Outdoor archaeological exhibition in Old City

180 ARTIFACTS ON DISPLAY: New outdoor archaeological exhibit inaugurated in Jerusalem’s Old City. The exhibition, which stands on Hayehudim Street descending in the Cardo, was inaugurated on Tuesday (Rossella Tercatin, Jerusalem Post).

“The new display provides passersby with a direct glimpse into the splendor of the public buildings, civil and religious, which have stood in the area of the Jewish Quarter throughout the ages,” curator Ravit Nanner-Soriano said in a press release. “Visitors to the exhibition will be able to be impressed by the variety and richness of the items; among them, impressive parts of columns from the Roman, Byzantine and Crusader periods, cornices and decorated items from the Middle Ages to modern times.”

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Abstracta Iranica

THE AWOL BLOG: Open Access Journal: Abstracta Iranica. This journal provides abstracts in French of many scholarly articles on Iran, dealing with matters from antiquity to the present. It looks like a useful resource, if you are interested in the latest on such things.

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Nazarenes and Christians and Baptists, oh my!

THE ANXIOUS BENCH: Nazarenes and Christians and Baptists (Philip Jenkins).

SPOILER ALERT: Despite my title, this blogpost is not about the modern-day Baptist denomination. These aren’t the Baptists you’re looking for. You can go about your business.

These were ancient Baptists. It is not even clear that they were of the Christian variety.

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Cook & Rösel (eds.),Toward a Theology of the Septuagint

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Toward a Theology of the Septuagint: Stellenbosch Congress on the Septuagint, 2018
Johann Cook (Editor), Martin Rösel (Editor)

ISBN 9781628372700
Status Available
Price: $60.00
Binding Paperback
Publication Date July 2020
Pages 460

Innovative Septuagint research from an international group of scholars

Toward a Theology of the Septuagint: Stellenbosch Congress on the Septuagint, 2018 focuses on the question of whether it is appropriate and possible to formulate a theology of the Septuagint. Nineteen English and German essays examine Old Testament, New Testament, and extrabiblical texts from a variety of methodological perspectives to demonstrate that such a theology is indeed necessary and possible.

Features

• Nuanced discussion of whether and how a theology of the Septuagint can be written
  
• Extensive methodological discussions
  
• Close textual studies of biblical, Greek philosophical, and Jewish sources
  
• Abstracts of each essay

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Grim times for Israel's archaeology

IT'S LOOKING VERY BAD: Another victim of the coronavirus in Israel: archaeological excavations. “Usually around this time we would have about 50 excavations organized by universities from abroad...[but] this year everything got cancelled," said Gideon Avni (Rossella Tercatin, Jerusalem Post).

The Azekah excavation is still running at a reduced level. Salvage operations continue. But most university digs that rely on international student volunteers are canceled.

I noted an earlier article on this subject here. The news since then has mostly been bad. The exception is the good news that the SWBTS archaeology program has been taken on Lipscomb University.

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More on efforts to save that ancient Galilean mikveh

ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE AT RISK: Discovery of ancient ritual bath spurs nearby kibbutz to try to save it. Kibbutz Hannaton is spearheading a fundraising effort to move a Roman-era mikveh to its land, where it would join the pluralistic ritual bath (Jessica Steinberg, Times of Israel).

They need $75,000 to dismatle it and move it to a site on the Kibbutz. But time is short.

Background here.

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Og - giant or ghost?

PROF. LAURA QUICK: Og, King of Bashan: Underworld Ruler or Ancient Giant? (TheTorah.com).

The answer lies in his bed.

For lots of PaleoJudaica posts on King Og, start here and follow the links. Another article by Prof. Quick on the same topic is noted here.

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Who are the seven kings?

READING ACTS: Who are the Kings in Revelation 17? Phil Long continues his blog series on the Book of Revelation, now on the final seven visions. We are currently on the first one in chapter 17.

