Archeology

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Anglo-Saxons in the Byzantine Army

While elite sixth-century CE graves in England may be famous for what they tell us about Anglo-Saxon culture, they might also bear evidence that the peoples of the British Isles were more connected to the ancient world than previously assumed. According to two British scholars, grave goods at several important sites could only have come from the eastern reaches of the Byzantine Empire, where they were likely picked up while Anglo-Saxon warriors served as mercenaries in the Byzantine war against the Sassanids.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/archaeology-today/anglo-saxons-in-the-byzantine-army/?

Archaeological Evidence of Gideon the Judge?

Archaeologists officially announced the discovery of a 3,100-year-old inscription from the site of Khirbet al-Ra‘i that may be evidence of Gideon the Judge. Khirbet al-Ra‘i, thought by some to be biblical Ziklag (e.g., 1 Samuel 30), is a small hill settlement about 2.5 miles west of Tel Lachish, the important Canaanite city-state and, later, Judahite center famously destroyed by Sennacherib (701 B.C.E.). The Khirbet al-Ra‘i excavation—a joint project of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Israel Antiquities Authority, and Macquarie University—has been carried out every summer since 2015.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-artifacts/inscriptions/archaeological-evidence-of-gideon-the-judge/?

Tour Showcases Remains of Herod’s Jerusalem Palace—Possible Site of the Trial of Jesus

Visitors to Jerusalem’s Old City can explore remains of King Herod’s palace, which may be where Roman governor Pontius Pilate tried and condemned Jesus of Nazareth to death. Excavating from 1999–2000 underneath an abandoned Ottoman-period prison known as the Kishle—which is part of the so-called Tower of David complex—Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologist Amit Re’em uncovered the foundation walls and sewage system of Herod’s Jerusalem palace. Tours offered through the Tower of David Museum will showcase these finds.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/news/herods-jerusalem-palace-trial-of-jesus/?

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Roman Warrior Goddess on Mount Carmel

While hiking on Mt. Carmel outside of Haifa, a young teenager spotted an object on the ground that he originally took to be a rusty old bolt. Upon closer inspection, however, he was shocked to find a 1,800-year-old ring depicting the Roman warrior goddess Minerva.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/roman-warrior-goddess-on-mount-carmel/?

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Does the Past Inform the Present?

Archaeological objects are fascinating, but not always because of what they reveal about the past. Sometimes, it is the journeys these objects take after they are unearthed that provide new insights into how we interact with and think about the past and how we use it to tell our own stories. Presented here are two such journeys.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/archaeology-today/does-the-past-inform-the-present/?

10 Things to Know About the Assyrian Empire

The Assyrians referenced in the Hebrew Bible were a mighty force that exerted power over much of the Near East, including Israel and Judah, in the ninth through seventh centuries B.C.E. In “Biblical Archaeology 101: Who Were the Assyrians?” in the May/June 2019 issue of BAR, ancient Near Eastern studies professor Christopher B. Hays describes the Assyrians’ beginnings more than a millennium before they appeared in the Bible and how they expanded their empire from Urartu to Egypt. Below, learn 10 fascinating facts about the Assyrians.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-near-eastern-world/10-things-to-know-about-the-assyrian-empire/?

The Church of Laodicea in the Bible and Archaeology

Why does the author of the Book of Revelation call the church of Laodicea “lukewarm”?

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/church-of-laodicea-in-the-bible-and-archaeology/?

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A City in the Moabite Heartland

Get to know biblical Israel’s neighbor in the Transjordan

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/a-city-in-the-moabite-heartland/?

Asherah and the Asherim: Goddess or Cult Symbol?

Exploring the Biblical and archaeological evidence

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/asherah-and-the-asherim-goddess-or-cult-symbol/?

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Earliest Example of “Biblical Scarlet” Discovered

Translated into English as “scarlet,” biblical Tola‛at Hashani was one of three colors that decorated the tabernacle during Israel’s desert wanderings (Exodus 26:1). Obtained from a certain species of scale insect, the dye that produced the reddish color, also known as kermes, was poorly attested before the Roman period. Now, Israeli archaeologists have found evidence the dye was used to color a 3,800-year-old piece of woolen textile discovered in a cave near Masada.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/earliest-example-of-biblical-scarlet-discovered/?

