Egypt Archives - BiblePlaces.com

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists discovered a Ramesside-era tomb belong to “Paser” on Luxor’s west bank.

“An Egyptian archaeological mission has uncovered three New Kingdom rock-cut tombs at the Bubasteion Necropolis in Saqqara.”

A new study suggests that a sophisticated hydraulic system was built near the Red Pyramid in Dahshur.

“Many of Syria’s archaeological sites were damaged not only by looting but also, in areas occupied by the Turkish military, by systematic bulldozing.”

Restoration work has been completed for the Hidirlik Kulesi, an ancient Roman tower, in Antalya, and a new viewing terrace has been opened.

Archaeologists excavating at Aspendos discovered a large Roman-era mosaic that depicts the river god Eurymedon. They have also been uncovering portions of the city’s main street.

“Archaeologists at Pompeii have partially reconstructed a rare ceiling fresco depicting scenes from Greek mythology.”

“Archaeologists have identified the oldest known library on the Iberian Peninsula inside a Roman villa in southern Spain.”

Bible History Daily explains who the “People of the Sea” are that “hang over the plot [of Nolan’s Odyssey] like a dark cloud.”

On Digging for Truth, Ted Wright shares some of the most significant discoveries related to the New Testament.

New release: Egypt and the Levant: Networks and Negotiations in the Bronze Age, by Anna-Latifa Mourad (Cambridge Elements; open-access until August 6)

New release: Magic in the Ancient Near East and the Hebrew Bible, by Ilan Peled (Cambridge Elements; open-access until August 7)

New release: Proto-Elamite: Writing and Society in Early Iran, by Kathryn Kelley (Cambridge Elements; open-access until August 14)

First time on sale on Kindle: Jews vs. Rome: Two Centuries of Rebellion Against the World’s Mightiest Empire, by Barry Strauss (Simon & Schuster, 2025; reg. $15; sale: $4). When I noted its release last year, I pointed to this positive WSJ review.

When it comes to deciphering lost languages like Linear A, Jane Adkins explains what AI can and cannot do. This article gives the background on the AI engineer’s claim to have cracked Linear A.

There will be no roundup next weekend.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Explorator, David Barrett

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Excavations, Italy, Persia, Resources, Syria, Technology, Tourism, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

A fragment of a large stele of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal (669-631 BC) was discovered at Nineveh. The front side features a high-relief sculpture of the king, and the back apparently documents the king’s architectural works and achievements.

Analysis of a Byzantine-era shipwreck off the coast of Croatia has been announced, including the largest amount of gold ever found on a shipwreck in the Mediterranean Sea.

“A 6,000-year-old infant buried in ancient Syria has given researchers what looks like the oldest known case of child abuse in the Middle East.”

A Roman road in southern Turkey has been fully documented and now will be restored to become part of a cultural tourism route.

New release: Ancient Tyre between Myth and History, by Hélène Sader (SBL Press, $50; Amazon)

New release: Music in the Ancient Near East: Archaeological, Historical, and Societal Considerations, edited by Heidi Köpp-Junk and Shane M. Thompson (Archaeopress, £16-35)

Two US tourists were stabbed near the entrance to the Acropolis Museum in Athens.

James Hoffmeier is on the Biblical World podcast to discuss his new book, Israel In and Out of Egypt.

Bryan Windle has written an archaeological biography of Tiberius Caesar.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Italy, Lebanon, Mediterranean Islands, Mesopotamia, Resources, Syria, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered 18 ancient tombs, a granite sarcophagus and dozens of rare burial objects at Marina El Alamein, offering new insight into the city’s role as a cultural crossroads between ancient Egypt and the Mediterranean world.”

“Egypt has uncovered only about 30% of its archaeological heritage, with vast historic treasures from successive civilizations still buried beneath its soil, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Hisham El-Leithy said.”

Yale News reports on Eckart Frahm’s discovery of three previously unknown Assyrian kings.

“Bronze Age rulers in Greece prized rings made from meteorite iron, wearing them as symbols of power, according to new research.”

The House of Charred Furniture at Herculaneum is open to visitors after thirty years of closure.

Lauren McCormick provides an intro to a new article in BAR that observes that “the homes in which Paul and other early Christians worshiped were already shaped by generations of religious practice.”

New release: Assyria’s Plunder: From Ancient Empire to Modern Loot, by Jessie DeGrado (University Press of Colorado, $105, open-access)

The latest issue of The Journal of the Ancient Near East Society is available online.

The Institute of Biblical Culture has announced the final three of six installments of the Dr. David Marcus Book Giveaway. The books are being given away free of charge, plus shipping and handling.

Leon Maudlin posts a photo of the temple to Emperor Augustus at Ankara (ancient Ancyra).

Aren Maeir gives his quick reaction to the archaeological reliability of the movie “The Odyssey.”

HT: Agade, Explorator

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, Movies, Resources, Tourism, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists working at a site in the Wadi Tumilat in Egypt have “uncovered a residential complex, storage and production facilities, pottery that contains seal impressions, ten mudbrick graves, and humans buried in unusual squatting positions,” all from the Hyksos period.