The answer to Phil's question seems to be "It's complicated" But my understanding is that the seven kings are seven Roman emperors. I'm not sure exactly which ones. There is a similar vision in 4 Ezra 11-12 of the Eagle and its three heads and twelve wings. The twelve wings are Roman emperors. Again there is debate on exactly which ones.

For notice of previous posts in Phil's series on Revelation, see here and links.

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Closing in on Cleopatra's tomb?

ARCHAEOLOGY: Cleopatra's final resting place: Mummies of two high-status Egyptians discovered in an ancient temple on the Nile delta add weight to the theory the fabled queen was also buried there (Jonathan Chadwick, Daily Mail).

The mummies, which had lain undisturbed for 2,000 years, are in a poor state of preservation because water had seeped into the tomb, according to the Guardian.

But they were originally covered with gold leaf – a luxury reserved for only the top members of society's elite – meaning they may have personally interacted with Cleopatra.

The male and female mummies may have been priests who played a key role in maintaining the power of the legendary Egyptian queen and her lover, Mark Anthony.

Also found at the site were 200 coins bearing Cleopatra's name and her face, which would have been pressed based on Cleopatra's direct instructions.

Was Cleopatra VII (the Cleopatra) buried in Taposiris Magna, rather than Alexandria? Perhaps we will know soon.

In Anne Rice's novel The Mummy or Ramses the Damned, the mummified body of Cleopatra is found in the Cairo Museum. As you can imagine, mayhem ensues.

Our Cleopatra VII does not appear in the Hebrew Bible or the New Testament. But Cleopatra I Syra is mentioned, unnamed, as "the daughter of women," in Daniel 11:17. Her granddaughter Cleopatra III appears in the Old Testament Apocrypha in 1 Maccabees 10:57-58, 11:8-12.

Nevertheless, Cleopatra VII is of some interest to PaleoJudaica. Plutarch reports that she knew Aramaic and Hebrew. Past posts on her are here and links.

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Interview with Nazareth excavator

PODCAST INTERVIEW: LISTEN: What do we know about Nazareth in Jesus’ time? An archaeologist explains. From tax evasion to hidey-holes, IAA excavation director Yardenna Alexandre discusses Jewish life in the small village where Jesus grew up (Amanda Borschel-Dan, Times of Israel).

Alexandre published a new excavation report on Nazareth in the current issue of the Israel Antiquities Authority’s ‘Atiqot journal that describes its early settlement history and findings from her excavations and those of other researchers. What is arguably of most interest in the report is what was discovered in very bedrock of the village.

Another salvage-archaeology success story. If you don't have time to listen to the whole podcast, the accompanying article gives the highlights.

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The Phinehas Scroll?

RECONSTRUCTION: The War Against Midian: A Study for How the Priestly Torah Was Compiled (Dr. Ariel Kopilovitz, TheTorah.com).

In revenge for the Midianite seduction (Num 25), Phinehas takes the sacred utensils from the Tabernacle and leads the war against Midian (Num 31). Many details in this story contradict other Priestly texts, giving us a glimpse into how the Priestly Torah was compiled.

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Review of Fides in Flavian literature (ed. Augoustakis et al.)

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Fides in Flavian literature.

Antony Augoustakis, Emma Buckley, Claire Stocks, Fides in Flavian literature. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2019. xi, 328 p.. ISBN 9781487505530 $75.00.

Review by
Eleanor Mulhern, Temple University. e.v.mulhern@temple.edu

The volume includes an essay on Josephus by Steve Mason.

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Iron Age administrative center excavated near Jerusalem

ARCHAEOLOGY AND EPIGRAPHY: Huge Kingdom of Judah government complex found near US Embassy in Jerusalem. Among the 2,700-year-old finds: 120 inscribed seal impressions on jars at storage facility holding food collected as taxes for kings Hezekiah, Menashe in First Temple times (Amanda Borschel-Dan, Times of Israel).

Nice video. This is an exciting discovery and another illustration of the importance of salvage excavations.

