Weekend Roundup, Part 2

The AFP was given a private tour of the “Tomb of the Kings” in Jerusalem, while discussions are ongoing with the French government on re-opening the site to the public.

Renovations of a shop in Paris revealed a large hidden painting of the city of Jerusalem.

The greatest threats to archaeology in Iraq are looting and uncontrolled building.

Carl Rasmussen shares photos of a procession of the Roman elite at Ephesus.

Wayne Stiles looks at three reminders that come from Jesus’s ministry in Galilee.

Evan McDuff describes his experience in excavating Tel Dor.

Graham Chandler provides an interesting and well-illustrated look at ivory in the ancient Near East.

The latest episodes on Digging for Truth look at the relationship between ancient child sacrifice and modern abortion (part 1, part 2, part 3).

Scattered Finds: Archaeology, Egyptology and Museums, by Alice Stevenson, is now available in print or as a free pdf.

Bryan Windle has created two top ten lists:

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Steven Anderson

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Weekend Roundup

A woman taking a stroll near Tel Beth Shean discovered that winter rains had exposed two Roman statues.

New technology now makes declassified US spy photos from the 1960s more useful for research in the Middle East. LiveScience tells the story, and you can explore the amazing Corona Atlas yourself.

A team of archaeologists and climbers scaled the cliffs of Sela in order to study a relief made by the Babylonian king Nabonidus.

Ruth Schuster surveys the archaeological evidence for the earthquake in the days of Uzziah mentioned by Amos and Zechariah (Haaretz premium).

Kyle Harper attempts to trace the origins of the Nazareth Inscription.

‘Serve the Gods of Egypt’ is an exhibition focusing on the Third Intermediate Period (1069-664 BC), now showing at the Museum of Grenoble, located in southeast France. 

Now online: Maps, drawings, and photographs from the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) Sphinx Project, 1979-1983.

The Fall 2018 issue of DigSight includes stories on the seal impression of Isaiah, new publications, recent finds, and upcoming events.

The Oriental Institute 2017–18 Annual Report is now available.

On the ASOR Blog, Claudio Ottoni asks, “Where do cats come from?”

Carl Rasmussen provides illustrations for Paul’s boxing metaphor.

Wayne Stiles explains why Peter’s trip to Caesarea was apparently inefficient and yet perfectly necessary.

A 4-minute video from the Today Show explains how NASA technology is being used to decipher Dead Sea Scrolls. The video includes footage inside Cave 1.

Owen Jarus suggests five archaeological discoveries to watch for in 2019.

The editors of The Bible and Interpretation have chosen their five best articles for 2018.

In a full article posted from Biblical Archaeology Review, Robert Cargill explains what a day on a dig looks like.

Jerusalem is one of the fastest growing tourist destinations in the world. Jordan’s tourism in 2018 was its second highest ever.

“William B. Tolar of Fort Worth, Texas, a longtime professor of biblical backgrounds and archaeology [at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary], died Dec. 29.” He apparently led 80 trips to Israel.

There will be no roundup next weekend.

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Mark Hoffman, Chris McKinny, Joseph Lauer, Paleojudaica, Bryan Windle

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists believe that a public bath excavated in Sepphoris may have been used by Rabbi Judah the Prince.

Archaeologists excavating at the Negev town of Shivta have found a lamp wick dating to the Byzantine period.

Kiriath Jearim has a large platform which must have been cultic and could only have been built by the northern kingdom of Israel. Or so says Israel Finkelstein. (Haaretz premium)

A total of 1,500 landmines have been cleared since the spring near the Jordan River baptismal location of Qasr al-Yahud.

Migdal Aphek, the Crusader castle also known as Mirabel, will soon be open to the public following conservation works.

Dennis Mizzi asks, “What does Qumran have to do with the Mediterranean?”

The Annual Conference on the Excavations of the Institute of Archaeology at the Hebrew University will be held on Thursday.

Israel’s Good Name reports on a university field trip to the Hebron area.

Biblical Byways has a couple of tours to Israel coming up, including a Spanish tour in April.

Tim Frank’s latest book, Household Food Storage in Ancient Israel and Judah, is now available in paperback and as an e-book.

The Lexham Geographic Commentary on the Gospels was chosen as the Best Book in Biblical Studies in Christianity Today’s 2019 book awards. You can read an excerpt about the birthplace of
Jesus here.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Joseph Lauer

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

In Caesarea, a remarkable Crusader-era cache of 24 gold coins and an earring was found in a small bronze pot, hidden between two stones in the side of a well.

The NY Times has a summary of the Pilate ring discovery. Robert Cargill prefers the theory that the ring belonged to one of Pilate’s papyrus-pushing administrators. Ferrell Jenkins shares a number of related photos.

Archaeologists working at Timna Park opened their excavation to volunteers from the public for three days during Hanukkah.

The second in a series of 12 objects from the Temple Mount Sifting Project is an arrowhead from the 10th century BC.

Jim Davila tries to unravel the latest with the Qumran caves with potential Dead Sea Scroll material (with a follow-up here).

Matthew Adams gives an update on the Jezreel Valley Regional Project on The Book and the Spade.

Israel is on pace to hit a new annual record of 4 million tourists this year.

Episode 1 in Wayne Stiles’s excellent “The Promised That Changed the World” is now available. You can sign up to get free access to all three episodes.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Joseph Lauer

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists have discovered engravings of ships and animals on the walls of a Roman-era cistern in Beersheba.

Rami Arav provides a summary of the 2018 excavation of et-Tell (aka Bethsaida). He believes that in the 11th–10th centuries, the site was a “full-fledged urban center, most probably the site of the king of the Geshurites.”

A new era has begun at Gath (Tell es-Safi) with the covering over of excavation areas that will not be conserved for visitors.

The new excavation at Kiriath Jearim and the family providing the financial backing are profiled by the Jewish News of Northern California.

Wayne Stiles recently visited the Gezer boundary inscriptions and he wonders how long it will be before they are no longer legible.

Aviv and Shmuel Bar-Am describe several sites of interest east of Jerusalem, including the Good Samaritan Museum and Ein Fawwar.

Israel’s Good Name shares his experience in volunteering for the Tel Dor excavation.

Israel set a new record with nearly half a million tourists in October.

The Israelite Samaritans Project is a new research venture of Yeshiva University.

Have you seen Carta’s new map bank? Individual digital maps of the biblical world are available for purchase.

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

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

After finding a bare shrine at Abel Beth Maacah, archaeologists are suggesting that the “wise woman” of 2 Samuel 20 was a “local version of the divine oracles known from other cultures around the Mediterrranean.” (Haaretz premium)

Jonathan Klawans explains why the Tower of David Museum is the best place to begin a tour of Jerusalem.

Carl Rasmussen takes readers on a tour of less-visited sites in Roman-era Jericho, including the stadium and a balsam plantation.

Israel’s Good Name found some wildlife in his nighttime excursion through the Holon Dunes.

Shmuel Browns shares some of the latest discoveries in excavations at Masada and Herodium.

John M. Vonder Bruegge writes about “Josephus’ Galilee and Spatial Theory” at The Bible and Interpretation.

Wayne Stiles describes the history of sacrifice in Jerusalem.

The Israel Antiquities Authority Library Catalog is now online.

Dan Koski looks at the legacy of the stonemasons of Beit Jala.

Leon Mauldin explains the importance of the Theodotos Inscription.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Joseph Lauer

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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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