Galilee Archives - Page 57 of 84

Wednesday Roundup

Excavations on Mount Zion this summer revealed a Early Roman period mansion that archaeologists suggest belonged to the family of a priest in the first century. The story is also reported by livescience.

A summary of this year’s excavations of Tel Yafo (Jaffa) is now online. The work focused on the only Egyptian gate known in Israel.

There’s another article on the alleged discovery of Dalmanutha.

Why was Samaria made the capital of the Kingdom of Israel? Norma Franklin argues from her archaeological research that it was the city’s economic potential.

The University of Pennsylvania is celebrating a century since it received the Sphinx.

Logos Bible Software is looking for a Bible Map Designer.

“Explorations in Antiquity in LaGrange will soon open its Biblical Life Artifacts Gallery.”

Philologos explains why Sukkot is a harvest holiday, even though there’s little to harvest. For those beginning the joyous celebration of Sukkot tonight, we say hag sameah!

HT: Mark Hoffman, Jack Sasson, Joseph Lauer

Sphinx, red granite, 19th Dynasty, from Memphis, tb072311783

The Sphinx of the University of Pennsylvania

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Excavations, Galilee, Holidays, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Museums, Opportunities, Samaria, Weekend Roundup

First Season of Excavations at Abel Beth Maacah

The excavators of Abel Beth Maacah provide a summary of their first season of digging at the ASOR Blog. After an introduction, they explain what they are looking for.

For one thing, there is Abel’s Aramean connection. References to a political entity called “Aram Maacah” (1 Chronicles 19:6) and to the “king of Maacah” (2 Samuel 10:6, 8) evoke possibilities of Aramean presence at the site, allowing us to examine such an entity in relation to other presumed Aramean sites like Bethsaida, Tel Hadar, and En Gev. Even though the Arameans are specifically mentioned in ancient records, we know very little about them “on the ground,” especially within the borders of modern Israel. Can they be defined in terms of a distinct material culture? The location of Abel Beth Maacah on the northern borders of Israel (then and now) makes this site a viable candidate for the study of Aramean cultural and political influences.
Passages in the Hebrew Bible suggest that Abel Beth Maacah became an Israelite town during David’s reign, and it apparently remained so until its destruction by the Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser III in 733 BCE. In the story of the Wise Woman of Abel Beth Maacah (2 Samuel 20:14-22), the city is enigmatically referred to as “a mother in Israel.” Her power and influence is apparent in that she directly negotiates the surrender of the Benjaminite rebel Sheba ben Bichri with Joab, David’s military commander.
The Abel Beth Maacah project is also intent on pursuing Phoenician connections in Iron Age II. The city’s location on a branch road of the International Highway leading north to Ijon (Tell ed-Dibbin) in Lebanon’s Marj Ayyun Valley, and roads leading west to Tyre and Sidon, will enable us to study cross-cultural ties with coastal Lebanon during the Bronze Age and Iron Age.

The report continues with some suggestions as to why the site has never been excavated before along with a description of this season’s prize find. I’m hoping they find another copy of the Tel Dan Inscription. Intact, of course.

We’ve written about Abel Beth Maacah previously here and here.

The Huleh valley with Abel Beth Maacah and Mount Hermon.
Photo by A.D. Riddle.

Tagged Excavations, Galilee

Wednesday Roundup

There are many Biblical archaeology programs scheduled for the Washington DC area.

Haaretz provides a review of the significance of Magdala and the recent excavations.

Paleojudaica links to the latest “bad-news articles on the Middle East for the last couple of weeks.”

St. Catherine’s Monastery at Mount Sinai has closed due to the security situation in Egypt.

Shmuel Browns provides the latest Israel Roundup.

Aren Maeir announces that a new exhibit is opening at Bar-Ilan University entitled “The Rise and Fall of Philistine Gath (Tel Zafit).”

Some Palestinians are claiming that the golden treasure recently announced by Eilat Mazar is a fake.

