Nadav Na'aman on Hezekiah

King Sargon II (right) and his crown prince Sennacherib (left) on a relief from Khorsabad, now in the Louvre, Paris
Photo source: Livius website
Nadav Na'aman lectured yesterday on Hezekiah in view of the Biblical and archaeological sources in an evening in memory of Hayim Tadmor. He suggested that the recent trend to view Hezekiah as a powerful king is misplaced. Hezekiah received a very strong kingdom. However, Sargon II very quickly conquered both Israel and Ashdod and made them Assyrian provinces. Hezekiah found himself bordering the terrifying Assyrian empire on the northern and western border. Assyrian troops stationed at both provinces to put down revolts could easily have been used as a military force against his own kingdom. Thus, so long as Sargon II was in power, Hezekiah was careful not to do any move that might cause his own kingdom to become an Assyrian province. The uncertain future of Judah, however, eventually caused Hezekiah to join a revolt against Assyria when Sennacherib replaced Sargon II. The result was a devastating blow to Judah, coupled with a heavy tax, from which Judah did not recover for many years. The author of Chronicles, writing hundreds of years later, is totally oblivious to this reality and does not understand the threat that Assyria posed to Judah. Building upon the information in the book of Kings, Hezekiah is portrayed as a great builder and king, during whose time Judah witnessed a golden age. In fact, Hezekiah took a powerful kingdom, and led it to a devastating military blow from the Assyrian empire that now bordered his kingdom. It would be wrong for us as historians to take this utopian picture painted by the author of Chronicles and view it as historical reality.

Excavations in modern Bet El reveal a site dating to the Second Temple period

Excavations at modern Bethel
Photo source: Arutz 7 report Arutz 7 (Hebrew / French) reported May 31st on the discovery of a site dating to the Second Temple period in the modern town of Bethel (not the village Beitin, but a nearby site called Khirbet Kafr Mer). The remains, including pottery and coins show a settlement dating from the time of Alexander Jannaeus until the Great Revolt. Remains of a Byzantine church and mosaics as well as an Umayyad bathhouse were also discovered. The Byzantine/Umayyad site was abandoned in the 8th century CE. The digs are set to take about a month. I was hoping this would be translated into English but it seems it was only translated into French. The article is very repetitive but here goes:

A large archaeological site dating to the Second Temple period has been revealed in a neighborhood of Bethel. The archaeologist Har-Even: "The entire site was covered with asphalt during the Mandate period and was revealed during infrastructure work. Various artifacts from the period of King Alexander Jannaeus (Alexander Yannai) were revealed, such as coins and pottery.

...

Excavations at modern Bethel
Photo source: Arutz 7 report
A large archaeological site was discovered in the town of Bethel, providing evidence for Jewish life during the Second Temple period and other periods. It was discovered as a result of infrastructure digging in the neighborhood of Maoz Tsur and they are being undertaken by the Staff Officer of Archaeology at the Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria.

The mayor, Moshe Rosenbaum, reported that artifacts providing evidence of a Jewish site during the Second Temple period were discovered - from the period of King Alexander Jannaeus as well as the Byzantine and Umayyad periods. The digs will continue for about a month.


Excavations at modern Bethel
Photo source: Arutz 7 report
The archaeologist Binyamin Har-Even says that the archaeological digs are taking place at the site of the drill field of the Training Camp #4 military base. The site was discovered as a result of infrastructure work in the nearby neighborhood of Maoz Tsur. The site was covered in asphalt during the mandate period, when the British military base was built, which was ultimately inherited by the IDF. The site disappeared from public view until these days of infrastructure work.

The site, known as Khirbet Kafr Mer, was surveyed first in the late 19th century, by British scholars who identified the place as a settlement dating to the Byzantine and early Muslim period.


Excavations at modern Bethel
Photo source: Arutz 7 report
The archaeologist Binyamin Har-Even adds in his report to the town citizens that during current excavations, additional strata are being revealed that show that there was repeated settlement and abandonment of the area. According to him, the artifacts point towards a Second Temple period site. The dating seems to point to the entire length of the Hasmonean kingdom (2nd century BCE). Excavations revealed amongst other things coins that were minted during the period of Alexander Jannaeus.


