Weekend Roundup, Part 1

A rare half-shekel coin from the First Jewish Revolt was discovered during the IAA’s Judean Desert Caves survey.

Five years after discovering a Crusader sword off the coast of Dor, a diver discovered a second one.

The Times of Israel reports on the new exhibit of the entirety of the Great Isaiah Scroll.

“The Rockefeller Archaeological Museum in Jerusalem is a singular historic gem that more people are getting the opportunity to visit thanks to the guided tours, which began this year.”

Nathan Steinmeyer looks at several examples of “mundane” archaeological discoveries that revealed dramatic insights when studied with the latest scientific methods.

Aren Maeir notes the publication of an article in which he argues that the Middle Bronze cultic structure in the City of David (as proposed by Shukron) is an Iron Age production site.

New release: A Historical Archaeology of Jerusalem: Bronze and Iron Ages, by Yuval Gadot (SBL Press, $62)

Kindle sale: Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible ($3.99, an all-time low; reg; $25; Logos $38)

On Digging for Truth, Seth Rodriquez highlights great discoveries that affirm the Old Testament.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Charles Savelle

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

A 4th-century basilica with a large reception hall has been excavated in Ostia.

A team of researchers has used AI to figure out the rules of an ancient Roman board game.

Authorities are taking action to reduce graffiti at the ancient site of Persepolis.

New benches outside the Roman Colosseum enable the visitor to comprehend just how much larger the amphitheater was before earthquakes destroyed the outer ring.

“A new study suggests that Alexandria on the Tigris was more than a regional city; it functioned as a capital of ancient global trade, linking India, Mesopotamia, and the Mediterranean for more than five centuries.”

New release: The Transjordan in Biblical Literature: A Critical Spatial Approach, by Aubrey Taylor McClain (Gorgias, $76). 

A book launch for A Voice from the Desert: The Great Isaiah Scroll will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 5:30, at The Hebrew University, Mt. Scopus Campus, Mandel Building, 5th Floor, Room 530. Presentations will be made by Lawrence H. Schiffman, Emanuel Tov, Kristin De Troyer, Pnina Shor, and Marcello Fidanzio. The event is open to the public, and no registration is required.

Walking The Text has just released a “behind the scenes” series for The Lord’s Prayer. Six episodes reveal the backstory of the location shoots, the biblical scholarship, and a night in a bunker when missiles were in the air.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Researchers working at Petra discovered a “rare 116-meter pressurized lead pipeline, an extraordinary feature in the eastern Mediterranean outside urban building interiors.”

An Iron Age Phoenician scarab seal was discovered on Sardinia.

“A recent study of the Ishtar temple at Assur has identified an unusual feature beneath the temple’s earliest floor: a thick layer of prepared sand.”

“A newly discovered chronicle from the early eighth century is giving medieval historians a rare new window onto the political shocks and religious debates that reshaped the eastern Mediterranean in the decades before and after the rise of Islam.” PaleoJudaica has more here.

“Imagine your car, your savings account, and your power grid were all the same thing, and alive. In the ancient Near East, that was the ox.” Lauren K. McCormick has written “an ode to oxen.”

Carlo Rindi Nuzzolo writes about the possibilities that 3D scanning opens up for the understanding of ancient artifacts.

Zoom lecture on Feb 21: “Piramesse – from the City of Wonders to Terra Incognita,” by Henning Franzmeier

Bible Archaeology Report shares the top three reports in biblical archaeology for the month of January.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup

A new study reveals that the earliest bathhouses in Pompeii were not very hygienic.

“A gang of four antiquities robbers was caught red-handed on Sunday afternoon while digging inside an ancient Roman-period burial cave near Hittin, on the edge of the Arbel Valley.”

The latest video from Expedition Bible traces the route of Abraham from Iraq through Syria, Turkey, Jordan, and Israel.

Elizabeth Shenk reports on the use of AI in dating the Dead Sea Scrolls, and she includes a number of quotations from scholars about the dating of Daniel.

Marek Dospěl provides an introduction to the Nimrud Letters.

Marta Lorenzon writes about the social meaning and functionality of mudbrick architecture. “By tracing the full chaîne opératoire — from soil selection to mixing, molding, drying, and construction — we can approach mudbrick not only as a building technology but also as a reflection of cultural practice, community identity, and human engagement with the environment.”

The NY Times posted an obituary for Gabriel Barkay (gift link).

The first guest on The Book and the Spade radio program was Gabriel Barkay, and that recording from 1984 is now online.

Israel’s Good Name writes about his travels on the outskirts of Elkana.

