fbpx

“Siloam Street,” now dubbed “Pilgrims Way,” leading from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount, was inaugurated recently.

Excavations begin this summer at Kiriath Jearim and applications for volunteers are being accepted.

Carl Rasmussen recently took the “Behind the Scenes of the Western Wall” in Jerusalem tour and shares some photos.

The Roman milestones on display along Highway 38 (the “Diagonal Route” in the Shephelah) have unfortunately been moved to KKL-JNF’s Givat Yeshayahu offices.

The 2016 issue of ‘Atiqot has been released.

The Fall 2016 issue of the electronic newsletter DigSight has been published.

Restoration work on the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is nearly halfway done.

Archaeologists will begin using robotic submarines in excavations of Atlit-Yam.

Who are the Christians in Israel today?

Islamic guards attempted to evict Gabriel Barkay for saying the words “Temple Mount” on the Temple Mount.

Reuters has created a photo story on the Sea of Galilee.

Wayne Stiles has written a great post on the many interesting sites in the Golan Heights.

The Atlanta Jewish Times has a story about the Biblical History Center in LaGrange, Georgia, and a second story about its founder, James Fleming.

“Ancient Jerusalem in VR” is now available on Google Play ($1.99)and the Apple store ($2.99). You can find some screenshots and videos here. Note: the support website is down at this writing.

You can now experience Petra with a 360º experience for Google Cardboard

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle, Explorator, Pat McCarthy, Paleojudaica

Share:

Archaeologists have discovered the Roman theater at the site of Hippos.

Excavations of the Crusader-era Montfort Castle in Galilee have discovered game pieces, belt buckles, pig bones, and much more.

Analysis of organic remains from a 10th B.C. gatehouse complex in the Timna Valley suggests that food and supplies were brought in from a long distance.

Engravings of an ancient menorah and cross were found inside a cave in the Judean Shephelah.

A gang of antiquities thieves was caught illegally digging at a site near the Golani Junction in the Galilee. A 3-minute video (in Hebrew) is online.

What are the origins of tomb raider curses?

Three scientists from Beersheba’s Ben Gurion University have used NASA data to date the “sun standing still” to an eclipse in 1207 BC.

A life-size CAVEkiosk (“cave automated virtual environment”) recently opened at UCSD will allow scholars to study 3-D data from at-risk sites.

The Israel Museum has announced that Eran Neuman will succeed James S. Snyder as director.

Wayne Stiles explains why God made the Israelites rest the land every seven years and what that means today.

Colin Hemer’s The Book of Acts in the Setting of Hellenistic History is available in Logos this month for $1.99.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Ted Weis

Share:

The Mountain to Valley Relay is a 215 km relay race in northern Israel. Registration opens in January.

A beautiful mosaic from the Roman and Byzantine periods excavated in Lod went on display this week.

A hoard of 3rd century Roman coins has been found in Switzerland.

You can now visit every gallery in the British Museum with Google Street View.

Reuters revisits Rujm el-Hiri in the Golan Heights.

Wayne Stiles observes the irony that a “seat of Moses” was discovered at Chorazin.

An ornately decorated 1st century A.D. basilica once used by a pagan cult is now open to tourists in Rome.

Now on pre-pub pricing for Logos: AR151 Archaeology in Action: Jesus and Archaeology, with Craig Evans.

The Ancient Semitic Languages Youtube Channel has a reading of the Mesha Stele in Moabite.

Urban Legends of the New Testament is on sale for $4.99 for Kindle.

Ferrell Jenkins has announced his 50th Anniversary Tour to Israel.

I’ve never heard of a modern-day “tour of Palestine,” but Felicity Cobbing reports on her annual tour to sites in the West Bank.

Leen Ritmeyer responds to the recent Popular Archaeology claim that the Jewish people are praying
at the wrong wall.

HT: Ted Weis, Vik Menon

Share:

Bill Schlegel has released another teaching video based on the Satellite Bible Atlas, this one focused on the northern regions of Israel. The 18-minute video describes the geographical and historical significance of the:

  • Sea of Galilee
  • Golan Heights
  • Huleh Valley
  • Mt. Hermon

Schlegel has taught college and graduate students as a resident professor in the land of Israel for 30 years. His new video series combines his expertise with excellent maps and aerial footage taken with a drone. These videos could serve your own family as well as a small-group Bible study or a school classroom. The series now includes 10 videos. They are all free. If you benefit from them, you might consider commenting on their Facebook page or sharing with your friends.

Share:

Archaeologists believe that they may have discovered a Roman-period synagogue in the Golan Heights.

A massive underground city from 3000 BC has been discovered in Turkey’s Central Anatolian province of Nevsehir.

More about the Summeily bullae, including a response by Israel Finkelstein, is reported by the AP.

The IAA busted over 100 antiquities thieves in 2014, the latest with a metal detector at Khirbet

Marmita near Beth Shemesh. Before that, two Israelis and two Palestinians were arrested for planning to loot gold from a cave in the West Bank.

Papyrus scrolls are hot items in the online antiquities market.

On Monday, 38 Tyrian shekels from the lifetime of Jesus will be sold by auction. They date consecutively from 5 BC to AD 33. The reserve amount is $125k.


Haaretz reviews the most intriguing archaeological stories of 2014.


Archaeology magazine picks their top 10 discoveries of the year.

Most of the top 10 posts of 2014 by Wayne Stiles are related to Bible geography.

Ferrell Jenkins shares some new NASA photos of Israel and the Middle East.

“Secrets of the Bible: The Fall of Jericho,” featuring Bryant Wood, airs on the American Heroes Channel on Sunday, January 4, at 8:00 and 11:00 pm.

HT: Ted Weis, Explorator, Joseph Lauer

Besichtigung des Ausstellungsstückes im Alten Museum - Jäger und Gejagte, Die exotische Tierwelt des römischen Mosaiks aus Lod (Israel).
© Uwe Steinert, Berlin.
www.uwesteinert.de
Holiday greetings from the Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority; photo by Yuri Molodkovtsu
Share:

Michael Eisenberg tells the story of trying to discover the synagogue of Sussita (Hippos).

An Egyptian cemetery may contain more than a million mummies, say BYU archaeologists. No, it doesn’t, and you’re not working here again, says Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities.

The colossi of Amenhotep III have been re-erected at the site of his funerary temple in Luxor.

The Harvard Semitic Museum is honoring its founder with a special exhibition.

A new discovery in Galilee suggests that olive use was already in use in the Early Chalcolithic period.

The Book and the Spade features Mike Molnar explaining the star of Bethlehem mystery.

Leen Ritmeyer: Where on the Temple Mount was Jesus during Hanukkah?

How close is the new movie Exodus to the Bible? Ellen White answers: “Their story was so different
that if they didn’t use the Biblical names and released the same movie with a different title, I might not have even recognized it.”

Don McNeeley reports on the 2014 NEAS Conference in San Diego.

Our Rabbi Jesus notes a couple of free books on Greek and Hebraic thought.

Heritage Daily lists its Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries of 2014.

This will be the final roundup of 2014. We’ll try to note major stories as they break. Thanks for joining us this year!

HT: Charles Savelle, Ted Weis

Share: