You don’t have to watch too much of this video footage of a flash flood at the tabernacle model in Timna Park to be impressed. Repairs to the outer court posts are underway.

A leaky pipe at the Western Wall was mistaken for the Messiah.

There’s more talk about rebuilding the Colossus of Rhodes.

Archaeologists have discovered an unknown temple of Hatshepsut.

Now online in pdf format: The Archaeology of the Cuneiform Inscriptions, by A. H. Sayce.

Here are lots and lots of historic photos of Nazareth.

Independent Traveler suggests the 10 Best Israel Experiences.

I suspect that many of our readers would be interested in The First Days of Jesus, by Andreas J. Kostenberger and Alexander E. Stewart.

There are a couple of archaeology lectures this month in the DC area.

Just released: Galilee in the Late Second Temple and Mishnaic Periods, Volume 2: The 
Archaeological Record from Cities, Towns, and Villages, edited by David A. Fiensy and James Riley
Strange. The table of contents, introduction, interviews with the contributors, and a sample chapter are online. Individual chapters focus on Nazareth, Magdala, Bethsaida, Tiberias, Kedesh, Khirbet Qana, and much more. This will quickly become the classic archaeological guide to Galilee.

HT: Charles Savelle, Mark Hoffman, Ted Weis, Agade, Bill Schlegel

There will be no roundup next weekend.

A study of the temperature of the walls of Tut’s tomb is promising for those looking for a hidden chamber.

Ben Carson believes the pyramids of Egypt were built by Joseph to store grain.

Joseph’s tomb has been restored.

The Hebron archaeological site will not be leased to Jewish settlers.

The PEF has posted a brief video compilation of their recent conference on Jericho.

G. M. Grena reports on a new book dedicated to Robert Deutsch (that includes a chapter by Gabriel
Barkay), his visit to Passages exhibit and lecture, a forthcoming game, and a secret link.

If you don’t know about the Lanier Theological Library, you should read this.

This is your last chance to get in on Logos’s Classic Studies and Atlases on Biblical Geography (7 vols.) at the best pricing ($24-30).

Now free in pdf format: The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology: Characters and Collections, by Alice Stevenson.

Our most popular photo this week on Facebook and Twitter was this Psalm 23 image from the American Colony Collection.

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Shepherd tending his flock at a spring in the Judean wilderness

Archaeologists working on the Gezer water system have new evidence supporting its dating to the Middle Bronze period. Volunteers are invited for next season’s dig.

A court has ruled that Elad can continue to run the Jerusalem Archaeological Park in the City of David.

The Museum of the Bible has announced plans to excavate Tel Shimron in Galilee.

Palestinians have set fire to the traditional tomb of Joseph in Shechem.

Nearly 1,000 riders completed a three-day bike race in northern Israel. Dates have been announced for Epic Israel 2016.

Nehemia Gordon shares his experience in working on the Temple Mount Sifting Project. You can donate to the effort here.


The New York Times has issued a correction for their article on the Temple Mount. Jodi Magness’s letter to the editor is here.

ISIS’s destruction of the Roman Arch of Triumph in Palymra made some Russians unhappy.

Egypt is opening a small museum at the Cairo airport later this month.

Volume 3 of NGSBA (Nelson Glueck School of Biblical Archaeology) Archaeology has been released. The articles are primarily about the excavations at Yehud and Maresha. The entire issue can be downloaded for free. Previous volumes are available here.

The Oriental Institute has begun posting their photo archives online. Images are now available from Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon. As far as I can tell, the images are all low-res.

Jodi Magness reviews The Tomb of Jesus and His Family?, edited by James H. Charlesworth. She provides a summary of the articles, including the one by A. Kloner and S. Gibson, excavators of the Talpiot tomb. Ben Witherington provides an abbreviated version of her review.

Brent Seales is on the Book and the Spade to talk about the technology that enabled reading the oldest biblical text outside the Dead Sea Scrolls. Listen here.

Here’s a unique tour of Israel: the Life and Land of Jesus, with Wayne Stiles. This should be particularly attractive for those who want to return but don’t want to visit the same places as every time before.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Paleojudaica

Our most popular Facebook post and tweet of the week:

Mount of Beatitudes aerial from northeast, ws011415241
The Mount of Beatitudes, Tabgha, Gennesaret, Arbel – so much of Jesus’s ministry right here!

