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A fire that caused damage to the Israel Museum is being investigated as an act of arson.

“A very rare 9,000-year-old stone mask hailing from the South Hebron Hills has gone on public display for the first time at the Israel Museum.”

The Megiddo Mosaic, evidence of one of the earliest Christian meeting places in Israel, will be going on display for the first time ever at the Museum of the Bible in DC.

A new study attempts to explain the purpose of a Roman road that was built from the Sea of Galilee across the Golan Heights but that avoided local villages.

Daniel Vainstub proposes that mmšt on lmlk seal impressions is not the name of the city but a reference to “a huge and unique ad hoc collection of agricultural products initiated by King Hezekiah as part of his preparations.”

The Jerusalem Post has a short story about Jewish presence in Rafah, long before it belonged to the “Gaza Strip.”

Jodi Magness is guest on the What Matters Now podcast, speaking about Jerusalem and her recently released book on the city.

Chandler Collins has rounded up the latest news, publications, and media about Jerusalem, with links to books, journal articles, book chapters and sections, pop media and blog articles, digital resources, developments, and upcoming events.

The Biblical Archaeology Society has announced its 2024 dig scholarship winners.

Alan Millard, longtime professor at the University of Liverpool, died on Wednesday.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, G. M. Grena

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Archaeologists excavating in the Givati parking lot in the City of David discovered a gold ring inset with a red garnet that was extremely well-preserved.

The Times of Israel has more information on the Iron Age Canaanite cemetery in the Jezreel Valley.

After two years and $5 million in renovations, the Herodian Quarter in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City is reopening.

In a new study, Nadav Na’aman argues that there was only one place in the Bible named Gilgal and it has nothing to do with the five footprint-shaped sites identified by Adam Zertal.

The “University of Haifa’s School of Archaeology and Maritime Cultures (SAMC) has recently launched a new international Master’s program, offering an MSc in Archaeological Sciences.”

New release: The Ancient Water System of Sepphoris (Land of Galilee 6), by Tsvika Tsuk (322 pages, $70, via Mordechai Aviam)

Jeffrey Chadwick is on the Biblical World podcast to talk about his excavations at Hebron.

Now online: Mapping the Holy Land: The Foundation of a Scientific Cartography of Palestine, by Haim Goren, Jutta Faehndrich, and Bruno Schelhaas.

Ora Negbi, longtime professor of archaeology at Tel Aviv University, died recently.

John Boardman, a classical archaeologist at Oxford, died last week.

The Bible Mapper Atlas continues to release free maps. Here are the latest:

HT: Agade, Frank McCraw, Gordon Franz, Gordon Dickson, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Keith Keyser

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A research study by the University of North Carolina-Wilmington argues the Egyptian pyramids were built along a now dried up branch of the Nile River. “The existence of the river would explain why the 31 pyramids were built in a chain along a now inhospitable desert strip in the Nile Valley.”

A Japanese archaeological team doing a ground-penetrating radar survey near the Giza Pyramids has not discovered a giant structure.

A Brazilian graphics artist has brought to life the face of Egyptian ruler Armenhotep III.

New release: Alternative Egyptology: Critical Essays on the Relation between Academic and Alternative Interpretations of Ancient Egypt, edited by B.J.L. van den Bercken (Sidestone; €15-95; open-access)

Daniel Vainstub writes about child sacrifice in the Bible and the extensive archaeological evidence for child sacrifice discovered in the western colonies of Phoenicia.

Jason Borges explains the geography and history of the Cilician Gates. He includes many good photos.

“The Department of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies at Pennsylvania State University is pleased to announce the creation of a two-year M.A program in Ancient Mediterranean Studies. This program is designed for students who can benefit from graduate instruction in any of the following areas: the Ancient Near East, Egypt, the Levant, the Hebrew Bible, early Judaism, Greece, Rome, Early Christianity, and the modern reception of the ancient Mediterranean world.”

Konstantinos Politis positively reviews Mount Machaerus: An Introduction to the Historical, Archaeological, and Pilgrim Site Overlooking the Dead Sea in the Kingdom of Jordan, by Győző Vörös. The book is available on Amazon and as a free download. The book includes many photos including one taken in front of Damascus Gate with Machaerus visible in the distance (p. 16).

Barry Kemp, longtime professor of Egyptology at the University of Cambridge, died on Wednesday.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer, Ted Weis

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The Cyrus Cylinder is on display at the Yale Peabody Museum until the end of June. On May 1, Irving Finkel will give a lecture at the museum on “Cyrus and His Cylinder: What Was He Thinking?” Registration is required.

The severed hands discovered at Avaris is likely a practice introduced by the Hyksos rulers of Egypt.

Five extramural shrines dated to the Late Bronze/Iron Age (LB/IA) have been excavated in the southern arid margins of the Levant: two at Timna, and one at Horvat Qitmit, ‘EnHazeva (Naqab) and Wadi at-Thamad (in south-central Transjordan).”

A full-color graphic version of Eric H. Cline’s 1177 B.C. has been released, with illustrations by Glynnis Fawkes ($15-22). In The Ancient Near East Today, Fawkes explains how she turned Cline’s book into cartoons.

New release: Byblos: A Legacy Unearthed, edited by the National Museum of Antiquities (the Netherlands). Open access.

