Wednesday Roundup

Wayne Stiles wonders why the largest ancient site in Israel has been largely forgotten today.

Leen Ritmeyer provides context to the recent excavations of the “gate of hell” in Hierapolis.

On April 1, Luke Chandler revealed a stunning new translation of the Khirbet Qeiyafa Ostracon.

Few tourists are visiting Egypt these days and it’s hurting many who work in the industry.

Travel Weekly recommends how to spend a day visiting the harbor city of Jaffa (biblical Joppa).

A review of the new excavations of Azekah is available in a professionally-made 12-minute video.

HT: Charles Savelle, Jack Sasson

Azekah from northeast, tb030407700
Azekah from the northeast
Photo from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands
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Wednesday Roundup

A cave above En Gedi is revealing well-preserved artifacts from the first century AD.

Luke Chandler has word that Yosef Garfinkel plans to follow his Khirbet Qeiyafa dig with excavations at Lachish.

The Daily Mail has photos of the newly opened exhibit of King Herod at the Israel Museum. Shmuel Browns has more.

Some are claiming that the Waqf is destroying more antiquities on the Temple Mount.

Gordon Franz evaluates Robert Cornuke’s use of a computer model to predict the location of Paul’s shipwreck on Malta.

A website for the excavations of Tel Abel Beth Maacah is now online.

En Gedi and Nahal David aerial from northwest, tb010703272
Aerial view of Nahal David and En Gedi
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Recent Excavations in Israel

Tel Kison (Tell Keisan): Two excavation areas revealed remains from the Chalcolithic, Iron I-II, and Persian-Hellenistic periods, including a rich repertoire from the Persian era. The site may be identified with biblical Achshaph and may have been one of the cities of Cabul given by Solomon to Hiram.

Dabburiya: A survey of the area revealed 11 ancient sites including caves, industrial installations, and a quarry. The site preserves the name Deborah and is located on the western side of Mount Tabor.

Ramla: Excavations southeast of the city uncovered 11 strata, the most important dating from the Early Islamic period. An impressive Roman pottery kiln was also discovered.

Regevim, West: Located near remains of a Roman road connecting Caesarea and Megiddo, this site was the location of 6 limestone quarries and 6 tombs, one of which had a rolling stone in situ. The quarries may have served for construction of the Roman road.

Shihin: James Strange directed a survey of the area northwest of Sepphoris which identified 111 ancient features and indicated the site’s prominence in the Early Roman period.

Tell Jatt: Excavations on this tell 6 miles (10 km) northwest of Karmiel exposed three strata from the Middle Bronze IIA and Iron I-IIA.

Megiddo: An excavation north of Kibbutz Megiddo identified 22 quarries, 2 tombs, and a road, all probably used primarily by the Sixth Roman Legion stationed here in the 2nd-3rd centuries AD.

iaa-5680-12
Roman burial cave near Megiddo.
Photo by Israel Antiquities Authority.
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Wednesday Roundup

Mark Hoffman comments on BibleX’s picture-taking tips and adds some suggestions of his own.


Time is reporting on Simcha Jacobovici’s lawsuit against Joe Zias. Aren Maeir isn’t happy with the article’s title: “A Feud Between Biblical Archaeologists.”

The Sea of Galilee is up to within 6 feet of capacity.

Raphael Golb’s appeal resulted in the vacating of one count and the affirmation of 30 other counts.

The NY Times is calling it “The Great Giveback,” as American museums hand over prized antiquities due to threats by foreign governments.

You can take a “virtual tour” of the tabernacle at the Creation Museum website. Click on this link and then select “The Tabernacle.”

The Dead Sea Scrolls are headed for Boston.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Jack Sasson, David Coppedge

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Wednesday Roundup

The level of the Dead Sea has risen for the first time in the last ten years.

Egyptian police seized a carload of 863 ancient artifacts, including 10 scarabs, 180 amulets, 120 Ptolemaic coins, 407 Roman coins of bronze, 3 Osirion wooden statues, and a limestone statue.

Victor Avigdor Hurowitz, Professor in the Department of Bible, Archaeology and Ancient Near East at Ben-Gurion University, has died after a long illness.

Shmuel Browns’ Photo of the Week is an impressive shot of the Keshet Cave in western Galilee.

The Samaritans on Mount Gerizim can vote twice this week.

Accordance Bible Software has an outstanding sale going on right now for both sets (9 volumes) of the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary, Old and New Testaments. It’s marked down now 63% to $150. These volumes have lots of images you can easily search and use. Sale ends on Monday.

HT: Charles Savelle

Dead Sea, Ras el Feshkha, mat01742

Western shore of the Dead Sea in early 1900s
Photo from Southern Palestine photo collection
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Recent IAA Excavation Reports

Most of the settlement layers of Tel Afula were destroyed by construction activity in the 1950s, but a recent salvage dig found remains from the Early Bronze I and Roman period.

Archaeologists working in the Ir Gannim neighborhood of Jerusalem excavated a winepress possibly first used in the Iron Age II and again in the Hasmonean period. A large storage pool was built here in the first century AD.

A preliminary report from the 2011 season at Horbat Huqoq describes the project’s goals (synagogue and 2-3 houses) and reports on the initial progress including the excavation of a mikveh. This report does not describe the beautiful mosaic floor depicting Samson that was found in the 2012 season.

Excavations near a site that Charles Wilson incorrectly thought was Capernaum have exposed three strata from the 13th-14th centuries. The dig at Huqoq Beach is 80 meters east of the entrance to the Khirbet el-Minya Umayyad palace.

Excavations on the east side of the Mount of Olives were prompted by the chance discovery of a relatively rare Armenian mosaic from the Byzantine period.

Two adjacent quarries were excavated in Beit Hanina north of Jerusalem. They provided Jerusalem with maleke limestone from the time of Jesus until modern day.

beit-hanina-quarry-iaa-6415-4
Quarry K in Beit Hanina, looking north. Photo by IAA.
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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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