BiblePlaces Blog - Page 27 of 554

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

[Due to some website issues, part 2 of the last Weekend Roundup was not sent out. You can read it here.]

A cave near ancient Shechem served refugees for at least eight different historical periods, from the Chalcolithic to the Mamluk periods.

El-Unuk, one of Adam Zertal’s six “Gilgal” sites, is under threat of destruction from construction work.

The Israeli government has approved an $8 million budget to restore and protect the ancient capital city of Samaria. The funding “will go toward establishing a tourism center at the site, building new access roads, mapping untouched areas, and increasing law enforcement to prevent illegal activity.”

Scott Stripling discusses the Mount Ebal Curse Tablet on the latest episode of Digging for Truth.

John DeLancey’s latest video was filmed in the 1st-century synagogue of Magdala.

What are the Lachish Letters and why are they of importance to the Bible? Nathan Steinmeyer explains.

JNS has a story on the Inscriptions of Israel/Palestine project being run by Brown University.

In connection with a new exhibit at the Corning Museum of Glass, Ruth Schuster investigates the history and method of Roman glassmaking in the land of Israel.

Hybrid lecture at the Albright Institute on May 11: “Before the Nabataeans: Arabian Traders in the Negev Highlands,” by Tali Erickson-Gini and Martin David Pasternak

Zoom lecture on May 11: “Jesus Reading Scripture: Exploring the Archaeology of Worship in First-Century Synagogues,” by Paul Flesher ($6/$12).

The online lecture with Ken Dark on “Exploring the Archaeology of Jesus’ Nazareth” has been rescheduled to Friday, 12 May 2023 at 11:00am-12:30 pm ET.

Preserving Bible Times has released Session 5 of The Bible: Its Land & Culture! This session explores Two Different Worlds: Jewish or Hebrew and Roman or Gentile; Peter vs Paul; Deciphering the Roman World; and Roman Exceptionalism. Individual sessions are available here, and all 5 sessions are now available for purchase as a set ($40).

Paleojudaica links to articles that explore connections of King Charles III’s coronation with the Bible and the ancient Near East.

HT: Ted Weis, Explorator

Tagged Galilee, Lectures, Museums, New Exhibits, Resources, Samaria, Shephelah, Tourism

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists looking at satellite images have discovered three temporary Roman army camps in the northern Arabian desert, possibly evidence of a military campaign that led to the annexation of the Nabatean kingdom in AD 106.

“Archaeologists from the Leiden Turin Expedition to Saqqara have uncovered an ornate tomb dating to the early Ramesside period (c. 13th century BCE) that belonged to Panehsy, the overseer of the Temple of Amun.”

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

“The Zeugma Mosaic Museum in Antep, southeastern Turkey, has reopened after being closed for over two months due to the devastating earthquakes that struck the area in February.”

Writing for Ami Magazine, Lawrence Schiffman considers the irony of ancient Jewish art work from Dura-Europos sitting in a museum in Damascus.

Helen Gries, a curator at the Vorderasiatisches Museum in Berlin, considers how “multiple narratives” come together in the Ishtar Gate of Babylon.

The Roman bust of Nero that was discovered in a Goodwill store in Texas is returning to Germany next month.

The Greek Reporter makes some suggestions as to why the ancient Greeks reclined to eat and drink.

BAS’s Bible & Archaeology Fest XXVI will be back in person as well as livestreamed on Nov 17-19 in San Antonio, Texas.

The latest video from Expedition Bible will likely be popular: Exodus Pharaoh Explained (22 min)

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Explorator

Tagged Arabia, Discoveries, Egypt, Exodus-Conquest, Lectures, Museums, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

According to Haaretz, the recent excavations have found no traces of the Pool of Siloam.

Chandler Collins investigates “artificial platforms of massive proportions [that] altered Jerusalem’s landscape while also destroying or concealing remains of former times.”

Google Arts & Culture’s collections include a story on the Holy Places of Jerusalem, with many large, beautiful photographs.

Bible History Daily summarizes a recent study that argues that it is very unlikely that a ring bears the name of Pontius Pilate.

Daily Mail tells the story of the Shellal Mosaic, discovered by ANZAC soldiers near Tell el-Farah (South) during World War I.

Haaretz profiles the research of Guy Bar-Oz in his efforts to study the cultural history of trees in Israel.

As Adolfo Roitman nears retirement as curator of the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Shrine of the Book, Israel21c reports on how he ended up in the position, with no museum experience or expertise in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

New episode on This Week in the Ancient Near East: “New Jerusalem Inscription Points to (Previously Known) Iron Age Spice Trade, Or, Solomon and Sheba Get Spicy?”