Wayne Stiles provides a very good overview of the Garden of Gethsemane.

St. Catherine’s Monastery, circa 1915

Photo from the American Colony and Eric Matson Collection

Tagged Egypt, Galilee, Jerusalem, Lectures, Museums, New Exhibits, Philistines, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup

Leen Thobias has some impressive 360-degree images of Israel and Jordan here.

It must be a bit discouraging when you find in your sealed excavation locus a beer bottle cap. (Photos here.)

Theories about the identity of Khirbet Qeiyafa are discussed in this Haaretz article. The most helpful section is what everyone agrees on.

A Tel Aviv professor wants to know if a mound of stones in the Sea of Galilee marks the place where Jesus walked on water.

If you’ve been waiting to see the new Samson mosaic found last summer at the Huqoq synagogue, you should check out Jodi Magness’s new article in Biblical Archaeology Review, currently online for free.

The anarchy in Egypt has not been good for archaeological sites and museums.

Archaeologists have found evidence that cinnamon was produced on the northern coast of Israel in ancient times.

Fifteen foreign archaeological teams are preparing to begin fifteen projects in Saudi Arabia.

Foundation Stone shares a 7-minute video showing some results from this summer’s excavations at Azekah.

Leen Ritmeyer has created some new reconstruction drawings of Jerusalem throughout its history.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Jack Sasson

Tagged 10th Century, Discoveries, Egypt, Excavations, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Museums, Resources, Shephelah, Weekend Roundup

Canaanite Altar Discovered at Tel Rekhesh

Tel Rekhesh (Tell el-Mukharkhash) is located on the northern side of Nahal Tabor, five miles (8 km) southeast of Mount Tabor. Yohanan Aharoni identified it as biblical Anaharath (Josh 19:19), a city also mentioned in the records of Thutmose III, Amenhotep II, as well as in the Amarna Letters.

From The Jewish Press.com:

An archaeological discovery in the Tel Rechesh excavations at the Tabor River Reserve in northern Israel: a joint archaeological expedition, which included researchers from the University of Tenri, Japan, and the Institute of Archaeology of Galilee Kinneret Academic College, have unearthed a Canaanite cult altar.
The excavations in this area have been going on for six years now.
The same excavations also revealed large parts of a Jewish farmhouse dating back to the Second Temple. Researchers were able to establish that this was a place of Jewish dwellers based on typical stone tools, oil lamps and coins minted in the city of Tiberias.
“The diggers received a big surprise,” said Chairman of the Institute of Archaeology of Galilee Kinneret Academic College Dr. Mordechai Avi’am. “In the ruins of the second floor of the farmhouse, they discovered a Canaanite cult statue, similar to a statue that stood in the sanctuary of a temple which is yet to be located.”

The full story is here. The basis for the report is this press release (Hebrew). The official excavation website is here. Excavations began at the site in 2006.

HT: Joseph Lauer

Tel Rekhesh from northwest. Photo by David Dorsey.

Tagged Discoveries, Galilee

Weekend Roundup

Fortifications from the 8th century BC were discovered in the first season of excavations at Ashdod-Yam, the harbor city of Philistine Ashdod. The official website is here.

Gordon Govier and I talk this week on The Book and the Spade about the latest archaeological discoveries in Israel, including the Samson mosaic at Huqoq and the Sphinx fragment at Hazor (direct link here).

The Israel Exploration Society recently observed its centennial, an event celebrated by an op-ed in the Jerusalem Post.

Amnon Ben-Tor reviews the finds from the controversial tenth century BC at Hazor.

Ferrell Jenkins describes Assyrian ruins that will soon be flooded by the Tigris River.

Exploring Bible Lands has a break-down of places shown in the Jerusalem IMAX 3D trailer. The
movie opens in theaters next month.

Neo-Assyrian Bronze Palace at Ziyaret Tepe
Photo from Eastern and Central Turkey

Tagged Excavations, Galilee, Jerusalem, Philistines, Turkey, Weekend Roundup