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Top 8 of 2008: Archaeological Discoveries Related to the Bible

2008 was a good year for archaeology. You can read about the top ten archaeological discoveries in the world this year, but my goal here is simply to suggest what I perceive to be the most significant discoveries for understanding the Bible and its world. Both the selection and the ranking is purely subjective; there were no polls, editorial committees, or coin tosses. For another opinion, take a look at the list of Dr. Claude Mariottini.

1. Khirbet Qeiyafa (and inscription). The new excavations of this fortified site in the Shephelah ranks as #1 for the following reasons:

1) The site was occupied for only a limited time during the reign of King David.

2) The site is located near the battle location of David and Goliath.

3) A strongly fortified site is indicative of a strong central government, at a time when scholars
question the existence of such.

4) A early Hebrew inscription discovered this summer points to the site’s owners (Judeans) and the state of literacy in this period.

5) These discoveries will certainly shed light on what is currently the most debated issue in biblical archaeology: the nature of Israel/Judah during the 10th century.

Elah Valley from the west

2. Gath excavations. It’s not a single discovery that puts the excavations of this Philistine city in the number two spot, but rather the cumulative results of a very profitable season. This includes possible early Iron IIA material (see above debate), a 10th century seal impression, two Assyrian destruction layers, methodological advances, as well as other significant remains from the Early, Middle, and Late Bronze Ages.

Gath excavations, Area E, Summer 2006

3. New discoveries at Herod the Great’s tomb. The tomb was discovered and identified in 2007, but on-going excavation in 2008 revealed additional coffins, including one that may belong to one of Herod’s wives and another to one of his sons. They also found a theater that sat 750 people and included a VIP room with beautiful wall paintings. All of this further confirms the previous identification that Herod’s tomb was located on the slope of the Herodium.

4. The “First Wall” of Jerusalem. A well-preserved portion of the Hasmonean wall (2nd century B.C.) was uncovered on the south side of Jerusalem. While parts of this wall have been excavated previously, there are two advantages to the current excavation:

1) It is being carried out with the latest in archaeological knowledge.

2) The remains will be preserved and visible to visitors.

5. Alphabetic Inscription from Zincirli. The Kuttamuwa Stele is a large well-preserved funerary inscription from the 8th century B.C. city of Sam’al (modern Zincirli) that sheds light on the beliefs of the afterlife of one of Israel’s northern neighbors. For more on the content of the inscription, see this. This is the only discovery on this list which is also on Archaeology Magazine’s Top 10 Discoveries of 2008.

6. Iron Age Seals from Jerusalem. Many inscriptions were found in Jerusalem at different times this year, including the Seal of Shlomit (aka Temah), the Seal of Gedaliah, the Seal of Netanyahu, and the Seal of Rephaihu. The first two were discovered in Eilat Mazar’s excavation of the potential area of “David’s palace,” and the other two were found relatively close by (Western Wall and Gihon Spring). Gedaliah is mentioned by name in Jeremiah 38:1, and Shlomit may be mentioned in 1 Chronicles 3:19. Some might rank these discoveries higher in the list, but I have not because so many have already been found, including many in this area and many that mention other biblical figures.

7. Pre-8th century B.C. neighborhood in the City of David. This report received little notice, as far as I could tell, but could be quite significant in our understanding of the growth of Jerusalem in the earliest centuries of Judean rule. While these discoveries were made in 2007, they were only publicized in 2008 (thus qualifying them for this list). In short, the archaeologists found five Iron Age strata which included a group of houses that dated “earlier than the 8th century.” Excavators rarely uncover houses in Jerusalem, and these would be the earliest I know of from the Iron Age.

8. Philistine temple near Gerar. I heard very little of this discovery, but it makes the list because Philistine temples are both rare and of biblical interest (see Judges 16:23-30 and 1 Samuel 5:2-5).

Other Philistine temples have been excavated at Tel Qasile and Ekron (and Aren Maier has teased that he may have another at Gath).

Other discoveries that did not make the top 8 include the sarcophagus fragment of the son of the High Priest in Jerusalem, the “Christ Inscription” in Egypt, and a Jerusalem quarry found in Sanhedria.

The on-going Temple Mount sifting project deserves mention (and support).

Other finds that did not make the list are the perfume bottle that Mary Magdalene used to anoint
Jesus’ feet and the water tunnel that David used to conquer Jerusalem. Perhaps more information or discoveries will convince me that these are more than attempts to gain publicity.

Tagged Analysis, Discoveries, Excavations, Jerusalem, Shephelah

264 Gold Coins Found in City of David

The excavations south of the Dung Gate, where previously an announcement was made of the discovery of the palace of Queen Helene of Adiabene, is the site of a cache of Byzantine coins. A Byzantine tourist volunteering at the dig made the find yesterday. CNN reports:

Some Israeli archaeologists are having a particularly happy Hanukkah.
The Israel Antiquities Authority reported a thrilling find Sunday — the discovery of 264 ancient gold coins in Jerusalem National Park.
The coins were minted during the early 7th century.
“This is one of the largest and most impressive coin hoards ever discovered in Jerusalem — certainly the largest and most important of its period,” said Doron Ben-Ami and Yana Tchekhanovets, who are directing the excavation on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Researchers discovered the coins at the beginning of the eight-day Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, which started at sunset on Sunday.
One of the customs of the holiday is to give “gelt,” or coins, to children, and the archaeologists are referring to the find as “Hanukkah money.”
The 1,400-year-old coins were found in the Giv’ati car park in the City of David in the walls around Jerusalem National Park, a site that has yielded other finds, including a well-preserved gold earring with pearls and precious stones.
They were in a collapsed building that dates back to the 7th century, the end of the Byzantine period. The coins bear a likeness of Heraclius, who was the Byzantine emperor from 610 to 641.

Usually archaeologists do not want to publicize the discovery of gold during an ongoing excavation, as it can lead to unwanted attention. Perhaps word got out before they could swear everyone to secrecy.

The rest of the story is here. You can also read about it at Arutz-7, Jerusalem Post, and the government press release.

Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Jerusalem

Two Important Coins Found in Temple Mount Rubble

Many interesting finds have been made from the pile of “trash” that was removed from the Temple Mount and dumped in the Kidron Valley. The Jerusalem Post reports the latest discovery.

Two ancient coins, one used to pay the Temple tax and another minted by the Greek leader the Jews fought in the story of Hanukka, have been uncovered amid debris from Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, an Israeli archeologist said Thursday.
The two coins were recently found in rubble discarded by Islamic officials from the Temple Mount. It is carefully being sifted by two archeologists and a team of volunteers at a Jerusalem national park.
The first coin, a silver half-shekel, was apparently minted on the Temple Mount itself by Temple authorities in the first year of the Great Revolt against the Romans in 66-67 CE, said Bar-Ilan University Professor Gabriel Barkay, who is leading the sifting operation.
One side of the coin, which was found by a 14-year-old volunteer, shows a branch with three pomegranates, and the inscription “Holy Jerusalem”; the other side bears a chalice from the First Temple and says “Half-Shekel.”
In the Bible, Jews are commanded to contribute half a shekel each for maintaining the Temple in Jerusalem. At the time of the Temple’s construction in the sixth century BCE, every Jew was ordered to make an obligatory symbolic donation of a half-shekel. This consistent yet small payment allowed all Jews, irrespective of socioeconomic position, to participate in building the Temple.

You can read the full story here.

In related news, the archaeologists in charge of this project face a significant funding shortfall. A recent letter from Gabriel Barkay and Zachi Zweig concludes:

The Temple Mount Sifting Operation is not a project for an elite group of archaeologists. It is now the property of the entire Jewish people, including the tens of thousands of volunteers who have helped us sift through the rubble over the years. Many times throughout history the most important projects are adopted by private donors who have the privilege to make a significant difference well before the state steps in to help. The Temple Mount Sifting Project is just such an opportunity. Please take part in this effort to save the Temple Mount Antiquities and help us to continue the educational programming which is having an immeasurable impact on thousands of visitors from all walks of Jewish life.

You can read more about this important project and learn how to make a contribution here.

HT: Joe Lauer

Tagged Discoveries, Jerusalem, Temple Mount

Mariottini on the Top Ten Discoveries of 2008

Dr. Claude Mariottini has posted his “Ten Important Archaeological Discoveries in 2008 Related to the Bible.” Since he beat me to it, I think I’ll not try to create my own list, but will give some of my thoughts on these finds. I’ll do that in the next few days. For now, you can read his list and follow the links.

