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Book Released on Looting of Iraq

The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago has just published an 88-page book on the looting in Iraq in the aftermath of the war. From their website:

Catastrophe! The Looting and Destruction of Iraq’s Past
Edited by Geoff Emberling and Katharyn Hanson, 2008 With an introduction by Professor McGuire Gibson, this up-to-date account describes the state of the Iraq National Museum in Baghdad and chronicles the damage done to archaeological sites by illicit digging.

The book can be ordered for $30 or downloaded in pdf format for free. An exhibit of the same name opens at the Oriental Institute on April 10.

Tagged New Exhibits, Resources

Tiberias Archaeological Park

The most important city in Galilee in the 1st century A.D. was Tiberias. Founded by Herod Antipas in 20 A.D. and named after the emperor, Tiberius, the city served as the capital of the region. In the New Testament, the Sea of Galilee is several times referred to as the “Sea of Tiberias,” indicating the city’s importance. But for two reasons most Christian tourists to Israel don’t know much about it. First, there is no record that Jesus ever visited the city. None of his miracles or sermons here, if he did any, are written down. Second, Tiberias today is the largest city in Galilee, and modern populations and ancient ruins don’t like each other. But in the last few years, excavations of the ancient city have been taking place in areas not yet covered by apartment buildings and shopping malls. This week, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced a plan to open an archaeological park to feature the Roman city. The press release is posted in full here with a few photos, and some extracts are posted below. The Jerusalem Post has the story in briefer form here.

Berko Park is slated to be magnet that will attract tourism from Israel and abroad to Tiberias and will expose the public at large to Tiberias’ glorious past, through all of its history which has its beginnings in the Early Roman period 2,000 years ago….
Berko Park extends across an area of approximately 100 dunams and is replete with ancient remains of the city of Tiberias that date from the time of the city’s establishment by Herod Antipas in the 1st century CE until the time of the Fatimid dynasty in the 11th century CE….
It is anticipated that the work in this part of the park will be finished this coming summer. Within the framework of the future expansion of Berko Park the Roman theater, which is located at the foot of Mount Berenice, is slated to be excavated. The theater is built of stone, is of imposing in size and faces east, thus those seated in it viewed the Sea of Galilee opposite them, the Golan Heights and Mount Hermon. The planners envision that this ancient and impressive theater will be used once again in modern times for the presentation of grandiose performances….
Berko Park is part of a more extensive area where there are important archaeological finds that are all expected to be included in a large archaeological park in which there are ancient buildings that were previously excavated and that stand exposed today in the area. Included among them are the beit hamidrash that is ascribed to Rabbi Yochanan, which was exposed in the area of Tiberias’ waste water purification plant, the Anchor Church on Mount Berenice, another Byzantine church structure that was recently uncovered, the cardo, the marketplace, the aqueduct and the water reservoir. The city of Tiberias and the Israel Antiquities Authority will continue to act to rehabilitate and conserve these ancient structures, and to include them in a wide-scale tourism program.

Tiberias and Sea of Galilee from south

Previous stories about Tiberias on this blog report on the Roman theater and the ancient church.

HT: Joe Lauer

Archaeologist Who Found Iron Age Remains on Temple Mount

The Canadian Jewish News has an article about the archaeologist who found Iron Age period remains on the Temple Mount a few months ago.

Yuval Baruch, left, made archeological history in October 2007 when he uncovered pottery artifacts on the site of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount. They are considered to be the first physical evidence of human activity during the time of King Solomon’s Temple (the First Jewish Temple). Baruch, who is Jerusalem’s district archeologist at the Israel Antiquities Authority, speaking at the Berney Theatre here, outlined his world-famous discovery as part of a lecture series put on by the Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University.

And the interesting part:

“I was not supposed to be left there alone, as the Waqf always has someone present when Israeli archeologists are on the site. It was in the evening after 8 p.m., and by chance the Arab electrical workers left me and a member of my staff for about 15 minutes while they went to pray. When I was alone in that brief time, I found the pottery shards among dust near the bedrock level,” he says.

