Tourism Archives - Page 4 of 93

July Roundup, Part 2 (Israel, Jordan, Arabia)

A new study attempts to understand why Canaanites buried lamps and bowls under their homes. It argues that the custom is related to the Egyptian presence in the land. The underlying journal article is here.

Yoav Vaknin explains how scholars date archaeological material from the Iron Age, including the use of pottery, radiocarbon dating, and archaeomagnetism.

“The Israel Antiquities Authority has announced the opening of its new exhibit detailing the October 7 massacre from the perspective of archeologists who assisted in bringing closure after the attack.”

Nathan Steinmeyer has written short pieces describing the geographical regions of the Arava and the Jezreel Valley.

James Riley Strange gives a tour of Jesus’s hometown of Nazareth.

Shmuel Munitz writes about the gymnasium and nude wrestling in Hellenistic Jerusalem.

The latest issue of ‘Atiqot is themed “The Archaeology of Death,” and includes articles related to Jerusalem, the cave of Salome, the Philistines, and much more.

The latest volume of the Israel Exploration Journal has been released, and title and abstracts can be read here.

Conference on Jerusalem on August 7: “Ancient Stone Quarries in the Southern Levant,” organized by the Israel Antiquities Authority, Tel Aviv University, the Geological Survey of Israel, Ben-Gurion University, and Ashkelon Academic College. Registration is here. (I haven’t found an English version of the conference program online yet.)

Jerusalem University College has a number of short-term programs in the coming year, including Pastor and Parishoner, Historical and Geographical Settings of the Bible, and Jesus and His Times.

Andy Cook (Experience Israel Now) is leading a physically rigorous tour of Israel for those in full-time ministry in May.

Christianity Today has an article about how war interrupted many, but not all, of the summer excavations in Israel and Jordan. Gordon Govier has also recorded a program on the same subject with Jamie Fraser for The Book and the Spade.

“Located in south-western Jordan, Sela is also characterised by a hundred of cisterns, water reservoirs, both perforated or carved into the sandstone, presumably filled with rainwater through surface channels incised in the rock.”

Scientific Reports has retracted a 2021 article that argued that a cosmic airburst caused the destruction of Tall el-Hammam.

“Although the urbanization of Canaan in the Early Bronze Age (c. 3300–2000 BCE) has long been established in scholarship, recent excavations in Saudi Arabia have demonstrated that a similar process was occurring throughout northwestern Arabia.”

“The website onomasticon.net has been updated to include newly published personal names from the Iron Age II Southern Levant, bringing the total to 1,081 entries.”

New release: Fertile Crossroads: Elites and Exchange in the Southern Levant’s Early Iron Age, by Sarah Malena (Equinox, $115)

Yigal Bin-Nun raises questions about the authenticity of the Mesha Stele.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer, Explorator, Gordon Dickson

Tagged Arabia, Excavations, Galilee, Jerusalem, Jezreel Valley, Jordan, Lectures, Resources, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Archaeologists have discovered ancient mosaics and detailed floor decorations during ongoing excavations in the ancient Greek city of Olympos (Greek: Ὄλυμπος) in modern-day Antalya, Turkey.”

“Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a rare Greco-Roman library in the ancient Greek city of Stratonikeia (Greek: Στρατoνικεια) in southwest Turkey, revealing new insights into the architectural and cultural legacy of one of antiquity’s largest marble cities.” By library, they mean the building, not the books/scrolls.

Jason Borges “describes the Roman road section from Antioch to Lystra, for people seeking to travel the route and explore extant remains along the Via Sebaste extension.” The article gives 11 features on the route and notes that excavations began at Lystra this year and the tell is fenced off.

Owen Jarus asks how Rameses II died and what happened when he did.

New release: The House of the Satrap: The Making of the Ancient Persian Empire, by Rhyne King (University of California Press, 334 pages, $95; Amazon)

To be released on July 8: Dinner with King Tut: How Rogue Archaeologists Are Re-creating the Sights, Sounds, Smells, and Tastes of Lost Civilizations, by Sam Kean (Little, Brown and Company, 464 pages, $33)

Historie & Civilisations has produced a 50-minute documentary about “Gerasa: Rome’s Forgotten City in the Jordanian Hills.”

Bryan Windle has written and illustrated an archaeological biography for Darius the Persian (the one mentioned in Nehemiah 12:22).

There will be no roundups in the month of July.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Explorator

Tagged Egypt, Jordan, Persia, Resources, Tourism, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup

The Israel Antiquities Authority: “To the best of our knowledge, no damage has been caused thus far to archaeological artifacts under the responsibility of the Israel Antiquities Authority, and no reports have been received regarding damage to exhibits in museums.” Some precautions have been taken.

The opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum will be delayed until later in the year due to the Israel-Iran war.

The Garden of Hercules in Pompeii has been restored and reopened to the public following “the planting of 800 ancient roses, 1,200 violets, 1,000 ruscus plants, cherry trees, vines, and quince trees.”

A team of researchers is working to recreate Egyptian blue, and they created 12 different recipes for the endeavor.

Officials in Rome have unveiled a new piazza around the Mausoleum of Augustus.

Looting and trafficking of ancient artifacts has increased in Syria since the fall of the government.

Bible History Daily asked a few scholars for their perspective on a new study dating the Dead Sea Scrolls earlier than previously believed. Rollston, for example, knows that the calibrated dates are in error since we know that Daniel 8-11 cannot be dated to earlier than the events occurred in 167 BC.

New website: Iron Age Hebrew Ostraca in the Silicon Age – Computerized Paleography – “our research in the last few years has focused on solving some problems, avoiding others and shedding new light on literacy in biblical Israel and Judah through statistical analysis.”

Conference on June 25-27: “Exodus in Transdisciplinary Perspective,” at UC San Diego, with a YouTube livestream.

New from Preserving Bible Times: Encounters with Jesus, by Doug Greenwold, in audiobook format

Preston Sprinkle invited me on to his Theology in the Raw podcast to talk about archaeology and the Bible, including Jericho, David, and Hezekiah’s Tunnel (YouTube, Apple, Spotify). He kicked it off by recalling comments I wrote on his archaeology paper 25 years ago.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Alexander Schick, Explorator

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Dead Sea Scrolls, Egypt, Exodus-Conquest, Italy, Lectures, Museums, Syria, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“A contractor digging into the earth where the rubble of a destroyed house had been cleared away in northern Syria stumbled across a surprise: the remains of an underground Byzantine tomb complex.”

“A wooden-structured burial chamber believed to belong to the Phrygian royal family has been uncovered in the ancient city of Gordion in Türkiye’s capital, Ankara.” The individual is possibly related to Gordios or Midas.

“A recent study suggests that high-altitude wind patterns played a crucial role in the collapse of the Minoan civilization by spreading volcanic ash and aerosols from the eruption of the Thera volcano.”

“The Greek Culture Ministry has unveiled a series of enhancements to the Acropolis archaeological site, offering visitors access to newly restored areas and improved facilities for the first time in decades.” The Old Acropolis Museum has not yet been reopened.

Athens is working to help tourists deal with the summer heat, including planting thousands of trees, removing concrete, and closing the Acropolis.

Alison Wilkinson writes about women’s rights in marriage in ancient Egypt. The full issue of The Ancient Near East Today is online here.

The Grand Egyptian Museum will hold its official inauguration on July 3, and the museum will be open to the public beginning on July 6.

HT: Agade, Explorator

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Greece, Museums, Syria, Tourism, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“An ancient tomb in Greece does not hold the remains of Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great.”

A new study shows that the interior of the Parthenon in Athens was not a “sunbathed, bright marble room,” but rather a dim, dark space that “enhanced the sense of awe and religious experience.”

“The Herod Atticus Theater in Athens will close for at least three years for essential maintenance and restoration work.”

The Lion of Amphipolis “will be treated for damage from humidity, exposure, and the use of inappropriate materials in its original restoration.”

Deirdre N. Fulton and Lidar Sapir-Hen explain what zooarchaeology is.

“A scarab beetle set in gold shows that ancient Egyptians thought the heart was the most important organ in the human body.”

Sean Manning considers an Assyrian lion hunt in order to answer the question of how heavy Iron Age bows were.

This 8-minute video explains why ancient ruins are underground.

HT: Agade, Jon Litts, Explorator

Tagged Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

A gold ring with a red gemstone dating to the Hellenistic period has been discovered in the Givati Parking Lot excavations in the City of David. It is quite similar to another ring found at the same place last year.

Yosef Garfinkel recently completed excavation of Ophel’s “Water Gate” area, removing several Byzantine walls in order to highlight the Iron Age walls. The report includes numerous pictures and a video interview.

All Israel News has created a 5-minute video showing some of the archaeological evidence for a Jewish temple on the Temple Mount.

A visitor center telling the story of tekhelet (biblical blue color) opens in the Judean wilderness later this month.

Leon Mauldin posts a photo and a map of Taanach by the Waters of Megiddo.

Denny Sissom has a new series of videos explaining each chapter of his book, The Bridge to the New Testament: A Comprehensive Guide to the Forgotten Years of the Inter-Testament Period, in detail.

BibleStock has released a new coaching video, explaining how to use video footage in teaching the story of David and Goliath.

With this week’s release of the Photo Companion volumes for Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs, we’re offering both for the price of one. Luke Chandler calls the Photo Companion to the Bible his “favorite overall Bible study resource.”

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

Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Jerusalem, Photo Resources, Resources, Shephelah, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup