Weekend Roundup

ISIS has destroyed the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra.

The destruction of ancient monuments will now be considered a war crime in trials at The Hague.

An interdisciplinary team of scientists want to dig beneath the popular version of Pompeii to discover what life was really like.

Here’s more on the new lines discovered from the Gilgamesh Epic.

“Persepolis: Images of an Empire” is a special exhibit that opens next week at the Oriental Institute Museum.

Mordechai Aviam critiques Eldad Keynan’s recent article on the
“miqveh” in Upper Galilee.

The Jewish Chronicle catches up with Ron Tappy four years after he concluded excavations at Tel Zayit.

Howard R. Feldman shares a personal recollection about the Jehoash Affair on the ASOR Blog.

The Amphipolis tomb may have been the funeral shrine for Hephaestion, the closest friend of
Alexander the Great.

The Oxford Archaeology Image Database currently has 700 photos from nearly 30 sites in Iraq and it is seeking more contributions.

The first rainfall this season in Israel led to flash flood warnings in the Judean wilderness.

Netanyahu has suspended approval for the building of a museum in the Western Wall plaza.

Was the star of Bethlehem a comet? A new book makes a strong case.

A German team will repair a botched epoxy job on King Tut’s beard.

Leen Ritmeyer takes the New York Times to task for shoddy research on the Temple Mount.

Rachel Hallotte has dug up some interesting items from the attic of the Albright Institute.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis

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List of Sites ISIS Has Destroyed or Damaged

Andrew Curry at National Geographic has posted a review of sites in Syria and Iraq that have been attacked with bulldozers, explosives, sledgehammers, or is being extensively looted. The list includes:


Syria: Palmyra, Mar Elian Monastery, Apamea, Dura-Europos, and Mari


Iraq: Hatra, Nineveh, Mosul Museum and Libraries, Nimrud, Khorsabad, Mar Benham Monastery, Mosque of the Prophet Yunus, and Imam Dur Mausoleum

The article includes details about the significance of each site and its destruction along with several photos and a map.

HT: Agade

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Weekend Roundup

The finds keep coming in the excavations of Gath.

A mosaic with a verse from Isaiah 65 has been discovered in Adana, Turkey.

A thief has returned two ballista balls he took from the excavations of Gamla twenty years ago.

The US has returned more than 400 ancient artifacts to Iraq seized from a leader of the Islamic State.

There are many photos here.

Researchers are working to restore Iraq’s destroyed monuments online.

Police have arrested suspects in the arson case of the Tabgha Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fish.

Simon Gathercole: 5 Reasons Why the Gospel of Jesus’s Wife is a Fake

The Temple Institute is raising a red heifer in Israel.

Ayelet Gilboa writes about the significance of Tel Dor in the Jerusalem Post.

Jennie Ebeling talks about the Jezreel excavations on the Book and the Spade.

You can get up to speed on the excavations at Tel ‘Eton (Eglon?) with this article by Avraham Faust and Hayah Katz at the ASOR Blog (registration required).

The Water Gate in Jerusalem gets Wayne Stiles to thinking about its past and present significance.

Are you a Mesopotamian know-it-all? The ASOR Blog has 14 questions to test your knowledge.

The PEF introduces a new series: Interviews from the Jerusalem Chamber.

The dates for the 2016 season at Tel Burna have been announced.

Exploring Jordan: The Other Biblical Land is a free e-book from the Biblical Archaeology Society that includes articles on Bethany, Rabbath of the Ammonites, Philadelphia, Moab, and Petra.

The Illustrated Life of Paul by Charles L. Quarles is $0.99 on Kindle today.

HT: Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Agade, Paleojudaica

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Short one billion dollars to complete the Grand Egyptian Museum, Egypt has pushed its opening back from this year to 2022. Zahi Hawass has ideas on how to raise the money.

A special edition of DigSight reports on the excavations of Lachish.

A special issue of World Heritage magazine is devoted to historical sites in Iraq.

The 18th Annual Bible and Archaeology Fest will be held this year in Atlanta.

The National Academy of Sciences has criticized the political use of archaeology in a recent report.

The Islamic State is selling looted art.

Aviva and Shmuel Bar-Am give a history of the recent excavations at Magdala.

Carl Rasmussen notes that the rooftop of Nebi Samwil is now open and photos are allowed at Jacob’s Well.

The Dome of the Rock may re-open to non-Muslim visitors.

ASOR quiz: Can you identify these Near Eastern languages?
A clay image of a Canaanite fertility goddess was discovered in Luke Chandler’s square at Lachish this week.
The Action Bible is on sale for $4.99 for the Kindle.
Wayne Stiles: “I thought I understood the wilderness wanderings of Israel. Then I traveled through the wilderness.”

Some Israeli history buffs have re-enacted the Crusader battle at the Horns of Hattin. Check out the photos.

HT: Agade, Ted Weiss, Charles Savelle

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Weekend Roundup

Archaeologists working at Kibbutz Magen near the Gaza Strip have discovered a Roman-period marble dolphin statuette.

This week, ISIL is apparently planning to turn the site of Jonah’s tomb into a park. The Iraqi authorities consider that a crime.

Israel is considering the restoration of Khirbet al-Minya, an Umayyad palace near the shore of the Sea of Galilee.

Continued research has been approved for the Antikythera shipwreck.

Sites in Izmir are bringing in the tourist bucks.

The latest video from SourceFlix is an explanation of the topography of Jerusalem.

Archaeologists recently discovered a Byzantine-era mosaic floor at the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth.

You can sign up for a chance to win a trip to the Grand Opening of the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

Logos users might want to grab the Ancient Context Ancient Faith set while it’s on pre-pub.

Ferrell Jenkins describes his return to the ruins of Samaria.

Luke Chandler offers some “tidbits from the tell” on his first week in digging at Lachish this year.

There will be no roundup next weekend.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle, Agade

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Weekend Roundup

Brian Peterson reports on the third and final week of excavations at Khirbet el-Maqatir. The discoveries included a third scarab.

Bible History Daily posts a report on current excavations at Ashkelon.

Arsonists destroyed two storerooms filled with antiquities excavated at Tel Kishon in the Jezreel Valley.

Luke Chandler has arrived for excavations at Lachish. Watch his blog for updates.

Archaeologists working at Hippos have discovered the imprint of a Roman soldier’s shoe.

The mummies of 8 million dogs have been found in catacombs in Memphis.

Ferrell Jenkins takes a new look at Magdala.

Norma Franklin does not carry a Marshalltown trowel, a pencil, notebook, or ruler in her dig bag.

CNN has a 3-minute feature on restoration work on Babylon.

The current issue of BASOR is available for free for a limited time.

The first issue of PEQ from 2014 is also available for free.


The Daily Star reports on the long-running excavations of Sidon.

Robert Deutsch posted some photos from a recent investigation of the ivory pomegranate. He
believes the inscription is authentic.

Israel’s Tourism Ministry is beginning to rank hotels according to the five-star system.

We’ll be sending out a BiblePlaces Newsletter in the next few days. You can sign up for a free subscription here.

HT: Agade, 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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