Resources Archives - Page 35 of 135

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Bryan Windle reviews the top three reports in biblical archaeology in the month of March.

In a seven-minute video, Aren Maeir gives a quick overview of the archaeological process from start to finish.

Hannah Brown explains why spending a day or more at Timna Park in southern Israel is worthwhile.

Wayne Stiles is hosting a free webinar for the Passion Week, with an engaging look at Jesus’s final week, day by day.

An extract from the new CSB Holy Land Illustrated Bible identifies five incidents and three patterns in Pilate’s life that set the context for the trial of Jesus.

BibleTimeLines.com has an extensive collection of timelines, graphics, and videos, including a timeline for the Passion Week.

Jordan J. Ryan considers how Constantine’s Church of the Holy Sepulcher celebrated more than Jesus’s resurrection.

The Infusion Bible Conference is a 3-day event focusing on the context of the biblical world. I’ll be back again this year. Early registration ends soon. Church leaders can take advantage of the IBC Press Kit to share with their congregations. (The conference has a virtual option this year.)

Not the millennium: “Jerusalem’s Biblical Zoo is attempting damage control after kids saw a lion eat a bunny.”

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Explorator, Arne Halbakken

The cemetery at Qumran has recently been “reconstructed.” Photo courtesy of Michael Schneider in Jerusalem.

Tagged Discoveries, Holidays, Lectures, Negev, Resources, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

An 11-year-old on a family hike in the Negev discovered a rare fertility figurine dating to about 500 BC.

Haaretz (premium) has a story about the debate over whether the Lachish gate shrine was a shrine, and if so, if it was desecrated by a toilet.

A new book by Idan Dershowitz argues that the scrolls of Moses Shapira, long believed to be forgeries, are actually the earliest Dead Sea Scrolls and were a “pre-canonical antecedent” of Deuteronomy. The book is available on Academia. Christopher Rollston argues that the scrolls are forgeries. Drew Longacre concurs.

A notice from the Hazor Excavations team indicates that foreigners will be permitted to volunteer in Israel this summer with proof of vaccination. The Gath registration webpage confirms this.

My new reflection on the Garden of Gethsemane is now available to members of Jerusalem Perspective.

The New York Times runs an obituary for Hershel Shanks.

Jerusalem University College has announced its newest program: The Christian Movement in the Mediterranean, with a two-week voyage tracing Paul’s voyages in the Mediterranean.

New: Ancient Israel’s Neighbors, by Brian R. Doak (Book 1 in Oxford’s Essentials of Biblical Studies series).

The early-bird discount for the Infusion Bible Conference ends on April 9. The topic is “Paul and His Roman World,” and the new location is Nashville.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Arne Halbakken, Keith Keyser, Explorator

Tagged Dead Sea Scrolls, Discoveries, Excavations, Jerusalem, Lectures, Negev, Resources, Shephelah, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

A statue of Ramesses II has been placed in the Grand Hall of the Great Egyptian Museum so that the rays of the sun will illuminate it on February 22 and October 22 each year.

Closing on March 14: “Queen Nefertari’s Egypt,” at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth.

Carole Raddato provides a list of the top 5 archaeological sites in Lebanon.

The British Museum identifies the top 10 historical board games, beginning with the Royal Game of Ur.

Duncan Howitt-Marshall explains how the ancient Greeks set us on the path to Mars.

Police recovered a rare bronze plate with a decree from Emperor Tiberius.

The renovated mausoleum of Emperor Augustus in Rome has reopened after being closed for many years.

Tyler Rossi writes about portraiture on ancient Roman coinage, noting that Julius Caesar was the first living person depicted on a Roman coin. Was this why he was assassinated?

in AramcoWorld’s well-illustrated article “The Quest for Blue,” Tom Verde explains that the color blue, while pervasive in nature, is much harder to reproduce and required considerable ingenuity in the ancient world.

Now in paperback from Oxford University Press: Archaeology and the Letters of Paul, by Laura Sarah Nasrallah.

HT: Agade, Explorator, Ted Weis, Paleojudaica

Tagged Egypt, Italy, Lebanon, Mesopotamia, Museums, Resources

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists working near the Western Wall of the Temple Mount have discovered the largest collection of ancient dice ever found.

The seventh issue of the newsletter of the Department and Institute of Archeology at Tel Aviv University includes reports on fieldwork at Azekah, Masada, and Jerusalem, along with other articles on research and laboratory work.

I don’t know that the claim of it being the oldest water tunnel is true, but the Balama tunnel near Jenin is certainly interesting and little-known.

A rare sighting of a sperm whale off Israel’s coast was made several weeks ago near Nahariya.

I am happy to see my old friend Jeroboam II getting some attention this week, as he is featured in the latest archaeological biography by Bryan Windle.

Three upcoming meetings of The Minerva Center for the Relations between Israel and Aram in Biblical Times:

April 7-8: “Egyptiaca outside of Egypt”
April 22: “Cult and Interaction in the Early and Intermediate Bronze Ages”
September 13: “New Studies on Iron Age Syria and Nearby Regions: Regional and Cross-Regional Perspectives”

The Clinton Bailey Archive of Bedouin Culture is coming to the National Library of Israel. The collection includes a wealth of information about ancient Bedouin tribal cultures, including audio recordings, videos, and photos.

Joel Kramer joins Sean McDowell for a Q&A on the Bible and Archaeology.

New release: The Moses Scroll: Reopening the Most Controversial Case in the History of Biblical Scholarship, by Ross K. Nichols, illustrated by Daniel M. Wright

HT: Agade, Steven Anderson, Explorator, Ted Weis, Paleojudaica, Arne Halbakken

Tagged Excavations, Israel's Coast, Lectures, Resources, Samaria, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Archaeologists in western Turkey have found a hoard of 651 silver coins dating to the 1st century BC.

“Turkish archaeologists studying the ruins of the ancient town of Myra have found more than 50 terracotta figurines depicting humans, gods and animals.”

Carl Rasmussen shares photos of Adada, a city that Paul and Barnabas probably passed through on their first journey.

“Syrian authorities believe they have found the body of a top archaeologist who was killed by the Islamic State (IS) group in 2015 while he tried to protect the ancient city of Palmyra.”

Why were ostrich eggs so coveted by elites in the ancient Near East?

The builders of the Giza pyramids were locals who were paid for their work and who ate well.

Egypt is planning to open four museums this year, including the Grand Egyptian Museum in June.

Online lecture on Feb 22: “Presenting the Heritage of Jordan at The Jordan and The Petra Museums,” by Khairieh Amr

Edd Hodsdon: “Darius the Great: 9 Facts About The King Of Kings”

New from Eisenbrauns: A Handbook of Gods and Goddesses of the Ancient Near East Three Thousand Deities of Anatolia, Syria, Israel, Sumer, Babylonia, Assyria, and Elam, by Douglas R. Frayne and Johanna H. Stuckey, with illustrations by Stéphane D. Beaulieu. Save 30% with code NR21.

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

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Jordan, Lectures, Museums, Persia, Resources, Turkey, Weekend Roundup

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Sixteen rock hewn burial tombs were found at Taposiris Magnain, Egypt, with one mummy having a golden tongue.

Some Egyptian scholars are arguing over whether it is acceptable to excavate and display ancient mummies.

Bones allegedly of St. James the Younger housed in the Santi Apostoli church in Rome are not old enough to have belonged to the apostle.

“New burials discovered inside the Roman necropolis of Santa Rosa, standing under what is now Vatican City, have shed light on burials that housed the servants and slaves of the Roman Caesars.”

Excavations are resuming at Herculaneum after 40 years, with work focused on the ancient beach.

After working hard to get Babylon chosen as a World Heritage Site, Iraqi officials have stopped working to protect the site.

The Getty Research Institute is presenting an online exhibition on the ancient Roman city of Palmyra, including more than 100 rare images.

“An anonymous philanthropist gave more than £11 million ($15m) to University College London to support the teaching and research of the heritage, history and languages of ancient Mesopotamia.”

Now online: Jewish Studies, an Internet Journal 19 (2020) — Special Josephus Issue

Now on YouTube: Gilgamesh Lament for Enkidu (with subtitles)

David Moster has just released a new video on “Coups in the Bible.”

Online lecture on Feb 10: “House Hunters: Babylon, 1300 BCE,” by Susanne Paulus

The new Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire (DARE) is available for broad use, including in web applications.

The German Archaeological Institute has created a digital map of Pergamum that represents all known archaeological remains.

New podcast on This Week in the Ancient Near East: “The Other Kind of Throne, or, What’s the Deal with Toilets in the Iron Age?”

Hershel Shanks, founder of Biblical Archaeology Review, died of Covid on February 5 at the age of 90.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer, Arne Halbakken, Charles Savelle, Keith Keyser, Ted Weis, Alexander Schick

Tagged Discoveries, Egypt, Excavations, Italy, Mesopotamia, Museums, Resources, Weekend Roundup