Earlier this year I expressed my enthusiasm for the Rose Guide to the Tabernacle. The quality and quantity of the illustrations led me to conclude that “I know of no better resource for an initial study of the tabernacle or for teaching it.”

Word is now out that the Rose Guide to the Temple is nearing publication. I could tell you how great it is, but you might as well see for yourself (see preview at bottom of page).rose-guide-temple

The book was written by Randall Price, and the venerable Leen Ritmeyer served as a consultant. The book includes a free poster originally published in National Geographic of the Temple Mount through history. (Thanks to a reader here, I’ve had that same poster hanging in my office for several years now.)

If they sold stock for books, I’d certainly invest in this one. I predict it will be a best-seller and an award-winner.

Amazon is taking pre-orders for $30 with a February 21 publication date. Amazon also lists three glowing endorsements. The publisher’s website indicates that you can also purchase the book for pdf download, which would make it much easier for use in the classroom.

Professors may request a desk copy.

HT: Daniel Wright

Share:

Earlier this year Eisenbrauns published a collection of essays in honor of David Ussishkin, The Fire Signals of Lachish: Studies in the Archaeology and History of Israel in the Late Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Persian Period in Honor of David Ussishkin.

The book gets its name from Lachish Letter #4 in which the writer is looking for some indication that Lachish has not fallen to the Babylonians. David Ussishkin was a long-time professor at Tel Aviv University and his noteworthy excavations include the Silwan tombs in Jerusalem (1968-71), Lachish (1973-94), Tel Jezreel (1990-96), and Megiddo (1992-present).
image



The book includes 25 essays; the ten that I would read first are these:


Close Yet Apart: Diverse Cultural Dynamics at Iron Age Beth-Shemesh and Lachish, by Shlomo Bunimovitz and Zvi Lederman


Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On: The Possible Destruction by Earthquake of Stratum VIA at Megiddo, by Eric H. Cline


Tel Azekah: A New Look at the Site and Its “Judean” Fortress, by Yehuda Dagan


Why Did Nebuchadnezzar II Destroy Ashkelon in Kislev 604 
B.C.E., by Alexander Fantalkin


The Evolution of the 8th-Century B.C.E. Jerusalem Temple, by André Lemaire


Comparative Aspects of the Aramean Siege System at Tell Eṣ-Ṣāfi/Gath, by Aren M. Maeir and Shira Gur-Arieh


The Shephelah according to the Amarna Letters, by Nadav Naʾaman


The Persian Period City Wall of Jerusalem, by Margreet Steiner


The Waters of Shiloah (Isaiah 8:5–8), by H. G. M. Williamson


On the Toponymy of the Jezreel Valley and Adjacent Plains, by Ran Zadok

The book is now available from Eisenbrauns, and you can get more details, including a complete listing of the contents, here (pdf). The cover photo is one that I provided from the American Colony and Eric Matson Collection, volume 3.

Share:

If you are looking for unique Christmas images, the Accordance Blog tells you where to find them.

A scroll containing the Ten Commandments from Deuteronomy has just been put on display at Discovery Times Square in New York City.

Iraq’s second largest museum is paying smugglers to return the artifacts.

If you’ve been intrigued by the title of Jodi Magness’ latest work, BAR has posted a review by Shaye J. D. Cohen of Stone and Dung, Oil and Spit: Jewish Daily Life in the Time of Jesus. The book is available for $16 at Amazon or $20 at Eisenbrauns.

A bulla with the name of a biblical town has been discovered in the Temple Mount Sifting Project.

According to ANE-2, Gabriel Barkay will present it at a conference at Bar Ilan University at the end of the month.

The new Egyptian Minister of Antiquities has announced new policies for his department.

Ferrell Jenkins has written an illustrated series appropriate for the season:

Fishermen using illegal nets in the Sea of Galilee have been caught and detained.

The Biblical Archaeology Society has released a new edition of its free eBook, The Dead Sea Scrolls: Discovery and Meaning. The new material looks at the War Scroll, the Temple Scroll, and the Book of Enoch. If you have not already, you must register to receive the eBook.

Olive Tree Bible Software now has the ESV Bible Atlas for sale for $22, the Zondervan Atlas of the Bible for $26, and the Holman Bible Atlas for $20. These atlases are supported on the Android, iPad, iPhone, Mac, and soon the PC.

If you ever hear the name Ron Wyatt in connection with some amazing archaeological discovery, run the other way. His death in 1999 did not prevent his frauds from being perpetuated in email forwards and on various websites. His alleged discovery of chariot wheels in the Red Sea and research claimed to date the objects based on the number of spokes is worthy of being featured as the latest post at PaleoBabble.

HT: Jack Sasson

Share:

Last month Eisenbrauns released a new book that looks fantastic. Unearthing Jerusalem: 150 Years of Archaeological Research in the Holy City has a rich collection of articles authored by those who know the subjects best [with one glaring exception]. I have not read the book, and will not be able to for several months, but I know that some of the readers here will want to get this on their Christmas list. GALUNEART

The Eisenbrauns website has the publication details, but more helpful than the two-paragraph description is the table of contents. I’ve re-formatted that below for easier reading.

