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A couple of 12-year-old boys hiking in the hills west of Jerusalem discovered a coin from the time of Herod Agrippa I.

An analysis of fingerprints on Late Bronze pottery discovered at Tel Burna suggests that the potters were mostly young females.

Haaretz has a story about the miniature Jeroboam seal impression that a new study claims is genuine. (It was real before it was fake before it was real again.) Some, I suspect, may grow only more suspicious of the authentication methods in use. BHD has a brief response from Christopher Rollston.

Lawrence Schiffman discusses the recent research that supports the existence of a centralized government during the time of David and Solomon.

Biblical Archaeology Society has released its 2024 digs list, featuring 20 excavations mostly in Israel and Jordan. They do us a great service by compiling this list every year. They are also offering $2,000 dig scholarships.

David Moster has created a video telling the story of Ruth using beautiful images from the American Colony photo collection.

Approaching Jerusalem looks back at three topographical disagreements in the middle of the 19th century between Edward Robinson and George Williams, including the route of the Second Wall.

Jewish Press has a rare article on the important biblical site of Beth Horon. I don’t think I was aware of the lookout point that he mentions.

Leon Mauldin shares a couple of aerial photos of Joppa.

The 125th anniversary celebration of the German Protestant Institute for Archaeology has been rescheduled to March 4-7.

Israeli guide Dan Mossek is guest on the GTI Tours podcast discussing Hanukkah and Jesus’s declaration that he is the light of the world.

John DeLancey has posted a 1-minute non-narrated video walking into the Chapel of the Shepherds at Shepherds’ Field in Beit Sahour.

Nathan Steinmeyer looks at why it is so difficult to determine what the star of Bethlehem was.

Bryan Windle lists the top ten archaeological discoveries related to Christmas. They are quite interesting, and I was unaware of a couple of them.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Gordon Dickson, Arne Halbakken, Paleojudaica

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A new study suggests that the Great Sphinx of Giza was carved out of natural ridge in the bedrock.

Nathan Steinmeyer summarizes a new reconstruction of the events behind the assassination of Sennacherib, king of Assyria.

BBC: “For millennia, Tyrian purple was the most valuable colour on the planet. Then the recipe to make it was lost. By piecing together ancient clues, could one man bring it back?”

New release: Color and Meaning in the Art of Achaemenid Persia, by Alexander Nagel (Cambridge University Press, $110)

Seetheholyland.net has a new article on the holy family in Egypt, sifting through various myths, legends and might-be-facts. The list of sites with strong traditions is longer than I expected.

Darla Martin Tucker reviews the recently held 15th Annual Archaeology Discovery Weekend hosted by La Sierra University and focused on the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The Tracking Colour website “is dedicated to the research on the use of colour on sculptures and buildings in the ancient Mediterranean world carried out at the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek.”

Arim Hawsho has created an hour-long documentary on Ashurbanipal, “the librarian king.” He is also working on a cookbook inspired by recipes from ancient Mesopotamia.

Robert D. Miller died last week.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken

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New excavations at Hyrcania have already turned up an inscription in Greek adapted from Psalm 86.

“A cave containing the remains of a young woman who was likely a courtesan during the Hellenistic period has been discovered near Hebron Road in Jerusalem, along with a well-preserved, rare bronze mirror.”

Gershon Galil claims that he has deciphered a fragmentary inscription from the time of Hezekiah that was discovered in Jerusalem forty years ago (Hebrew version here). (I wouldn’t recommend trusting Galil’s judgment on anything these days. So far the story is only covered by Ynet; if other outlets cover this, they will surely include responses from other scholars.)

Archaeologists have made new and interesting finds at the ancient submerged Egyptian city of Heracleion.

This one-minute video shows how cuneiform tablets were formed from clay and inscribed.

In the newest episode in the Flora & Faith series, Brad Gray explains the symbolism of the almond tree in Scripture.

The latest episode in “Faith Journeys with God in the Land” with John DeLancey was filmed at the Pool of Siloam earlier this year.

Erez Ben-Yosef was on the What Matters Now podcast to discuss his theory about the beginnings of the United Monarchy. The Times of Israel article includes a transcript.

Zoom lecture on Oct 5: “Maritime Viewscapes and the Material Religion of Levantine Seafarers,” by Aaron Brody ($13). Brody has written an article on the ASOR Blog on the same topic.

Zoom lecture on Oct 19: “Archaeology of Jesus’ Nazareth,” by Ken Dark. Registration required.

Biblical Archaeology Report has a rundown on the top three discoveries of the month.

Ferrell Jenkins shares some experiences and photos from his visits to Mount Nebo.

Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, the seventh and final commemoration in the biblical calendar, begins today. TheTorah.com has an article on the etrog as the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

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

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A new study suggests that a 10th-century BC inscription discovered near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem may have been written in the Ancient South Arabian language, providing a possible link with the Queen of Sheba’s visit to Solomon.