Excavations at modern Bethel
Photo source: Arutz 7 report Similarly, various pottery and daily use vessels were discovered. "We don't know when the Second Temple period site was abandoned. It is possible that it was abandoned after the Great Revolt or the Bar Kokhba revolt at the latest. We hope to answer this question during the current excvations," writes Har-Even. "As a result of the destruction of the Jewish settlement at the site, the site lay abandoned for 250 years until the Byzantine period. At that time, Christians resettled the site and remains of a church as well as additional buildings, some of which had mosaic floors, were discovered. The site survived until the Umayyad period, to which the remains of a bathhouse are dated. It appears that during the 8th century the site was finally abandoned, and was not settled anew until modern times. The excavations add another level to our understanding of the history of settlement in this area of the land."

Read the rest of this post!

New Ancient Mud Bricks for the Tel Dan City Gate

The Middle Bronze Age city gate
Photo source: Avihu Shapira for ynet ynet (Hebrew) reported on Monday on renewed restoration effort at the Middle Bronze Age gate (contra article, which refers to it as the Late Bronze Age gate) at Tel Dan. The current stage of restoration, to last 10 days, involves building new mud bricks using ancient techniques. A translation follows:

The City Gate - Reconstructing History
by Hagai Einav
At Tel Dan this morning, experts began the third and central stage in the reconstruction of a gate initially built during the Late Bronze Age, considered to be one of the most important 13 sites in archaeology.

Great excitement was felt Monday amongst the representatives of the Israeli Nature and Park Authority and the Israeli Antiquities Authority in the north, as the third and central stage in the restoration of the "City Gate", built approximately 1500 BCE, in the area where the Tel Dan Park resides today in the Upper Galilee and which is considered an important discovery even amongst international experts.

...

The story begins in 1980, when the first signs are discovered of what is considered today to be one of the 13 important archaeological monuments. This is a gate, initially built during the Late Bronze Age, and which served for a long time those who entered the Biblical city found at the site of today's Tel Dan Park.

Elyakim Maman, a restorer from the Nature and Parks Authority in the north, described the uniqueness of the current "City Gate:" "It is an architectural structure with three arcs, one in the front, another in the inside section, and a third in the back. The gate stands 7 meters tall and its uniqueness lies in the use of such building technology at such an early time. The excavation of the site, its restoration, and its conservation are generating great interest across the world, and for us who are working to conserve the site. This is a very important and exciting moment."


New mud bricks made for the restored gate.
Photo source: Avihu Shapira for ynet In the first two stages, the appropriate type of earth was selected for the conservation work. In the second stage, a temporary wall was built, that withstood the test of time including withstanding extreme weather in the summer and winter. During the next ten days, the third stage will take place whereby the conservation workers of the Nature and Parks Authority, under the guidance of the Israeli Antiquities Authority, will create mud bricks for the restoration and conservation of the southern tower in the gate.

"One of the main problems with which we are dealing during the restoration is the slanting of the frontal tower forward and this requires complex work and great technical expertise," says Maman.

Hundreds of visitors and pilgrims visited the site Monday and one of the groups even saw the mudbrick making process up close, leading them to sing with great excitement at the impressive gate. The park workers hope that as a result of restoration of the gate and news of the excavation of the "City Gate", many pilgrims and visitors will come to visit the site at the center of the Galilee.

Related Links:

• IAA Tel Dan Conservation site (English with summary and photos)
• Tel Dan Nature Reserve site
• ynet news report (Hebrew w/ photos)
• Virtual Tour of Tel Dan

References:

• Biran, Avraham. Biblical Dan. Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society and Hebrew Union College - Institute of Religion. 1994. Show ReviewsHide Reviews
  • Eades, Keith L. "Review of Biblical Dan, by Avraham Biran". Journal of Biblical Literature 115/4 (1996): 724-726.
  • Emerton, John A. "Review of Biblical Dan, by Avraham Biran". Vetus Testamentum 44/3 (1994): 418-419.
  • Jacobs, Paul F. "Review of Biblical Dan, by Avraham Biran". Journal of the American Oriental Society 116/1 (1996): 139-140.
  • Leibowitz, Harold. "Review of Biblical Dan, by Avraham Biran". Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 308 (1997): 100-102.
• Biran, Avraham. "The Discovery of the Middle Bronze Age Gate at Dan". Biblical Archaeologist 44/3 (1981): 139-144.
• Biran, Avraham. "The Triple-Arched Gate of Laish at Tel Dan". Israel Exploration Journal 34 (1984): 1-19.

Read the rest of this post!