It should be noted that the book is based on a conference held in 2006 and thus those looking for the latest results from excavations will want to check elsewhere.

Frank E. Peters, Where Three Roads Meet: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Pilgrimage to Jerusalem


Part 1: The History of Research

Shimon Gibson, British Archaeological Work in Jerusalem between 1865 and 1967: An Assessment

Ulrich Hübner, The German Protestant Institute of Archaeology (Deutsches Evangelisches Institut für Altertumswissenschaft des Heiligen Landes)

Joan R. Branham, The American Archaeological Presence in Jerusalem: Through the Gates of the Albright Institute

Dominique Trimbur, The École Biblique et Archéologique Française: A Catholic, French, and Archaeological Institution

Michele Piccirillo, The Archaeology of Jerusalem and the Franciscans of the Studium Biblicum

Ronny Reich, The Israel Exploration Society

Jon Seligman, The Departments of Antiquities and the Israel Antiquities Authority (1918–2006): The Jerusalem Experience


Part 2: From Early Humans to the Iron Age

Ofer Bar-Yosef, Prehistory of the Jerusalem Area

Aren M. Maeir, The Archaeology of Early Jerusalem

Israel Finkelstein, Jerusalem in the Iron Age: Archaeology and Text; Reality and Myth
Part 3: The Roman Period

Joseph Patrich, The Location of the Second Temple and the Layout of its Courts, Gates and Chambers: A New Proposal

Doron Ben-Ami and Yana Tchekhanovets, Has the Adiabene Royal Family “Palace” Been Found in the City of David?

Ronny Reich and Eli Shukron, The Pool of Siloam in Jerusalem of the Late Second Temple Period and Its Surroundings

Zvi Greenhut, A Domestic Quarter from the Second Temple Period on the Lower Slopes of the Central Valley (Tyropoeon)

Donald T. Ariel, Coins from Excavations in the Domestic Quarter of the City of David, Jerusalem

Hillel Geva, On the “New City” of Second Temple Period Jerusalem: The Archaeological Evidence

Jodi Magness, Aelia Capitolina: A Review of Some Current Debates about Hadrianic Jerusalem
Part 4: The Byzantine Period

Oren Gutfeld, The Urban Layout of Byzantine-Period Jerusalem

Leah Di Segni, Epigraphic Finds Reveal New Chapters in the History of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the 6th Century

Jon Seligman, The Hinterland of Jerusalem during the Byzantine Period


Part 5: The Early Islamic and Medieval Periods

Gideon Avni, From Hagia Polis to Al-Quds: The Byzantine–Islamic Transition in Jerusalem

Donald Whitcomb, Jerusalem and the Beginnings of the Islamic City

Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah, Early Islamic and Medieval City Walls of Jerusalem in Light of New Discoveries

Mahmoud Hawari, Ayyubid Jerusalem: New Architectural and Archaeological Discoveries

Robert Schick, Mamluk and Ottoman Jerusalem

One last comment: the natural choice for the presentation/article on Iron Age Jerusalem is Gabriel
Barkay. He knows the city and this period far better than Israel Finkelstein and he does not suffer from the biases that make the latter’s work unreliable. Perhaps a logistical reason made Barkay’s participation impossible.

Share:

Museums:

The Museo Egizio di Torino has recently posted 11,000 objects from ancient Egypt online.

Six new galleries for ancient Egypt and Nubia opened today at the Ashmolean Museum. The Ashmolean is the most popular free UK museum outside of London.

The British Museum will close its Department of the Middle East to visitors from December 12, 2011 to January 20, 2012.

John E. Curtis will be lecturing on “Babylon: A Wonder of the Ancient World” at the Met on December 19.


Resources/Sales:

The latest production by SourceFlix is now available. You can watch the trailer of “The Sacrifice” at their site. It looks great.

The Logos version of Austen Henry Layard’s Nineveh and Its Remains will close in community bidding on Friday. It’s now at $18 but may well go down to $16 or $14.

BAS has dozens of items for sale this weekend only, including 50% off Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, Freeing the Dead Sea Scrolls, The Copper Scroll, and Scholars on the Record.

Glo Premium is available for only $35 through Monday. The special includes a free DVD.

Accordance is selling all Carta modules and combos for 20% off through December. The sale includes Ritmeyer’s The Quest, Rainey and Notley’s The Sacred Bridge, and Eusebius’ Onomasticon.

Tyndale Tech explains why Perseus, now available for free in Logos, is the best collection for studying backgrounds of the New Testament.

HT: Jack Sasson

Share:

Christianbook.com (CBD) has some Black Friday specials that may be of interest to readers here.

255727: Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary Old Testament, 5 Volumes Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary Old Testament, 5 Volumes. Hardcover. List is $250, on sale for $120 (Amazon: $175)
613176: Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds NT Commentary,  4 Volumes Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds NT Commentary, 4 Volumes. Paperback. List is $130, on sale for $35 (Amazon: $69)
939580: NIV Archaeological Study Bible Renaissance Fine Leather, Venetian Brown 1984 NIV Archaeological Study Bible Renaissance Fine Leather, Venetian Brown 1984. List is $110, on sale for $50 (not listed at Amazon)

The best deal above is the 4-volume ZIBBC NT set.

Share: