Resources Archives - Page 58 of 136

New Videos on the Passion Week of Jesus

Wayne Stiles has long impressed me with his knowledge of Israel and his application of the biblical truths to our lives. He’s written three excellent books, and he has faithfully written regular posts on his blog for many years.

But I think his new project is his best yet, and I’d encourage you to take a look.

Wayne has produced a series of three videos tracing the Passion Week of Jesus, “The Week That Changed the World,” as he calls it. It is outstanding. I encourage you to check out these free videos.

It’s a perfect way to prepare for and experience the Passion Week.

See them here: www.passionweektour.com

Tagged Jerusalem, Resources, Tourism

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Archaeologists have excavated a dolmen on the Golan Heights that is unique because of its large size and artistic decorations. The capstone weighs about 50 tons. You can watch a 2-minute video here.

Two large pharaonic statues, believed to be from the 19th dynasty, have been found near the ruins of Ramses II’s temple in Heliopolis. Zahi Hawass has responded to criticism of the rescue work.

Haaretz (premium): “The long-lost wreck of a Crusader ship and sunken cargos dating to the 13th century C.E. have been found in the bay of the crusader stronghold city Acre, in northern Israel.”

The Sea of Galilee is at its lowest level in a century, and it’s only March.

Here’s a short video of the Assyrian palace remains beneath the destroyed Tomb of Jonah.

Jordan’s Department of Antiquities has announced that the lead codices discovered in 2010 have “not been proven to be authentic so far.” James Davila provides a good review of why he (and others) rejects their authenticity.

The New York Times offers a guide to “make the most of the British Museum,” including sections on

“5 Must-Sees,” “Off the Beaten Path,” and “Tips for Visiting.”

The Grand Egyptian Museum is scheduled to open in the middle of next year.

ISD has a sale on two multi-volume archaeology works: The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Archaeology, ed. Daniel M. Master (was $395; now $150); ~~The Oxford Companion to Archaeology~~~~, ed. Neil Asher Silberman (was $595; now $99;~~ sold out?).

The new Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible is for sale on Kindle now for $3.99.

Purim begins at sundown. You might want to grab the kids and read them the book of Esther. Or check out the Maccabeats’ interpretation.

HT: Explorator, Joseph Lauer, Agade, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Bill Soper

Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Forgery, Galilee, Golan, Holidays, Israel's Coast, Mesopotamia, Museums, Resources

Weekend Roundup

A new study concludes that the Roman siege ramp of Masada was never completed and thus was not used to conquer the site.

The Times of Israel has more on the latest discoveries at Omrit.

Syrian troops have recaptured Palmyra from ISIS and the latest damage is being assessed.

The site of the ancient temple of Artemis in Ephesus is suffering from neglect.

The Museum of Archaeological Excavations on Elephantine Island in Aswan has been re-opened after a six-year closure.

The National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Cairo was opened to the public last week.

2,000 libraries around the world will receive true color photographs of the Sistine Chapel.

“A 19th-century view of the Egyptian temple complex of Karnak is to go on display at the British Museum for the first time this week.”

Wayne Stiles provides a brief history of the Temple Mount, with lots of photos.

John DeLancey of Biblical Israel Tours now has posts up for every day of his recent tour of Israel and Italy.

Gordon Govier interviews Randall Price about “Qumran Cave 12” on The Book and the Spade.

Gary Byers has written a well-illustrated post on the use of mudbricks in the Bible.

Steve Mason’s A History of the Jewish War, A.D. 66-74 is positively reviewed on the BMCR blog.

LandMinds interviews Guy Stiebel on his return to excavating Masada (40 min).

Eisenbrauns is offering 70-80% off dozens of feschriften, including The Fire Signals of Lachish (now
$21) and Exploring the Longue Duree (now $23).

The new issue of Biblical Archaeology Review includes articles on Laodicea and a banquet hall near
the Temple Mount.

BAS has launched a new video streaming site, with a special introductory offer of 75% off.