Gold jewelry discovered in a Roman-era tomb on Mount Scopus in Jerusalem in 1971 is now on display for the first time. The jewelry “bears the mark of the Roman goddess of the moon Luna.”

Ruth Schuster investigates the earliest Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land and how they knew were to go.

It’s a Passover tradition for journalists to write about the exodus, and Judith Sudilovsky’s article in The Jerusalem Post is not entirely negative.

You can find the full series of Passion Week devotionals written by Will Varner and illustrated with our photos here.

Megan Sauter considers the question of how Jesus’s tomb was sealed.

Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer discuss the archaeology of the Passion Week in a three-part series on the Biblical World podcast.

John DeLancey is on The World and Everything in It talking about the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (23:40; transcript at link).

Israeli police detained several individuals with lambs or goats near the Temple Mount.

Jordan Ryan’s recent BAR article, “Jesus in the Synagogue,” is excerpted online, including a list of 16 synagogues in Judea and Galilee that date before AD 135.

Ellen White writes about Israelite attitudes toward dogs.

Peter Lacovara attempts to explain why ancient ivory cosmetic spoons were made in the shape of a young girl swimming.

Archaeologists excavating the Hyksos palace at Tell el-Daba have discovered 12 severed hands.

“Researchers at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Ottawa, Canada are learning more about ancient graffiti and their amazing comparisons with modern graffiti as they produce a state-of-the-art 3D recording of the Temple of Isis in Philae, Egypt.”

New release: Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World’s First Empire, by Eckart Frahm (Basic Books, 528 pages, $35; Amazon).

New release: The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume IV: The Age of Assyria, edited by Karen Radner, Nadine Moeller, and D. T. Potts (Oxford, 1288 pages, $150; Amazon)

Turkish Archaeological News has a roundup of stories in the month of March.

Greek City Times has a survey of the (many) Greek theaters in Turkey.

“The Asia Minor Research Center is pleased to announce a new study program in Turkey for people in the Majority World.”

The Gospel of Matthew in the LUMO Project has been dubbed using a restored Koine Greek pronunciation.

WarGamer’s April Fool’s prank was about the world’s first trading card game.

The Oriental Institute is being renamed to the “Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, West Asia and North Africa.” Pretty catchy.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, A.D. Riddle, Andy Cook, Ted Weis, Gordon Dickson, Keith Keyser, Explorator

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“A 6,000-year-old copper fishing hook, possibly used for catching sharks or other large fish, has been discovered during an Israel Antiquities Authority excavation in Ashkelon.”

Andy Cook posts a short video he just filmed in the drainage channel underneath the City of David.

Sussita National Park is now open to the public. The site, also known as Hippos, overlooks the Sea of Galilee on its eastern side.

Bible History Daily addresses the question of who lived in the ancient city of Hazor: commoners, elites, or a mix of the two. This issue is explored further in an article by Shlomit Bechar in the latest issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

Several dozen articles on the topic of “The Ancient Written Wor(l)d” have been published in the latest issue of ‘Atiqot (open access). One of the articles challenges the identification of the signet ring of Pilate.

“Jerusalem was named one of TIME magazine’s 50 most extraordinary travel destinations, as part of the publication’s third annual list of the World’s Greatest Places.”

“Caesarea was given awarded the ACTA Archeological and Cultural Award for the best foreign archeological site by GIST, Italy’s foremost tourism press agency.”

Chandler Collins will now be posting information about excavations and publications about Jerusalem on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

As Emily Master steps down after five years as Executive Director of the Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority, she identifies three milestone projects completed in this time: a renovated Davidson Center, the Shelby White and Leon Levy Lod Mosaic Archaeological Center, and the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel.

Aren Maeir’s latest publication is in a volume dedicated to Indiana Jones. (Despite the date of its posting, the book appears legitimate.)

New release: In the Shadow of the Wall: The Life and Death of Jerusalem’s Maghrebi Quarter, 1187–1967, by Vincent Lemire (Stanford University Press, $32; Amazon).

ASOR webinar on April 13: “New Perspectives on Jerusalem’s 7th Century BCE Elite,” by Yuval Gadot

Online lecture on April 27: “The Archaeology of Mount Zion in Jerusalem – Past, Present, and Future,” by Shimon Gibson. Registration is free and required.

On YouTube: “The Jewishness of the New Testament: An Interview with R. Steven Notley” (17 min)

Israeli authorities are forecasting severe heat waves this summer, with temperatures possibly reaching 120 degrees F (49 C).

The Infusion Bible Conference digital download of all 42 videos of “The Last Days of Jesus” is now on sale for $30 off. Purchase includes the pdf notebook with 170 pages of notes, resources, and recommendations.

