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Archaeologists looking at satellite images have discovered three temporary Roman army camps in the northern Arabian desert, possibly evidence of a military campaign that led to the annexation of the Nabatean kingdom in AD 106.

“Archaeologists from the Leiden Turin Expedition to Saqqara have uncovered an ornate tomb dating to the early Ramesside period (c. 13th century BCE) that belonged to Panehsy, the overseer of the Temple of Amun.”

Bryan Windle gives the top three reports in biblical archaeology in the month of April.

“The Zeugma Mosaic Museum in Antep, southeastern Turkey, has reopened after being closed for over two months due to the devastating earthquakes that struck the area in February.”

Writing for Ami Magazine, Lawrence Schiffman considers the irony of ancient Jewish art work from Dura-Europos sitting in a museum in Damascus.

Helen Gries, a curator at the Vorderasiatisches Museum in Berlin, considers how “multiple narratives” come together in the Ishtar Gate of Babylon.

The Roman bust of Nero that was discovered in a Goodwill store in Texas is returning to Germany next month.

The Greek Reporter makes some suggestions as to why the ancient Greeks reclined to eat and drink.

BAS’s Bible & Archaeology Fest XXVI will be back in person as well as livestreamed on Nov 17-19 in San Antonio, Texas.

The latest video from Expedition Bible will likely be popular: Exodus Pharaoh Explained (22 min)

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

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What scholars once believed was an ancient synagogue near Khirbet Midras is actually a Roman temple. Haaretz has the story for subscribers.

A silver quarter-shekel from Year 4 of the First Jewish Revolt that was looted from the Elah Valley has now been returned to Israel. The coin is so rare that there are none in any of Israel’s museums.

With the announcement pending of the most beautiful mosaic floor ever discovered in the Gaza Strip, scholars are calling for greater protection of the area’s antiquities.

Bible History Daily’s latest OnSite video is of the Herodium. Nathan Steinmeyer has packed a lot of information and images into just over two minutes.

Chandler Collins has posted the first “Jerusalem Tracker,” with links to recent articles, books, lectures, and developments related to Jerusalem. This is like a roundup on steroids, all focused on one important city. (You can support his work here.)

The Museum of the Bible and DIVE (Digital Interactive Virtual Experiences) are hosting a virtual tour of Masada on October 19. Registration costs $20.

A new exhibition entitled “Arteology: The Power of the Ancients in Contemporary Forms” has opened near the Davidson Center in Jerusalem.

New release: The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi Codices: Selected Papers from the Conference “The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi Codices” in Berlin, 20–22 July 2018 (hardback $167; pdf free).

Martin Heide and Joris Peters write about “Camels in the Biblical World of the Ancient Near East.” Their evidence for their use over the millennia observes the use of domesticated camels in the time of Abraham.

In the latest episode of BiblicalWorld, “Chris McKinny and Mark Janzen discuss the early vs. late date for the date of the exodus, date of the conquest, the emergence of Israel in the land of Canaan, settlement patterns in Canaan, and biblical chronology.”

“The Kerem Tunnel, the first bicycle tunnel in Israel, has been inaugurated as part of the Jerusalem Ring Path, a 42-kilometer cycling route that surrounds the capital city.”

We have a good deal right now for the brand-new Photo Companion to Hebrews (only $39 for 1,950 photos). Or you can pick up all of the General Epistles for only $49 (4,800 photos).

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Charles Savelle, Explorator

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An Israeli official claims that Turkey has agreed to return the Siloam Inscription to Israel. This inscription was discovered and removed from Hezekiah’s Tunnel in the 1880s. Those who know the history here will believe it when they see it.

“Three 1,500-year-old ‘magic’ incantation bowls and hundreds of other rare artifacts — some dating to the biblical period — were seized from an apartment in an ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem neighborhood under suspicion of illegal antiquities trade.”

Lawrence Schiffman suggests that Manetho’s records give evidence that the Israelite exodus was preserved in Egypt’s historical memory.

A new book in German gives the history of the Gihon/Siloam water system. The publisher’s website has a nice summary in English.

The Huqoq excavations were recently featured in National Geographic’s “100 Wonders of the World.”

I’m not quite sure why the Jerusalem Post published this short piece on Magdala.

A new documentary entitled “The Samaritans: A Biblical People,” by Moshe Alafi and Steven Fine, will be presented on March 27 at the Yeshiva University Museum. It will presumably be made more broadly available sometime after.