Jerusalem Municipality orders halt to City of David excavations

The crack in the kindergarten wall
Photo source: Kobi Gideon
for Baubau/Haaretz Meron Rappaport for Haaretz reports (English and Hebrew) that the Jerusalem municipality issued a warrant ordering excavations by the Ir David Foundation to be halted:

Kindergarten management said they fear the building will collapse and that if disaster struck they will hold the municipality and those running the excavations responsible.

The kindergarten operates in the courtyard of a mosque in the Wadi Hilwe neighborhood of the East Jerusalem suburb of Silwan. The excavations funded by the Elad association for Jewish settlement of East Jerusalem take place a few meters away from the mosque.

The excavations nearby the kindergarten
Photo source: Kobi Gideon for Baubau/Haaretz The Hebrew article includes a little tidbit that the excavations are near the Siloam pool, which suggests the excavations are those conducted by Ronny Reich and Eli Shukran, currently focusing on probably late 9th century BCE remains in the Siloam pool.

Rena Rossner reported in The Jerusalem Post a few months ago that

Reich's and Shukran's digging has unearthed valuable finds. Most recently, they have uncovered over 60 bullae (broken clay seals) and six stamps used to seal letters, attesting to the fact that literacy and a system of administration were in place in Jerusalem as early as the ninth century BCE.

They have also discovered thousands of fish bones that, together with the bullae were found in an area that Reich and Shukran believe to be the Shiloah Pool, used as a ritual bath for the Temple Mount, and a tiled road which ends at the pool and has its origins near the Temple Mount. Ostensibly, this is the road that worshipers used to go back and forth between the Shiloah Pool and the Temple Mount.

The excavated pool and the steel scaffolding
Photo source: The Jerusalem Post To support the excavation, a huge steel scaffolding system was constructed underneath. My understanding was that right now, the remains found at the site were still being very carefully sifted for the bullae, seals, and fish and animal bones, so I am not sure if any true further excavations have been made.

Related Links:

• "True size of Pool of Siloam discovered due to sewer blockage," Haaretz Dec 23, 2005.
• "The Once and Future City," by Rena Rossner, for The Jerusalem Post Jan 30, 2006.
• City of David website (Hebrew)

  A nice website, including articles (in Hebrew), photographs, and a model showing how the City of David evolved through the ages. Worth visiting even if you don't read Hebrew.

• Hebrew scholarship relating to the City of David, from the City of David website. The articles are in pdf form but do not include attached figures and images.
• A Hebrew-language "virtual tour" of the City of David (wmv format), from the Maariv website.

Underwater Museum Opens in Caesarea

Maariv reports on a new archaeological museum that opens this week in Caesarea:
Map of the Caesarea Maritima
Photo source: Combined Caesarea Expeditions home page

Diving equipment, a guide with oxygen-containers on his back, plastic maps, and a totally wet experience may sound like another regular diving endeavor, but in fact, this is the tour that the first Israeli underwater museum will offer, opening this week in Caesarea.

The archaeological park will open this Friday in Caesarea, on the remains of a port that King Herod built 2000 years ago, the Caesarea Maritima, and which sunk underwater after only a century. The park, a project in which hundreds of thousands of dollars were invested, under the direction of Sarah Aharonson, will allow anyone that has undergone a basic diving course to take off his shoes, wear the diving suit, and dive into the past - the port's remains.

The park is over 25000 square feet in size, and is divided into four tour routes along the ancient port: the port's entrance, the lighthouse remains, the remains of the piers, the breakwaters, and the docking platforms, remains of jewelry, statue bases, coins, and a shipwreck.

"This is a one-of-a-kind park in the whole world," says Dr. Nadav Kashtan, a lecturer at the Dept. of Maritime Civlizations at Haifa University, "the explorers-divers will enjoy a special wet experience of time travel."

Related Links:

• Combined Caesarea Expeditions - Underwater Excavations of Sebastos: King Herod's Harbor

References:

• Raban, Avner, and Kenneth G. Holum. Caesarea Maritima: A Retrospective After Two Millennia (Documenta Et Monumenta Orientis Antiqui, V. 21). Leiden: E. J. Brill. 1996. Show ReviewHide Review
  • Magness, Jodi. "Review of Caesarea Maritima: A Retrospective after Two Millennia, ed. by Avner Raban and Kenneth G. Holum". In Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 308 (1997): 108-110.

