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Weekend Roundup

A high school student found a ballista ball from the Bar Kochba Revolt during recent excavations of Beitar.

Excavators working at Abel Beth Maacah discovered one of the earliest silver hoards ever found.

There’s more information about the excavation of the chariot race mosaic in Cyprus.

To make the looting of Syrian artifacts more difficult, the US State Department announced emergency import restrictions.

“Oxford University researchers say that trees which grew during intense radiation bursts in the past have ‘time-markers’ in their tree-rings that could help archaeologists date events from thousands of years ago.”

Wayne Stiles explains how the Herodium testifies to God’s sovereignty.

The New York Times is no fan of the Ben-Hur remake.

The Associates for Biblical Research are beginning to recruit for their first season of excavations at Shiloh next summer.

Leon Mauldin posts on the end of wicked Queen Athaliah and shares a photo of a model of Jerusalem at the Bible Lands Museum.

If you wanted to know a little more about Enoch’s journey through the world (referenced in
Thursday’s survey results), Paleojudaica explains.

The new NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible is being released on Tuesday. It looks impressive, and you can flip through the entire books of Genesis and Matthew online to see for yourself.

Hundreds of photos, maps, and charts accompany study notes edited by John Walton (OT) and Craig
Keener (NT). The promotional website also includes videos and infographics.

HT: Agade, Ted Weis, Joseph Lauer

Our most re-tweeted photo of the week was this aerial photo taken by Bill Schlegel of Jerusalem from the southwest. The Citadel of David is in the foreground and the Mount of Olives is in the distance.

Tagged Antiquities Trade, Discoveries, Excavations, Galilee, Herod's Tomb, Jerusalem, Judah, Resources, Samaria

Weekend Roundup, Part 2

Haaretz (premium) has a story on the Mamertine Prison now that it has been renovated and re-opened. The history of the site goes back to the 8th century BC and was considered to be one step away from hell for its captives.

A refurbishment of the kitchens of Pompeii reveals much about ancient Roman cooking practices.

Continued restoration of the Parthenon now moves to the building’s west side.

Archaeologists working in Hala Sultan Tekke have discovered one of the most magnificent tombs ever found on the island of Cyprus. It dates to the Late Bronze Age and contains Egyptian scarabs, a diadem, and beautiful jewelry.

Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities will begin offering an annual pass to all of the country’s sites and museums.

The Times of Israel suggests the top five Jewish spots to visit in Saudi Arabia.

“Between 1,300 and 800 BC, large quantities of metal objects, including tools and weapon-like swords, daggers and arrow heads, were produced at Saruq Al Hadid” in modern Dubai. The site and its new museum are profiled in The National.

Iraq is seeking to add Babylon to the World Heritage List.

Logos users can now pre-order Barry Beitzel’s New Moody Atlas of the Bible.

HT: Ted Weis, Joseph Lauer, Agade

Tagged Egypt, Greece, Italy, Mediterranean Islands, Mesopotamia, Resources, Tourism

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

Repairs inside the Dome of the Rock are complete, and when they took photos this week, it was revealed that the reconstruction of the tile floor proposed by the Temple Mount Sifting Project is accurate.

The study of fish bones found in a 7th-century AD shipwreck near Dor indicates that a now-extinct subspecies of St. Peter’s fish was being transported on the boat (Haaretz premium).

Scholars are offering competing explanations for the massive trash dump in the Kidron Valley from the first century AD (Haaretz premium).

A jogger along the shore of Ashkelon discovered a 12th-century AD oil lamp.

Aren Maeir is providing daily updates of the excavation of Gath.

The Tel Burna team gives an update from the first two weeks of their season. Chris McKinny’s work on the LB cultic building looks particularly promising in the remaining two weeks.

Jennie Ebeling and Norma Franklin discuss several important facets of their excavations at Jezreel.

Luke Chandler discusses the possibility of a Judahite water system at Lachish and the need for funds to excavate it.

If you’re interested in a brief, well-illustrated study of the world’s largest stones used in construction projects, check out Tom Powers’s latest post.

Felicity Cobbing of the PEF was present at the opening of the Palestine Museum in Ramallah and shares her perspective.

The senior staff of the Ashkelon excavations is wrapping up their final season this month and beginning a new project at Tel Shimron with a geophysical survey this summer.

Appian Media was recently filming in Israel for their upcoming Following the Messiah video series.

They are posting updates on the project and their travels on their blog.

The Fifth Gospel is a new iBook that explores the land, the culture, and the archaeology of the Bible. It was designed for high school students and features maps, interactive quizzes, photos, and short film clips. Check it out on iTunes.

