Israel's Coast Archives - Page 12 of 34

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists working at a construction site in a Tel Aviv suburb discovered a mosaic-floored winepress, a chandelier chain, and a hand-signed Byzantine gold coin.

The “Shema, servant of Jeroboam” seal impression announced last year is a fake. Yuval Goren claimed the seal was authentic after “years of strict laboratory testing,” but the object is in fact a common tourist replica.

A new study reveals that olive oil production in Philistia and the Judean Shephelah began earlier than thought and was significant in Judah after Sennacherib’s invasion. The journal article is available for purchase here.

“A large Roman-era sarcophagus dating to the 2nd or 3rd century CE excavated illegally at an unknown location in Israel has been returned to the Israel Antiquities Authority.”

In the OnScript Biblical World podcast, Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer discuss the excavations of Tel Burna, including destructions by Shishak, Sennacherib, and Nebuchadnezzar.

Leen Ritmeyer’s latest post surveys Jerusalem and the Temple Mount in the Hellenistic period.

A lecture that Nancy Lapp gave in 2019 at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is online. Entitled “Adventures and Discoveries from Half a Century of Life as an Archaeologist,” Nancy focuses mostly on her explorations with her husband Paul in the 1950s and 1960s, including driving from England to Shechem and on to India.

New release: Tel Reḥov, A Bronze and Iron Age City in the Beth-Shean Valley, Volume IV, Pottery Studies, Inscriptions and Figurative Art, by Amihai Mazar and Nava Panitz-Cohen (Qedem 62) (The Institute of Archaeology, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 2020). To order, contact the IES.

Now available: The Road Taken: An Archaeologist’s Journey to the Land of the Bible, by Seymour (Sy) Gitin. Save 30% with code NR21.

Navot Rom has a unique job, working the night shift as an archaeological inspector in the Old City of Jerusalem.

The Tell es-Safi team was doing more than digging this year, answering the “Jerusalema Challenge” with an impressive video showing off the team’s dancing skills.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, G. M. Grena, Ted Weis, Explorator, Charles Savelle

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Lectures, Philistines, Resources, Shephelah, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

A curious tour guide found a stash of ancient coins all lumped together on the beach of Atlit.

An Israeli girl found a Byzantine-era coin at the ancient site of Chorazin during a scavenger hunt game.

Haaretz (premium) posts some photos of recent finds made in the excavations of Azekah.

Construction has begun on a controversial elevator at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron.

“New research based on the analysis of dozens of pottery vessels has suggested has shown that in the period between the Assyrian conquest and the Babylonian destruction, a new cultural group emerged in the biblical Kingdom of Judah.”

Live Science has a follow-up article on the 8th-century earthquake evidence found in Jerusalem with responses from scholars who agree with the earthquake conclusion.

Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer discuss the site of Khirbet er-Ra‘i/Arai, including the “Jerubbaal” inscription and whether the site should be identified as biblical Ziklag.

The latest episode in This Week in the Ancient Near East podcast considers the significance of the “Jerubbaal” inscription.

There are more archaeological connections to the reign of King Jehoash than you might think, as Bryan Windle shows in his latest archaeological biography.

If you’re in Jerusalem this month or next, you can try out the ropes course or the zip line at the Tower of David Museum.

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

Tagged Discoveries, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Judah, Shephelah, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists believe that they have greater clarity about the roads in the southern Judean desert leading to Edom following the examination of a site near Nahal Gorer. The underlying journal article is available to PEQ subscribers.

Haaretz follows up on the Jerubaal inscription discovery with a report fashioned as a back-and-forth between David Vanderhooft and Christopher Rollston, with the former suggesting the inscription may have been Zerbaal or Ezerbaal, and the latter sticking with his original interpretation of Jerubaal.

Excavations are underway at el-Araj (Bethsaida?), and updates are posted daily on their website.

The 25th and final summer season of excavations at Tell es-Safi/Gath has concluded. They have had a remarkable run.

Haaretz surveys the debate between Erez Ben-Yosef and Israel Finkelstein on the effect of “architectural bias” in drawing conclusions about Israel’s United Monarchy.

Naama Yahalom-Mack writes about the history of iron in ancient Israel.

Naama Barak writes about the mystery of the 1,400 dog burials at Ashkelon during the Persian period.

Bryan Windle identifies the top three reports in biblical archaeology for the month of July.

Construction has begun on a new reception center at the traditional Shepherds’ Field site near Bethlehem.

A music historian plans to restore a 12th-century organ discovered beneath the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem. The instrument is the oldest known example of a pipe organ.

Shea Sumlin is on the GTI podcast talking about what it was like to be one of the first tour groups to be back in Israel.

Joseph L. Rife reviews A Walk to Caesarea: A Historical-Archaeological Perspective, by Joseph Patrich.

2nd edition released: The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls, by Jodi Magness.

One of the books on sale at Logos right now is the Zondervan Handbook of Biblical Archaeology, by Randall Price with H. Wayne House ($9).