Excavating Ancient Pella, Jordan

The fourth-century church historian Eusebius of Caesarea tells of the earliest Christians’ escape to Pella (in present-day Jordan) from Jerusalem just before the latter city was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. Did this miraculous event occur? Is there evidence of first-century Christians at ancient Pella?

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/excavating-ancient-pella-jordan/?

Pella: A Window on Survival

Before writing my doctoral thesis two decades ago, the only Pella that I knew about was a small town in south central Iowa famous for its windows and doors. But in the course of my research, I discovered fascinating data about another Pella located in the Perean foothills of the Jordan River. In March [2012] I finally had the opportunity to visit the Pella located in northwestern Jordan.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-places/pella-a-window-on-survival/?

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Hazor and the Seven-Headed Serpent

What do a Mesopotamian cylinder seal, a Greek vase, and the Book of Revelation have in common? Seven-headed serpents. The only issue is that scholars are not certain why. Publishing in the journal Near Eastern Archaeology, Christoph Uehlinger of the University of Zurich believes a small stamp seal discovered at Tel Hazor in northern Israel may finally provide a clue as to how the myth of the seven-headed serpent was transmitted between cultures across the millennia.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/hazor-and-the-seven-headed-serpent/?

Anna in the Bible

Anna is one of the Bible’s most unusual women. Introduced at the end of the Birth Narrative (Luke 1:1-2:40), Anna concludes the sextet of named, pious Israelites surrounding the miraculous births of John and Jesus. The others are Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary, Joseph and Simeon. Anna arrives at the purification of Mary, Joseph and Jesus in the Temple, 40 days after Jesus’ birth (Luke 2:22-38). It is a scene repeated over and over in Israelite culture, for the law required a sacrifice of a lamb or two pigeons or two doves after a son’s birth (Leviticus 12:2-8).

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/people-in-the-bible/anna-in-the-bible/?

Missing Wall of Biblical Jerusalem Discovered

The missing Jerusalem wall proves Iron Age Jerusalem was a well-fortified city

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/missing-wall-of-biblical-jerusalem-discovered/?

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Souvenirs to Riot Over

According to Acts 19, there was once a riot in the ancient city of Ephesus instigated by a silversmith named Demetrius. At some point, this particular silversmith saw a dramatic drop in sales and felt his future livelihood to be severely threatened. According to the text, Demetrius produced silver shrines of Artemis and blamed Christians—and their theological views—for people not wanting to buy his wares. He gathered a group of likeminded craftsmen who were equally put out by the growing influence of this new religion and they stirred the city into a frenzy. They claimed that the presence of the apostle Paul and his ilk would destroy Artemis’s reputation and that of her temple in Ephesus, which was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-rome/souvenirs-to-riot-over/?

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Mystery of the Egyptian Screaming Woman mummy ‘who died wailing in pain 3,000 years ago’

An ancient Egyptian mummy who was found wearing a black wig and had a “screaming” face may have died wailing in pain around 3,000 years ago, scientists believe.

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/3548128777067-mystery-of-the-egyptian-screaming-woman-mummy-who-died-wailing-in-pain-3000-years-ago?

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Neolithic Homes Uncovered in Saudi Arabia

While little is known about the Neolithic people of northwest Arabia, recent excavations in the region have showcased their cultural complexity as well as their connections with the Levant. Publishing in the journal Levant, an international team of archaeologists presented the first detailed description of long-term Neolithic homes in the region, showing that northern Arabia had a much higher level of occupation than previously assumed. The study also shed new light on what these Neolithic people ate, the tools they used, and who they traded with.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-near-eastern-world/neolithic-homes-uncovered-in-saudi-arabia/?

The Bethesda Pool, Site of One of Jesus’ Miracles

Among the most famous of Jesus’ miracles is recounted in the Gospel of John, where Jesus heals the paralytic at the Bethesda Pool (John 5:2-9). It is not the only one of Jesus’ miracles of healing to take place at a pool in Jerusalem, however. In addition to the Bethesda Pool, the Gospel of John also says that Jesus healed the blind man at the Siloam Pool. The Siloam Pool was discovered in 2005 and was quickly identified with the pool mentioned in John. The Bethesda Pool, on the other hand, was excavated in the late 19th century, but it has taken more than 100 years for archaeologists to accurately identify and interpret the site. The Siloam Pool has been identified as a mikveh. Is it possible that the Bethesda Pool was also a mikveh, meaning that both of Jesus’ miracles were performed at Jewish ritual baths? This is what author Urban C. von Wahlde proposes in “The Puzzling Pool of Bethesda.”