I have one question, regarding this:

A collection of what appear to be clay idols was also discovered at the site. According to Sapir and Ben-Ari, “Some of the figurines are designed in the form of women, horse riders or as animals. These figurines are usually interpreted as objects used in pagan worship and idolatry — a phenomenon, which according to the Bible, was prevalent in the Kingdom of Judah.”

You can see some of these objects in the photo. Why are they interpreted as having religious significance? Why can't they just be decorations? I'm not an archaeologist or an iconographer, but I would like to know what the evidence is for specifying that use, especially since this installation seems to have been an administrative center rather than a temple.

By the way, I hope someone corrects the "27,000 years ago" in the first two photos to "2,700 years ago."

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Palmyra: a Scottish adventure

PALMYRA WATCH: Almost 100 years on, family find grandfather's fascinating account of 1920s journey across Syrian desert (Angela McManus, The Herald).

A 17-HOUR road trip from Baghdad to Palmyra across the Syrian desert sounds like quite an adventure for any traveller. Incredibly, this journey was taken by my husband’s grandfather, James McManus, in the 1920s when he lived in Iraq with his wife Kathleen and worked as a civil engineer.

During the lockdown the family found his firsthand notes on the trip in a cupboard, along with six photos of Palmyra. This article publishes his notes.

Many other posts on Palmyra, its history, the ancient Aramaic dialect spoken there (Palmyrene), and the city's tragic reversals of fortune, which more recently seem to have been trending for the better, are here and links.

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Profile of a Syrian epigrapher

GREEK AND NORTHWEST SEMITIC EPIGRAPHY: Malatius Jaghnoon, is a unique Syrian epigrapher (Amal Farhat, Syria Times).

Malatius Jibriel Jaghnoon, is a Syrian engineer and epigrapher specialized in Aramaic and Greek inscriptions. He was born in Latakia , Jableh, in 1943. He graduated as a civil engineer from the University of Aleppo in 1968. His interest in epigraphy led him to learn several ancient languages including Aramaic and Greek.

Deciphering a number of Syriac and Greek inscriptions from an ancient church in Tal Eltiten, in the Al-Ghab area in Syria to the west of Apamea, an inscription from Maarrat al-Nu'man Museum and an inscription from the agora of Palmyra, were among his epigraphical works inside Syria.

He is a founding member of the Archaeological Society of Homs " Al-Adiyat" and was elected as head of the society from 2011 until he left Syria several years ago.

[...]

Is he really "the only one in Syria who can read ancient Greek inscriptions?" In any case, it sounds as though he has done a lot of important epigraphic work.

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Essays in Honor of Professor Stefan C. Reif (ed. Calduch-Benages et al.)

NEW BOOK FROM DE GRUYTER:

On Wings of Prayer
Sources of Jewish Worship; Essays in Honor of Professor Stefan C. Reif on the Occasion of his Seventy-fifth Birthday

Series: Deuterocanonical and Cognate Literature Studies, 44

Edited by: Nuria Calduch-Benages, Michael W. Duggan and Dalia Marx
De Gruyter | 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110630282

From £79.00
FORMATS
Hardcover
ISBN: 978-3-11-062995-8
Published: 22 Jul 2019
PDF
ISBN: 978-3-11-063028-2
Published: 22 Jul 2019
EPUB
ISBN: 978-3-11-063072-5
Published: 22 Jul 2019

OVERVIEW
The contributors and editors dedicate this volume of research to Professor Stefan C. Reif on the occasion of his 75th birthday. Together these twenty papers reflect our appreciation for his exemplary scholarship and lifelong commitment to acquaint our world with the theological and cultural riches of Jewish Studies.
This collection reflects the breadth of Prof. Reif’s interests insofar as it is a combination of Second Temple studies and Jewish studies on the roots of Jewish prayer and liturgy which is his main field of expertise. Contributions on biblical and second temple studies cover Amos, Ben Sira, Esther, 2 Maccabees, Judith, Wisdom, Qumran Psalms, and James. Contributions on Jewish studies cover nuptial and benedictions after meals, Adon Olam, Passover Seder, Amidah, the Medieval Palestinian Tefillat ha-Shir, and other aspects of rabbinic liturgy.
Moreover, the regional diversity of scholars from Israel, continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland and North America mirrors Stefan’s travels as a lecturer and the reach of his publications. The volume includes a foreword of appreciation and a bibliographic list of Professor Reif's works.

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Suprise Sasson Festschrift

VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: Colleagues surprise Vanderbilt Divinity scholar Jack Sasson with special ‘gift’ (Ann Marie Deer Owens).

Thirty-five scholars from around the world pay tribute to Jack Sasson, an emeritus Divinity School professor, for his renowned scholarship on the ancient Near East in a newly published book of essays.

From Mari to Jerusalem and Back: Assyriological and Biblical Studies in Honor of Jack Murad Sasson, written and edited by some of Sasson’s longtime colleagues and friends, strives to reflect the richness of the cultures, languages and literatures of his research.

[...]

Congratulations to Emeritus Professor Jack Sasson! Regular readers will already know that he is the owner of the informative Agade e-mail list, to which you should subscribe if you haven't already.

Cross-file under New Book (from Eisenbrauns).

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COGAT seizes baptismal font near Bethlehem

APPREHENDED ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE? IDF returns 5th century stolen baptismal font to original site in Tekoa. COGAT Archaeological Unit says the artifact was stolen by antiquity looters some 20 years ago; Palestinian official accuses Israel of theft (Rossella Tercatin, Jerusalem Post).

A fifth century baptismal font that was stolen from its original site by antiquity looters has been located and returned by the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, COGAT announced on Monday. However, the reconstruction of the circumstances was denied by the Palestine Liberation Organization, which accused Israel of theft.

According to COGAT’s release, the artifact, which dates back to the Byzantine period, was looted about 20 years ago from the Tel Tekoa archaeological site in the West Bank. It is about 1.5 meters high and is shaped as an octagon and decorated with a cross and a stylized garland.

[...]

From what I can work out, looters stole the baptismal font from the archaeological site of Teqoa (Khirbet Tuqu') in 2000. The Palestinian Authority recovered it in 2002 and deposited it in the town of Tuqu' near the mayor's house in anticipation of the building of an antiquities museum. This seems to have happened in a very small geographical area. COGAT seized the font and "returned" it. The reports don't specify where exactly they returned it to. The archaeological site? Questions of jurisdiction about such matters appear to be complicated.

My grasp of the geography is vague, so any clarifications from someone local would be welcome.

Other coverage that supplements the Jerusalem Post article:

The Jewish Chronicle: Israel Retrieves Stolen Ancient Baptismal Font, PA Alleges ‘Colonial Plunder’ (Aryeh Savir, Tazpit News Agency)

The Palestine Chronicle: Israeli Forces Seize Ancient Baptismal Font near Bethlehem (VIDEO)

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What did the Romans ever do for Palmyra?

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Latin Over Aramaic? How the Ancient Palmyrenes Responded to Romanization. As usual, this BHD essay is a summary of a Biblical Archaeology Review article: “Maintaining Cultural Balance: Palmyrene Bilingual Inscriptions and Roman Imperialism,” by Catherine E. Bonesho in the current issue.

There are Latin inscriptions at Palmyra, as well as the ones in Aramaic, Greek, and Hebrew. I don't think I knew that, but it doesn't surprise me.

Cross-file under Palmyra Watch. Many other posts on Palmyra, its history, the ancient Aramaic dialect spoken there (Palmyrene), and the city's tragic reversals of fortune, which more recently seem to have been trending for the better, are here and links.

Visit PaleoJudaica daily for the latest news on ancient Judaism and the biblical world.

Seven last visions

READING ACTS: The Final Visions: Revelation 17-22. Phil Long continues his blog series on the Book of Revelation. We have seven visions to go! The first one is chapter 17, "The Great Whore and the Scarlet Beast."