John DeLancey’s new Institute of Biblical Israel is launching a new course on biblical archaeology tomorrow.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Wayne Stiles, Joseph Lauer, Ted Weis, Explorator, Mark Hoffman, Roger Schmidgall, Paleojudaica

Tagged Dead Sea Scrolls, Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Judah, Negev, Philistines, Resources, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Archaeologists believe that a 2,300-year-old jar from Ancient Greece containing the bones of a dismembered chicken was likely used as part of a curse to paralyze and kill 55 people in Athens.”

“A multinational team of archaeologists and scientists is reassessing the history of sea-level change in the Eastern Mediterranean based on underwater excavation and photogrammetry at sites on Israel’s Carmel coast.”

“An Egyptian archaeological mission is preparing to launch an excavation project in Saudi Arabia after several discoveries showed that ancient Egyptian King Ramses III had a presence in the Arabian Peninsula.”

Turkish Archaeological News has a roundup of stories from the month of May.

“The Covid-19 pandemic, however, has offered these thieves new opportunities to raid closed archeological sites, churches and museums [in Italy] for priceless artifacts while police are reassigned to enforce lockdowns.”

First discovered in 2015, a cache of Roman coins dating from 200 BCE to 27 BCE are now on display at the Santa Maria della Scala Museum in Siena, Italy.

A replica of Noah’s Ark has been deemed unseaworthy and is prohibited from leaving port.

Charles Aling is on The Book and the Spade discussing “Post-Exodus Disruptions in Egypt.”

Carl Rasmussen shares photos from “The Grotto of Paul” at Ephesus, including ancient paintings of Paul and Thecla.

If you’ll be at the Infusion Bible Conference this week, stop by the BiblePlaces table and say hi to Kris Udd and me. I haven’t had a chance to meet many roundup readers this past year, but our team has used the time to create some great new photo collections.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Explorator, Charles Savelle, Paleojudaica

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Arabia, Discoveries, Egypt, Greece, Israel's Coast, Lectures, Museums, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists discovered a stone anchor in an underwater dig at Tel Dor.

Archaeologists have announced the discovery of 150 clay sealings from a Neolithic site in the Beth Shean Valley.

The Israeli team excavating el-Araj (Bethsaida?) signed a collaboration agreement with an Italian university for the exchange of researchers and students.

Five suspects were arrested after they were caught carrying out an illegal excavation in Galilee.

“Israel has opened its first underwater national park at the ancient port city of Caesarea, where divers can tour the 2,000-year-old remains of what was once a major complex extending into the sea.”

Israel will begin allowing individual tourists to arrive on July 1.

Jodi Magness discussed toilet issues at Qumran in a recent lecture.

The June issue of Near Eastern Archaeology includes a study from Gath on bone projectiles.

The three-day “Caesarea Maritima Conference” will begin on June 13 at 3:15 pm and continue through June 15 at 9:00 pm (Israel Time).

Eilat Mazar will be honored on July 1 with an evening of lectures by Amihai Mazar, Gabriel Barkay, Yitzhak Dvira, and Reut Ben Aryeh (in Hebrew).

“The years of archaeological excavations Israel has conducted at the Temple Mount have yielded no proof that the Temple ever existed in Jerusalem, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said Monday evening.”

Bryan Windle has put together a very impressive list of “Top Ten Discoveries Related to David.”

Israel’s Good Name spent a day on Mount Hermon after it snowed.

New: Ancient Israel: From Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple, 4th edition, edited by John Merrill and Hershel Shanks.

If you get Wayne Stiles and me in a room together, we’ll end up talking about the top 10 discoveries in Israel’s archaeology.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Explorator, Charles Savelle, Paleojudaica

Tagged 10th Century, Antiquities Trade, Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Lectures, Resources, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“The Tel Ashkelon National Park in southern Israel is undergoing a large-scale renovation project that will open up previously unseen parts of the heritage site, including a recently excavated 2,000-year-old Roman basilica.” More than a mile of accessible pathways will also be added to the park.

The director of the salvage excavations of Tel Beth Shemesh reports on the discoveries. One conclusion: the site was not abandoned after Sennacherib’s attack.

A study of more than 3,500 plant finds from Gath reveals that the Canaanites living there in the Early Bronze Age ate figs, olives, wheat, barley, grapes, and more. The underlying journal article is available for purchase.

The bridge that provides the only access to the Temple Mount for non-Muslims is in immediate danger of collapsing.

Drew Longacre’s analysis of the Dead Sea Scrolls suggests that some were written for community reading and others for personal use. Longacre’s recent lecture on a related subject is on YouTube.

A new episode on This Week in the Ancient Near East: “A Resurrected Date by Any Other Name Would Still Taste As Sweet, or, Jurassic Park in the Judean Desert”

Glenn J. Corbett, the new editor of Biblical Archaeology Review, answers five questions about his background that prepared him for his new position.

This week on The Book and the Spade: “Remembering Professor Eilat Mazar.”

Archaeology of the Passion Week is the subject of this week’s podcast on the Biblical World, with Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer.

Israel’s Good Name reports on his February trip to the Golan Heights after a snowfall.

The T-shirt designs have been posted for this year’s excavations at Tell es-Safi/Gath and Tel Burna.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Andy Cook

Tagged Dead Sea Scrolls, Excavations, Golan, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Shephelah, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup