Negev Archives - Page 21 of 24

King Solomon’s Mines, After All

A new study by a team from Tel Aviv University concludes that the copper mines at Timna, near Eilat, were in operation during the reign of Solomon. The new dating is based upon Carbon-14 studies which shift the peak of copper production down three centuries from the 13th century to the 10th.

Because of close similarities between the mines at Timna and those at Feinan (biblical Punon) further north, the scholars believe that the Timna mines were operated by the Edomites but not by Solomon.

Perhaps this is correct. Another possibility is that Solomon controlled both. The biblical texts do not identify either site as Solomonic, but the Israelite king did control territory as far south as Eilat.

1 Kings 9:26–28 (NIV) “King Solomon also built ships at Ezion Geber, which is near Elath in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea. And Hiram sent his men—sailors who knew the sea—to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s men. They sailed to Ophir and brought back 420 talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon.”

During David and Solomon’s reigns, the Edomites were subject to Israel (2 Sam 8:11-14; 1 Kgs 11:14). Perhaps they operated the mines to pay the annual tribute.

If I had time, it would be interesting to go back through the literature and review the statements of those who used the absence of evidence at Timna from Solomon’s time as evidence against the biblical account. Once again we see why we should hold to the assured results of archaeological research lightly.

The full BASOR journal article is online as is a summary in Haaretz. A video from this year’s excavations is posted at YouTube.

HT: Joseph Lauer

Solomon’s Pillars near the copper mines of Timna
Photo from Negev and the Wilderness

Tagged 10th Century, Discoveries, Negev

Answer: Most-Eroded Site in Israel

The site identified as the most eroded site in Israel is Tell Jemmeh, located on the bank of the Nahal Besor about 7 miles (12 km) due south of the city of Gaza. The site was identified as biblical Gerar by W. J. Phythian-Adams and Sir Flinders Petrie. Benjamin Mazar’s suggestion that Tell Jemmeh is Yurza is now commonly accepted. Yurza is mentioned in Egyptian and Assyrian texts but not in the Bible. The source of the quotation is the “Jemmeh, Tell” article by the late Gus W. Van Beek in The Anchor Bible Dictionary, volume 3, page 677.

We had a number of good responses in the comments yesterday, all of which show that there are many severely eroded tells in Israel. The correct answer was given by Dr. Carl Rasmussen, but if you’re feeling bad that you lost out, you can take comfort in the fact that you lost to someone who has written one of the best Bible atlases!

Tell Jemmeh side washed out by Nahal Besor, tb050701352

Tell Jemmeh, showing erosion caused by the Nahal Besor.
Photo from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, volume 5

Tagged Challenge, Negev

New Video: The Locusts

Today is Passover and SourceFlix has released a new video short entitled “The Locusts.”

Recently, I sat down in the early morning to enjoy a cup of coffee and my newspaper. The headline of the Jerusalem Post read “Swarm of Locusts Crosses Sinai Border into Israel”. I leaped out of my chair, grabbed my camera gear, jumped in my car and raced towards the Egyptian border. Within three hours locusts were bouncing off my windshield! The estimated swarm of 120 million had been devastating Egypt for several days, but Israel was ready for them with pesticide-loaded planes and helicopters. So, while I didn’t get to see them in their full force, it was yet another experience in Israel that brought the pages of the Bible to life! I will never forget seeing these locusts carried in on the wind, eating everything in their path.

Click here to watch the 2-minute video.

Tagged Egypt, Negev

Farming in Negev Highlands More Extensive Than Thought

From LiveScience.com:

For thousands of years, different groups of people have lived in the Negev desert, building stone walls and cities that survive to this day. But how did they make their living?
The current thinking is that these desert denizens didn’t practice agriculture before approximately the first century, surviving instead by raising animals, said Hendrik Bruins, a landscape archaeologist at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
But new research suggests people in this area, the Negev highlands, practiced agriculture as long ago as 5000 B.C., Bruins told LiveScience. If true, the finding could change historians’ views of the area’s inhabitants, who lived in the region in biblical times and even before, he added.

Bruins found that the area had been farmed in three periods.

He found three distinct layers in the earth indicating that the field had been cultivated, corresponding to three different periods of activity, with long gaps in between. The first one dated from 5000 B.C. to 4500 B.C., followed by another from 1600 B.C. to 950 B.C. and a final layer dating from A.D. 650 to A.D. 950.

The full story is here.

Experimental farm near Avdat
Photo from Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, volume 5.

Tagged Negev, Technology

Wednesday Roundup

10.5 Million Visits to the Western Wall in 2012 – The increase in tourism requires a doubling in restroom capacity.

Archaeology in Israel Update—February 2013 – Stephen Gabriel Rosenberg selects the top five stories of the month.

48 hours in the Negev – Onnie Schiffmiller provides a two-day itinerary beginning at Beersheba and moving south.

How to Prepare for a Holy Land Tour – Wayne Stiles recommends ways to prepare mentally, practically, physically, and spiritually.

8 Tips to Maximize Your Holy Land Tour – Stiles follows up his preparation post with suggestions on what to do once you’re in Israel, including what photos to take and not take, how to keep up, and why you should ask lots of questions.

A “full house” at the Western Wall prayer plaza during the feast of Tabernacles. Photo from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, volume 3.

Tagged Jerusalem, Negev, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Recent IAA Excavation Reports

Horbat Hadat Modiin – Two strata from the Chalcolithic period were exposed, revealing high quality construction and a flint repertoire with more than 500 pieces.

Petah Tiqwa, Kefar Abraham – This Middle Bronze IIA industrial site with a tabun and kiln was probably related to the major city of Aphek.

Amazya, Al-Dawayima – A survey northwest of Moshav Amazya on the western end of Nahal Lachish in the Shephelah revealed 37 sites with abundant remains from the Iron, Roman, and Byzantine periods.

Amazya South – A survey south of Moshav Amazya identified 40 sites including many cisterns and cave dwellings.

Yattir Forest – A salvage excavation exposed a farming terrace and a square field tower, both of which might date to the Byzantine period.

Be’er Sheva‘, Bet Eshel Street – Excavations in downtown Beersheba uncovered pottery from the 8th century BC and a home from the Byzantine era.

Middle Bronze kiln excavated at Petah Tiqwa, Kefar Abraham.
Photo by Israel Antiquities Authority.

Tagged Excavations, Israel's Coast, Judah, Negev, Shephelah