Jordan Archives - BiblePlaces.com

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Archaeologists excavating the ancient city of Adramytteion in western Türkiye have uncovered an unusually personal trace of Roman domestic life: a cat and a dog depicted in a mosaic from the villa’s 2nd–3rd-century AD phase, accompanied by inscriptions giving their names.” Adramyttium is mentioned in Acts 27:2.

The AFP reports on archaeological discoveries in Lebanon in recent years.

The British Museum Blog looks at wigs and hairstyles in ancient Egypt.

On Digging for Truth, Bryan Windle gives an archaeological biography for Sargon II.

New release: Babel and Bible: The Impact of Mesopotamia on Biblical Studies 1872-1924, by Rannfrid I. Lasine Thelle (Bloomsbury; $76–$108)

Hybrid lecture on Sept 16 at the Albright: “The Site That Broke the Clock: Radiocarbon Dating, Pottery, and Rewriting the Early Bronze Age ‘Collapse’ in Jordan,” by James Fraser

Zoom lecture on Sept 23: “The Wondrous Phenomenon of the Artesian Spring – New Excavations at Tall Zirāʿa,” by Dieter Vieweger

An Italian man who constructed his own “ancient Greek theater” and charged tourists to see it is now in jail.

HT: Agade, Explorator, Paleojudaica

Tagged Assyria, Egypt, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Lectures, Resources, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

A Roman-era street is being excavated at Troy.

“On a Turkish hillside overlooking the olive-covered slopes outside Izmir is a cave known to generations of locals as the place where Homer penned ‘The Odyssey.’”

The Gaziantep Archaeology Museum has reopened after renovations following the 2023 earthquakes.

Ben Witherington suggests that Paul and Barnabas traveled from Cyprus to Pisidian Antioch at the request of Sergius Paulus.

Brent Nongbri writes about a sarcophagus lid in Athens “that shows papyrus rolls with a surprisingly high level of detail.”

“Athens’ U-shaped Panathenaic Stadium — made entirely of white marble — is getting its first systematic cleaning in more than a century.”

“The remains of an ancient bridge [from the time of Caligula] have emerged in Rome’s Tiber River, near St. Peter’s Basilica, as weeks with virtually no rain caused water levels to plunge.”

“Some households in Pompeii burned incense that likely came from Asian or African forests, connected via a global trade network, according to a new study.”

“A cave in eastern Spain is revealing new clues about the ritual lives of Roman women, after archaeologists documented more than 120 Latin inscriptions — the highest number known anywhere in the Roman Empire — at an underground sanctuary.”

Dante Muhammad has done a lot of detailed study to reconstruct the physical setting where Jacob crossed the Jabbok. His related book is entitled We Were Not Looking: Reconstructing the Patriarchal World Through Ancient Near Eastern Context.

With cracks appearing in the walls, the Altes Museum in Berlin is now scheduled for a complete renovation in the 2030s.

Carl Rasmussen shares some remarkable before/after photos of the odeum at Laodicea.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer, Explorator

Tagged Greece, Italy, Jordan, Museums, Tourism, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 3

Archaeologists uncovered a complete bath complex that was used for centuries in Port Said.

Archaeologists are planning to restore the ceremonial gateway to the ancient city of Parseh (Persepolis).

“The concept of zero began with Sumerian accountants, who first used a blank space to denote an absence in records.”

Now online: “New Insights on Nimrud,” hosted by The British Institute for the Study of Iraq, with talks by:

John MacGinnis: Recent Work at Nimrud
Nigel Tallis: Publishing the Nimrud Bowls
Dirk Wicke: Ivories from the Burnt Palace

The British Institute for the Study of Iraq honored Gertrude Bell who died one hundred years ago in Baghdad. The 2016 movie about her life, “Letters from Baghdad,” is available for rent on several platforms.

Polis is offering an online course in the Eblaite language.

“The French archaeological mission in Libya has concluded its 2026 field season, presenting the key results of its work, which included significant archaeological discoveries and studies at the sites of Apollonia, Lathron, and Leptis Magna.”

“A 1,500-year-old Madaba map of the Holy Land will reach a new generation through virtual reality (VR), interactive displays and traveling exhibitions under a new project at the University of Göttingen in Germany.”

“Italian divers have discovered an ancient Roman shipwreck off the coast of Sicily, believed to be more than 2,000 years old. The vessel was found piled high with hundreds of well-preserved containers, which were used to transport goods such as wine and olive oil.”

“Archaeologists have uncovered a second-century building with mosaics and frescoes near the Colosseum that may have been barracks used by ancient Roman firefighters.”

Archaeopress is hosting a Summer Sale: “For the next four weeks, more than 400 archaeology, heritage and ancient history titles are available at specially reduced prices, with discounts of 30–75% across a wide selection of our backlist.”

Archaeological Paths is offering an 8-day tour of Egypt during the time of the solar eclipse for a cool $20,000. An extra day at Alexandria is only $2,000. Tips not included.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Explorator, Paleojudaica

Tagged Egypt, Italy, Jordan, Lectures, Mesopotamia, Persia, Resources, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

[I intended to post this roundup on Saturday. I apologize for the delay.]