And what he found:

Baruch’s findings include animal bones; ceramic bowl rims, bases and body shards; the base of a juglet used to pour oil; the handle of a small juglet; and the rim of a storage jar. In addition, a piece of a whitewashed, handmade object was found. It may have been used to decorate a larger object or may have been the leg of an animal figurine. The finds are dated from eight-to six-century BCE.

And I bet you can’t believe this:

“The reaction of the Muslim authority [the Waqf] was to ignore the finds,” he adds, which he says was not surprising since over the years the Waqf has tried to undermine Jewish historical ties to the site. “The Waqf’s official position is that there was never a Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount, he says.”

You can read the full story here.

Tagged Temple Mount

Rehearsal Set for Passover Sacrifice in Jerusalem

For thousands of years, the Jewish people have celebrated the Passover sacrifice, but without a *sacrifice.* It’s one thing when you’re an oppressed minority in Europe, but it’s another when you’re the ruling majority in your own land. One would think that this would be the cause of great discussion, but it seems that the intervening years have muted the felt need for a sacrifice for most.

But not all. From Arutz-7:

The demonstration of the Paschal sacrifice is part of a study day scheduled to take place on Sunday, the First of Nissan (April 6), at the Kotel Yeshiva in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City. The study day is a joint project of the Temple Institute, the Sanhedrin and the King David Museum. It was originally planned to take place one week later, but the organizers decided to dedicate it to the memory of the eight yeshiva boys murdered in Jerusalem recently, and to hold it on the 30th day after their death.
The study day is to include a public sacrifice which is being termed a “general rehearsal” for the actual Pesach sacrifice on the Temple Mount, a ritual prescribed by the Torah but currently forbidden by the Israel government and courts.
Glick told Ynet Monday that according to Jewish law, abstaining from performing the sacrifice is an extremely serious offense, comparable in its severity to avoiding a brit (circumcision ceremony) for one’s newborn boy. He explained that although Jewish law forbids Jews in an impure state (which all Jews are in as long as the Temple rites are not renewed) from entering the Temple area, an exception is made for public sacrifices like the Pesach sacrifice.
The Temple movement recently sent a formal request to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Minister of Public Security Avi Dichter, to allow them to conduct the sacrifice on the Temple Mount. “Making the Paschal sacrifice is part of the religious freedom which is a basic human right and a cornerstone of democracy,” they wrote. Glick said, however, that the organizers “have no intention of trying to ascend to the Mount without permission from the police….
Another animal rights activist, Etti Altman, said the sacrifice has no place in an “enlightened country” like Israel and quoted from the ancient Sifri biblical commentary which says: “As God is called ‘compassionate,’ so should you be compassionate.”

The full story is here.

Tagged Jerusalem, Temple Mount

King David Museum Opened

A new museum of sorts has opened in the Old City. From Arutz-7:

A rich mix of Jerusalemites came out on a brisk Jerusalem night in early March to celebrate the city’s newest museum: The King David Museum and Genealogy Center. Located in the heart of the Old City, the museum is a celebration of the most celebrated king in Jewish history, the author of the Book of Psalms and a major subject of the biblical Book of Samuel. The museum tracks the unbroken Jewish connection to the city Jerusalem, that was first conquered and made the capital of Israel by King David. The permanent exhibition features artifacts from the first and second temple periods including earthenware, ceramics, coins, arrowheads, and more. There is also a section dedicated to printed matter about King David and the Temple Mount, featuring the first known printed book of Psalms, published in 1511, and a swath of original printings that date from 1696 to modern times. Another section of the museum features a series of jarred spices. Mixed together in the correct proportions, the spices were combined to create the incense that was offered daily in the Holy Temple…. The King David Museum and Genealogy Center is located at 19 Tiferet Yisrael Street in the Old City of Jerusalem. Opening Hours are Sunday- Thursday, 9 am – 9pm, Friday 9 am – 1pm. For more information, please call (02) 628-1502

The full story is here.

Tagged Jerusalem, New Exhibits

New and Notworthy from Eisenbrauns

Eisenbrauns is offering some never-before-seen titles, including Lost Graves Revealed: The Exact Location of Famous Historical Figures (now marked down to $900). And there are other great titles.

My guess is that you’ll want to check it out today and not wait until tomorrow!

Tagged April Fool's Joke