Chris McKinny and Amy Balogh discuss the Flood Tablet from the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Hybrid lecture at the Albright on Feb 4: “Unearthing an Imperially Glorious Byzantine Church near Bet Shemesh: From Fieldwork to Virtual Reality,” by Benyamin Storchan

Hybrid lecture at the Albright on Feb 25: “Willibald Goes to Jerusalem: A Trip Through the City Then and Now,” by Christie Pavey

Releasing soon: Archaeology and the People of the Bible: Exploring the Evidence for the Historical Existence of Bible Characters, by Titus Kennedy

The Sacred Thread and the BibleProject have released the 8-day Lord’s Prayer Reading Plan on YouVersion.

Friends of ASOR Tours are giving two days of insider tours in Philadelphia in April.

“Bible Mapper is pleased to announce the launch of Bible Mapper, Jr.! The new site hosts a growing collection of resources specifically designed to help kids understand where the stories of the Bible happened and why it matters. Each map lesson includes a kid-friendly map, a Bible reading, a Life Lesson, and an article that unpacks what happened in the story and how it can help us follow God more closely.”

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Ted Weis, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup

“Excavations at the ancient city of Smyrna in central Izmir have uncovered a mosaic floor featuring a ‘Solomon’s Knot’ motif.”

Nathan Steinmeyer writes about the latest discoveries at the house believed to have once belonged to Nero’s second wife.

A new IAA research project plans to trace the origin of thousands of pottery vessels based on the mineral and chemical composition of the pottery kiln.

“The Huqoq Excavation Consortium will benefit from a $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of State to the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research.”

Aren Maeir attended the Jerusalem and Samaria conference which included visits to Samaria and Mount Ebal. His beautiful photos fit with my observation that January is the best month for taking photos in Israel.

Protected archaeological sites have inadvertently become safe harbors for plants and animals.

BibleMapper’s latest audio-visual reading is of Joshua 17, illustrating the description of the tribal territory of Manasseh.

The Great Isaiah Scroll: A Voice from the Desert, edited by Marcell Fidanzio, was written to accompany the special Israel Museum exhibit on the scroll, which I’m told will go on display in late February.

Jerusalem Seminary is offering several free lectures in the coming weeks:

  • Jan 24: Baruch Haba: An Introductory Lesson in Biblical Hebrew
  • Jan 30: The Torah that Jesus Read – Insights into God’s First Words, by Baruch Kvasnica
  • Feb 7: Bethsaida: Discovering the Last Lost City of the Gospels, by Ethan Knapp

The British Museum is hiring a treasure hunter to recover its lost Greek and Roman artifacts.

Gabriel Barkay’s life is remembered by Zachi Dvira, Chandler Collins, the Jerusalem University College, The Jerusalem Post, and The Times of Israel.

HT: Jack Sasson, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists working in the City of David have found a necklace pendant depicting the menorah that dates to the Late Byzantine period when Jews were not allowed to enter Jerusalem.

“A rare clay oil lamp from the Hasmonean era was uncovered at the Nebi Samwil archaeological site northwest of Jerusalem on Sunday evening, the first night of Hanukkah.”

The Times of Israel runs a story about the previously reported Assyrian-era tombs in the Jezreel Valley.

David Ramati writes about some of the more recent studies related to Masada.

The Times of Israel explains the importance of the Mount of Olives, including important people buried there and controversy over the building of a visitor center.

“A new computational tool developed at the University of Haifa is changing how archaeologists document and analyze ancient ruins, using drone imagery and machine learning to reveal architectural patterns that cannot be identified from ground level.”

“In an apostolic letter dated December 11, 2025, Pope Leo XIV has placed Christian archaeology at the core of the Church’s intellectual and pastoral mission.”

On The Book and the Spade, Joan Taylor makes a case against Bethlehem being a little town when Jesus was born.

Leon Mauldin shares a panoramic photo of the Sorek Valley and Zorah, taken from Beth Shemesh.

New release: Tel Miqne-Ekron 14/1: Objects and Material Culture Studies: Middle Bronze Age II Through Iron Age II, edited by Seymour (Sy) Gitin (Eisenbrauns, $98 with code NR26)

New release: Tel Nagila: The Amiran/Eitan Excavations, edited by Joe Uziel, David Ilan, Matthew Susnow, and Aren M. Maeir (De Gruyter, $220)

The Hasmonean palaces at Jericho (Tulul Abu el-Alayiq) will be open to visitors tomorrow and Monday, and funds have been allocated to develop the site as a heritage destination in the coming year.

After the IAA moved its headquarters to the new Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, discussions about the future of the Rockefeller Museum are taking place, including the possibility of turning it into a hotel.

HT: Agade, Alexander Schick, Andy Cook, Ted Weis, Explorator

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About the BiblePlaces Blog

The BiblePlaces Blog provides updates and analysis of the latest in biblical archaeology, history, and geography. Unless otherwise noted, the posts are written by Todd Bolen, PhD, Professor of Biblical Studies at The Master’s University.

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