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A fragment of a monumental inscription discovered in Jerusalem may preserve the name of Hezekiah and a reference to a “pool.”

“Archaeologists in Israel discovered the base of a massive [limestone] Roman column [base] at the foot of Mount Hermon” during a salvage excavation in a Druze village.

Who needs pottery typology when you have archaeomagnetic dating? A new study by Israeli scientists and archaeologists argues that this new technique will provide secure dating for archaeological material previously difficult to date. This is especially useful for the Hallstat Plateau (800-400 BC) when radiocarbon techniques are less helpful. The TAU press release is here.

A one-minute film shot at the Jaffa Gate in 1897 has been restored and colorized with AI.

David Moster created a video showing Jews from around the world reading biblical Hebrew. Some of the readers were born in the 1800s.

Daily Bread has released a new 7-minute video, “Mt. Hermon: Getting God Completely Wrong by Mistake,” with Jack Beck.

Webinar on Nov 22 jointly sponsored by The Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society and British Friends of The Hebrew University: “Recent Advances in DNA Technology and Their Contribution to Archaeology in Israel.”

Christian Locatell, Chris McKinny, and Itzhaq Shai recently published an article on “The Tree of Life Motif, Late Bronze Canaanite Cult, and a Recently Discovered Krater from Tel Burna.” The article is available to subscribers to the Journal of the American Oriental Society or by purchase.

“In October 2022, the top three reports in biblical archaeology were about a stunning mosaic in Syria, a suspected synagogue at Chorazin, and a new geomagnetic study that affirmed biblical battles.”

After a writing hiatus, Israel’s Good Name returns with an illustrated post of the wetlands of the Poleg Marshes.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick

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Israel plans to build hotels, guest villas, and a conference center on manmade islands in the Dead Sea.

Archaeologists carrying out a survey on Mount Zion discovered a graffiti inscription of Knight Adrian von Bubenberg, a Swiss hero who made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1466.

“The 2022 International Bible Marathon was held over the Sukkot holiday in the Shiloh bloc of communities in Samaria, with both its starting and ending points in Ancient Shiloh.”

The Caesarea Maritima International Conference 2022 runs from Sunday to Wednesday. A full program is online, and both in-person and webinar attendance is free. The lectures of Hohlfelder, Burrell, and Schiffman look particularly interesting.

Gordon Govier interviews Steve Ortiz, Cynthia Shafer-Elliott, and Jonathan Greer about Israel’s ArchaeoTourism Initiative.

It’s not April 1st, but you wouldn’t know it from the Jerusalem Post’s story identifying Solomon as Pharaoh Shishak.

Jonathan Klawans takes his readers to Tel Dan in the Site-Seeing column in the latest issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

Saar Tauber Tamir suggests five places to visit in Israel that are not as well-known.

The latest episode of This Week in the Ancient Near East looks at the ivory furniture decorations recently discovered in Jerusalem.

The Friends of ASOR Tour to Israel next year visits 27 sites and museums in 13 days, with an impressive list of tour guides. The website describes the full program.

New release: The Ancient Israelite World, edited by Kyle H. Keimer and George A. Pierce (Routledge, $200; Amazon)

Chris McKinny’s My People as Your People: A Textual and Archaeological Analysis of the Reign of Jehoshaphat is marked down to $9 now on Amazon, from $80 (hardcover). I suspect after a few copies sell, the price will jump back up.

Online courses have been announced for JUC’s spring semester, including:

  • Archaeology of the Galilee, with Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer
  • Geographical Voices in the Psalms, with Paul Wright
  • Literature of Ancient Israel’s Neighbors, with Bryan Beyer
  • Physical Settings of the Bible, with Chandler Collins

Classes are beginning soon at the Biblical Language Center (Randall Buth) and the Jerusalem Seminary.

My topic on the latest episode of Digging for Truth is “The Bible and the Karnak Temple.”

HT: Agade, Charles Savelle, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Ted Weis

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Aaron Reich looks at evidence for Sukkot pilgrimages along the first-century street leading from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount.

A foundation stone has been laid for a rope bridge to connect Mount Zion to the village of Abu Tor.

On Wednesday, tens of thousands gathered at the Western Wall to hear the president of Israel read portions of Scripture in accord with the command for such a gathering to be held every seven years.

Expedition Bible just surpassed 100,000 subscribers on YouTube with the release of its 25th video focused on the father of archaeology, Sir Flinders Petrie.

The latest BAS video in the “Digging In” series focuses on Azekah (4 min).

Behirut is a new Chrome extension designed to make reading Hebrew text on the web clearer.

“After reviewing new historical evidence, scholars now believe the Apostle Paul used the handy map in the back of his Bible when deciding where to travel to next.”

I join Henry Smith on the latest episode of Digging for Truth, explaining the importance and major features of Hezekiah’s Tunnel.