Archaeologists working at Shiloh this summer discovered “a lavish ritual bath, a clay cooking pot and a rare purple-dye snail shell.”

Aren Maeir shares that they have been quietly excavating an Iron Age tomb at Gath for the last few years.

In preparation for conservation work, a small excavation was conducted in the Chorazim synagogue.

“The top three reports in biblical archaeology from June 2026 included accounts related to ancient Israel’s history, including potential evidence of Hezekiah‘s reforms, a new dig at Ashdod, and significant discoveries at Shiloh.”

On Digging for Truth, Jordan McClinton discusses his excavation of a favissa in the ongoing Shiloh excavations. He reports that they have found seven pieces of gold so far.

In a newly published study, scholars believe that the 364-day calendar mentioned in the Dead Sea Scrolls was actually used, but only in the sect’s early years.

Josh Aronson tells the story of some “temple incense” found in a cave at Qumran by Vendyl Jones, nearly all of which has now been lost.

New release: Excavations at Tell Qasile, Part Three, The Iron Age Town (The 1948–1950, 1959, 1982–1992 Seasons), by Amihai Mazar (Qedem 66, 300 NIS)

New release: Khirbet el-‘Aqd: A Hellenistic-Roman Stronghold in Western Judea, by Moshe Fischer and Oren Tal (Tel Aviv University, open-access)

The Jerusalem Post reviews The Names of Jerusalem: Jewish, Christian and Islamic Traditions, by Aaron Demsky, Christophe Rico, and Iraj Sheidaee.

Mordechai Cogan addresses the question of whether the Transjordan was considered part of the Promised Land.

David Bivin died this week. Best known as the founder of Jerusalem Perspective, David’s photographs have made a significant contribution to our work here. He was ever kind, encouraging, and generous. I join the many who will miss him.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Explorator, Paleojudaica

A young David Bivin with Michael Avi-Yonah at the Golden Gate in Jerusalem, June 1968

Tagged Dead Sea Scrolls, Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jordan, Resources, Sad News, Samaria, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup

Archaeologists found two well-preserved marble busts from the Roman era in a Byzantine winepress near the coastal town of Binyamina.

Ariel David writes about the recently published mother-of-pearl seal found at Tel Hadid. Zev Stub reports on the artifact for The Times of Israel.

Avraham Faust has proposed that a massive cultic stone (massebah) at Tel ‘Eton was toppled as part of Hezekiah’s reforms.

Abigail Van Huss reports on the final week of excavations this year at Shiloh.

Lauren K. McCormick writes about the 1st-century synagogue at Tel Rekhesh in Galilee.

This week’s Jerusalem Tracker identifies the latest blog posts, digital resources, developments, and upcoming events.

David Begoun describes his first visit to see the Madaba Map.

Clinton Moyer gives an overview of Lawrence H. Schiffman’s BAR article on the temple in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The second international “Archaeology and Site Conservation in Judea and Samaria” conference was more controversial than the first one.

Conference at the Albright on July 7-9: “The Eleventh Century CE: Archaeology and History: An International Conference.” Register here.

On the Biblical World podcast, Jason Borges talks with Chris McKinny about his book, Christian Life in the Greco-Roman City.

On Digging for Truth, Ted Wright discusses ancient creation myths.

Following the death of a US citizen, his family returned to Egypt “a granite sphinx head, a bronze hippopotamus figurine, a double bronze statue of a king, and a bronze statue of the Egyptian deity Sobek.”

“The Israeli government on Tuesday approved designating Route 60 — the highway stretching from Nazareth in the north to Beersheba in the south and passing through some of the most significant sites in history—as the ‘Biblical Highway.’” This includes the ridge route known to students as the “Road of the Patriarchs.” When looking for more information, I found a 2023 movie entitled “Route 60: The Biblical Highway.” It’s curious to me that the trailer never once shows any part of the ancient route.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Dead Sea Scrolls, Discoveries, Egypt, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Jordan, Judah, Lectures, Samaria, Shephelah, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Egyptian authorities have unveiled a plaster blocking wall from King Tutankhamun’s tomb in Luxor, an artefact described as unparalleled due to its survival from ancient looters.”

Tombs belonging to Amenhotep and his son Samut have been opened following extensive restoration.

Gary Urie explains the significance of Egyptian scarabs on Digging for Truth.

“Iraq is restoring the Ziggurat of Ur, one of the world’s oldest surviving temple structures, using locally made bricks and traditional building methods.”

Pigeons have been domesticated since at least 1400 BC, according to a new study (gift link).

“The new AI tool ‘Palaeographicum’ is revolutionizing research into the cultures of the Ancient Near East: It identifies individual variations of cuneiform signs—a huge step forward for academia.”

The Epigraphic Institute is offering online courses in Safaitic and Ancient South Arabian next month.

New release: The 2008 Season at Tall al-’Umayri and Subsequent Studies, edited by Larry G. Herr, Douglas R. Clark, Lawrence T. Geraty, and Monique Roddy (Eisenbrauns, $140; save 30% with code NR26; Amazon)

HT: Agade, Explorator

Tagged Egypt, Jordan, Mesopotamia, Resources, Technology, Tourism, Weekend Roundup