A ceramic money box filled with 114 bronze coins from “Year Four” of the First Jewish Revolt was discovered recently in excavations along the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway. From the Israel Antiquities Authority:

According to Pablo Betzer and Eyal Marco, excavation directors on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, “The hoard, which appears to have been buried several months prior to the fall of Jerusalem, provides us with a glimpse into the lives of Jews living on the outskirts of Jerusalem at the end of the rebellion. Evidently someone here feared the end was approaching and hid his property, perhaps in the hope of collecting it later when calm was restored to the region”. All of the coins are stamped on one side with a chalice and the Hebrew inscription “To the Redemption of Zion” and on the other side with a motif that includes a bundle of lulav between two etrogs. Around this is the Hebrew inscription “Year Four”, that is, the fourth year of the Great Revolt of the Jews against the Romans (69/70 CE).
The hoard was concealed in the corner of a room, perhaps inside a wall niche or buried in the floor. Two other rooms and a courtyard belonging to the same building were exposed during the course of the archaeological excavation. The structure was built in the first century BCE and was destroyed in 69 or 70 CE when the Romans were suppressing the Great Revolt.  Early in the second century CE part of the building was reinhabited for a brief period, which culminated in the destruction of the Jewish settlement in Judea as a result of the Bar Kokhba rebellion. This is attested to by three complete jars that were discovered embedded in the courtyard floor.

The full story is here. The story is also reported by Arutz-7 and The Times of Israel.

HT: Joseph Lauer

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Hoard of coins in situ
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Pablo Betzer, IAA District Archaeologist for Judah, with a coin from the Year Four of the Great Revolt.
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All photos courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority
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What do you do when your summer excavation site turns out to be less than 5 miles from a war zone?
The Ashkelon team had to figure matters out on the fly.

Mark Hoffman is inviting everyone to join his free, online course, “Survey of the Lands of the Bible.”

This MOOC begins in September and you can participate as much and as little as desired.

Wayne Stiles has a well-written and well-illustrated article about Ein Parath, where Jeremiah buried his loincloth.

How did archaeologists come to reject the biblical description of Joshua’s conquest? Henry Smith explains. He is interviewed briefly about the article here.

Leon Mauldin takes his readers to the Mamertine Prison in Rome.

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The latest issue of ‘Atiqot is online and it includes several articles about an excavation in the Kidron Valley.

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Amnon Rosenfeld—In Memoriam, by Howard R. Feldman.

HT: Charles Savelle, G. M. Grena, Craig Dunning

110724879tb Egyptian obelisk, aka Cleopatra's Needle
Cleopatra’s Needle, New York City
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SourceFlix has just released a great new film short on “The Potter.” The 3-minute video features a craftsman in Hebron.

Recent excavations in Hebron are briefly described in the Jewish Press.

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Golden Gate from west, tb091306226
The Golden Gate of the Temple Mount
Photo from Jerusalem
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From the Jerusalem Post:

The Antiquities Authority announced Tuesday that it unearthed a rare 800-year-old lead seal from the Monastery of St. Sabas in Jerusalem.
[…]
The seal shows a bearded bust of a saint wearing a himation, while holding a cross in his right hand and the Gospel in his left. Surrounding it is a Greek inscription naming him “Saint Sabas.”
On the back of the seal there is a longer Greek inscription, reading: “This is the seal of the Laura of the Holy Sabas.”

Photo by Clara Amit, courtesy Israel Antiquities Authority

During the summer of 2012, the Antiquities Authority conducted two archaeological salvage excavations at the Horbat Mizmil antiquities site in Bayit Vagan, which revealed the remains of a farmstead constructed during the Byzantine period (5th-6th centuries CE).
The archeologists said the excavated farmstead may refer to a farming settlement sold to the monastery in 1163–1164.
[…]
St. Sabas, or according to his Syriac name, “Mar Saba,” was one of the most important and influential leaders of the Christian monastic movement developing in the Judean Desert during the Byzantine period.
Sabas established several monasteries, but his crowning achievement was the construction of the Monastery of St. Sabas, referred to as the “Great Laura” in the Byzantine period.
The monastery, situated on a cliff overlooking Nahal Kidron, was home to several hundred monks.
“This is the only monastery in the Judean Desert continuously inhabited since its foundation, and even today there are circa 10 Greek monks who reside in the monastery belonging to the Greek Orthodox Church,” the Antiquities Authority said.

The full story is here. The IAA press release is here.

HT: Bill Soper

Mar Saba, Valley of the Kedron, pp1148a

Mar Saba monastery
Image from Picturesque Palestine, volume 1
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Syria is trying to attract investment in tourism. Aleppo, Crac des Chevaliers, and Palmyra are not accessible, but other places are perfectly safe, according to the minister of tourism.

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Publications of the Oriental Institute, 1906-2014: Exploring the History and Civilizations of the Near East. Edited by Thomas G. Urban and Leslie Schramer, compiled by Zuhal K. Sharp. Chicago: The
Oriental Institute, 1991, 2014. Second revised edition. 28 pages (more than 750 titles). All titles published by the Oriental Institute, with active links to their web pages, alphabetically arranged.


The Final Days of Jesus is available today for Kindle for $0.99.

The weekly ASOR roundup is here.

HT: Jack Sasson

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Excavations in Hebron have already revealed an Iron Age house, artifacts from the 10th century, and Second Temple period items.

Nadav Shragai writes in Israel HaYom on recent Temple Mount discoveries that have not been publicized.

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Ferrell Jenkins has posted several entries recently in his Visualizing Isaiah series: a skirt of sackcloth, trusting in horses and chariots, and a booth in a vineyard.

Jerusalem’s Biblical Zoo has welcomed a new male lion to replace the one who died last year.

ASOR has a roundup of stories from around the world.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Charles Savelle, Jack Sasson

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