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A royal fort or palace from the reign of Thutmose III was discovered in northern Sinai.

An Assyrian scholar believes that he has interpreted five “mystery symbols” inscribed in various locations at Dūr-Šarrukīn, the capital of Sargon II. “He argues the Assyrian words for the five symbols (lion, eagle, bull, fig tree and plow) contain, in the right sequence, the sounds that spell out the Assyrian form of the name ‘Sargon’ (šargīnu).”

“Conservators Verena Kotonski and Barbara Wills took on the challenge of conserving a unique 2,300-year-old ancient Egyptian coffin.”

“An ancient Egyptian mummified head displayed in a school library in Australia now has a fresh face, thanks to a meticulous scientific reconstruction.”

“Ramses and the Gold of the Pharaohs” is a new exhibit opening in Cologne, Germany in July.

“Elephantine: Island of the Millennia” is now open at the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, with a major focus on the writings discovered there. The museum has posted a related documentary on the Elephantine Project (50 minutes).

Marek Dospěl explains what Coptic is.

New release: Assur 2023: Excavations and Other Research in the New Town, edited by Karen Radner and Andrea Squitieri (PeWe-Verlag; print and open-access)

New release: The Greek and Latin Inscriptions in the Isparta Archaeological Museum, by Asuman Coşkun Abuagla (199 euros)

Arkeonews has a story about the Diolkos, with a photo of a well-preserved section on a Greek army base.

Titus Kennedy explains major archaeological discoveries in Anatolia, Greece, and Rome, in the latest episode of Digging for Truth.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick

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Chandler Collins’s latest Jerusalem in Brief summarizes well the major radiocarbon study recently published. He challenges one of the conclusions and notes a preliminary response by Israel Finkelstein.

“A volunteer recently uncovered a colorful and intricately decorated bowl dating back to the Abbasid period of the 9th or 10th century, at Khirbet Hevra near Rehovot.”

Aren Maeir just wrapped up a short spring season excavating at Gath.

A bomb placed at “Joshua’s altar” on Mount Ebal was discovered before anyone was harmed.

Zoom lecture on May 22: “No Place Like Home: Ancient Israelite Houses in Context,” by Cynthia Shafer-Elliott

Biblical Byways is planning a study tour of biblical sites in Israel for September 18-27.

The Aerial Archaeology in Jordan project, now in its 26th season, has more than 180,000 images available online. Management is now being transferred from Britain to Jordan.

Ferrell Jenkins shares a photo he took of sheep grazing along the desert road in Jordan.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick

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Registration for my course on The History of Israel’s United Monarchy closes on Friday, and the class begins on Monday. The time commitment is minimal (90 minutes a week), and the cost affordable ($189).

My goal is to deepen your understanding of the century or so when all twelve tribes were united under a single king. To do that, I’ll be drawing on archaeological discoveries, geographical insights, and extrabiblical sources to supplement what the Bible records.

My interest goes beyond decades of teaching a related course and leading “life of David” field studies around Israel to writing a (forthcoming) book and creating photo collections for 1-2 Samuel and 1-2 Kings. I’ll be bringing the best of everything to this homework-free course.

The class meets on six successive Mondays, from May 13 to June 17, from 8:00-9:30 pm (Eastern Time). Everyone who registers will receive the valuable course materials along with access to the lecture recordings.

The course is one of three offerings in the Jerusalem University College Online Summer Institute. The other two are: Edible Landscapes of the Biblical World, taught by Chandler Collins on Tuesdays, and Jesus the Galilean, taught by Wave Nunnally on Thursdays.

Registration closes on Friday.

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“Newly-deciphered text from ancient scrolls may have finally revealed the location of where Greek philosopher Plato was buried, along with how he really felt about music played at his deathbed.”

Marek Dospěl provides a quick primer of the ancient Egyptian language.

Bible History Daily explains why Egeria’s Travels is such a valuable “source of geographical and historical information.”

Ruth Schuster explores the history of the pomegranate.

The Yale Babylonian Collection has a permanent exhibition space in the Yale Peabody Museum for the first time.

A virtual one-hour tour of Pompeii is being offered on May 23.

Titus Kennedy is a guest on Digging for Truth to discuss archaeological sites in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Persia.

Free this month from Logos: Warfare in the Old Testament: The Organization, Weapons, and Tactics of Ancient Near Eastern Armies, by Boyd Seevers

Bible Mapper Atlas has just produced a poster map of Paul’s travels.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer

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An Israeli team believes that they have established an absolute chronology for Jerusalem in the Iron Age based on a study of 100 samples of organic material. One upshot is that Jerusalem was larger and more urban in the time of David and Solomon. Another conclusion is that the Broad Wall was built not by Hezekiah but by Uzziah. The underlying journal article is not free, but the 84 pages of “supporting information,” including pictures, is free.

A related lecture will be given at the Albright and on Zoom on May 16: “Radiocarbon Chronology in Historical Jerusalem and the Challenges to Reconstruct Its Urban Development,” by Elisabetta Boaretto

“Archaeologists have uncovered rare evidence of burial practices at a rural cemetery in the Jezreel Valley, where more than 3,000 years ago the dead were honored with rituals that involved the use of fire and beeswax.” They are not sure if the occupants were Israelites, Canaanites, or other.

Tuvia Pollack explains why there are two Golgotha sites.

Israel365 has a well-illustrated article about the site of Magdala.

A Final Conference will be held on May 31 and June 1 for the “Stamp Seals from the Southern Levant” project.

New release: Judah in the Biblical Period: Historical, Archaeological, and Biblical Studies, by Oded Lipschits (De Gruyter, $145; Amazon)

Accordance Bible Software is offering users three free books by Alfred Edersheim:

Three other books by Edersheim are on sale for only $4.99 each:

Bryan Windle surveys the top three reports in biblical archaeology in the month of April.

HT: Agade, Gordon Franz, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Joseph Lauer

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Archaeologists believe they have found a villa belonging to Emperor Augustus near Mount Vesuvius.

The city of Anqa is said to be “a near mirror image of Dura-Europos, of the same size, comparable composition, and potentially equal value to scholars of the region.”

A new study suggests that “wine produced around the Mediterranean during the Roman era may have been just as complex and flavorful as wine produced today, in contrast to what is commonly assumed.”

“Egypt welcomed home a 3,400-year-old statue depicting the head of King Ramses II after it was stolen and smuggled out of the country more than three decades ago.”

We don’t know much about Shalmaneser V, but Bryan Windle still managed to create a pretty extensive illustrated archaeological biography.

Webinar on May 9: “Sensing the Past: Sensorial Experiences in Ancient Mesopotamia,” by Allison Thomason

The Albright Institute posts videos of their special lectures on their YouTube channel. Recent lectures include:

Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer conclude their series of the best archaeological finds of 2023 on the Biblical World podcast.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Gordon Franz, Paleojudaica

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