I just stumbled across an Amazon listing for Carl Rasmussen’s revised edition of the (now titled) Zondervan Atlas of the Bible. I’ve long used and recommended Rasmussen’s first edition (NIV Atlas of the Bible, 1989) and have no doubt that the second will be even better. It does seem that the publishers could have chosen a more appropriate cover photo for a Bible atlas than an image of the Nabatean tombs at Petra. Amazon has it for pre-order for $26, with a scheduled release of March 2010.
The University of Haifa has announced some discoveries from its 2009 season of excavations at Hippos/Sussita, reported in a press release (Hebrew) and in an English article in Ha’aretz.
Remains of an ancient cult to the goddess of love have come to light in the southern Golan Heights site of Susita.
At the site, on a 350 meter-high-plateau overlooking the eastern shore of Lake Kinneret, archaeologists found a cache of three figurines of Aphrodite (whom the Romans called Venus), dating back about 1,500 years. The figurines, made of clay, are about 30 centimeters tall. They depict the nude goddess standing, with her right hand covering her private parts – a type of statue scholars call “modest Venus.”
I’m personally more interested in another find, described at the conclusion of the article:
Another special find at Susita is an odeon – a small, roofed theater-like structure with seats for about 600 people, uncovered for the first time in Israel, according to the excavators. They said such structures were fairly common in the Roman period and were used for the reading of poetry and musical presentations to a select audience, in contrast to theaters, which could seat around 4,000 people.
The claim that this is the first odeon discovered in Israel is not true; another has been excavated at Aphek/Antipatris (NEAEH 1: 71, with photo).
The press release includes several photos.
HT: Joe Lauer
- Tagged Discoveries, Galilee
The Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary Set: Old Testament is scheduled to be released in November. This five-volume
set provides textual and pictorial commentary on every book of the Old Testament. Edited by John H. Walton, the set is 3,000 pages long and includes more than 2,000 photographs. I have not yet seen it advertised, so I thought I’d mention it here. Amazon currently has the best price at $157 (list: $250). The New Testament set came out in 2002.
UPDATE (8/26): The Koinonia blog (Zondervan) has been running a series of excerpts from this series since January.
- Tagged Resources
I’ve recently learned about a new website devoted solely to the city of Jerusalem. If you are planning a trip to the city, this site has a number of pages that may help you to get the most of your time. For instance:
Best Jerusalem Old City sites – this “top 10” list has 12 recommendations and I would basically agree with the selections. The hours and prices are helpful as well, as long as they remain up to date.
Some extra links reflect the extra time spent developing the website, such as the tips about appropriate attire for Hezekiah’s Tunnel and information about the Jerusalem mp3 tour.
The Museum Guide gives eight recommendations, including full pages about three of them. The Israel Museum page gives a good summary of the major highlights, though it will be worth mentioning here that the Archaeology Wing is closed until 2010 (Middle East Time).
I’m not sure how many times I’ve had to explain how to get from Ben Gurion airport to Jerusalem, but this page gives all the details you need to know except the price for a shared taxi (about $11 or NIS equivalent).
There are some points I would disagree with – such as women in pants being required to wear skirts at the Western Wall prayer area (I’ve never seen that) – but overall the advice seems sensible and accurate.
Some sections are still under development, such as “Where to Eat,” but overall visitors will find much to help them plan their trip in the city.
I am very excited to announce the release of a new photo collection from BiblePlaces.com and LifeintheHolyLand.com. The American Colony and Eric Matson Collection includes more than 4,000 high-resolution photographs taken by professional photographers living in Jerusalem from 1898 until the 1940s. I’ve worked with a team for the last five years organizing and improving this collection so that the photos are the highest quality, accurately identified, carefully organized, and elucidated by observations of well-known 19th-century explorers.
The collection spans 8 CD volumes and is being released one volume a month beginning this week.
Volume 1 is “Northern Palestine,” and it includes 600 photos organized in the following categories:
- Acco (11 photos)
- Benjamin (43 photos)
- Caesarea (31 photos)
- Caesarea Philippi (14 photos)
- Ephraim and Manasseh (34 photos)
- Galilee Hill Country (20 photos)
- Haifa (27 photos)
- Huleh Basin (12 photos)
- Jaffa (51 photos)
- Jezreel Valley (47 photos)
- Mount Carmel (15 photos)
- Mount Hermon (20 photos)
- Mount Tabor (12 photos)
- Nazareth (32 photos)
- Samaria city (19 photos)
- Sea of Galilee (41 photos)
- Sea of Galilee, Capernaum (31 photos)
- Sea of Galilee, Tabgha (15 photos)
- Sea of Galilee, Tiberias (39 photos) – free PowerPoint here
- Sharon Plain (17 photos)
- Shechem area (22 photos)
- Tel Aviv (43 photos)
All images are included in high-resolution jpg format as well as in annotated PowerPoint files. The cost for the CD is now only $20, with free shipping in the U.S. While volumes 2-8 are not yet available individually, the complete collection is available in DVD format for $99.
I believe this is the finest collection of historic photographs of the Middle East available anywhere in any format.
You can read more about the collection here:
Complete Collection: Volumes 1-8
As with everything we do, the goal is your complete satisfaction. If you don’t like it or need it, return it for a full refund. If you do like it, we would really appreciate it if you’d pass the word on. Review copies are available by request.
I plan to post on this blog some interesting images from the CD over the next few weeks.
Nazareth with Mount Tabor in the distance Date: between 1900-1920
A third-century A.D. Roman building has been excavated in the City of David in Jerusalem.
Excavations in this past and future parking lot located in the Central (Tyropean) Valley have formerly revealed a first-century A.D. palace believed to have belonged to Queen Helene of Adiabene.
From the press release of the Israel Antiquities Authority:
A spacious edifice from the Roman period (third century CE) – apparently a mansion that belonged to a wealthy individual – was recently exposed in the excavations the Israel Antiquities Authority is carrying out in the ‘Givati Car Park’ at the City of David, in the Walls Around Jerusalem National Park. The excavations are being conducted at the site on behalf of the IAA and in cooperation with the Nature and Parks Authority, and are underwritten by the ‘Ir David Foundation.
According to Dr. Doron Ben-Ami, the excavation director on behalf of the IAA, together with Yana Tchekhanovets, “Although we do not have the complete dimensions of the structure, we can cautiously estimate that the building covered an area of approximately 1,000 square meters. In the center of it was a large open courtyard surrounded by columns. Galleries were spread out between the rows of columns and the rooms that flanked the courtyard. The wings of the building rose to a height of two stories and were covered with tile roofs”.
A large quantity of fresco fragments was discovered in the collapsed ruins from which the excavators deduced that some of the walls of the rooms were treated with plaster and decorated with colorful paintings. The painted designs that adorned the plastered walls consisted mostly of geometric and floral motifs. Its architectural richness, plan and particularly the artifacts that were discovered among its ruins bear witness to the unequivocal Roman character of the building. The most outstanding of these finds are a marble figurine in the image of a boxer and a gold earring inlaid with precious stones.
The full release can be found here (temporary link).
Three high-resolution photos can be downloaded from the IAA website, including photos of the earring and statue and an aerial photograph of the building.
HT: Joe Lauer
- Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Jerusalem
