get there, it should be quite worthwhile. The only thing I’ve found online about it is this registration site, but that should be the main thing you need if you want to secure a seat. The main facts are as follows:

The Lanier Theological Library presents a seminar on “Recent Evidence for Israel’s United Kingdom” on Friday, September 14th, 2:00-5:00 pm in the Stone Chapel.

2:00-2:25 Jane Cahill, “Jerusalem at the Time of the United Monarchy: The Known, the Unknown, and the Next Frontier”

2:25-2:50 Steven Ortiz, “The Westward Expansion of the United Monarchy in Light of Recent Excavations”

2:50-3:15 Chris McKinny, “Going for Gold . . . Bringing Home (mainly) Bronze: Jerusalem’s Role in the Arabah Copper Industry and the Biblical Account of Solomon”

3:30-3:55 Timothy Harrison, “Kingdoms of Idols: Israel’s Northern Neighbors and What They Reveal about the World of the Bible”

3:55-4:20 K. Lawson Younger Jr. “David’s Wars: What Can We Know about his Aramean Enemies?”

4:20-4:45 Gary Rendsburg, “The Book of Genesis as a Product of the United Monarchy”

4:45-5:00 Discussion

This looks very good, and if you haven’t been to the Lanier Library, that’s worth a visit even if no one is speaking. If they do as they’ve done in the past, we might expect that videos of these lectures will appear on their website.

Tagged Lectures