HT: Agade, Joseph Lauer

Tagged Discoveries, Galilee, Israel's Coast, Jerusalem, Jezreel Valley, Movies, Philistines, Resources, Shephelah, Temple Mount

Recommended: A Week in the Life of a Roman Centurion

If you’re looking for an enjoyable read that takes you into first-century Israel, I recommend A Week in the Life of a Roman Centurion, by Gary M. Burge. The story follows the familia of a Roman centurion as he moves from Syria to Caesarea to Capernaum, intersecting with scenes and events from the Gospels. I would highlight two strengths of the book.

First, the story is engaging, and I didn’t want to put the book down. The action keeps moving, and the characters are fascinating. You see the inner workings of a Roman legion, experience a gladiatorial contest, and witness the tense relations between Jews and Romans.

Second, the book is based on extensive historical research. So many interesting details are embedded throughout the narrative, and short sidebars provide additional explanations. Sidebar topics include: friend of Caesar, Chuza of Sepphoris, a Jewish haverim, cosmetics for women, blood sport, honor and shame, opium, and the Capernaum synagogue.

In short, this is an enjoyable work of historical fiction. It’s a good story based on excellent research. I will be adding it as a choice for a required book review for my New Testament Survey I class, and I am confident that they will give it high marks. The book is 189 pages and sells for $13 on Amazon (a little less on Kindle).

Tagged Galilee, Resources

Weekend Roundup, Part 1

An in-depth article by the Atlantic Monthly has uncovered the original source for the fake Jesus wife papyrus. The Harvard professor who published the artifact now believes that it is probably a modern forgery.

With the help of Google Earth and drones, researchers have discovered a massive ceremonial platform in Petra.

The Jerusalem Post has an update on the on-going renovations at Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity.

One of the discoveries is a mosaic of an angel.

A $1.3 million gift has launched the restoration of the Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

People are speculating on what they will find.

“Some 1,800 years ago, Roman troops used ‘whistling’ sling bullets as a ‘terror weapon’ against their barbarian foes.”

Israeli authorities have ordered the Jordanian Waqf to halt construction of toilets just outside the Temple Mount.

A collection of 16 coins from the Hasmonean period were discovered in excavations in Modiin.

A Greek archaeologist thinks he may have found the tomb of Aristotle. Others disagree.

“Massive fortifications and sunken ship-sheds thousands of years old have been found in Piraeus, the harbor city of Athens.”

Canaanites living in Gath in the Early Bronze Age were sacrificing animals imported from Egypt.

The journal article is available here.

The Giza pyramid is not square. The ancients were off by about 5 inches (14 cm).

The Guardian has posted a dozen photos of excavations in Egypt in the 1910s, including several of John Garstang.

The Bible and Interpretation has posted an important new article: Addressing Survey Methodology in the Southern Levant, by Aaron Tavger, Joe Uziel, Dvir Raviv, and Itzhaq Shai.

Scott Stripling is on The Book and the Spade this week talking about the latest from his excavations at Khirbet el-Maqatir.

Wayne Stiles traces the geography of God’s dwelling place on earth.

You don’t see this for sale very often: Survey of Western Palestine, 1881 – 1888, 9 vols and 78 maps/plates (set) & The Survey of Eastern Palestine 1889. $10k.

HT: Joseph Lauer, Ted Weis, Charles Savelle, Steven Anderson, Agade, Explorator, Daniel Wright

Tagged Egypt, Forgery, Greece, Jerusalem, Jordan, Judah, Resources, Samaria, Temple Mount

New Videos and Update on Satellite Bible Atlas

Bill Schlegel has produced new two teaching videos as a companion to the Satellite Bible Atlas:
12 The Negev, Part 1, Maps 1-12, 1-13 (10 min)
13 The Negev, Part 2, Maps 1-12, 3-1, 3-2 (12 min)

Also worthy of note is that the second edition of the Satellite Bible Atlas has been released. Purchase of the atlas ($28, includes free shipping in U.S.) includes several free bonuses:

All maps as digital files (jpg)
70 new aerial photos (jpg)

These are available as free downloads upon purchase.

Other free downloads include:
The Land and the Bible: A Historical Geographical Companion to the Satellite Bible Atlas – An in-depth commentary on the 11 historical sections in the new atlas. 190 pages, pdf format.

**New: Regional Maps Introduction – A brief commentary on the first section in the Satellite Bible Atlas.
Study Questions for the Satellite Bible Atlas – Ideal for personal or classroom use.

You can learn more and see sample photos here.

Tagged Resources