Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists believe that they have discovered the lost city of Tharais, depicted on the Madaba Mosaic Map, in southern Jordan.

“Two seal impressions found on a large storage vessel, dated to the Early Bronze Age (2700–2300 BC), raise compelling questions about the role of Greece’s Cyclades islands in the emergence of script—potentially rewriting the more commonly accepted narrative that places the birth of writing on Minoan Crete at around 2000 BC.”

St. Catherine’s Monastery has been closed to all visitors in protest of an Egyptian court ruling that challenges its ownership status. An agreement may have been reached on Wednesday.

“The Centre of Excellence in Ancient Near Eastern Empires has published an annotated text corpus of some 6,000 Babylonian texts from the sixth and fifth centuries BCE.”

Leonard J. Greenspoon, best known for his work in Septuagint and Jewish Bible translations, died recently.

Walter Brueggemann, a widely published OT scholar, died on Thursday. Brent A. Strawn has written a tribute.

Turkish Archaeological News surveys the main stories of the month of May.

Bible Archaeology Report’s top three reports for May “include shipwrecks, gold, and a stone capital with an intriguing image.”

HT: Agade, Keith Keyser, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Gordon Franz, Mark V. Hoffman, Ted Weis

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists uncovered portions of a monumental relief of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal in the throne room of his palace in Nineveh.

Christopher Jones explores questions related to Sennacherib’s assassination.

Scientists have discovered the evidence for leprosy that dates to the third millennium BC.

In a new study on Pompeii, “scientists documented events at one home in the doomed city where a family sought refuge inside a back room by pushing a wooden bed against a door in a vain attempt to stop a flood of volcanic rocks from the sky.”

Turkish authorities arrested four individuals who had discovered a Roman mosaic during illegal excavations at their house.

“Gojko Barjamovic, a lecturer at Yale University, along with a team from Harvard, deciphered and even attempted to recreate some of the dishes detailed on Babylonian clay tablets dating back nearly 4,000 years.”

David M. Pritchard explains why “sport in ancient Athens was much more than the Olympics.”

Aish.com has published a primer on the Cairo Geniza.

“The ancient bilingual inscriptions of Karatepe Aslantas Open-Air Museum in Osmaniye, Türkiye, have been officially inscribed into the UNESCO Memory of the World International Register.”

“Friends of ASOR is pleased to announce its first tour of some of Chicago’s greatest museums on September 18 and 19 for an exclusive behind-the-scenes experience.”

Live Science explains how archaeologists can determine the sex of a skeleton.

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

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists working at Knossos, Crete, have discovered the longest known inscription in Linear A script.

Archaeologists have discovered defensive structures and military housing at Tell Abu Saifi in northern Sinai.

Scholars have confirmed that one of the Herculaneum papyri as a work written by the Greek philosopher Philodemus.

A scholar claims that he has discovered previously unidentified hieroglyphics on an Egyptian obelisk located in Paris.

A treasure hunter claims to have discovered the actual location of the Council of Nicaea and is willing to disclose it for payment of $50 million.

“The painstaking restoration of glass and ceramic artifacts from the Hatay Museum damaged during the devastating earthquakes in February 2023 earthquake in Turkey is underway.”

“Starry paintings found on ancient Egyptian coffins and tombs indicate that the sky goddess Nut was closely associated with the Milky Way galaxy, according to a new study by an astronomer.”

“Jordanian authorities evacuated hundreds of tourists from the ancient city of Petra on Sunday after heavy rains caused flash floods.” Here’s another video.

“A National Endowment for the Humanities grant to create the first scholarly edition of one of the great classics of biblical literature, the Psalms” has been cancelled.

Turkish Archaeological News surveys major stories from the month of April, including:

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Explorator

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Archaeologists in southern Jordan have uncovered a hieroglyphic inscription bearing the royal cartouche of Pharaoh Ramesses III.”

Egyptian authorities “announced the discovery of the tomb of Prince Weser Khaf Ra, son of King Userkaf, the founding monarch of Egypt’s Fifth Dynasty, in the Saqqara necropolis.”

“A California research collective known as Noah’s Ark Scan says it will begin the first controlled excavation of the Durupınar Site on Mount Ararat’s southern flank.”

The NY Times has posted a beautiful photo essay of the mostly open Grand Egyptian Museum.

A new genetic study reveals that the people of Carthage were not significantly related to the Phoenicians.

Brent Nongbri writes about the recently discovered mikveh at Ostia as well as some of the Jewish material on display in the Ostia Museum.

Smithsonian magazine asks if “Talos, the bronze automaton who guarded the island of Crete in Greek myth [was] an early example of artificial intelligence.”

Leon Mauldin has posted some recent photos of Istanbul’s ancient water system.

New release: Archaeology and the Ministry of Paul: A Visual Guide, by David A. deSilva (Baker, 320 pages, full-color, $33; also on Logos)

New release: Populus: Living and Dying in Ancient Rome, by Guy de la Bédoyère (University of Chicago, 500 pages, $24)

New release: The Aegean and Cyprus: Interaction Between Two Distinct Cultural Mediterranean Areas from the Third Millennium to ca 1200 BC, by Giampaolo Graziadio (free download)

New release: The Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and Scribal Scholarship in Antiquity: Studies in Honor of Arie van der Kooij on the Occasion of his Eightieth Birthday, edited by Wilson de Angelo Cunha, Martin Rösel, and Michael N. Van der Meer (Peeters, 65 euros, free download)

The WSJ reviews Toby Wilkinson’s new book, The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra ($29 at Amazon).

Leslie C. Allen, longtime professor of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary, died on April 10.

Bible Passages has just released two short videos (7 min ea):

  • Secrets of the Arch of Titus – goes beyond the well-known menorah and table of showbread to investigate scenes of military conquest, dedicatory inscriptions, and the depiction of a deified emperor.
  • Erastus: Did Paul Get It Right? – considers the inscription for its insight into the social and economic standing of early Christians as well as how this archaeological discovery supports the historicity of Romans 16:23.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Keith Keyser, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Explorator, Paleojudaica

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

A new study of a Bronze Age tomb in Turkey reveals that female teenagers were the victims of human sacrifice.

“Two almost lifesize sculptures of a man and woman, who was believed to have been a priestess, have been found during the excavations of a huge tomb in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii.”

Scientists are arguing over the claims that technology has identified chambers far below the Giza pyramids.

Zoom lecture on April 7: “Jesus’s Parables as Jewish Stories,” by Amy-Jill Levine

Hybrid lecture at Harvard on April 23: “The Daily Lives of Ancient Egyptian Artists,” by Hana Navratilova (Zoom registration)

New release: The Amarna Letters: The Syro-Levantine Correspondence, by Jacob Lauinger and Tyler R. Yoder (Lockwood, $100-$125)

Farmers in Sicily are cultivating a resin that some identify as biblical manna.

Bryan Windle summarizes the top three reports in biblical archaeology in the month of March.

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

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Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists working at Rome’s port city of Ostia discovered the oldest ritual bath (mikveh) known outside the land of Israel.

“A team of researchers identified and mapped a vast network of irrigation canals near Eridu, considered the oldest city in history.”

“Artificial intelligence has discovered ancient civilizations over 5,000 years old hidden beneath some of the world’s largest deserts, including one in the heart of the Dubai desert, without the use of a single shovel.”

The recently renovated Side Museum in southern Turkey has more than 3,000 artifacts and 9,000 coins on display.

“The 2,000-year-old lighthouse in the ancient city of Patara, built by Roman Emperor Nero in CE 64, is set to illuminate once again after centuries, as restoration efforts reach their final stages.”

The excavation director at Pisidian Antioch wants artifacts taken to the Istanbul Archaeology Museum in the early 20th century to be returned.

A German tourist was arrested when he tried to leave Greece with an ancient Greek marble column hidden in his car.

The Greek Reporter suggests the top 20 archaeological sites in the country.

A portion of the famous Torlonia Collection, locked away for most of the 20th century, will be displayed in North America for the first time, beginning with Chicago and then heading to Fort Worth and Montreal. The 58 sculptures in the exhibition largely date to the Roman Imperial Period.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, 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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