Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“A 5,000-year-old wine press has been unearthed next to the iconic archaeological site of Tel Megiddo, providing the earliest evidence of wine production in the Land of Israel.” There are more photos here.

After years of survey work, a couple of Israeli archaeologists identified the probable location of the ancient synagogue in the Syrian village of Yehudiya in the Golan Heights. Then they confirmed it with excavations.

Archaeologists discovered red fox tracks in the fresh plaster of a Byzantine wall at Bethsaida (el-Araj).

Chandler Collins has written an excellent summary and analysis of the newly discovered “Siloam Dam” in Jerusalem. 

Work is underway on a Visitor Education Center on the Mount of Olives. The story includes other details about the area, such as the cost of a burial plot in the cemetery.

The entire Great Isaiah Scroll will be on display at the Israel Museum to mark the museum’s 60th anniversary.

Iran is not happy about the British Museum’s plan to loan the Cyrus Cylinder to the National Library of Israel. [EDIT: This story is from early 2024. The Cyrus Cylinder has not been in Israel since this story was written, as far as I know.]

New from IAA Reports: Khirbat ‘Amra: A Rural Site from the Hellenistic to Early Islamic Periods in the Beʼer Sheva‘ Valley, by Itamar Taxel and Noé D. Michael (open-access).

Hybrid lecture at the Albright on Dec 3: “The Legacy of Hansen House in Jerusalem,” by Susan Kennedy-Arenz. “This talk will describe the living conditions of Jerusalem’s leper community prior to the establishment of the first leper hospice in the mid-19th century.”

Hybrid lecture at the Albright on Dec 10: “The Rise of Christianity in Galilee: A Perspective from the Jewish Cities of Sepphoris and Tiberias,” by Shulamit Miller

Hybrid lecture at the Albright on Dec 17: “Albright 2025: The Year in Review,” by Director James Fraser

Preserving Bible Times is streaming Digging Deeper I (The Great Commission) and Digging Deeper II (The Jewish Mind of Jesus’ Day), free on YouTube.

Leon Mauldin shares several photos of the ancient city of Jokneam.

Logos subscribers can purchase Holman Illustrated Guide to Biblical Geography: Reading the Land, by Paul H. Wright, for about $8.

Alumni of Jerusalem University College are invited to an alumni gathering in Boston during the Annual Meetings.

Wayne Stiles is hosting an advanced tour of Israel next year, with visits to places that most groups never visit (including Dothan, Samaria, Solomon’s Pools, Bethany, Temple Mount, an optional 10-mile hike and river rafting, and more).

The new Job volume in the Photo Companion to the Bible includes 1,600 photos. The introductory sale ends in a few days.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Explorator, Paleojudaica

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

A system of tunnels has been discovered under the Gan Hashlosha National Park, used during the Mamluk period for sugar mills.

The Temple Mount Sifting Project’s find of the month is a bronze crotal bell with an iron chain attachment.

On Digging for Truth, Abigail Van Huss reports on her research into Israel’s settlement in the hill country.

“What happened to the ark of the covenant?” is the topic of Chris McKinny’s conversation with Gordon Govier on The Book and the Spade.

Ami Nadir graduated with his PhD in archaeology from Ben-Gurion University at age 81.

Stephen Pfann, Dead Sea Scrolls scholar and co-founder (with his wife Claire) of the University of the Holy Land, died recently.

New release: A Prophet to the Nations: Archaeological and Historical Perspectives on Jeremiah 46–51, edited by Jordan Davis and Benedikt Hensel (Vetus Testamentum et Orbis Antiquus, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht; EUR 140; digital is open access)

The latest issue of Tel Aviv is fully open access. It includes articles on Hazor, Horvat Tevet, and more.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Alexander Schick, Arne Halbakken, Charles Savelle, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“In a groundbreaking achievement that requires no actual breaking of ground, Israeli researchers have demonstrated the archaeological utility of a technology that acts like an ‘X-ray’ for the Earth, revealing hidden spaces beneath an ancient site in Jerusalem.” The scan of the City of David revealed previously undiscovered cavities. The underlying journal article is here.

A trove of nearly 100 gold coins from the end of the Byzantine era were discovered in the excavations at Hippos. The discovery “challenges some previous assumptions about life in Hippos” at this time.

“Ancient grape varieties discovered in archaeological excavations in the Negev will be planted in the Shivta National Park, in a new vineyard plot currently being established among the remains of ancient Byzantine terraces.”

“Israeli authorities prevented what they described as a deliberate attempt by the Palestinian Authority to damage… the Biblical city of Gibeon.”

Nathan Steinmeyer explains the role that stables played at Megiddo during the time of the Northern Kingdom.

The Samaria Touring and Study Center in Shavei Shomron will be hosting visitors during Sukkot who want to sift earth from the recent excavations of Samaria.

A webinar series begins on Oct 27 with “The Middle Bronze Age in Canaan: Innovation, Society, and the Rise of Early Cities,” by Helena Roth (₪60).

Doron Spielman is on The Book and the Spade talking about his latest book on the City of David. The first of four episodes is now available.

On the Biblical World podcast, Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer continue their introduction to archaeology by discussing Albright, Wright, Kenyon, New Archaeoology, and questions of faith and history.

Shimon Gibson has written a positive review of Jodi Magness’s Jerusalem Through the Ages: From Its Beginnings to the Crusades.

The Feast of Tabernacles begins at sundown on Monday. An article in Israel My Glory looks at the feast during the time of Jesus.

BibleStock has just released a Christmas package for pastors and Bible teachers, with coaching videos and links to all of the photo and video resources. You can download all of the Christmas resources for free (with an email address). There’s a lot of great material here.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

The Pilgrims’ Road, leading from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount, was inaugurated this week, and visitors can now walk the full length.

A hoard of bronze coins found at Tel Huqoq in Galilee provides insight into the little-known Third Jewish Revolt against the Romans in AD 351.

“Over the course of millennia, inhabitants of the Levant used irrigation to mitigate the effects of climate change and maximize the production of olives and grapes, demonstrating resilience and ingenuity.” The underlying journal article is here.

Scholars at Tel Aviv University’s School of Computer Science have developed a new tool to analyze the writing on the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Achia Kohn-Tavor is on The Book and the Spade to talk about the excavations at el-Araj/Bethsaida, including the recent fire.

Turkiye Today has a history of Israel’s requests that Turkey send the Siloam Inscription back to Jerusalem.

The latest issue of Near Eastern Archaeology is dedicated to Megiddo in the Iron Age. A subscription is required for access.

“After 800 years of silence, a pipe organ that researchers say is the oldest in the Christian world roared back to life Tuesday, its ancient sound echoing through a monastery in Jerusalem’s Old City.”

BibleStock has released a new teaching video for the Parable of the Sower which “includes links to some amazing drone footage of the fields around the northern shoreline of the Sea of Galilee.”

David M. Jacobson has posted some recent articles on Academia:

The Feast of Trumpets (aka Rosh Hashanah) begins Monday evening.

Tom and Joann Doyle hosted me on their Uncharted Ministries podcast (Spotify, Apple), and we had a fun time reminiscing about Israel, photography, teaching experiences, excavations, Isaiah, my family, my “legacy,” and more. This is the most personal interview I’ve ever done, and the experts at Uncharted loaded up the YouTube version with lots of photos.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“A four-line ancient Aramaic inscription, possibly inked by Jewish rebels from the Bar Kochba Revolt against the Romans in the 2nd century CE, has been discovered in a cave in the Judean Desert.”

An ivory fragment depicting a woman’s head was discovered in a layer of 7th-century BC fill material near the City of David’s eastern wall.

Rescue excavations along Route 60 north of Jerusalem uncovered a sophisticated ancient water system that includes “six water springs, a 200-meter-long channel, and, most recently, a large wall.” A local guide thinks it can become “a central attraction in Benjamin.” There is a video in Hebrew here (4 min).

After years of abandonment, a crocodile farm in the Jordan Valley underwent a “culling operation” in which 262 crocodiles were shot. Shev Tov Sasson was there on the morning of the operation, on his way to a night birding expedition near the Dead Sea.

The Tel Burna team is preparing to begin excavations at Tel ‘Ether later this month and they welcome volunteers.

