Jordan Archives - Page 29 of 37

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

The first permanent Roman legionary camp has been discovered near Megiddo. Scholars long knew of its existence because of the site’s preserved name of Legio, but only recently have they found remains. This year-old article at Bible History Daily has more of the background than the recent news reports.

Excavators working at the Jewish village of Shikhin near Sepphoris have discovered a pottery workshop.

A family in Ein Kerem near Jerusalem found an ancient mikveh (ritual bath) underneath their living room. High-res photos are available here.

Jodi Magness has discovered more mosaics in her excavation of the Jewish synagogue of Huqoq. For photos, see the links at the end of the article.

Here’s the latest on the gate discovered this week at Gath.

UNESCO has added the tombs of Beth Shearim, Jordan’s Baptism Site, and Susa to its World Heritage List.

CNN has put the Dome of the Rock in the number one spot of places to visit before they are destroyed. ISIS-controlled Palmyra is not on the list.

This looks interesting: Urban Legends of the New Testament: 40 Common Misconceptions. It quotes this blog and comes out on Monday.

Wayne Stiles is leading a tour focused on the life and land of Jesus in 2016, with a $550 reduction from this year’s tour price with the early bird rate.

A detailed report of the destruction to the archaeological site of Palmyra is available from the ASOR Syrian Heritage Initiative.

Ross Burns is keeping a tally of destruction to historic Syrian sites.

The Palestine Exploration Fund has been celebrating its 150th anniversary.

Here’s a unique aerial photo of Gibeah of Saul (Tell el-Ful), taken in 1931 before King Hussein’s construction destroyed Saul’s palace.

Shlomo Moussaieff died recently.

HT: Agade, Paul Mitchell, Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle, Steven Anderson

Location of Roman legionary camp at Megiddo

Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Jezreel Valley, Jordan, Judah, Sad News, Shephelah, Syria, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists have discovered a Byzantine church near Abu Gosh during construction to widen Highway 1. UPI has five photos of the excavation. High-res photos may be downloaded here.

Haaretz has posted a 1-minute video in Hebrew with English subtitles.

The season at Khirbet el-Maqatir (Ai?) is underway with Bryant Wood giving a report from the first week and Suzanne Lattimer giving a report from the second week.

A summary of the first week of excavations at Tel Burna includes many photos.

If you’re interested in knowing more what’s involved in an archaeological excavation, you can check out this year’s manual for the Tell es-Safi/Gath excavation.

Israel has approved a scaled-down version of a visitor’s center in the City of David. Both sides claimed victory.

An Israeli judge ruled that Joe Zias overstepped the bounds of proper academic criticism and awarded a judgment of $200,000 to Simcha Jacobovici. Jacobovici had been seeking $3 million.

The Herodium and Herod’s palace at Jericho provide some striking geographic ironies of Jesus and Herod the Great.

PEF posts a photo with Starkey, Petrie, and Tufnell.

Ferrell Jenkins reports on recent changes made at the site of Capernaum.

Leon Mauldin explains and illustrates the significance of Nahal Besor.

Carl Rasmussen has long wanted a tour of the excavations under the Kishle and yesterday his wish was fulfilled.

The New York Times reports on how tourism in Jordan is suffering due to the conflict in Syria. That is too bad; Jordan is safe and has many important biblical sites.

Here are five reasons you shouldn’t buy that ancient artifact.

This week on the Book and the Spade Gary Burge discusses his new book, A Week in the Life of a Roman Centurion.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Herod's Tomb, Jerusalem, Jordan, Judah, Negev, Samaria, Shephelah, Tomb of Jesus

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

The latest from SourceFlix: The Bible as a Tool in Archaeology (4 min)

Not long ago we created a list of U.S. museums with artifacts related to the biblical world. Bible
Gateway has produced a list of museums and exhibits on the Bible itself.

The River Jordan is the subject of this summer’s ARAM Society for Syro-Mesopotamian Studies Forty First International Conference at Oxford. Presenters include Yigal Levin, Amihai Mazar, Gerald Mattingly, Joan Taylor, and many others.

Eric Cline’s lecture on 1177 BC at the Oriental Institute is now online. At the beginning he shares his “over the top” book trailer.

Haaretz has a feature written by Mike Rogoff entitled “What is a City Gate?”

Ferrell Jenkins illuminates the story of the man being lowered through the roof.

An Arutz-7 article describes the relations between the Jewish and Samaritan communities on Mount Gerizim.

Registration for MEMRA 2015 is now open. Courses include beginning biblical Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic, and Ugaritic.

Maney Online has opened up all of its online content from archaeology, conservation, and heritage journals for free through today. Journals include Palestine Exploration Quarterly, Levant, and Tel Aviv. If you don’t know where to start, try a search for Jerusalem.

BibleWorks 10 has been released.

