Biblical Archaeology Review - January-February 2018

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018

VOL. 44 NO. 1

6 FIRST PERSON

A New Chapter

8 QUERIES&COMMENTS

12 STRATA

■Bibliotheca Alexandrina’s

Father Has Died

■Restoration Unveils Coptic

Monastery Frescoes

■Jonah’s Destroyed Tomb Reveals

an Archaeological Secret

ALSO...

13 Do You Remember?

14 Who Did It?

15 Milestones

15 Exhibit Watch

16 New Dig Reports

18 Cartoon Caption Contest

20 CLASSICAL CORNER

A Subterranean Surprise in

the Roman Catacombs

Sarah K. Yeomans

60 BIBLICAL VIEWS

Neither Jew nor Greek, Slave

nor Free, Male and Female

Karin Neutel

62 ARCHAEOLOGICAL VIEWS

Performing Psalms

in Biblical Times

Thomas Staubli

64 REVIEWS

68 AUTHORS

72 WORLDWIDE

DEPARTMENTS

FEATURES

World’s Largest Circulation Biblical Archaeology Magazine

DIGS 2018

Jerusalem’s Ancient Trash

Stone Artisans of Israelite Hazor

Ancient Silver Scrolls: Why Miniature

Blessings Matter

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018WWW.BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGY.ORG Y VOL 44 NO 1 Y $5.95 ON THE COVER:
Cade
Kamaleson
from Wheaton
College helps
uncover a
cooking pot
dated to the
Late Hellenistic/
Early Roman period (fi rst century
B.C.E.–fi rst century C.E.) at Tel
Shimron.
PHOTO: © TEL SHIMRON EXCAVATIONS/PHOTO BY KATE BIRNEY

24 Digs 2018: Migration and Immigration in Ancient Israel

Robert R. Cargill

Migration and immigration are not just modern occurrences—both the Bible and

archaeology show that ancient Israel was a land of immigrants. Come along and

explore several excavations investigating the movement of peoples throughout the

Holy Land and learn about the 2018 dig opportunities!

36 Jerusalem and the Holy Land(fill)

Yuval Gadot

Excavations on Jerusalem’s Southeastern Hill—just outside the “City of David”—

have exposed a landfill from the Early Roman period (first century B.C.E. to first

century C.E.). This garbage provides insight into residents’ daily lives and habits

during a politically, socially, and religiously tumultuous chapter of Jerusalem’s

history—when Rome ruled, the Temple stood, and Jesus preached.

46 Romancing the Stones: The Canaanite

Artistic Tradition at Israelite Hazor

Danny Rosenberg and Jennie Ebeling

The most important city-state in the southern Levant during the second millennium

B.C.E., Hazor was known for its magnificent architecture and artifacts that attest

to the craftsmanship of its Canaanite population. Following a hiatus of 200 years,

Hazor was resettled by the Israelites, who, it seems, inherited one particularly

Canaanite craft tradition. Explore the surprising continuity in the production of

basalt vessels at Hazor.

52 Words Unseen: The Power of Hidden Writing

Jeremy D. Smoak

In 1979, archaeologist Gabriel Barkay discovered two miniature silver scrolls from a

late Iron Age (seventh century B.C.E.) tomb in Ketef Hinnom outside of Jerusalem.

When unrolled, the scrolls had tiny texts written on them—similar to the priestly

blessing in Numbers 6:24–26. Curiously, though, these texts were hidden from

human eyes, which begs the question: Who was their intended audience?

24