Focus on the Family is celebrating Passion Week with a series of devotionals by Will Varner, illustrated with photos from BiblePlaces.com.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Explorator

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There won’t be a roundup tomorrow, so today’s is a long one (with 30 items). I am grateful for tips this week from Agade, Keith Keyser, Arne Halbakken, Gordon Dickson, and Mark Hoffman. See the last item for a word about the future.

Archaeologists made some discoveries in preparing to open to the public the tomb of Salome, the traditional midwife of Jesus. The cave is situated along the route of the new Judean Kings Trail, which runs from Beersheba to Beit Guvrin.

“Israeli archaeologists have discovered the earliest evidence of cotton in the ancient Near East during excavations at Tel Tsaf, a 7,000-year-old town in the Jordan Valley.”

A group of schoolchildren discovered a Roman oil lamp while walking in Galilee.

“Israel is embarking on a challenge to make the mapping of archaeological sites tech-savvy using remote underground sensor technology in a move to cut costs and resources used up by extensive excavation.”

The NY Times looks at the hope for dating ancient remains offered by archaeomagnetism.

Some are seeking the Israeli government to turn the ruins of the Hasmonean and Herodian palaces at Jericho into a national park in order to preserve it and make it accessible to Israelis.

The Temple Mount Sifting Project has been making great progress, but they need financial support.

The Temple: Then and Now is a forthcoming five-episode video project from Bible Land Passages. They have just released a trailer.

Joseph Lauer has observed that most respectable news outlets have ignored the recent claims of Gershon Galil to have discovered five inscriptions in and around Hezekiah’s Tunnel. He links to one article (in Hebrew) which quotes Dr. Barkay as saying, “I haven’t seen anything yet that convinces me that this is true. We have to wait for a scientific publication and better photos that will clarify what is there.” Carl Rasmussen shares photos of the location of one of the alleged inscriptions.

ASOR webinar on Jan 12: “‘Earliest Inscription Found!’ Exposing Sensationalism in the Field of Ancient Inscriptions,” by Christopher Rollston ($12)

20 ancient tombs dating back to as early as 660 BC were uncovered in the city of New Damietta in Egypt’s Nile delta.”

“An ancient Egyptian painting [in a palace at Amarna] is so detailed, researchers can determine which species of birds were featured in it.”

Conservators in Iraq’s national museum are working to preserve and digitize 47,000 ancient manuscripts.

“Yale computer scientists, archaeologists, and historians are teaming up to uncover long-lost clues from the ancient city of Dura-Europos.”

More than half of the destructions dated to 1200 BC in the eastern Mediterranean world “were misdated, assumed, or simply invented out of nothing and are what we can call, false destructions.”

The Vatican Museums are returning three fragments of sculptures from the Parthenon that they have held for a long time.

Gifs can help to show the former glory of ancient ruins.

Juan Manuel Tebes asks why the Bible never mentions the Edomite god Qos. I think his answer is wrong, but it’s an interesting question.

Leon Mauldin tackles the question of who the deliverer of Israel was in the days of Jehoahaz and Jehoash. His conclusion is quite reasonable.

Jacob Sivak looks at some of the archaeological background to James Michener’s The Source.

An anonymous archaeologist explains why some archaeologists and scientists are carrying out their research anonymously.

A complete list of speakers and topics has been released for the 3rd annual Jerusalem University College online seminar. Speakers include Chris McKinny, Brad Gray, Jack Beck, and Hélène Dallaire.

Oscar White Muscarella, an archaeologist who argued vociferously that antiquities collectors and museums — including his longtime employer, the Metropolitan Museum of Art — were fueling a market in forgeries and encouraging the plundering of archaeological sites, died on Nov. 27.”

Erich Winter, professor emeritus of Egyptology at Trier University, died on Dec 17. A list of his publications is available here.

Ross Thomas, archaeologist and British Museum curator, died on Nov 14 at the age of 44.

Eric Meyers offers “a few inconvenient lessons of Hanukkah.”

Preserving Bible Times now has Zechariah and Elizabeth, by Doug Greenwold, available in audiobook format. (Also ebook)

The latest OnSite video from Biblical Archaeology Society explores Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity.

“Herod the Great-Villain of the Christmas Story” is the subject of the latest episode of Digging for Truth, with guest Bryan Windle. On Christmas day, “O Little Town of Bethlehem” will be released.

Who were the Magi? Bryan Windle provides an excellent and well-illustrated survey of the possibilities, and the strengths of each view.

I’ll have a “Top 10 of 2022” finished by Monday, but there will be no weekend roundups for the next 3-4 weeks while I travel around Turkey and Greece. I’m co-leading a group of 90 from The Master’s University, and I highly recommend our agent there, Tutku Tours.

Merry Christmas!

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