Tagged Discoveries

Perfume Bottles Found at Magdala

There is something important to this story, but it’s not what you might think. What is exciting is that ancient Magdala is being excavated. Perhaps that will increase our knowledge of this ancient city that was home to Mary Magdalene. Perhaps it will result in the site being opened to visits by tourists. Perhaps there will be silly sensational claims made before analysis is done – oh wait, that wish has already come true. From the Telegraph, written by Nick Pisa in Rome:

Archaeologists have discovered vases of perfumed ointment which may have been used by Mary Magdalene to anoint the feet of Jesus.

This sentence should immediately clue you into the fact that this is a “made-for-TV” story, fashioned for maximum publicity without regard to truth. You know this because:

1. It is quite incredible that of all the vases in the ancient world, the first ones the archaeologists find at this city are related to this biblical event.

2. Mary was from Magdala, but since there is no record that Jesus was ever in Magdala, his feet were not anointed there. Perhaps, though, Mary carried the bottles back to her hometown.

3. Except that it’s hard to believe that Mary only poured some of the contents out and left the rest for archaeologists to find.

4. Most important to ignore in order to make this story fly is the fact that the Bible nowhere says that Mary Magdalene anointed Jesus’ feet. A different Mary anointed him the week before his crucifixion (John 12:1-8). And a sinful woman anointed him at the house of a Pharisee (Luke 7:36-50). She is never named and Mary Magdalene is introduced by Luke two verses later (Luke 8:2) with no indication that this was the same woman. Furthermore, the unnamed woman used an alabaster jar.

Did the excavators find an alabaster jar? Mary Magdalene did plan to anoint Jesus’ body one Sunday morning, but she failed in her attempt (Mark 16:1-8).

The Italian team have been digging for several months at the ancient Palestinian town of Magdala – from where Mary gets her name.

In Mary’s day, Magdala was in the district of Galilee. Today, its ruins are in the state of Israel. It was not then, and is not now, a Palestinian town, except for those who wish to see the Jewish nation replaced by an Arab one.

The archaeologists of the Franciscan academic society Studium Biblicum Franciscanum found the unopened vases dating to the first century AD conserved in mud at the bottom of a swimming pool in Magdala’s thermal complex….

Speaking of the discovery Father Stefano De Luca who is leading the dig, said: “The mud-filled condition of the site allowed us to find these truly extraordinary objects, which were intact and sealed and still contain greasy substances.

“We think these are balms and perfumes and if chemical analysis confirms this, they could be similar to those used by Mary Magdalene in the Gospels to anoint the feet of Christ.

I have a revolutionary idea. Analyze the contents, and then tell us what they are.

“The discovery of these vases is very important. We have in our hands the cosmetic products from the time of Jesus. It’s very likely that the woman who anointed Christ’s feet used these products, or ones similar in organic composition and quality.”

Frankly, this story could have been written long before the excavations. They already knew the site was inhabited in the 1st century A.D. All they needed was to find some vases, any vases, and they could say that these were related to Mary. And the reporters would come, and the donations would flow.

HT: Joe Lauer

Magdala from west

UPDATE (12/12): An article in Italian is longer and includes a photograph.

Tagged Analysis, Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee

Jerusalem, Rome, and Alexandria

Zachi Zweig recently produced photographs of a Byzantine mosaic floor discovered under Al Aqsa Mosque between 1938 and 1942. Zweig is certain that this was part of a Byzantine church on the Temple Mount. To this point, it has generally been held that the Byzantines left the Temple Mount in ruins. The 6th century Medeba Map does not show any buildings in this area. Underneath the mosaic floor was a Jewish ritual bath (mikveh). The story is in the Jerusalem Post, and Leen Ritmeyer comments at his blog.

Google Earth has added a layer for Ancient Rome as it stood in A.D. 320. Judging from a 2-minute video preview, this is an extraordinary resource. As with the rest of Google Earth, it is free. It probably would not be difficult to remove a few buildings and create a layer for Rome in the 1st century. Perhaps someone will be so motivated.

Leen Ritmeyer has created a less detailed Jerusalem layer that shows the city in the 1st century.

(UPDATE 11/20: This layer is no longer available.)

This story has been around before, but perhaps its re-circulation indicates that progress is being made.
The JPost reports that plans are underway for the world’s first underwater archaeology museum in Alexandria.

“The whole Bay of Alexandria actually still houses the remains of very important archeological sites. You have the place of the Pharaohs – the ancient lighthouse of Alexandria – which is one of the seven ancient wonders of the world. You have the Polonike Palace, which was the palace of Cleopatra, and there might also be the grave of Alexander the Great,” she said.

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Jerusalem, Resources, Temple Mount