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Free CD with Aerial Photos
There is a catch, but it's a small one
and easily worth it. You don't even have to pay shipping for the
CD. What I'm asking in "exchange" for the free CD is that you
recommend the BiblePlaces Newsletter to five others. You might
forward them this newsletter, with a comment at the top about its value.
Do that to five people, and then send me an email with your name and
address before June 22. That's it.
What do you get? The
"Aerials of Israel 2005" CD is all-new, unpublished photographs of
several dozen sites in Israel. It includes more than
120 high-resolution jpg files, which are
also presented in PowerPoint files with helpful identifying labels.
Some of the sites included are
Arad, Ashkelon, Beersheba, Beth
Shean, Caesarea, Jaffa, Jericho, Jezreel, Masada, and Megiddo.
Five of the photos are included below as part of this month's
newsletter, but be assured that the collection is much more than these
five (for instance, you'll love the shot of Herod's northern palace at Masada). As with the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, this CD is
of the highest quality and has a money-back guarantee. :-) You'll
love it, I promise.
What won't you get? Junk
mail or spam of any kind. Your address will be used only to mail
you this CD. There are no hidden strings in this offer in any way.
Why would we do this?
Because we believe what BiblePlaces.com produces is absolutely the best
available and we want more people to know about it. Some great new
stuff is on the way, and we want more people to hear about it through
this newsletter. As you know if you've been a subscriber for
any length of time, this newsletter offers great, free content in every
edition.
Again, tell five people (friends, a pastor,
former teachers, your mom) who have an interest in biblical studies, and
email me your mailing address, and we'll send you
the CD. This offer is also available to those who subscribe
in response to this newsletter, but expires on June 22.
News and Updates from Israel
Ancient Date Seed Sprouts
Scientists in Jerusalem have recently
succeeded in germinating a date palm from a 2,000-year-old seed found in
excavations of a storehouse at Masada. The plant is now a foot (30
cm) tall and could reveal more about Judean palms, which had been
extinct. Modern palm trees in Israel were imported from
California. If the tree survives and is female, it will produce
its first fruit in 30 years. You can read more in the
NY Times or
Haaretz
articles.
Pool of Siloam
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My vote continues to be that this is the find of the decade for
"biblical archaeology" (see my
Top 5
Stories of 2004). Thus frequent
updates are included in this newsletter on the excavations at the Pool
of Siloam. These photos show the pool in its best state yet (after
construction required that the pool be buried and re-excavated).
The photo at right shows the steps leading into the pool - about 20 so
far. The photo at left
shows the relation of the revealed steps to the large garden where the
pool extends. Known to locals as Birket el-Hamra ("the
earthen pool"), this garden has long concealed the pool where the blind
man was healed by Jesus (John 9). Click the photos
for higher-resolution versions.
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Ancient Home Uncovered in Jerusalem
Across from the Pool of Siloam
excavations, another dig has recently revealed a residence from the
Second Temple period. It sits on the lower slope of the Western
Hill, just above the Central (Tyropoean) Valley. The
Jerusalem Post has a short article about it. In addition,
although I have not seen anything published about it, excavations in the
City of David above Area G are on-going under the direction of Eilat
Mazar.
Many scholars believe this is the most likely location for the palace of
David.
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Click picture
for higher-resolution version. |
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Temple Mount Bulge Repairs Complete
The story began when work to create a new mosque in
"Solomon's Stables" caused the southern wall of the
Temple Mount to
bulge. Now it looks like
the work on the southern bulge is complete and scaffolding is being
removed. The new stones can easily be identified and form another
chapter in the destruction and repair of the Temple Mount walls. |
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Changes at Western Wall
A snowfall in the winter of 2004 caused part of the ramp leading from
the Western Wall plaza to the Temple Mount to collapse. That led to
a plan to excavate and remove the earthen ramp. In order to
facilitate non-Muslim entry to the Temple Mount, this temporary ramp is
being constructed. |
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Click picture
for higher-resolution version. |
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Click picture
for higher-resolution version. |
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Holyland Hotel Model to Move
You may have heard that the famous and wonderful model of Jerusalem
was going to be relocated to the Israel Museum, and here you can see why.