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Carl Rasmussen, Ted Weis

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Forty-four pure gold coins were recently found hidden in a wall during excavations at the Banias archaeological site.” The coins were minted in the reigns of the last two Byzantine emperors before the Muslim conquest in AD 635.

Mahmoud Hawari has a brief report on the Khirbat al-Mafjar Archaeological Project at Jericho.

As a follow-up to his previous post about a 1st-century synagogue at Chorazin, Carl Rasmussen shares some photos taken earlier this week on the current restoration project.

Leen Ritmeyer shares a number of reconstruction drawings from the Double Gate in Jerusalem, which he identifies with the Beautiful Gate of Acts 3.

The Museum of the Bible and DIVE (Digital Interactive Virtual Experiences) are hosting a virtual tour of the Kidron and Hinnom Valleys on November 9. The cost is $20.

Ferrell Jenkins provides some history and photos of Tirzah, the second capital of the northern kingdom of Israel.

Zoom lecture on Oct 26: “One Site, Two Peoples: Phoenicians and Jews at Kedesh of the Upper Galilee,” by Andrea Berlin

Bryan Windle has written another well-illustrated archaeological biography, this one on Hazael, the Aramean king who boasted of defeating Israel and the “house of David” in the famous Tel Dan Inscription.

New release: Encyclopedia of Material Culture in the Biblical World. A New Biblisches Reallexikon, edited by Angelika Berlejung with P.M. Michèle Daviau, Jens Kamlah, and Gunnar Lehmann (Mohr Siebeck, $223).

Eretz Magazine has created a new travel guide to the Herodium, lavishly illustrated with photos, maps, and reconstructions.

New subscribers to Approaching Jerusalem (Chandler Collins) receive a free e-booklet, “Golden Heights: Five Accessible Panoramas of Jerusalem.”

HT: Agade, Arne Halbakken, Alexander Schick, Ted Weis, Explorator, Paleojudaica

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Geomagnetic surface surveys at Khirbet al-Minya on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee have revealed an earlier Jewish or Christian settlement.

A new study of the Solomonic-era copper mines at Timna reveals that the enterprise came to a sudden halt around 850 BC because the miners overexploited the sparse desert acacia and white broom trees used to fuel their furnaces (Haaretz subscription).

Carl Rasmussen links to a video that shows evidence for a first-century synagogue at Chorazin. He also shares a photo of the synagogue in 1967 before reconstruction began.

Here is a video of the 7th-8th century AD shipwreck recently discovered off the coast of Israel.

“Hundreds of ancient decorated toga pins, earrings, rings and figurines of animals and idols were found in the home of a man who used to be an antiquities dealer in northern Israel.”

Albright Institute lecture on Oct 27: “The Austrian Expedition to Tel Lachish (2017-2022),” by Katharina Streit & Felix Höflmayer. Register to join by Zoom here.

Marc Zvi Brettler explains the Hakhel Ceremony, in which the assembly gathers together every seven years to read the Torah. This event will be celebrated at the Western Wall on October 11.

Ferrell Jenkins shares a photo of sheep grazing near Tirzah, the second capital of the northern kingdom.

HT: Agade, Keith Keyser, Arne Halbakken

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Archaeologists discovered an intact burial cave from the 13th century BC on the Palmachim Beach south of Tel Aviv. Unfortunately the cave was plundered while it was being excavated.

Scientists have identified the earliest use of opium in a 14th century BC burial pit at Tel Yehud.

Here are many more photos of the beautiful Byzantine mosaic floor discovered in the Gaza Strip.

“An ancient shipwreck found off the shore of Israel and loaded with cargo from all over the Mediterranean shows that traders from the West still came to port even after the Islamic conquest of the Holy Land.”

Drew Longacre answers nine common questions about the Dead Sea Scrolls.

John DeLancey and Kyle Keimer discuss the excavations at Tel Dan (40 min).

Rocco Buttliere built a model of Jerusalem in the 1st century using 114,000 Legos.

Five perfectly red heifers, required for the ritual purification of those who have touched a dead body, arrived in Israel from a ranch in Texas on Thursday, as the Temple Institute continues preparations to lay the ground for the construction of the Third Temple in Jerusalem.” There is hope that they will produce a herd that will be a tourist attraction for Christians.

New release: The Social Archaeology of Late Second Temple Judaea From Purity, Burial, and Art, to Qumran, Herod, and Masada, by Eyal Regev (Routledge, 2022; $128; eBook $39)

Bryan Windle has written an archaeological biography for King Pekah, one of the last kings of Israel.

I had what may be a unique experience in my life this week – three articles I wrote were published within a few days of each other. Rather than pass over them briefly here, I’ll plan to say more in separate posts in the next few weeks.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Wayne Stiles, Charles Savelle, Keith Keyser

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About the BiblePlaces Blog

The BiblePlaces Blog provides updates and analysis of the latest in biblical archaeology, history, and geography. Unless otherwise noted, the posts are written by Todd Bolen, PhD, Professor of Biblical Studies at The Master’s University.

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