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/jerusalem/the-bethesda-pool-site-of-one-of-jesus-miracles/?

 

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Who Is Abishag?

Abishag the Shunammite is one of many women in the story of King David, but unlike fairly well known figures like Abigail and Bathsheba, the Bible tells us very little about her. Indeed, Abishag only shows up in a handful of verses, twice as a sort of servant to the king, and once as the object of Prince Adonijah’s marriage request. Although her brief appearance might make Abishag an easy character to overlook, the strange specificity she receives in the text often leaves readers asking, “Who is Abishag?” Daniel Bodi, Professor of History of Religions of Antiquity at the Sorbonne University in Paris, explores this question in his article “Abishag: Bedwarmer or Bureaucrat?” published in the Summer 2024 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/people-in-the-bible/who-is-abishag/?

A Tomb in Jerusalem Reveals the History of Crucifixion and Roman Crucifixion Methods

In the history of crucifixion, the death of Jesus of Nazareth stands out as the best-known example by far. Crucifixion in antiquity was actually a fairly common punishment, but there were no known physical remains from a crucifixion. Then, in 1968, archaeologist Vassilios Tzaferis excavated a Jerusalem tomb that contained the bones of a crucified man named Yehohanan. As Tzaferis reported in BAR (see below), the discovery demonstrated the brutal reality of Roman crucifixion methods in a way that written accounts never had before.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/crucifixion/a-tomb-in-jerusalem-reveals-the-history-of-crucifixion-and-roman-crucifixion-methods/?

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Is Jesus’ Crucifixion Reflected in Soil Deposition?

According to the Gospel of Matthew, an earthquake shook Jerusalem on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. A study of cores of soil deposition and seismic activity near the Dead Sea in the Volume 54, Issue 10 of International Geology Review^* may provide scientific data relating to the event described in Matthew 27.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/crucifixion/jesus-crucifixion-reflected-in-soil-deposition/?

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Scores of Egyptian Tombs Uncovered

Excavations by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, in the necropolis of Tell al-Deir, about 125 miles north of Cairo, revealed 63 mudbrick tombs and pit burials dating to Egypt’s Late Period (c. 664–332 BCE). The excavations shed further light on the importance and social stratification of the ancient port city of Damietta, which the necropolis served. The tombs of Tell al-Deir, which follow the standard architectural layout of the Late Period, also help to redate this important layer of Damietta’s history.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-egypt/scores-of-egyptian-tombs-uncovered/?

Barnabas: An Encouraging Early Church Leader

This is the first of two posts written by Dr. Robin Branch on Barnabas, an early church leader. The blogs are condensed from a longer article by Dr. Branch titled, “Barnabas: Early Church leader and model of encouragement,” In die Skriflig 41.2 (2007): pp. 295-322. To read part two, click here.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/people-in-the-bible/barnabas-an-encouraging-early-church-leader/?

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A trove of artifacts from Egypt’s last dynasty has been found in 63 tombs

CAIRO (AP) — A trove of artifacts from Egypt’s last dynasty has been discovered in 63 tombs in the Nile Delta area and experts are working to restore and classify the finds, an official with the country’s antiquities authority said Monday.

https://apnews.com/article/egypt-ancient-tombs-antiquities-nile-delta-254a01965cc27cf3ab113d4dc32dad6a?

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Antioch’s Silent Guardians

When a massive earthquake struck Antakya, Turkey, in 2023 (see Going, Going, Gone: Devastation in Antakya), this was, sadly, far from the first time. A long history of devastating earthquakes—along with thick alluvial deposits from the Orontes River—explains why so little of the ancient Greco-Roman city, Antioch-on-the-Orontes, survives and why neither the imperial residence nor the Great Church, begun under Constantine the Great, has been found. ^a

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/antiochs-silent-guardians/?

Çatalhöyük Mural: The Earliest Representation of a Volcanic Eruption?

In the early 1960s, archaeologist James Mellaart uncovered a mural at Çatalhöyük, the world’s largest and best-preserved Neolithic site, which he interpreted to represent a volcanic eruption. Fifty years later, scientific tests done on pumice at the nearby volcano Hasan Dağ confirm that there was, in fact, an eruption between 9,500 and 8,400 years ago—a timespan including the era that the mural was likely painted.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/news/catalhoyuk-mural-the-earliest-representation-of-a-volcanic-eruption/?