A series of high-rise apartment buildings are being built adjacent to the
model, and this new neighborhood doesn't want the high volume of traffic
that visits the model. Bulldozers are currently at work preparing
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Antiquities Smuggling 101
Postal authorities intercepted the attempting
smuggling of a weight dated to the Bar Kochba revolt (135 A.D.). This
Arutz-7
article has photos of the professional effort. Rather
sophisticated!
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The Dead Sea is Dying
The gradual decrease of the Dead Sea's water level is not obvious to
this observer, but according to scientists, the water level is going down
about 3 feet (1 m) each year. The
Washington Post has a good story on the decline and the reasons for
it (registration may be req'd). The photo at left shows how far
a pier is out of the water because of the decline. |
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Click picture
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Featured BiblePlaces Photos: Aerials
of Israel
These are a few of the photos on the new "Aerials of
Israel 2005" CD. You get these free whether you participate in the
above offer or not. Each photo is linked to a higher-resolution
version which may be used freely for personal and educational purposes.
Commercial use requires separate permission. For more
high-quality, high-resolution photographs and illustrations of biblical
sites, purchase the
Pictorial Library of
Bible Lands or the new
Historic Views of
the Holy Land series. There are no better collections than
these, at any price!
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Joppa and Tel Aviv |
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The town and harbor of Joppa (modern Jaffa)
are located on the point
which juts out into the water. Jonah attempted to
sail to Tarshish from this port. About 100 years ago, a Jewish community was formed to the north of Jaffa.
It became today’s city of Tel Aviv, which engulfs its ancient predecessor. Click the photo for a
high-resolution version. |
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Beth Shean |
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The most impressive Greco-Roman site in Israel,
archaeologists estimate that only about 10% of the city has been uncovered
thus far. In the Old Testament period, the settlement was located on the
tell at the top of the photo, and here King Saul's body was hung by the
Philistines (1 Sam 31). In the later periods, the city became known
as Scythopolis and was one of the cities of the Decapolis. Though
there is no record of Jesus visiting the city, geography dictates that he
passed by it on his way from Galilee to Jericho or Jerusalem. Click the above
photo for a high-resolution version or see more photos of
Beth Shean at
BiblePlaces.com. |
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Masada |
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The setting sun lights up the western side of this desert
holdout. The casemate wall of Herod the Great is easily visible, as
is the western palace (about one-third of the way in from the left).
The Roman siege ramp is in the shadow at the far left. Masada is most
famous for the Jewish rebels who sought refuge here after Jerusalem fell in
70 A.D. Click the above photo for a high-resolution version or see
more photos of Masada
at BiblePlaces.com. |
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Megiddo |
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I've taken a lot of photographs of Megiddo, but this is my
favorite. The more you know about the site, the more you will see why
this is so. In
short, you can see it all in this picture. And if you don't know what
"all" is, here's a
snapshot
from the PowerPoint file on the "Aerials of Israel 2005" CD. The
photos are labeled in the PowerPoint files, which makes it easy to add,
change, or delete labels. Click the above photo for the regular
high-resolution version or see more photos of
Megiddo at
BiblePlaces.com. |
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Caesarea |
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I wish someone else would go rent an airplane, take
high-resolution photos, put labels on them, and then give them to me.
I've wanted some good shots of Herod's harbor at Caesarea for a long time.
The ancient harbor is submerged, but is visible as the dark blue patterns
in the water.
Josephus recorded that 300 boats could be docked in the harbor at one time.
Click the above photo for a high-resolution version or see more photos of
Caesarea at
BiblePlaces.com. |
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All contents (c) 2005 Todd Bolen. Text and
photographs may be used for personal and educational use.
Commercial use requires written permission. The free
CD offer may be altered or rescinded at the sole
discretion of BiblePlaces.com.
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