Conference Announcement: David and Goliath - New Discoveries

Dr. Jim West forwarded the following from the Agade mailing list:

ACADEMIC CONFERENCE:
DAVID AND GOLIATH - NEW DISCOVERIES
In the Fields of Archaeology, Ancient History, Philology, and Medicine (Lectures in Hebrew)

The conference will take place in the auditorium of the central building in the Industrial Park of Omer (near Beer-Sheva) on Monday, April 24, 2006 from 16:30 - 19:00. Free parking is available.

The Program of the Conference:

• 16:30 - Gathering and Light Refreshments
  
• 16:50 - Greetings and Introductory Remarks
  
  • Prof. Rivka Karmi, President of Ben-Gurion University
  • Prof Vladimir Berginer, Chairman of the 'David's Victory' Foundation
• 17:00 - Dr. Gabriel Barkai, "Jerusalem in the Davidic Period - Problems and Facts"
• 17:40 - Prof. Aren Maeir, "The Archaeological Excavations at Gath of the Philistines and the Evidence Concerning Goliath"
• 18:20 - Prof. Vladimir Berginer and Prof. Chaim Cohen, "The Nature of Goliath's Visual Disorder and the Actual Role of His Personal Bodyguard: נשא הצנה nś) hsnh (1 Sam 17:7,41)"

Immediately after the conference (for those interested), there will be a screening of the film "Footsteps of Goliath" (in English), a production of the History-Science channel of Canada-Holland TV.

Free parking is available alongside the entrance gate to the Industrial Park of Omer, opposite the Luzzato Building.

References:

• Naaman, Nadav. "The Contribution of the Amarna Letters to the Debate on Jerusalem's Political Position in the Tenth Century B.C.E." Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 304. pp. 17-27.
• Thompson, Thomas L. Jerusalem In Ancient History And Tradition (Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series). London: Continuum, 2003.

Kafr Cana Update

Update April 17, 2006: A slightly different article is now available at The Washington Times. Details follow the main quotations.


An undated but recent photo made available by
the IAA of the Kfar Kana excavation site
Photo source: Yahoo / AP Photo / IAA, Mar. 13, 2006 The Toronto Sun has an article with some new information on the recent excavation at Kfar Cana in the Galilee, interviewing Yardenna Alexandre, "a British-born graduate of the Institute of Archaeology at University College London, who works with the Israel Antiquities Authority." Much of the article ties the village to the times of Jesus, but some information is also provided relating to the early Iron Age finds:

With bulldozers virtually waiting in the wings, they have exposed part of the Israelite city wall and the remains of houses built alongside it 3,000 years ago during the era of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. ... Referring to the Iron Age settlement that dates back to the previous millennium (1,000 B.C.), Alexandre said most of its structures were built shortly before the creation of the northern kingdom of Israel. This kingdom was formed when that of Kings Saul, David and Solomon was divided between Solomon's heir, Reheboam, and his Israelite rival, Jereboam.

She and her team uncovered the remains of a wall that enclosed the settlement's 1.2 hectare area. They also discovered the remains of a kiln where the diggers came upon a great deal of burned material.

Other finds included loom weights which were "well known to the people of the Iron Age," she said. The Israelite town was destroyed in the ninth century B.C., probably by the Aramaeans, who then ruled Damascus. Ancient Cana was rebuilt shortly afterward.

Among the foreign armies which attacked it was that of the Assyrians who carried off 650 residents as captives. This is cited in a tablet composed by the Assyrian leader, Tiglat Pileser III, which was found in the Assyrians' capital, Calah, located in the north of modern-day Iraq.

The article mentions the possibility that the site or part of the area will be made into an archaeological park. Read the full article here. Update: In contrast to this optimistic attitude, The Washington Times has what appears to be a slight revision of the earlier article. It notes that the site "has been excavated by archaeologists in a crash effort to uncover its ruins before they are pulverized by local building contractors." Other interesting details from the second article include the dating of the Iron Age settlement: "[The] earlier town was destroyed in the ninth century B.C., probably by the Arameans who then ruled Damascus, Syria, Miss Alexandre said. Ancient Cana was rebuilt before the ninth century ended." Of the much later settlement, it notes that "many of Cana's houses contained ritual baths and stone vessels indicating its inhabitants were Galilean Jews at the time of the miracle described in the Gospel of John. ... Miss Alexandre emphasized that her scientific work was not inspired or motivated by the miracle associated with Cana."

Related Links:

• Earlier reports of the discovery
• The website of the Cana of the Galilee excavation efforts

  The reports refer to a "rescue" dig unrelated to the organized excavation efforts at the site represented by the website.

• Introduction to the Cana archaeological site (from the organized excavation effort website).