Amanda Borschel-Dan of The Times of Israel provides a valuable summary of the Siloam Street/Stepped Street/Pilgrim’s Path that has been in the news for the last decade or so. One particular point of interest: the street will not be fully opened to the public for a few more years, because it is still being excavated 7am to 10pm every day.
“Archaeologists have uncovered a well-preserved fresco of two fighting gladiators in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii.” Very nice.
“Scientists report that they may have found the earliest written record of a solar storm in ancient Assyrian tablets.”
Egypt announced the discovery of 20 well-preserved wooden coffins in Luxor.
“Archeologists working in Luxor’s “Valley of the Monkeys” have discovered an “ancient ‘industrial area’ once used to produce decorative items, furniture and pottery for royal tombs.”
The Egyptian Exploration Society has formally accused Oxford professor Dirk Obbink of stealing and selling papyri fragments from the Oxyrhynchus collection.
With Saudi Arabia opening up for tourism, tour agencies are quick to create tours to scam evangelicals.
The Arab World Institute in Paris is presenting an exhibition highlighting the pre-Islamic history of the Al ‘Ula region in Northwest Saudi Arabia.
Tim Frank’s “Visualizing Food Storage in Ancient Houses” article includes a number of video visualizations from sites like Izbet Sartah, Tel Batash, and Beersheba. These could be quite useful.
A new record has been set in the “world’s oldest marathon,” a race from Aphek to Shiloh.
Wildlife inspectors spotted ten bottlenose dolphins off the coast of Israel and have posted footage.
Only 30-40 acacia gazelles survive in Israel, and rangers recently discovered a fawn had been born.
“Cruise passengers held their breath as a 22.5 meter wide cruise liner became the largest boat to pass through Greece’s narrow Corinth Canal.” There are some nice pictures.
HT: Ted Weis, Keith Keyser, Agade, David Padfield