Few symbols have a tradition as long and as rich as the dove. Read about what it represents and how its use has been shared, adapted and reinterpreted across cultures Read more…
Daily Life and Practice
Archaeology, inscriptions and literature all give us an insight into daily practice in the ancient world. How did the Israelites live? What material culture did they interact with on a daily basis? How did an average person practice religion?
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The Enduring Symbolism of Doves
• 07/01/2017
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Ancient Military Correspondence: Send Wine
• 06/20/2017
Send wine: A newly deciphered letter from Israel’s Negev desert describes an exchange of supplies between two Judahite military officers. Read more…
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Why Study Prehistoric Israel?
• 06/12/2017
Studying prehistoric Israel can give us a better perspective on Israel in the Biblical period, says archaeologist Daniel Nadel. Read more…
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No Matches? No Problem. Ancient Fire-Making in Israel
• 06/08/2017
Archaeologists excavated a 9,000-year-old limestone slab in Ramat Bet Shemesh that might have been used in Neolithic fire-making. Read more…
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The Water System That Hydrated Tel Gezer
• 05/26/2017
The largest and oldest water system in the ancient Near East can be found at the site of Tel Gezer, according to archaeologists. Read more…
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Making Sense of Kosher Laws
• 05/24/2017
The origins of Jewish dietary or kosher laws (kashrut) have long been the subject of scholarly research and debate. Read more…
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Fruit in the Bible
• 05/23/2017
Seeds and fruit remains are exciting discoveries for archaeologists, and they provide radiocarbon data to help date buried strata. Fruit also plays an important role in the Biblical narrative. Read more…
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A Feast for the Senses … and the Soul
• 05/23/2017
Go on a journey of the senses through history and discover the significance of ritual feasts and meals in antiquity. Read more…
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Roman Emperor Nerva’s Reform of the Jewish Tax
• 05/22/2017
Roman Emperor Nerva’s reform of the Jewish Tax had a significant effect on Jews and Christians of the first century C.E. Read more…
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How Ancient Jews Dated Years
• 04/16/2017
During the First Jewish Revolt against Rome (66–70 C.E.), which ended with the destruction of the Temple, Jews minted their own coins dated to the first, second, third, fourth and, Read more…
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BAR Test Kitchen: Tah’u Stew
• 04/12/2017
The new feature BAR Test Kitchen hopes to introduce you to a new—yet old—kind of cooking. First on the menu is an ancient Babylonian stew. Read more…
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The Archaeological Quest for the Earliest Christians
• 04/08/2017
In part one of a two-part series, Douglas Boin presents new archaeological and historical research in the study of early Christianity. Read more…
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The Archaeological Quest for the Earliest Christians
• 04/08/2017
In part two of a two-part series, Douglas Boin challenges the idea that Christians left so few archaeological traces behind because they couldn’t afford to make them. Read more…
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How Ancient Taxes Were Collected Under King Manasseh
• 04/01/2017
Discovered during the Temple Mount Sifting Project, this seventh-century B.C.E. clay bulla inscribed in paleo-Hebrew script with the phrase “Gibeon, for the king” provides evidence for how ancient taxes were Read more…
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Bet Shemesh Dig Uncovers 2,000-Year-Old Jewish Settlement
• 03/29/2017
Archaeologists discovered eight Jewish ritual baths, cisterns and a complex of underground hiding refuges at a 2,000-year-old settlement in Israel. Read more…
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Ancient Rock Art Shines Light on “Dark” Period
• 03/22/2017
For the first time in the Southern Levant, ancient rock art has been found in a megalithic tomb structure known as a dolmen. Read more…
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Classical Corner: The Antonine Plague and the Spread of Christianity
• 03/13/2017
In 166 C.E., the Roman Empire was at the zenith of its power. The triumphant Roman legions, under the command of Emperor Lucius Verrus, returned to Rome victorious after having Read more…
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Biblical Bread: Baking Like the Ancient Israelites
• 03/07/2017
A team from the Tell Halif archaeological excavation made their own tannur, a traditional oven referenced in the Hebrew Bible, and baked bread in it. Read more…
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Medicine in the Ancient World
• 01/22/2017
What exactly did ancient cultures do to combat disease and injury, and did these methods have any real basis in science as we know it today? The answers may surprise Read more…
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The Cyprian Plague
• 01/07/2017
Archaeologists working in Thebes discovered a burial for victims of the 3rd-century C.E. Cyprian Plague. Read more…
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Ancient Cupping in Israel
• 01/03/2017
In ancient Israel, small, hollow, bell-shaped vessels were used in the medical treatment of cupping. Read more…
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Lebanese Cedar—The Prized Tree of Ancient Woodworking
• 01/02/2017
From Solomon’s Temple to the Jesus Boat, the Biblical world was built of cedar. Read more…
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No, No, Bad Dog: Dogs in the Bible
• 12/01/2016
Dogs—or celeb in Hebrew—were not well loved in the Bible. Given the negative associations with dogs, it is surprising that one of the great Hebrew spies bears this name. Read more…
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Bronze Age Figurine Resembles Rodin’s The Thinker
• 11/30/2016
A 3,800-year-old vessel unearthed during excavations in the Israeli town of Yehud bears a figurine that resembles French artist Rodin’s famed sculpture The Thinker. Read more…
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You Are What You Eat: The Israelite Diet and Archaeology
• 11/14/2016
Pigs weren’t part of the Israelite diet. Therefore if you are excavating and find lots of pig bones at your site, it can’t be Israelite—or can it? A new survey Read more…
