BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Israel’s National Heritage Restoration Plan Takes Shape

Bible and archaeology news

Two years into Israel’s project to improve and restore archaeological and heritage sites across the country, some progress has been made towards determining exactly which sites will be restored, though there is still much work to be done. “You can’t do conservation in a hurry,” said Reuven Pinsky, who heads the national heritage project for Prime Minister’s Office. “Haste is the antithesis of heritage preservation.” According to Reuven, among the more than 20 sites around the country that have already been approved for restoration and development are the Biblical-period mounds of Tel Lachish (pictured) and Tel Arad, as well as the conical hill of Herodium build by King Herod as his final resting place. But the project still has to comb through proposals submitted by the owners and managers of hundreds of heritage sites in both Israel and the West Bank. “My job is to often say no,” said Reuven. “There is a lot of pressure on [the project], but it comes from local council heads. Many of them think I have piles of money to distribute.”

Two years into Israel’s project to improve and restore archaeological and heritage sites across the country, some progress has been made towards determining exactly which sites will be restored, though there is still much work to be done.