Step into summer with an extra helping of biblical archaeology! In the July/August/September/October 2019 double issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, explore biblical people and sites. Discover how people worshiped at ancient temples, baked bread in ancient Judah, bathed in ancient Palestine, and buried their infants in ancient Canaan. Investigate the Wise Woman of Abel Beth Maacah, Samson and his wife, and Moses. Explore a reconstruction of King Herod’s Royal Portico, and delve into the Copper Scroll and the Song of Liberation, two intriguing ancient texts. Finally, take a tour of women trailblazers in the field of biblical archaeology.
Visit us online at Bible History Daily to see the latest news in Biblical archaeology, as well as additional articles and videos about key Bible and archaeology topics. Explore the free eBook Life in the Ancient World: Crafts, Society, and Daily Practice about life for everyday people in the biblical world (biblicalarchaeology.org/ancientlives). Be sure to explore the BAS Library, which features every article ever published in BAR, Bible Review, and Archaeology Odyssey, as well as Special Collections of articles curated by BAS editors, including one about biblical heroines, from Esther and Judith to Mary Magdalene, who shaped biblical history and the message of the Bible (biblicalarchaeology.org/biblewomen).
By Nava Panitz-Cohen and Naama Yahalom-Mack
Appearing in 2 Samuel 20, the Wise Woman of Abel Beth Maacah adroitly saves her town from destruction. Who was this woman, and what role did she play in Israelite tradition that understood cities like Abel Beth Maacah and Tel Dan to be hosts to oracles and seers?
By Orit Peleg-Barkat
A synthesis of Hellenistic and Roman architecture, King Herod’s Royal Portico on the Temple Mount was one of his most ambitious and impressive construction projects. What archaeological evidence can we use to reconstruct this magnificent structure?
By Beth Alpert Nakhai
In ancient Canaan, people often buried their dead babies in storage jars, which they then deposited under the floor or wall of a house, in an open area, or in a tomb. Explore this custom with Beth Alpert Nakhai, who makes sense of these perplexing burials.
By Eva von Dassow
Preserved in cuneiform tablets from around 1400 B.C.E., the Song of Liberation tells a story of the people of Igingallish being held as captives in the neighboring city of Ebla. When gods rule this unjust, it is up to Ebla’s assembly to decide their own fate.
By Cecilia Wassén
It is generally assumed that the increased production of stone vessels and the introduction of stepped pools around the turn of the era reflect Jewish concerns with ritual purity. Cecilia Wassén suggests other, more mundane, factors, such as general Hellenizing influences and the Roman culture of bathing.
By Cynthia Shafer-Elliott
Excavations at Tell Halif have uncovered several houses from the eighth century B.C.E. One house in particular offers up a host of information about ancient Judahite food processes and preparation. Explore how bread was baked at Tell Halif—and who did the baking.
By Anne Katrine de Hemmer Gudme
When people visited temples in ancient Palestine, how did they worship? Archaeologists have uncovered large amounts of dedicatory inscriptions from ancient temples, including the Samaritan temple on Mt. Gerizim. Discover what role these inscriptions played in worship.
By Joan E. Taylor
In 1952, archaeologists discovered the Copper Scroll in a cave near the Dead Sea. It details a vast treasure hidden in various locations throughout the Judean wilderness. Although none of this treasure has been found, could it refer to articles from the Jerusalem Temple?
By Mahri Leonard-Fleckman
Borders and ethnicities are not always as cut and dry as the lines on a map. Modern readers tend to place social constructs on ancient peoples that simply did not exist. Sitting at a crossroads, biblical Timnah defies identification, as concepts of identity were fluid.
By Robert R. Cargill
By Amanda Mbuvi
By Jennie Ebeling
Servant of the King
Highway Through History
Who Did It?
Exhibit Watch
Cartoon Caption Contest
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