Museums Archives - Page 62 of 102

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

In work to construct a mikveh in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem, archaeologists discovered a Roman bathhouse and below that a cistern connected to the aqueduct from Bethlehem.

Hundreds of Roman fresco fragments from a large building, dating to the 2nd century, have been excavated in Zippori National Park (Sepphoris).

A journalist gets a rare chance to visit Mount Ebal and its “altar.”

A site proposed as one of the Gilgals of the Bible is in danger because of the establishment of a new garbage dump.

Nadav Shragai asks why the media ignores illegal Muslim activity on the Temple Mount.

A new music video by Michael W. Smith was filmed entirely in Israel and includes some beautiful drone footage.

The Baptist News interviews a zooarchaeologist who excavated in the Philistine cemetery of Ashkelon.

A collection of Dead Sea Scroll fragments owned by the Museum of the Bible have been published in a book edited by Emanuel Tov, Kipp Davis, and Robert Duke.

It’s not just the words, but where they were spoken, argues Wayne Stiles.

Dan Warner is on the Book and the Spade this week talking about his excavation of the Canaanite water system at Gezer.

Seth Rodriquez appreciates the support he received for his trip to teach biblical backgrounds at the
Baptist Theological Seminary of Zimbabwe and he reports on his time there.

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

Mount Ebal altar from northwest, ws092213002

Proposed altar on Mount Ebal
Photo by Bill Schlegel

Tagged Galilee, Jerusalem, Museums, Samaria, Shephelah, Temple Mount

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists working in Manisa in western Turkey have discovered a dinner set that dates to 150 BC.

Philippe Bohstrom profiles the Phoenicians and their contributions to civilization.

A map of all of Egypt’s archaeological sites and museums has been created, with a digital version to be released online next month.

“An underwater Roman era basilica found only 20 meters off the shore of Lake İznik in the northwestern province of Bursa will be revived for tourism, as an “underwater museum” project at the site is underway.”

The Bolton Museum is planning to spend millions of pounds to create a new Eternal Egypt Gallery.

Michael Harbin looks at the Bible, archaeology, and modern patterns to understand what an agricultural community in the time of the Judges might have looked like.

The World Video Bible School has released the first five of a scheduled 20 programs. These include
Jerusalem, Jesus’s northern ministry, Dan, the Mount Gilboa region, and the Dead Sea Scrolls.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Agade

Tagged Egypt, Jordan, Museums, Turkey

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

A youth group working alongside archaeologists in Ibillin in northern Israel have uncovered a Canaanite fortress.

A pottery workshop from the Roman period has been excavated in western Galilee. High-res photos are available here.

After a four-year break, excavators are back at work at Tel Dan.

Jodi Magness provides an update on this summer’s excavations of Huqoq on The Book and the Spade.

Israel’s only mummy is now on display in a special exhibit at the Israel Museum that opened this week.

A project featuring ten mosaic replicas was unveiled in Jerusalem’s Cardo this week. A Jerusalem Post article indicates that the project will take a year to complete.

A group of Israeli archaeologists was attacked when touring the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount Sifting Project has a firsthand report.

Israel’s High Court is allowing the transfer of the ancient library at the Rockefeller Museum to the new IAA headquarters.

The Temple Mount Sifting Project is looking for help in identifying some of their finds.

Wayne Stiles explains the King’s Garden in Jerusalem, past and present.

CBD has a good deal going on the New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land. Get the original four volumes for $148, or get all five for $260. The update volume is available separately as well for $111. (Used sets at Amazon are a little more and new are $400+228.)

HT: Joseph Lauer, Agade

Tagged Egypt, Galilee, Jerusalem, Museums, Temple Mount

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Forty-five shipwrecks, many dating back to ancient times, have been discovered off a Greek archipelago that is one of the Mediterranean’s richest underwater archaeological sites.”

A large and Roman mosaic has been discovered in Larnaca, Cyprus. A short video shows the excavation.

“A large number of expansive rock tombs which could constitute part of the world’s largest necropolis have been discovered during work carried out by the Şanlıurfa Municipality around the historic Urfa Castle in southeastern Turkey.”

“Excavation teams at an ancient site [Side] in the southern province of Antalya are struggling to find sponsors after it emerged that the site contains an ancient brothel.”

The Lion of Babylon is not faring well in part because of the visitors that keep climbing on its back.

The oldest writing found on papyrus is now on display in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Scholars believe that have identified an ancient security system that protected the pharaoh’s burial chamber in one of the pyramids of Giza.

