“An extremely rare, minuscule biblical stone weight inscribed in ancient Hebrew script with the word “beka” was discovered in rubble taken from excavations at the foundations of the Western Wall.”
“Archaeologists exploring Montfort Castle in the Galilee discovered a previously unknown, richly decorated Gothic hall where the secretive knights’ order gathered for their assemblies.” (Haaretz premium)
A member of the Tall el-Hammam Excavation Project believes that civilization on the northern end of the Dead Sea were obliterated by “a massive airburst caused by a meteor” circa 1700 BC, leaving the region desolate for at least 600 years. The claim is explicitly linked with Sodom’s destruction in a 2015 conference paper available here.
A tomb at Megiddo now provides the earliest evidence for the use of vanilla.
The Times of Israel has more background on the release of photos of biblical scenes from the mosaics of the synagogue of Huqoq.
Alexander Wiegmann’s YouTube channel includes photogrammetric models, including one of the Mount Ebal altar.
A conference is being held next month in Jerusalem to refute the recent theory that the temple was not located on the Temple Mount.
You can see what a day of digging at Tel Burna is like with this new 10-minute video produced for this year’s ASOR conference.
I’ve been using and enjoying Readwise this past month. It’s a great way to review my Kindle highlights. Use this link to get a free month for you (and for me).
HT: Joseph Lauer, Agade, Gordon Franz, Chris McKinny
