Between Text and Artifact: Integrating Archaeology in Biblical Studies Teaching (Archaeology and Biblical Studies)

m:",SFL;J....'>f.AKCIlOF11lEGoonBOOK 69

departurefromAJbright'searlierworks.suchasArchaeologyandtheReU~

8iol1ojIsrtleland TheArchaeologyojPalestineandtheI3ible bothof

whichfocusedmoredirectlyonreligion,especiallyancient Israelitereli-

gionandthedevelopmemofJudaismandChrislianiry,aswellat-110\'\'rhe

srudyofarchaeologyrelaredtothc!')Cde\'e1opmcnrs."WhileArchlleologyoj

PalesHnesrillintegratedreligionintotheculrurehistory.theorganizationof

Ihebookhadanexplicitlyarchaeologic-dlfocusthatworkedtoextendIhe

lempomlpar.lmetersofbiblicalbraelsfromtheearliestknownprehistoric

periodsthroughthec1assk'<:llperiod.Albrightsucceededinconstruclinga

singlehistoricalnarrativebyweddingmtifaciandleXI,wilhthearchaeo-

logicaldalausedtosupportthehistoricityofthebiblicalnarratives.

A carefulperusalofthetableofcontentsrevealsa veritable"hOW-1O

guide"forthestudyofbiblicalarchaeology,creatinga basicpedagogical

structurethatendurestotheprcscnl.^9 Albrightbeginswilhdiscrelechap-

terson"TheArtofExcavatinga PaleslinianMound" and"TheDiscovery

ofAncientPalestine,"providingwonderfullysuccinctexcur~usesintothe

historyandpracticeofexcavationmethodology,aswellasa hislOryof

thediscipline.IOChapter2 remainsausdulprecisonIhe\X'esterncxplo-

rdlionsofbiblicallands(beginningwiththeCrusades)andthereligious

iOlerestinthisputoftheworld.Most,ifnotall,ofthemajorexcava-

lionsupIhroughtheearly1950saremenlionedandgiven:10intellectual

andhi"lOric:'11COnleXI Addilionally rllt"hasicchronologyoftheareais

7 W'iJIi:lmF,Albright.Arcbtll'(J/otn·Will1m-Reti8iol/ofl~t1IelTbl!A-,~l.ectllr('ofIix'
Cofg/l/l"Rocbes!l>r'Dit:;mlySchoof, 1941 W.lltllnor~:JohnsHopkinsl-ni~crsiIYPre"....19-12);
idem.Tbl!Arcba{'{)togyofPales/lilt!amttheBibh!(1\e",York:Re\ell,1932).
tillisinleresling 10 no+:eIhelenglhy,uhheOidingbela","theIItleontheOO\"~rofIhe19S'l
revist.'<.Iooition:"IIsurveyofIhe:mcientpeoplc_~:mdculturl'softheUolyl:mdiliustr.llOO
\ilhphO+:~r:lphs,diagrJlm.andhnedr"J\ings."Alreadyontheoo\"~rIhereisa clearindicl-
lionofthetwoIXlsicappro:lChes 10 Ihestudyofthehistoryandarch:1eologyofam:ientIsr:1(~L
amoresccul;lr;Ipproachinwhichthc;lrC;1undercon~idcr:uioni~referred 10 byits~co­
~r:lrhicaldesignation,l':llcsline(a~~eeninthetitle),andamorec1ericllpcr'l:l<:ctin:inwhich
IhcS-:1l11C;lfC:lisreferred!oas"theItolyt~Ill(1"(asseeninlhcsuhhe:1ding).Itislh~tension
lX"t\l,..~nIh~~twopefSptXlivcs!h:11W;I'.inpan,lhefoeu,ofIhet"(lllfer~nc~lhatproduced
Ihi~\'olume
9 Sc..-c.e,g..IImihaiMa1_1f.Arr::h(wo/(*,yoftheUlIIl/ofthemble.IO.OOO-5R6B.CI:'.
(AIJRl;~ewYorkDoubleday.1990);\'(':llt(:rE,R:tSl.ThroughtheAJ..'<'Sill1'1I1estimtlllArcmll"
Q!OR.I"All1"lrodllctO'J'Ham/book(PhiladelphiaTrinil)'I'ressIniemationJI.191)2);\'olkmJr
Fritz,A"tlllnxil/ctkm 10 BibliCalArcbffl.>ottJKl'(JS01~up172;Sheffield:JSOTP,,-~199-0:and
JohnC.H.laughlin,An-.bael-..iOR.I'lUllltheIJllJle(London:Routled~.2(01)).
10 OuplerI isfilledwilhITI:ln)'interc"hn~rcnectionsas"ella~"ondcrfdanl"Cdo+:l.-s
th:upro~livel)ins.ghlSinlotheJf("ha(:olog)'ofIhelime.l1e,hscusscsho\ 10 handleflt."ld
te.IIll.'>.hlTl'bhorer.i.andorganize'Uf't")" J.nd"pnnklt'smdcfmllKlo.'.oftmporurnlem.~such
a~tocl,/t'lt,andstrtl1!lmIna~L'iCf1p1totht: 1954 re\1St"dedllion.he...",endiscu.ssesthe
oc"I)'disco\'cfl..'dchrononlt:tricnK'IhodofrJdiOC'J.rbondatinj.t,n