Just posted: Preliminary Report of the 2015 Jezreel Expedition Field Season

A full schedule of speakers and topics for the Annual Bible and Archaeology Fest is now online. Eric Cline is the plenary speaker.

After the heat wave and brutal sandstorm, Israel this past week experienced lightning, hail, and flash floods. This is not typical September weather.


Near Eastern Archaeology‘s latest issue is devoted to “The Cultural Heritage Crisis in the Middle East.” It is available online for free to all.

Eisenbrauns has just released its fall catalog.

A new book: Distant Views of the Holy Land, by Felicity Cobbing and David Jacobson. 330 pages, 350 illustrations, $200. A free sample is available here.

Here’s more about Penn Museum’s new exhibit, “Sacred Writings: Extraordinary Texts of the Biblical World.”

This Wednesday, Sept 23, Brent Strawn of Emory University will give a lecture at Trinity Evangelical
Divinity School entitled “The Historical Psalms, Iconographically Considered.” The event will take place at 7:00 pm on Trinity’s campus, Hinkson Hall in Rodine Building. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Clashes on the Temple Mount have caused damage to Al Aqsa Mosque.

Aren Maeir is on the Book and the Spade talking about his excavations of Gath and the discovery of a large gate this season (part 1, part 2).

Egyptian security officials have ordered the shutdown of St. Catherine’s Monastery.

From ASOR: Can you pass this Sea of Galilee quiz?

The latest issue of Popular Archaeology includes articles on Gath and Magdala.

Ferrell Jenkins explains the significance of Mahanaim (mentioned 13x in the OT) and shares some photos.

HT: Agade, Charles Savelle, A.D. Riddle, Paleojudaica

For many years I have enjoyed taking students deep into the world of ancient Israel, exploring its land, its people, and its stories. One place that is always most rewarding is the era of Israel’s kings, for this terrain is little known and yet abounding with riches.

The chronology, however, can get people tied up real fast. That’s why I’m excited about a new
resource that maps everything out with clarity. The Regnal Chronology of the Kings of Judah and Israel: An Illustrated Guide puts every detail in its place, so with one glance you can figure out in any given year who is ruling, the king’s age and regnal year, and every extrabiblical synchronism. It truly puts everything at your fingertips.

chronology-900-850a-500

Chris McKinny has been developing this resource for many years while living, studying, and teaching in the Jerusalem area. Both the digital book and the e-poster reflect his passion for the subject, and they’re now available at an introductory price of $9.99 for the e-poster, $19.99 for the digital book (pdf), or $24.99 for both.

I encourage you to take a look. You can order it quickly and easily here. And we would appreciate it if you would tell friends, pastors, students, and teachers about it. This sort of resource is unique, and we believe there are many who will absolutely love it, if they know about it.

mckinny-poster500

Archaeologists working at Laodicea have uncovered an inscription with the “water law” of the city from AD 114.

The mummy of King Tut will remain on display in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.

A girl shattered a Roman vase in a display case at the Israel Museum. Or did she?

The Pope’s visit has inspired a new exhibit at the Penn Museum: “Sacred Writings: Extraordinary Texts of the Biblical World.”

Popular Archaeology runs a story on the latest discoveries on the Mount Zion dig.

Carl Rasmussen posts photos of two wall paintings from the Herodium now on display at the Israel Museum.

“The first Protecting the Past conference will be held in Amman (Jordan) between 28-30 September 2015 at The Jordan Museum.”

LiveScience has the latest on the “Gospel of Jesus’s Wife.”

The Biblical Archaeology Society’s Blowout Sale ends on Monday. Many items are marked down 50% or more.

The NIV Zondervan Study Bible has dropped in price to $26.18.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Paleojudaica

We’ve been posting a photo each day this year on Facebook and Twitter. Our most popular photo this week was this image of the City of David from the 1890s.

Jerusalem City of David and Mt of Olives, pcm02712
The City of David, Temple Mount, and the Mount of Olives