For notice of previous posts in Phil's series on Revelation, see here and links.

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The inscribed Moabite altar and the Bible

NORTHWEST SEMITIC EPIGRAPHY: Ataroth and the Inscribed Altar: Who Won the War Between Moab and Israel? (Adam L. Bean and Prof.Christopher A. Rollston, TheTorah.com).

Ataroth is an obscure Transjordanian city, referenced only twice in the Bible. Nevertheless, due to modern archaeological discoveries, it has become a central piece of evidence for reconstructing the history of the Moabite rebellion against Israel and King Mesha’s expansion of the Moabite kingdom described in both 2 Kings and the Mesha Stele.

For the 2018 publication of this inscribed Moabite altar, see here and here.

Moabite is an ancient Iron Age language very closely related to Hebrew. Moabite and Hebrew are essentially dialects of the same language. The other major Moabite inscription is the Mesha Inscription (Mesha Stele, Moabite Stone), on which more here and keep following the links. And for more on ancient Moab, see here.

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More on the Jubilees Palimpsest Project

THE AWOL BLOG: The Jubilees Palimpsest Project: Pioneering the Recovery of Illegible Text from Ancient Manuscripts Through New Tools in Digital Archaeology. I haven't mentioned the Jubilees Palimpsest Project for a few years. This is a good opportunity to mention it again. If you look at its News Archive page, you can see that the Project has been busy.

Background here and links. Cross-file under Technology Watch.

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More New Testament Apocrypha vol. 2 is out!

NEW BOOK FROM EERDMANS: New Testament Apocrypha: More Noncanonical Scriptures vol. 2, edited by Tony Burke.

See also Tony's post at his Apocryphicity Blog: Publicity Roundup for More New Testament Apocrypha 2.

I reviewed MNTA1 at length in 2017 here and links.

Cross-file under New Testament Apocrypha Watch.

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Biblical archaeology uncanceled

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: The Summer Lipscomb University Saved Biblical Archaeology. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s blunder is Lipscomb University’s bonanza (Robert R. Cargill).

Background here.

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Zahn, Genres of Rewriting in Second Temple Judaism

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS PRESS RELEASE: HOW THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS AUTHORS REWROTE THE BIBLE, LITERALLY.

In Molly Zahn's new book, “Genres of Rewriting in Second Temple Judaism” (Cambridge University Press), the University of Kansas associate professor of religious studies contends that the literary practices of these early Jewish scribes give us clues about their religious beliefs.

By comparing textual differences among various copies of the scrolls discovered in caves at Qumran, and then comparing those with later canonical versions of books like Exodus and Jeremiah, Zahn concluded that the scribes who wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls believed they had a literary license to change Scripture. Indeed, she wrote, they saw themselves as partners with the deity in the process of revelation.

Dr. Zahn is also the Secretary of the International Organization for Qumran Studies (IOQS) and the Chief Editor of the journal Dead Sea Discoveries.

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Meyer on Jesus the Jew in Christian memory

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Jesus the Jew and Christianity’s Indebtedness to Judaism

Thus, even decades into the Third Quest with its overall agreement about Jesus’ core belonging to Second Temple Judaism, assessments of his Jewishness as “marginal” continue. Depicting Jesus as a “marginal Jew” allows for distance from and criticism of “common Judaism.” Inadvertently, Jesus becomes somewhat “less” Jewish, enabling identification for today’s Christians.

See Also: Jesus the Jew in Christian Memory (Cambridge; 2020).

By Barbara Meyer
Religious Studies Program
Graduate School of Philosophy
Tel Aviv University
July 2020

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HB textual unity or diversity?

THE ETC BLOG: Is There a Unity amid this Diversity? Anthony Ferguson opens a blog series on the textual criticism of the Hebrew Bible.

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Trever's Cave 1 scroll photos for free online

VARIANT READINGS: Trever’s Photos of the Cave 1 Scrolls Freely Available Online (Brent Nongbri).

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