Biblical Archaeology News & Opinion
There is so much news in the world of Biblical archaeology and the Holy Land, it is hard to keep up! That is why we offer the latest news from the lands of the Bible that will interest you the most.
What Did People Eat and Drink in Roman Palestine?
In a land flowing with milk and honey, what kinds of food made up the ancient Jewish diet? What did people eat and drink in Roman Palestine? Susan Weingarten guides readers through a menu of the first millennium C.E. in her article “Biblical Archaeology 101: The Ancient Diet of Roman Palestine,” published in the ...
Greek town thousands of years older than thought, goes back to Stone Age
Renewed excavations of Kirrha, supposedly a Bronze Age settlement that arose in a marsh on the northern Greek coast near Delphi, have discovered that it began thousands of years earlier than had been thought. A joint French-Greek team investigating the site for the last 11 years has concluded that concentrated occupation there ...
‘Royal estate’ that served biblical kings found in northern Israel
Archaeologists have uncovered a monumental complex in northern Israel that they believe served as a rural estate for ancient kings of biblical fame such as Omri, Ahab and their descendants. The spectacular pillared building and a surrounding industrial zone have emerged at Horvat Tevet, an ancient site in the Jezreel Valley just outside ...
The Enduring Symbolism of Doves
Few symbols have a tradition as long and as rich as the dove. A particular favorite in art and iconography, the dove often represents some aspect of the divine, and its use has been shared, adapted and reinterpreted across cultures and millennia to suit changing belief systems. From the ancient ...
Unusual table may reveal location of Jerusalem’s ancient market on road to Second Temple
The discovery of a distinctive table used to measure standard amounts of liquids by a paved town square along the road leading to Temple Mount suggests that ancient Jerusalem’s main agora has been found, archaeologists say. The production of wine and olive oil were major industries in this region for thousands ...
Sun Shines on Sanctum Sanctorum at Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor
The sun shone on the Sanctum Sanctorum at Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut belonging to a queen in the western bank of the Nile River next to Luxor at Monday’s dawn. This temple is considered one of the seven wonders in Ancient Egypt. Shafts of the sun rays shone on the holy compartments ...
Hebrew nametag on ancient wine jar reopens debate on scope of Israelite kingdom
When archaeologists digging in the ruins of an ancient northern town found a few broken pots in the remains of one building last year, they didn’t pay them much attention at first. But researchers were astonished when a closer review of the clay vessels from Abel Beth Maacah revealed that one ...
What Happened to Cain in the Bible?
What happened to Cain in the Bible? In the Book of Genesis, we are told about Cain’s birth, his violent act of fratricide and his subsequent exile. We learn that he married and had descendants, but the Bible is strangely mute about his death. How did Cain die? If he did not die ...
Top 10 Discoveries in Biblical Archaeology in 2019
We live in remarkable days, archaeologically speaking. More excavations at more sites are uncovering a tremendous amount of all kinds of information about ancient civilizations. Much of what is learned doesn’t make for a sensational news story, but is perhaps more important than the headline discovery. The end of the year ...
Trove of Ancient Gold Coins Found in Yavneh Juglet
A treasure trove of gold coins has been found in a broken clay juglet, among the remains of industrial kilns. Industrial pottery production at this Yavneh factory was ongoing starting near the end of the Byzantine to the beginning of the Early Islamic periods (7th-9th centuries C.E.). Liat Nadav-Ziv, leader ...