Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“The Tel Ashkelon National Park in southern Israel is undergoing a large-scale renovation project that will open up previously unseen parts of the heritage site, including a recently excavated 2,000-year-old Roman basilica.” More than a mile of accessible pathways will also be added to the park.

The director of the salvage excavations of Tel Beth Shemesh reports on the discoveries. One conclusion: the site was not abandoned after Sennacherib’s attack.

A study of more than 3,500 plant finds from Gath reveals that the Canaanites living there in the Early Bronze Age ate figs, olives, wheat, barley, grapes, and more. The underlying journal article is available for purchase.

The bridge that provides the only access to the Temple Mount for non-Muslims is in immediate danger of collapsing.

Drew Longacre’s analysis of the Dead Sea Scrolls suggests that some were written for community reading and others for personal use. Longacre’s recent lecture on a related subject is on YouTube.

A new episode on This Week in the Ancient Near East: “A Resurrected Date by Any Other Name Would Still Taste As Sweet, or, Jurassic Park in the Judean Desert”

Glenn J. Corbett, the new editor of Biblical Archaeology Review, answers five questions about his background that prepared him for his new position.

This week on The Book and the Spade: “Remembering Professor Eilat Mazar.”

Archaeology of the Passion Week is the subject of this week’s podcast on the Biblical World, with Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer.

Israel’s Good Name reports on his February trip to the Golan Heights after a snowfall.

The T-shirt designs have been posted for this year’s excavations at Tell es-Safi/Gath and Tel Burna.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Andy Cook

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“A rare 2,000-year old oil lamp shaped like half of a grotesque face that was discovered in Jerusalem last week appears to have a matching partner — that was discovered in Budapest nine years ago.”

Ruth Schuster writes about recent discoveries at Hippos, including the Roman theater and the necropolis (Haaretz premium).

Bible History Daily asks the excavators of Hazor about last year’s cancellation and this year’s plans. They pose the same four questions to the excavators of Tel Burna.

Research is progressing on the seven Judean date palms that were germinated in southern Israel in recent years.

The Jordan Times interviews Eliot Braun about the ruins and cemeteries on the southeastern end of the Dead Sea.

Rossella Tercatin asks, “What do ancient coins tell us about the Omer period and the time of the Bar-Kochba revolt, when the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot became associated with death and mourning?”

Biblical World is a new podcast, and the first episode, hosted by Chris McKinny and Oliver Hersey, looks at the archaeological background of Hezekiah’s religious reform.

The Institute of Biblical Culture is registering now for its summer Biblical Hebrew course. The BIBLEPLACES coupon will give you a $300 discount. David Moster has also just created a new video: “Some of the Best Puns in the Bible.” There’s a geographic pun mentioned at 6:52.

John DeLancey has begun a new video series entitled “Devotions from Israel.” The first 5-minute devotional looks at 2 Chronicles 20.

David Barrett is creating a biblical map every week on his Bible Mapper Blog. The most recent are:

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists working in Egypt’s Western Desert have discovered a monastery complex dating to the 4th to 8th centuries.

“Twenty-two royal Egyptian mummies are set to be transferred to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation (NMEC) in a much-awaited parade in the streets of Cairo on 3 April.”

King Tut’s war shield has been restored so that it may be displayed to the public for the first time.

A small bronze bull was discovered after a rainfall near the temple of Zeus in Olympia.

Dimitris Tsalkanis describes his goals in creating “Ancient Athens 3D,” a collection of hundreds of digital models from seven historical periods from 1200 BC to AD 1833.

Some people are not happy with the proposal to loosen governmental control over five major museums in Greece.

There are a number of similarities between the chariot recently discovered chariot near Pompeii and five chariots discovered in Greece in 2002.

A beautiful, long-lost mosaic that once adorned a ship belonging to Caligula has found its way into an Italian museum.

A collection of 24 studies by Cyrus H. Gordon, published in a variety of books and journals between 1933 and 1982, have been compiled in pdf format by Robert Bedrosian.

In response to Peter J. Parr, Aren Maeir explains why preliminary reports and prompt publication of excavation results are essential.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Alexander Schick, Explorator, Steven Anderson

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

An 11-year-old on a family hike in the Negev discovered a rare fertility figurine dating to about 500 BC.