Philippi is in the latest group of sites to be named a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Some British MPs are proposing the return of the Elgin Marbles to smooth Britain’s departure from the EU.

Two Hellenistic marble sculptures from the Pergamon Museum in Berlin will remain on loan for the next two years at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The ancient Mamertine Prison in Rome will soon be open after three years for restoration and excavation.

After a $73 million renovation, Yale will soon be re-opening the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

“Dendrochronological and radiocarbon research by an international team led by Cornell archaeologist Sturt Manning has established an absolute timeline for the archaeological, historical and environmental record in Mesopotamia from the early second millennium B.C.”

Ben Witherington III has more than 20 posts on his recent trip to Turkey. Highlights include visits to the Miletus Museum, the Izmir Museum, and the Zeugma Museum (which has a splendid mosaic).

New book out from Eisenbrauns: “Did I Not Bring Israel Out of Egypt?” Biblical, Archaeological, and Egyptological Perspectives on the Exodus Narratives, edited by James K. Hoffmeier, Alan R. Millard, and Gary A. Rendsburg.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Explorator, Daniel Wright

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Exodus-Conquest, Greece, Mesopotamia, Museums, Travels, Turkey

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists working in Pompeii have “discovered four skeletons and gold coins in the ruins of an ancient shop in Pompeii.”

Archaeologists working at Carthage have uncovered a “smart cooling system” for chariot racers.

As restoration work on the Roman Colosseum moves from outside to inside, officials hope to use it one day for cultural events.

A stele depicting childbirth won an Egyptian Antiquities Ministry poll.

Digital scanning is revealing previously unseen portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls and raising new interpretive questions (Haaretz premium).

The latest issue of Biblical Archaeology Review includes stories on Paul’s riot in Ephesus, Eilat
Mazar’s excavations in the City of David, and the reconstruction of the Umm el-Qanatir synagogue.

The Syrian military has cleared thousands of booby traps from Palmyra, yet some are claiming that they are looting. Franklin Lamb has a detailed first-person report in two parts.

Barry Britnell reports on his recent visit to the Biblical History Center (formerly the Explorations in
Antiquity Center) in LaGrange, Georgia.

Ferrell Jenkins shares a couple of photos related to the Story of Sinuhe.

Duane W. Roller reflects on geography in the ancient world.

The Associates for Biblical Research are looking for a Pre-publication Editing Assistant Volunteer for Bible and Spade.

We’ll be taking a couple of weeks off from roundups, but we’ll include any stories you suggest when we return.

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

Tagged Dead Sea, Discoveries, Egypt, Italy, Museums, Syria

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

The Temple Mount Sifting Project has released a new video showing dozens of their discoveries.

Another video released this month features David Hendin explaining the coins of the Jewish War.

Egyptian officials are re-opening the tombs of Queen Nefertari and King Seti I in Luxor, but the cost for a ticket will be steep (about $113).

Researchers suggest that King Tut’s dagger was made from a meteorite.

The BBC has the latest “the Dead Sea is dying” story, including an impressive photo of Mineral Beach.

The ASOR Archive Photo of the Month shows archaeologists and local workers at Qumran in 1952.

In terms of visitors, the Louvre is the most popular museum in the world. The British Museum is #5 and the Vatican Museums are #7.

The Google Cultural Institute “contains more than six million artworks, photos, videos and documents from 1,000 institutions including the British Museum and MoMA.”

The lavish lifestyle of the Roman Empire elite is on exhibit at the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City.

The Getty Museum has acquired a valuable Greek funeral vase and a Roman marble head.

“The Penn Museum’s ongoing exhibition, ‘In the Artifact Lab: Conserving Egyptian Mummies,’ offers visitors an insider’s look at efforts to document, preserve, and restore ancient objects in the
Museum’s extensive collection.”

A new exhibit at the Met in New York City focuses on Jerusalem between the years 1000 and 1400.

Ashkelon: A Retrospective: 30 Years of the Leon Levy Expedition is a new exhibit running at the Rockefeller Museum in Jerusalem until the end of the year.

Haaretz ran a profile of Geza Vermes on the anniversary of his birthday.

The Israel Antiquities Authority raided a shop in the Mamilla Mall on suspicions of selling looted antiquities.

“For the first time in history the texts and images of all the Dead Sea Scrolls are available in their totality on the Internet.” From Brill for a purchase price of $5,940.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Steven Anderson, Agade, Explorator, Daniel Wright,
G. M. Grena, Rebekah Dutton

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Dead Sea, Egypt, Jerusalem, Museums, Philistines, Temple Mount