Hybrid conference on May 21-23: “Epigraphy in Judah: The Second International conference of the Roger and Susan Hertog Center for the Archaeological Study of Jerusalem and Judah”

The Oxford Centre for Hebrew & Jewish Studies is offering free Modern Hebrew Ulpanim courses on Zoom.

Bible Mapper continues to produce and release free maps of the biblical narrative and world:

If you have not entered the drawing for more than 30 prizes of the Photo Companion to the Bible, you have until tomorrow to do so. Everyone who enters receives the new “Top 50 Sites from Dan to Beersheba” PowerPoint.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Mark Hoffman, Explorator

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Jerusalem, Lectures, Museums, Resources, Tomb of Jesus, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Photo Companion Giveaway

We’re running a big giveaway on Facebook this week, but you don’t need to be on social media to enter. Go here to enter to win:

1 Grand Prize: Photo Companion to the Bible (29 volumes)

5 First Place Winners: your choice of these Photo Companion mini-sets:

Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
Acts and Revelation
Paul’s Epistles

25 Second Place Winners: your choice of any volume in the Photo Companion to the Bible series

Everyone who enters will receive the brand-new “Top 50 Biblical Sites from Dan to Beersheba” PowerPoint presentation.

Entry is simple, and as you would expect from us, there are no tricks, no gimmicks, and no spam. Our goal is to spread the word about the Photo Companion to the Bible, and your help in telling others would be appreciated.

Tagged Photo Resources

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

“Archaeologists in Southern Italy uncovered a trove of historical treasures in a temple in the ancient city of Paestum. The treasures include a statue of the Greek god of love Eros, Terracotta bull heads and dolphin statues.”

Art & Object reports on excavation work around the Colosseum.

“A team of marine archaeologists working off the coast of Italy has identified a submerged Nabatean temple dating to the early first century CE.”

“Ancient Babylonian treasures, painstakingly unearthed, are slowly disappearing again under wind-blown sand in a land parched by rising heat and prolonged droughts.”

Eckart Frahm is guest on The Ancients podcast to discuss the “Rise of the Assyrians.”

David Moster found a Babylonian Kudurru at Goodwill and made a video about it.

Tom Davis discusses Pauline archaeology on the latest episode of Biblical World.

New release: Ramesses II, Egypt’s Ultimate Pharaoh, by Peter Brand (Lockwood Press, 575 pages, $40)

New from Eisenbrauns: The Royal Inscriptions of Ashurbanipal (668–631 BC), Aššur-etel-ilāni (630–627 BC), and Sîn-šarra-iškun (626–612 BC), Kings of Assyria, Part 2, by Joshua Jeffers and Jamie Novotny. Price reduced to $91 with code NR23.

The latest BAS OnSite video tours Petra, with BAR editor Glenn Corbett as guide.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Keith Keyser, Alexander Schick, Explorator

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Italy, Jordan, Mediterranean Islands, Mesopotamia, Resources, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

“Thousands of animal bones, ceramic animal figurines, wall stones and limestone altars have been found at an Iron Age temple in Khirbet Al Mudayna,” possibly biblical Jahaz.

Lawrence Schiffman explains why he believes that Gershon Galil’s discovery of new inscriptions from the time of Hezekiah is the product of scholarly imagination.

“The Inscriptions project seeks to collect and make freely accessible all of the previously published inscriptions (and their English translations) of Israel/Palestine from the Persian period through the Islamic conquest (ca. 500 BCE – 640 CE).”

The New York Public Library has available for viewing online Charles W. Wilson’s Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem (1865).

Grunge’s list of “female archaeologists who changed history forever” includes Kathleen Kenyon.

Jonathan Moore is a guest on Digging for Truth to discuss the archaeological evidence for the destruction of Jericho.

Zoom lecture on May 2: “The Antiquities Trade in Israel and Palestine: Same as It Ever Was?,” by Morag Kersel and Michael Press, sponsored by PEF and AIAR.

Zoom lecture on May 4: “Exploring the Archaeology of Jesus’ Nazareth,” by Professor Ken Dark, sponsored by Jerusalem University College

Bryan Windle begins a new series entitled “Weighing the Evidence.” In the first post, he evaluates the evidence both for and against the authenticity of the James Ossuary and its inscription.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Keith Keyser, Alexander Schick, Explorator

Tagged Discoveries, Jerusalem, Jordan, Lectures, Resources, Weekend Roundup