Haaretz (premium) has a story about the debate over whether the Lachish gate shrine was a shrine, and if so, if it was desecrated by a toilet.

A new book by Idan Dershowitz argues that the scrolls of Moses Shapira, long believed to be forgeries, are actually the earliest Dead Sea Scrolls and were a “pre-canonical antecedent” of Deuteronomy. The book is available on Academia. Christopher Rollston argues that the scrolls are forgeries. Drew Longacre concurs.

A notice from the Hazor Excavations team indicates that foreigners will be permitted to volunteer in Israel this summer with proof of vaccination. The Gath registration webpage confirms this.

My new reflection on the Garden of Gethsemane is now available to members of Jerusalem Perspective.

The New York Times runs an obituary for Hershel Shanks.

Jerusalem University College has announced its newest program: The Christian Movement in the Mediterranean, with a two-week voyage tracing Paul’s voyages in the Mediterranean.

New: Ancient Israel’s Neighbors, by Brian R. Doak (Book 1 in Oxford’s Essentials of Biblical Studies series).

The early-bird discount for the Infusion Bible Conference ends on April 9. The topic is “Paul and His Roman World,” and the new location is Nashville.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Keith Keyser, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists working near the Western Wall of the Temple Mount have discovered the largest collection of ancient dice ever found.

The seventh issue of the newsletter of the Department and Institute of Archeology at Tel Aviv University includes reports on fieldwork at Azekah, Masada, and Jerusalem, along with other articles on research and laboratory work.

I don’t know that the claim of it being the oldest water tunnel is true, but the Balama tunnel near Jenin is certainly interesting and little-known.

A rare sighting of a sperm whale off Israel’s coast was made several weeks ago near Nahariya.

I am happy to see my old friend Jeroboam II getting some attention this week, as he is featured in the latest archaeological biography by Bryan Windle.

Three upcoming meetings of The Minerva Center for the Relations between Israel and Aram in Biblical Times:

The Clinton Bailey Archive of Bedouin Culture is coming to the National Library of Israel. The collection includes a wealth of information about ancient Bedouin tribal cultures, including audio recordings, videos, and photos.

Joel Kramer joins Sean McDowell for a Q&A on the Bible and Archaeology.

New release: The Moses Scroll: Reopening the Most Controversial Case in the History of Biblical Scholarship, by Ross K. Nichols, illustrated by Daniel M. Wright

HT: Agade, Steven Anderson, Explorator, Ted Weis, Paleojudaica, Arne Halbakken

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

The enclosure wall around the Mount Ebal altar has been restored. And Israel’s defense minister is not allowing a visit by the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.

Two stone sarcophagi from the 2nd or 3rd centuries AD were discovered at the Ramat Gan Safari Park.

I share a bit about my work with photo collections, both past and future, in the latest Scholar’s Chair interview at Bible Archaeology Report.

Chris McKinny talks about learning historical geography and archaeology in Israel on a new video produced by John DeLancey.

Erez Ben Yosef is interviewed by the Jerusalem Post about his years of excavating at Timna.

Zoom lecture tomorrow: “Archaeology and the Hidden Religious Culture of Israelite Women,” by Carol Meyers.

The NY Times has posted an obituary for Norman Golb, the unorthodox Dead Sea Scrolls scholar who died last month.

Assyrians used the policy of deportation in the Levant not to bolster its labor supply but in order to intimidate the population and put down revolts.

The Hazor team is accepting applications for its 31st season of excavations at this important Canaanite and Israelite site.

The Times of Israel reports on the 2018 re-discovery in Cairo of a Hebrew Bible written in the year 1028.

Snow fell in Jerusalem this week for the first time in six years, and some photos are posted by The Jerusalem Post, Al Jazeera, Haaretz, and The Times of Israel. Shmuel Browns took some beautiful photos of the snow in the Judean hills. Daily Sabah has photos from around the Middle East.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Keith Keyser, Explorator

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About the BiblePlaces Blog

The BiblePlaces Blog provides updates and analysis of the latest in biblical archaeology, history, and geography. Unless otherwise noted, the posts are written by Todd Bolen, PhD, Professor of Biblical Studies at The Master’s University.

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