David Rubinger, photographer of the iconic scene of Israeli paratroopers at the Western Wall, has
died at the age of 92.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Paleojudaica

Tagged Dead Sea, Egypt, Galilee, Italy, Resources, Syria, Temple Mount, Tourism, Weekend Roundup

Free Asia Minor Wall Map

(Post by A.D. Riddle)

The Ancient World Mapping Center is making available for free download their wall map of Asia Minor. The blog post from yesterday reads:

After several years of preparation, AWMC’s newest wall map is now available online. This map is a successor to that of J.G.C. Anderson (1903) and its partial revision by W.M. Calder and G.E. Bean (1958). It was displayed in draft at the ‘Roads and Routes in Anatolia’ conference organized by the British Institute at Ankara (March 2014). It was then revised with a view to being issued with the volume planned to follow that meeting in due course. Meantime the Center is now making the map available online.

The map is noteworthy because the Ancient World Mapping Center has reconstructed the ancient coastline, most notable at places such as Miletus, Ephesus, north of Smyrna, and between Xanthos and Patara. The map shows Roman roads, bridges, quarries, and aqueducts. It also shows rivers, wetlands, and elevation with subtle hillshading. According to the legend, the map includes mountain passes and shrines, though I noticed only one of each.

There are a few symbols that do not appear in the legend, and I am not entirely sure what they mean: an asterisk before the name Sparza, and these three patterns

[UPDATE: A commenter noted that the asterisk is identified in the legend and is used to indicate a reconstructed ancient place name. The first pattern, blue dots outlined in blue, appears to represent an “intermittent lake.” The second pattern, burnt orange dotes, appears to represent a “dry lake.” The last pattern remains a mystery to me.]

Yesterday, I could download the map directly, but as of today you have to email the Ancient World Mapping Center for a download link. The TIF file I downloaded is a whopping 1.72GB! If you were to print the map at 300dpi, the sheet would measure 80″ x 50″. (To download a JPG version of the map at about 100MB, use this temporary link.) The map is licensed under CC-by-4.0.

This map is the latest creation by the Ancient World Mapping Center in a line of cartographic products which includes the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World (print and digital), Benthos Digital Atlas of Ancient Waters, the AWMC à-la-carte Map, and the Routledge Wall Maps for the Ancient World.

Tagged Resources, Turkey

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Excavations are set to resume at Masada, and the focus will be on Herod’s gardens and the rebels’ houses.

Tel Aviv University will begin excavations at Kiriath Jearim this August.

The IAA has inaugurated a “new” trail in the Davidson Center Archaeological Park. The “mikveh path” is described as being “experiential, circular, and modular.”

Craig Evans discusses the new DSS cave find and shares with readers the insights of Randall Price.

The article includes a picture of the 12th cave’s location.

Some scholars are claiming that any future finds relating to the Dead Sea Scrolls belong to Israel.

The latest discovery, with the blank scroll parchment, may help to detect modern forgeries.

The Oriental Institute Museum has made available an Ancient Near Eastern Cross-Cultural Timeline.

The Steinsaltz edition of the Talmud is being published online and will be available for free in Hebrew and English. This joins an already extensive collection of Jewish texts at Sefaria.

HT: Ted Weis, Agade, Joseph Lauer, Paleojudaica

Tagged Dead Sea, Discoveries, Jerusalem, Judah, Resources

New Release: Bible Mapper WebViewer

There is a new Bible Mapper WebViewer that is designed to be a quick reference tool, for use on computers, tablets, and phones. Here are several ways to use it:

Navigate around a blank base map of the biblical world.
Enter the name of a biblical site and it will appear on the map. You could try Shechem, Lachish, or Capernaum.
Choose a biblical passage and all sites mentioned in it will show. You could try Joshua 6-8, Mark 1-2, or Revelation 2-3.
Select another webpage and it will map all biblical sites on that page. Try, for example, the Sea of Galilee page at www.LifeintheHolyLand.com.
Add roads from the OT or NT periods.

In my testing, the maps load quickly and the sites are identified accurately. A time or two I had to refresh the page, perhaps because I had too much data.

This new tool is different from the original Bible Mapper (still available in free and paid versions here), which allows you to save, export, and print customized maps. I could see students and teachers using this in personal Bible study as well as in the classroom. I am grateful to David Barrett for creating such a handy resource for us all.

Note: See Mark Hoffman’s blog for his experience with the WebViewer.

Tagged Resources, Technology