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

DESSEl:INSEARCHOFTHEGOODBOOK 83

book.^52 Therearetwentymapsthatincludeperiodmapsofexcavaledsites
andusefulartifactdistributionmaps(e.g.,obsidiantradeintheNearEast,
distributionofAbydoswareintheEarlyBronzeAge,orNegevfonressesin
theIronAge).Thereare~&;illustrations,againcomprisedoflinedraWings
andblackandwhitepholographsofmostoftheimponantartifacls,pottery
assemblages,andarchitecturalandstratumplans.Additionally,thereare
forty-sevencolorplalesofparticularlyfamousarlifactsandsiteviewsthat
add greatlytothevolume. Theuseofhigh-qualiry paper, evenin the
paperbackedition,makesforhigh-qualitygraphicreproductions.
TheArchaeologyofSocietyin IheHolyLand,editedbyThomasE.
Levy, mustalsobe includedin the~newcanon."S3This isan unusual
volumethaidoesnotreallyfollowin theAlbrightiantradition,perhaps
because,unlikeanyoftheotherhandbooks,Levy'sisthepublishedpro-
ceedingsofasymposiumheldattheUniversityofCalifornia,SanDiego,
entitled"TheArchaeologyofSocietyintheHolyLand-NewPerspectives
onthePast."54Theunusualnatureofthevolumeismadeclearbythe
title,whichjuxtaposesArchaeologyofSociely,indicatingananthropologi-
calorientation, to Holy Lmzd, which redirects thereaderback tothe
parochialoriginsofbiblicalarchaeology.55Levy,a prehistorianbytrain-
ing,neverreallyexplainswhyheoptsforthetermHolyLand,althoughin
theprefacehegoes 10 greatlengths 10 situatethisvolumesquarelyinthe
campofanthropologicalarchaeologyandindirectoppositiontobiblical
archaeology.56Anotherunusualcharacteristic,butalsoa realstrength,is
theextraordinarytemporalcoverage,fromtheLowerPaleolithicthrough
thetwentiethcenturyC.E.Thisisunmatchedbyanyotherhandbookand
makesthisvolumeveryuseful.
Thisisanotherexampleofaneditedvolumethaiinterspersesa few
thematiccontributionsintoanoverallchronologicalframework.AsinBen-
Tor,thecontributorsarcallexpertsintheirfield,anobviousstrengthwhen

52 Theemphasisonchronologicalandstr;ltigraphicdetailsprobablyreflectsthenature
ofaneditedvolume.inwhichindividualexpertsinspecificperiodshavea greatermastery
overandinterestinthechronologicalminutiaanditsimplicationsforsyntheticoverviews.
53 ThomasE.l.evyTheArchaeologyofSocietyiI/(beflolyhmd(NewYork:FiletsonFile.
1995).
54 ThissymfX)siumwassponsoredbytht.·DepartmentofAnthropologyandJudaicStud-
iesProgramatUniversityofCaliforni:l,SanDiego,in1993.
55 lJ.elweenpolitical,religious,cultural,andm:lrketingagendas,aswellasiSSllesofspon-
sorship,itisbecomingincre:lsinglydifficulttoparsethepreciseintentionsofthese terms.In
thiscase.theuseofthetermHolyI.mlllisperplexing,asu:vyassiduouslytriestodecouplethe
llibJelromthearchaeology.Additionally,lormost 01 theperiodscovered,beginn.ngwiththe
w\verPaleolithic.itisnotatallclearthatthe"land"underconsiderationisatall"holy:
56 Levy,ArcbaevlogyofSocielyilltbeHolyLand,x.Levyiscurrentlycodirecting,with
Dr.RussellAdams,theexcavationsatjah:llHamratfidaninjordan.