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Stonehenge’s ‘altar stone’ originally came from Scotland and not Wales, new research shows

WASHINGTON (AP) — The ancient ritual meaning of Stonehenge is still a mystery, but researchers are one step closer to understanding how the famous stone circle was created.

https://apnews.com/article/stonehenge-scotland-altar-stone-7f0896476ac8e2b955224377ff9f661e?

 

Modern theory

Stonehenge’s Altar Stone, which lies at the heart of the ancient monument in southern England, likely came from hundreds of miles away in current-day Scotland. The new research overturned a century-old notion about its origins.

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Ancient artwork

Archaeologists unearthed a beautiful and remarkably well-preserved mosaic that was “hidden for thousands of years” in northwestern England. Featuring fish and dolphins, it was found in a city almost as large as Pompeii during its heyday.

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Is the World’s Oldest House Church in Dura-Europos?

Once an impressive stronghold of the Roman Empire, the city of Dura-Europos, located along the banks of the Euphrates River in eastern Syria, is a treasure trove of archaeological discoveries. However, one of its most famous features—the oldest house church ever discovered—may not be what it first appears. Publishing in the Journal of Roman Archaeology, two scholars have suggested that while the building is certainly the oldest place of Christian assembly ever discovered, the term “house church” is likely a misnomer.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-rome/dura-europos-house-church/?

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Antioch’s Silent Guardians

How early Christians viewed the ancient city

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/antiochs-silent-guardians/?

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Multicultural Elephantine

Elephantine sits at the historical southern border of ancient Egypt, by the modern city of Aswan. This strategic location made it an important trade and military post. Rich archaeological deposits and textual sources reveal the long and layered history of this island in the Nile, where many different languages, cultures, and religions met early in the history of north-east Africa.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/exhibits-events/multicultural-elephantine/?

Jewish Purification: Stone Vessel Workshop Discovered in Galilee

Where do the “Stone Age” and the time of Jesus meet without the aid of a space-time wormhole? At the Galilean site of ‘Einot Amitai near Nazareth in northern Israel, where archaeologists discovered a 2,000-year-old quarry and workshop that produced stone vessels.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/news/jewish-purification-stone-vessel-workshop-galilee/?

Hezekiah’s Tunnel Reexamined

Hezekiah’s Tunnel, part of Jerusalem’s water system, is located under the City of David. It connects the Gihon Spring—Jerusalem’s fresh water supply—with the Siloam Pool. According to 2 Chronicles 32:2–4 and 2 Kings 20:20, this tunnel was dug during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah to prepare Jerusalem for the imminent attack of the Assyrian king, Sennacherib. In the Bible, Hezekiah redirected the water through old and newly dug Jerusalem tunnels. However, many have wondered if Hezekiah’s Tunnel was actually dug by Hezekiah at the end of the eighth century B.C.E. (Iron Age II). In the September/October 2013 issue of BAR, editor Hershel Shanks reviews the evidence for the dating of the Jerusalem tunnels in “Will King Hezekiah Be Dislodged from His Tunnel?”

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/jerusalem/hezekiahs-tunnel-reexamined/?

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Second Temple Trash

Excavations of Jerusalem’s Second Temple drainage channel have revealed fascinating details about the last decades of the flourishing city before its destruction by the Romans in 70 CE. By uncovering the trash left behind by Jerusalem’s first-century residents, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) has been able to fill in the gaps in Jerusalem’s material and culinary culture.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/second-temple-trash/?

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Archaeologists in Virginia unearth colonial-era garden with clues about its enslaved gardeners

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) — Archaeologists in Virginia are uncovering one of colonial America’s most lavish displays of opulence: An ornamental garden where a wealthy politician and enslaved gardeners grew exotic plants from around the world.

https://apnews.com/article/colonial-williamsburg-garden-archaeology-enslaved-custis-47b441d5fb5b917ac15f10fc5fc1ccf3?

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AI Unlocks Ancient Texts

While the Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the most famous ancient texts ever written and is available today in dozens of languages and editions, modern scholars have only succeeded in recovering around 70 percent of the original Akkadian epic. Since the first fragment of the text was identified in the late 1800s, Assyriologists (experts in cuneiform languages and cultures) have worked tirelessly to find new fragments to fill in the missing gaps in the text, a full copy of which has never been discovered. Launched in 2018, the AI project Fragmentarium is helping scholars identify not just fragments of Gilgamesh, but countless other ancient cuneiform texts.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/archaeology-today/ai-unlocks-ancient-texts/?

