Archaeologists have unearthed a Byzantine church with colorful mosaic floors at Nitzana (Nessana) in the Negev.

A lead sling bullet with the Greek word for “learn” was discovered in excavations at Hippos (Susita). The inscription “represents local sarcastic humor on the part of the city’s defenders, who wished to teach their enemies a lesson with a wink – ‘Learn your lesson!’” The underlying journal article is here.

Lauren K. McCormick writes about Byzantine baptismal halls at Hippos.

Rujm el-Hiri, the structure in the Golan Heights with concentric rings, is not unique, as scientists have identified 28 large circular structures within a 16-mile radius of the site.

“Archaeologists working off the coast of Libya have identified an underwater ‘ship graveyard’ near the ancient Greek city of Ptolemais.”

“Researchers are painstakingly reconstructing the oldest-known map of the night sky – previously thought lost forever – by X-raying parchment that contains the star catalog hidden beneath other text.”

“Amid rocket sirens and interceptions, two antiquities thieves were apprehended at the Horvat Hermesh site, which houses the remains of an ancient settlement from the Roman and Byzantine periods.”

“U.S. border officials in Philadelphia have seized a cache of 4,000-year-old Bronze Age swords and arrowheads, believed to be looted antiquities from Iran.”

The British Museum has released a video in the Curators’ Corner series about a monumental structure in Girsu that turned out to be the oldest bridge in the world.

The Greek City Times makes an argument for calling them the “Parthenon Sculptures,” not the “Parthenon Marbles.”

Military strikes have caused damage to historic sites in Isfahan, Iran.

“Lebanon has placed blue shields on 34 archaeological sites across the country to protect them during the ongoing war.”

ASOR webinar on March 25: “Lions, Rams, and Kings: Interpreting Animals at Persepolis,” by Neville McFerrin

BAS online course in August: “Historically Confirmed Figures in the Hebrew Bible,” by Lawrence Mykytiuk ($189)

BAS online class in October: “Ancient Texts and Scribes,” taught by Alice Mandell

The latest volume of Israel Museum Studies in Archaeology is now online.

On Digging for Truth, Bryan Windle discusses the “problems with using archaeological discoveries to interpret Scripture, instead of the other way around.”

HT: Agade, Explorator