The latest episode on This Week in the Ancient Near East is “The Case of the Roman Medical Instruments from Southwest Turkey, Or, The Doctor Will See What’s Left of You Now.”

A special exhibition opens next week at the ISAC Museum in Chicago: “Pioneers of the Sky: Aerial Archaeology and the Black Desert,” with images from Megiddo, Persepolis, and eastern Jordan. Marie-Laure Chambrade, exhibition curator, will be giving a lecture in person and online on May 14.

Ronald E. Clements, professor of Old Testament at Cambridge and King’s College London, died earlier this month.

Bob Rognlien has released a Video Study Guide for his book on the life of Jesus, The Most Extraordinary Life. This series of ten-minute episodes is a study and discussion guide for small groups, using footage shot for the feature-length documentary film, “Following the Footsteps.” You can see the video on chapter 4 here.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Gordon Dickson, Gordon Franz

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Scholars are trying to understand four clay tokens discovered near the Temple Mount and unlike any known elsewhere in the Roman world.

The Hamas War has resulted in damage to many archaeological sites in Gaza, though some treasures have been protected in Switzerland for years.

“Nahal HaShofet, one of central Israel’s most popular outdoor destinations, reopened this week after extensive renovations costing 25 million shekels.”

A new project at Hazor is seeking to understand the transition from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age based on archaeological discoveries and biblical texts.

After Roman-era mosaics was discovered at Moza (Emmaus/Colonia) near Jerusalem and then removed by the authorities, nearby residents came together to create a replica of one of them to place in the center of their community.

On April 21, 1:00 pm Eastern, “The Megiddo Expedition invites you to a webinar: Megiddo: News from the Iron Age. In this webinar, the Megiddo Expedition Team Members will update you on the latest news from the Iron Age, including the Iron Age Gates, the search for the Iron Age Administrative Building, the time of Josiah, and our secret plans for the 2025 Season.” Register here; a recording will be available here.

The subject of the latest issue of ‘Atiqot is “Wine Production, Trade and Consumption in the Southern Levant.” All articles are posted online.

Available for pre-order: Capernaum: Jews and Christians in the Ancient Village from the Time of Jesus to the Emergence of Islam, by Wally V. Cirafesi (Fortress; Amazon $45; Logos $25).

Edward Lipiński, scholar of Aramaic and Phoenician studies, died last week.

Andy Cook has been in Jerusalem, and he filmed a video of the important excavations on the south side of the Temple Mount.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Gordon Dickson, Gordon Franz

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“In a ceremonial nod to Purim, the Israel Antiquities Authority has disclosed to the public a ceramic jar fragment bearing a human face and dating back to the Persian period (4th-5th centuries BCE) that was discovered in 2019” in Jerusalem.

A high school student found an oil lamp at Mezad Tzafir that is nearly identical to one discovered by Nelson Glueck ninety years ago at the same location.

Archaeologists discovered a mastaba in an Old Kingdom necropolis at Dahshur.

“Archaeologists in Pompeii have unearthed an ancient building site that sheds light on construction techniques used by the Romans to make iconic structures such as the Colosseum and the Pantheon.”

“The only surviving funerary relief of the ancient Greek world depicting twin babies in the same arms was unveiled at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens and will be exhibited only for a few weeks.”

The British Museum went to court Tuesday against a former curator alleged to have stolen hundreds of artifacts from its collections and offered them for sale online.”

Kazuyuki Hayashi, a professor at Bethel Seminary, has been a supervisor at the Tel Shimron excavation since 2017.

Juan Tebes has been studying pilgrimage routes in the Levant and Hijaz.

Conflicting Jewish traditions place the tomb of Esther and Mordecai in Iran and Israel.

David Moster cut open an old pair of tefillin (phylacteries) to see what Scriptures are inside.

David Hendin, an expert in biblical coins, was interviewed on the Ancient Coin Hour.

Thomas Levy has been honored with a two-volume festschrift featuring research by more than 140 friends and colleagues. (It is a bit pricey, but chapters are available individually.)

The latest issue of Israel Museum Studies in Archaeology is online. One of the articles presents three architectural models from the museum’s collection.

Available for pre-order on Logos: Pondering the Spade: Discussing Important Convergences between Archaeology and Old Testament Studies, by David B. Schreiner

Webinar on April 4: “How did the dead die in Ancient Judah? Death as a social process in Iron Age tombs,” by Matthew Suriano

Webinar on April 18: “Amorites, Their Origins, and Their Legacy,” by Aaron Burke

Sara Japhet, longtime professor at Hebrew University, died this week.

“‘Art of Intimidation: Journey to Ancient Assyria’ is the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East augmented-reality Snapchat lens that brings to life the large casts of sculpted panels from the famed royal palaces of ancient Nineveh and Nimrud.” A video shows how it works.

For the Purim holiday, The Times of Israel profiles a 78-year-old baker who runs the last-of-its-kind Iraqi pastry shop in Israel.

A video of colorized footage from around the world in 1896 includes Jerusalem’s Jaffa Gate, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, West Jerusalem, and train station (start at 2:38).

Leen Ritmeyer explains how the tomb of Jesus was sealed.

Bible Archaeology Report proposes the top ten finds related to the death and resurrection of Jesus.

HT: Agade, Paul Mitchell, Arne Halbakken, Paleojudaica

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