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An Assyrian Genie in First Temple Jerusalem

How did an Assyrian genie end up in Jerusalem during the First Temple period? During continued excavations of the City of David in Jerusalem, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) uncovered a rare stone seal bearing two names in paleo-Hebrew script and a depiction of a Neo-Assyrian winged genie. Likely belonging to a high official in the Judahite court, the seal would have served as both a signature and a protective amulet.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/an-assyrian-genie-in-first-temple-jerusalem/?

First Temple Cheating Weight

As first reported in the Jerusalem Post, in 2021 archaeologists discovered a fraudulent stone weight dating to the First Temple period in Jerusalem’s City of David Archaeological Park. The 2,700-year-old stone weight bears two parallel lines, which according to a team from Hebrew University, were used to mark the First Temple cheating weight as weighing two gerah (a little less than 1 gram). In actuality, however, the stone weighs 3.61 grams, nearly four times the marked amount. This led the researchers to propose that the weight was used to defraud customers, a practice frequently condemned in the Hebrew Bible (e.g., Deuteronomy 25:13: “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, large and small.”).

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/first-temple-cheating-weight/?

Comparing Ancient Biblical Manuscripts

Although there are many ancient Biblical manuscripts, the importance of the Leningrad Codex and the Aleppo Codex, codices created by the Masoretic scholars, lies in the annotations that the texts contain. Ancient Biblical manuscripts written in Hebrew are largely without vowels, so even if there is no question regarding the letters of a given text, there still may be a question as to how a particular word should be pronounced and what it means.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/bible-versions-and-translations/comparing-ancient-biblical-manuscripts/?

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Ashkelon’s Roman-Era Tombs to Open

Discovered more than a half decade apart, two stunning Roman-era tombs are undergoing an extensive preservation process to be finally open to the public. The tombs, located near the Ashkelon marina, date from the second to early fourth centuries. Each was covered in decorative paintings of plants, animals, and Greek mythological characters. Thanks to the conservation efforts of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), these once-faded and damaged tombs will soon be on view for all to see, joining dozens of other archaeological wonders around the city.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/ashkelons-roman-era-tombs-to-open/?

Perched atop a windswept mountain along the Turkish coastline and gazing proudly—almost defiantly—over the azure Aegean Sea sit the ruins of ancient Pergamon. Although the majority of its superb intact monuments now sit in Berlin’s Pergamon Museum, enough remains of the acropolis for the visitor to sense the former greatness of the city that once rivaled Alexandria, Ephesus and Antioch in culture and commerce, and whose scientific advancements in the field of medicine resonate through the corridors of today’s medical treatment facilities.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/ancient-pergamon-2/

Paul’s First Missionary Journey through Perga and Pisidian Antioch

Paul’s first missionary journey took him from Cyprus into the heart of Anatolia. Why did Paul and Barnabas choose the treacherous path through Perga to Pisidian Antioch? In “Why Perga? Paul’s Perilous Passage through Pisidia” in the November/December 2013 issue of BAR, Mark R. Fairchild explores archaeological evidence of the likely presence of Jewish communities on the way.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/new-testament/pauls-first-missionary-journey-through-perga-and-pisidian-antioch/?

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The Histories of Flavius Josephus

Flavius Josephus was a first-century Jewish historian personally involved in the Great Jewish Revolt against Rome. A former political leader and priest, he is our most important witness to Jewish life and history at the close of the biblical period (first century CE).

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/people-in-the-bible/the-histories-of-flavius-josephus/?

Daily Life in Ancient Israel

What was life like for the tribes of Israel in the time of the Biblical Judges, the period archaeologists call Iron Age I (1200–1000 B.C.E.)?

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/daily-life-in-ancient-israel/?

53 People in the Bible Confirmed Archaeologically

In “Archaeology Confirms 50 Real People in the Bible” in the March/April 2014 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, Purdue University scholar Lawrence Mykytiuk lists 50 figures from the Hebrew Bible who have been confirmed archaeologically.

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/people-in-the-bible/50-people-in-the-bible-confirmed-archaeologically/?