The latest issue of Near Eastern Archaeology (subscription) is the first of two to commemorate the centennial of the University of Chicago excavations at Megiddo. The first issue provides articles providing introduction, background, and Bronze Age material. The second issue will focus on the Iron Age. (There is also a conference about Megiddo on October 9, but I’ve only yet found a flyer in Hebrew.)

“Jewish sages in Late Antiquity were not detached from the land but actively involved in the robust wine culture of the Roman-Byzantine world.”

BibleStock has released a new coaching video, this one exploring the Kidron Valley and how it connects the suffering David and the suffering Jesus.

Shmuel Browns notes that the En Gedi Nature Reserve remains closed, and he posts some photos of En Prat.

Lecture on Aug 13: “The Heartland of Judah: Excavations at Biblical Libnah,” by Steven M. Ortiz ($10)

The Albright Institute is hosting a book launch on September 3 (in-person and Zoom) for Ancient Jewish Food in Its Geographical and Cultural Contexts: What’s Cooking in the Talmuds?, by Susan Weingarten 

New release: The City of Gaza in the Roman Period: The Numismatic Evidence (First Century BCE–Third Century CE), by Yoav Farhi (Israel Numismatic Society, 500 pages, $175)

Biblical Backgrounds has released some new wall maps – some smaller, some larger, and some sets.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

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July Roundup, Part 2 (Israel, Jordan, Arabia)

A new study attempts to understand why Canaanites buried lamps and bowls under their homes. It argues that the custom is related to the Egyptian presence in the land. The underlying journal article is here.

Yoav Vaknin explains how scholars date archaeological material from the Iron Age, including the use of pottery, radiocarbon dating, and archaeomagnetism.

“The Israel Antiquities Authority has announced the opening of its new exhibit detailing the October 7 massacre from the perspective of archeologists who assisted in bringing closure after the attack.”

Nathan Steinmeyer has written short pieces describing the geographical regions of the Arava and the Jezreel Valley.

James Riley Strange gives a tour of Jesus’s hometown of Nazareth.

Shmuel Munitz writes about the gymnasium and nude wrestling in Hellenistic Jerusalem.

The latest issue of ‘Atiqot is themed “The Archaeology of Death,” and includes articles related to Jerusalem, the cave of Salome, the Philistines, and much more.

The latest volume of the Israel Exploration Journal has been released, and title and abstracts can be read here.

Conference on Jerusalem on August 7: “Ancient Stone Quarries in the Southern Levant,” organized by the Israel Antiquities Authority, Tel Aviv University, the Geological Survey of Israel, Ben-Gurion University, and Ashkelon Academic College. Registration is here. (I haven’t found an English version of the conference program online yet.)

Jerusalem University College has a number of short-term programs in the coming year, including Pastor and Parishoner, Historical and Geographical Settings of the Bible, and Jesus and His Times. 

Andy Cook (Experience Israel Now) is leading a physically rigorous tour of Israel for those in full-time ministry in May.

Christianity Today has an article about how war interrupted many, but not all, of the summer excavations in Israel and Jordan. Gordon Govier has also recorded a program on the same subject with Jamie Fraser for The Book and the Spade.

“Located in south-western Jordan, Sela is also characterised by a hundred of cisterns, water reservoirs, both perforated or carved into the sandstone, presumably filled with rainwater through surface channels incised in the rock.”

Scientific Reports has retracted a 2021 article that argued that a cosmic airburst caused the destruction of Tall el-Hammam.

“Although the urbanization of Canaan in the Early Bronze Age (c. 3300–2000 BCE) has long been established in scholarship, recent excavations in Saudi Arabia have demonstrated that a similar process was occurring throughout northwestern Arabia.”

“The website onomasticon.net has been updated to include newly published personal names from the Iron Age II Southern Levant, bringing the total to 1,081 entries.”

New release: Fertile Crossroads: Elites and Exchange in the Southern Levant’s Early Iron Age, by Sarah Malena (Equinox, $115)

Yigal Bin-Nun raises questions about the authenticity of the Mesha Stele.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer, Explorator, Gordon Dickson

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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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