HT: Agade, James Joyner

Tagged Galilee, Jordan, Jordan Rift, Lectures, Museums, Samaria, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

The Holy Fire ceremony was celebrated in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher today.

It snowed on Mount Hermon this morning. The annual precipitation in Israel this year is close to average.

Hershel Shanks is a guest on The Book and the Spade talking with Gordon Govier about 40 years of publishing Biblical Archaeology Review.

Leen Ritmeyer is interviewed on the Voice of Israel about his involvement in the archaeology of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.

The Mujib Biosphere Reserve (biblical Nahal Arnon) is open for another adventure season.

Wayne Stiles provides a spiritual lesson from the skeleton that today stands on ancient Gibeah.

New Bible atlas: The Historical and Geographical Maps of Israel and Surrounding Territories, by
Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, with $10 off the $89 price through April 30.

We’re sharing our favorite 12 sites in Galilee on Facebook and @BiblePlaces.

HT: Steven Anderson

The Holy Fire ceremony in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher
Photo from The American Colony Collection, ca. 1941

Tagged Galilee, Holidays, Jerusalem, Jordan, Resources, Temple Mount, Weather, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists found Egyptian artifacts from the Late Kingdom period in a cave in southern Israel near Kibbutz Lahav.

Arad would like to become a tourist destination in southern Israel.

A researcher believes that the famous “Meidum Geese” painting from ancient Egypt is actually a modern fake.

Now is a good time to visit Egypt.

The 2,000-year-old date palm known as Methuselah has turned out to be male, but there is hope that another seed may produce a female plant. The scientist would like to produce an orchard of ancient date palm trees.

A large Iron Age fortification has been discovered at Ashdod-Yam, the port of the ancient Philistine city of Ashdod.

Eisenbrauns is having a big sale on excavation reports, including works on Ashkelon, Tel Malhata, Megiddo, Tell el-Borg, Timnah, and Dothan.

Tel Burna – The Late Bronze and Iron Age Remains after Five Seasons, by Chris McKinny, Deborah Cassuto, and Itzhaq Shai.

New from Zondervan: The Most Significant People, Places, and Events in the Bible: A Quickview Guide, by Christopher Hudson.

Larry G. Herr favorably reviews Biblical Lachish, by David Ussishkin.

A £2 million statue looted from Cyrenaica, Libya, was confiscated upon entry to the UK.

A new video shows ISIS destroying Iraq’s UNESCO World Heritage city of Hatra.

The British Museum has proposed lending the Elgin Marbles to Greece.

They’re using drones in Jordan to track the looting of ancient tombs.

Test your knowledge of Bible numbers with the BAR Anniversary Bible Quiz.

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

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Discoveries, Egypt, Excavations, Jordan, Museums, Negev, Philistines, Resources, Shephelah, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup

The largest treasure of gold coins ever found in Israel was recently discovered in the harbor of Caesarea. Most of the coins date to the Fatimid period (ca. AD 1000). There’s a close-up of a well-preserved coin here. Seven high-res images are available here.

The Jerusalem Post has photos and a video of the recent snowfall in Israel. Record snowfall was recorded in Istanbul, and the snow was heavy in Lebanon and Jordan. Yahoo has more photos of Jerusalem here. And Shmuel Browns has some photos from his neighborhood in the German Colony.
Leen Ritmeyer suggests that some paving stones on the Temple Mount pre-date the Roman destruction.

The next stop for the Passages exhibit is the happy town of Santa Clarita, California.

Some of the Dead Sea Scrolls are coming to the California Science Center next month, along with the Jerusalem IMAX movie.

Ever wanted to volunteer in Israel? Wayne Stiles suggests 15 volunteering opportunities.

James Pritchard’s HarperCollins Atlas of Bible History is not the best atlas out there, but it’s currently only $3.99 for Kindle. As one reviewer notes, the text may be more useful on the screen than the maps.

This week on the Book and the Spade: Herod’s palaces and ancient olive oil, with Clyde Billington.

Ferrell Jenkins explains how Pilate used coins to promote the emperor cult.

Codex Vaticanus is now online.

Aren Maeir’s recent lecture at GVSU is now posted on Youtube.

Eric Cline will be lecturing at the Oriental Institute in Chicago next week.

Gabriel Barkay, Zachi Dvira, and others involved in the Temple Mount Sifting Operation are coming on a fundraising tour in April and May. Check out their blog to learn how you can arrange talks or dinners with them.

The Islamic State is reportedly looting ancient sites “on an industrial scale.” Some people are trying to stop it.

HT: Ted Weis, Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle, Jock Stender

Gold coins discovered in Caesarea harbor
Photo copyright: Clara Amit, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority

Tagged Discoveries, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Jordan, Lebanon, Lectures, Museums, New Exhibits, Opportunities, Philistines, Resources, Syria, Temple Mount, Tourism, Turkey, Weather, Weekend Roundup