Excavations of a temple in the Bahariya Oasis uncovered a number of inscriptions with the name of Psamtik (Psammetichus) I, the first pharaoh of the 26th dynasty.

Archaeologists have discovered a well-preserved 4th-century AD city with a basilica-style church in the Dakhla oasis in Egypt.

“A new exhibit at the Peabody Museum explores Yale Egyptologist Victoria Almansa-Villatoro’s study of thousands of papyri fragments from the Old Kingdom era of Ancient Egypt.”

A 1.5-min BBC video explains a photo showing the first view into King Tut’s tomb.

“Archaeologists working in the ancient city of Smyrna in İzmir, western Türkiye, have fully uncovered a 1,500-year-old mosaic room.”

Bible History Daily has posted an interview with Barış Yener, director of the excavations at Colossae. He discusses his objectives, his early finds, and his intention to excavate six months each year until he retires.

Turkish Archaeological News rounds up the top stories for the month of June.

The Temple of Apollo in Didyma is open to visitors during the evenings this summer.

On Digging for Truth, Nate Loper shares evidence for locating the landing of Noah’s Ark on Mt. Cudi.

“Scientists have used ancient tree rings to pinpoint when builders raised the Agios Vasileios (Άγιος Βασίλειος) palace, a major Late Bronze Age site in southern Greece.”

“The Archaeological Museum of Argos [in Greece] has reopened after twelve years, unveiling a fully renovated space and a collection of newly repatriated treasures.”

New release: Assur 2025: Further insights into life and death in the New Town. Exploring Assur 3. Edited by Karen Radner, Jana Richter, and Andrea Squitieri (PeWe-Verlag, 2026; open-access).

Anthropeum is an online daily game that quizzes you on the date and geographic origin of various artifacts from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Leon Mauldin shares a beautiful photo of the unique landscape of Cappadocia.

HT: Agade, Wayne Stiles, Explorator, Andreas Heimbichner

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

Weekend Roundup

Archaeologists found two well-preserved marble busts from the Roman era in a Byzantine winepress near the coastal town of Binyamina.

Ariel David writes about the recently published mother-of-pearl seal found at Tel Hadid. Zev Stub reports on the artifact for The Times of Israel.

Avraham Faust has proposed that a massive cultic stone (massebah) at Tel ‘Eton was toppled as part of Hezekiah’s reforms.

Abigail Van Huss reports on the final week of excavations this year at Shiloh.

Lauren K. McCormick writes about the 1st-century synagogue at Tel Rekhesh in Galilee.

This week’s Jerusalem Tracker identifies the latest blog posts, digital resources, developments, and upcoming events.

David Begoun describes his first visit to see the Madaba Map.

Clinton Moyer gives an overview of Lawrence H. Schiffman’s BAR article on the temple in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The second international “Archaeology and Site Conservation in Judea and Samaria” conference was more controversial than the first one.

Conference at the Albright on July 7-9: “The Eleventh Century CE: Archaeology and History: An International Conference.” Register here.

On the Biblical World podcast, Jason Borges talks with Chris McKinny about his book, Christian Life in the Greco-Roman City.

On Digging for Truth, Ted Wright discusses ancient creation myths.

Following the death of a US citizen, his family returned to Egypt “a granite sphinx head, a bronze hippopotamus figurine, a double bronze statue of a king, and a bronze statue of the Egyptian deity Sobek.”

“The Israeli government on Tuesday approved designating Route 60 — the highway stretching from Nazareth in the north to Beersheba in the south and passing through some of the most significant sites in history—as the ‘Biblical Highway.’” This includes the ridge route known to students as the “Road of the Patriarchs.” When looking for more information, I found a 2023 movie entitled “Route 60: The Biblical Highway.” It’s curious to me that the trailer never once shows any part of the ancient route.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Dead Sea Scrolls, Discoveries, Egypt, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Jordan, Judah, Lectures, Samaria, Shephelah, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists have made some discoveries at Heracleopolis, the ancient capital of Upper Egypt’s 20th nome.

Hanan Charaf and Martine Francis-Allouche write about the history of Byblos for The Ancient Near East Today. The article includes recent research from maritime Byblos as well as many photos.

Zoom lecture on June 13: “Individuals, Households, Families, and the Law in Ancient Egypt,” by Brian Muhs

New release: Urban Life and Form in Ancient Egypt, by Nadine Moeller (Elements in Ancient Egypt in Context; Cambridge University Press; open-access until June 24).

New episode on This Week in the Ancient Near East: “Sennacherib’s Throne Room of Doom, or Hezekiah Can See His House from Here”

“The new official guide to the Archaeological Park of Pompeii accompanies the reader on a discovery of one of the most extraordinary archaeological sites in the world.”

HT: Agade, Explorator

Tagged Egypt, Mesopotamia, Tourism, Weekend Roundup