Save the date – May 18: “The First International Academic Conference  on New Studies in Temple Mount Research Hosted by The Menachem Begin Heritage Center, Jerusalem. Lectures will be in Hebrew or English, and the conference will be broadcast live. I don’t see details online yet (but see this), but speakers include Aharon Tavger, Tehilla Lieberman, David Gurevich, Avraham Solomon, Rina Avner, Peretz Reuven, Yuval Baruch, Dror Czitron, Joseph Patrich, David Jacobson, Nikos Kokkinos, Zachi Dvira, Gabriel Barkay, and others.

Logos has announced a number of solid Carta reference works available at pre-publication discount, including:

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Explorator

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Construction work in the Gaza Strip has uncovered a Roman cemetery. There have been reports of looting.

Ongoing work at a quarry near Bethlehem has destroyed about 100 meters of a 1st-century aqueduct that brought water to Solomon’s Pools. There are calls on the government to stop the destruction.

Haaretz (premium) runs a short story about the Gal On Citadel, a Canaanite fortress in the Shephelah between Gath and Lachish. But, as Moshe Gilad writes, “it is advisable not to have too high expectations.”

Schoolchildren hiking in Nahal Besor discovered a coin with the head of Roman Emperor Valentinian I.

The latest episode of This Week in the Ancient Near East podcast questions whether there were really two synagogues in Magdala.

Peter Feinman surveys what prominent Egyptologists in the last century have thought about Israel’s exodus from Egypt.

Pharaoh Hophra ruled Egypt when Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians, and he is the subject of the latest archaeological biography on the Bible Archaeology Report.

A series of videos featuring Alexander Schick discussing the history of the Bible, Tischendorf, and the Dead Sea Scrolls is being released this month as the “focus series” by the Historical Faith Society (membership required).

On The Book and the Spade, John DeLancey discusses what’s new for tourists in Israel after returning from his first tour following Covid shutdowns.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

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Archaeologists working in the temple of Amenhotep III in Luxor have discovered remains of a pair of gigantic limestone colossi.

“A joint Egyptian-Italian Mission excavating near Aswan in Egypt has discovered a tomb from the Greco-Roman period containing twenty mummies.”

“Scientists found the first recorded example of a bandaged wound on a mummified body, which could offer more insight into ancient medical practices.”

“Scholars have concluded that King Tutankhamun was not murdered, after a lengthy investigation that seemed to refute popular theory.”

Joshua Berman says that marks of Egyptian culture in the Torah give evidence of the Israelites’ sojourn in Egypt.

Deb Hurn argues that the meteoric airburst theory for the destruction of Tall al-Hammam does not match various details in the biblical text for the destruction of Sodom.

The world’s largest mosaic is now open to the public underneath the newly built Antakya Museum Hotel (in biblical Antioch on the Orontes).

“A new study has revealed that some 4,500 years ago the ancient Mesopotamians were the first to create a hybrid animal, producing an entirely new beast by mating two different species.”

New technology is allowing scientists to better determine the sex of ancient skeletons.

Candida Moss writes about the relationship that ancient Romans had with their dogs.

A Hellenistic necropolis near Naples is opening to the public for the first time.

Nimes is my favorite Roman city in France, and National Geographic reviews some of the highlights.

Michael Shutterly has written a brief guide to the coins of the Persian kings.

Carl Rasmussen shares photos of what’s new at Laodicea—“a two hundred foot long, 25 foot high Frescoed Wall.”

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Explorator, Arne Halbakken

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The location of the biblical Red Sea is the subject of a recent book by Barry Beitzel, and he provides a sample of the evidence in a new post for the Ancient Near East Today.

The City of David YouTube channel has a new 5-minute video about the excavation of the “Pilgrimage Road” leading from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount.

Related: Helene Machline recounts some exciting moments in recent excavations in the City of David (1.5 min video in Hebrew with subtitles).

Susan de la Fuente writes about water sources of Jerusalem over the millennia.

Sergio and Rhoda give a 15-minute video overview of the discoveries at Tel Burna, including the recently revealed 10th century BC destruction layer.

On the Biblical World podcast, Mary Buck and Chris McKinny begin a new series on “Texts from the Ancient Near East” with an introduction to languages and writing in the ancient world.

The top 3 reports in biblical archaeology in September include “the building of a city, the destruction of a city, and everyday life in a city.”

Oct 4: Webinar on Orientalist photography, in celebration of the opening of the “Between Science and Art: Early Photography in the Middle East” exhibition at the Heritage Library.

Oct 12: Online lecture: “Excavating Abila: Past, Present, and Future,” by David Vila

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Charles Savelle, A.D. Riddle

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