King Solomon: Stanford scholar considers how the man who had everything ended with nothingIt does sound like fun.
Scholar Steven Weitzman's new book on Solomon is a meditation on the "lust to know." But how much can we really know about the legendary king who was the first Faust and inspired the voyage of Columbus?
BY CYNTHIA HAVEN (Stanford Report)
What can we learn from the wisest man who ever lived?
Maybe not as much as we think, according to Stanford Jewish studies scholar Steven Weitzman.
His new book, Solomon: The Lure of Wisdom (Yale University Press) has been called a meditation on the "lust to know." Yet it's curious we know so little about the man at the center of the book. We don't even know what Solomon looked like, though Biblical writers note that his father and siblings were handsome.
One thing he is famous for, though: "According to Jewish tradition, he knew everything. He knew as much as God knew," said Weitzman, a professor of Jewish culture and religion. "As a scholar, I'm attracted to knowing everything. Because I feel I don't know anything."
Hence, the book. "It was a lot of fun," Weitzman said of the work he calls "an unauthorized biography."
[...]
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Steven Weitzman, "Solomon: The Lure of Wisdom"
THE SOLOMON LEGEND is the subject of a new book:
Friday, July 15, 2011
Relegere: Studies in Religion and Reception
RELEGERE: Studies in Religion and Reception is a new open-access online journal on reception history.
(Via the BNTS list.)
(Via the BNTS list.)
Rollston on the Mariam Ossuary again
CHRISTOPHER ROLLSTON has a new blog post on the Miriam/Mariam ossuary inscription: ‘Priests’ or ‘Priest’ in the Mariam (Miriam) Ossuary, and the Language of the Inscription.
His earlier post on this inscription is noted here. Also, two reviews of Professor Rollston's new book Writing and Literacy in the World of Ancient Israel: Epigraphic Evidence from the Iron Age have just been published by Johannes Schnocks and Ian Young in the Review of Biblical Literature.
His earlier post on this inscription is noted here. Also, two reviews of Professor Rollston's new book Writing and Literacy in the World of Ancient Israel: Epigraphic Evidence from the Iron Age have just been published by Johannes Schnocks and Ian Young in the Review of Biblical Literature.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Controversy over Syriac names in Turkey
ARAMAIC WATCH:
(HT Abu 'l-Rayhan Al-Biruni.)
Turkey’s Syriacs demanding right to own namesThe issue may be brought to the attention of the European Court of Human Rights.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Vercihan Ziflioğlu
ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News
Turkey’s Syriac community, who adopted Turkish surnames, now want their original surnames back. Yet, a top cour says that the laws don’t allow such a move.
Members of Turkey’s Syriac Christian community are leading a legal struggle to adopt last names that reflect their identity despite a Constitutional Court ruling earlier this year that barred one Syriac from altering his last name.
[...]
(HT Abu 'l-Rayhan Al-Biruni.)
"The Magdalene" gets unenthusiastic reviews
THE MAGDALENE, now playing Off-Broadway, is getting unenthusiastic reviews.
From the NYT:
Background here (bottom of post).
From the NYT:
A Married, Reimagined JesusFrom the New York Press:
By CATHERINE RAMPELL
Published: July 12, 2011
The creators of “The Magdalene,” a musical based on an alternate telling of the story of Mary Magdalene, have achieved the seemingly impossible: they have managed to take stunningly incendiary material and douse it with blandness and bathos.
[...]
Oh, MaryI don't recall the pixie cut from the Gnostic gospels, but it's been a while since I read them.
Mary Magdalene gets the superstar treatment in a new musical
By Mark Peikert
Forget the prostitute we all love, the one who belts “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” in Jesus Christ Superstar. According to The Magdalene (and the Gnostic texts left out of the Bible as we know it), Mary Magdalene was a feisty spitfire with a Mia Farrow pixie cut, who questioned the treatment of women by church officials and society and turns out to have known how to love Jesus all along. She also likes to belt out a few tunes herself, though none of them as catchy as the ones in the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Time Rice musical.
There’s very little that’s catchy in this new musical, staged in the round at Theater at St. Clement’s, a choice that makes the piece feel more amateurish than it might otherwise. ...
Background here (bottom of post).
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Teologías, Escrituras, y Siberia
THIS BLOG by Tomás García-Huidobro has been around since late 2009, but I've only just found it: Teologías, Escrituras, y Siberia: Temprano misticismo judío, cristiano y gnóstico como medios para iluminar los origenes cristianos.
Jewish artifacts at the ROM (with aside on fake metal codices)
THE ROYAL ONTARIO MUSEUM has a new exhibition with items of interest:
Below: genuine early-Byzantine metal ring with seven-branched menorah. Note the etrog on the lower left and the lulav (palm branch) on the lower right.
Below: fake metal codex. Note the seven-branched menorah on the lower left. And could that wreath under it be partly inspired by the etrog and lulav on the image above?
Just a thought.
Jewish artifacts are displayed in a new ROM galleryThe ring is quite interesting. Could it be another inspiration for the fake metal codices (follow those links)?
By SHELDON KIRSHNER, Staff Reporter (Canadian Jewish News)
Thursday, 14 July 2011
TORONTO —The Royal Ontario Museum has unveiled an ensemble of four new galleries on the ancient empires of Rome, Byzantium and Nubia, all supplemented by videos shot on location in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Ring with a menorah
Janet Carding, the director and chief executive officer of the museum, said this was “a key moment” for the Toronto museum.
These civilizations span 2,500 years of history and had a lasting influence on art, esthetics, architecture and religion, said Carding.
The galleries – which add approximately 7,000 square feet of exhibit space to the museum – were opened on July 1.
The new galleries consist of the Eaton Gallery of Rome, the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Gallery of Byzantium, the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Gallery of Rome and the Near East, and the Galleries of Africa: Nubia.
Several Jewish objects from ancient Palestine are exhibited in the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Gallery of Byzantium – a jar with a menorah, a ring with a menorah, etrog and lulav and a bread stamp with a menorah and cross.
They date back to the period from 300 to 614 CE.
The jar and the ring were most likely made for Jews visiting holy sites in Jerusalem.
The bread stamp engraved with a menorah and a cross is extremely rare because the portrayal of images was considered idolatrous, said Paul Denis, the assistant curator of the Greek and Roman collections.
[...]
Below: genuine early-Byzantine metal ring with seven-branched menorah. Note the etrog on the lower left and the lulav (palm branch) on the lower right.
Below: fake metal codex. Note the seven-branched menorah on the lower left. And could that wreath under it be partly inspired by the etrog and lulav on the image above?
Just a thought.
KJB@400: Dead Sea Scroll at Oklahoma City exhibit
KJB@400 WATCH: More on the exhibition at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art:
Background here.
UPDATE (19 July): The fragment is of Genesis 32:3-7. More here.
OKC Museum of Art: "Passages" exhibitNo word on which Dead Sea Scroll is exhibited, and the exhibition website is no more forthcoming.
Brianna Joyce, Oklahoma City Travel Examiner
July 12, 2011
This season's special exhibit at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art is truly incredible. Art aficionados, bibliophiles, young and old, and members of all faiths will enjoy the Passages exhibit celebrating the 400th Anniversary of the King James Bible. Passages explores the Bible's history from its origins in Jewish scripture to its important English translation under King James.
For those interested in exploring the story behind each artifact, the exhibit provides headphones that give detailed explanations for many scrolls and books. The tour begins with a stunning collection of containers that held scrolls of the Torah. There is also a stone menorah that stood in the Temple of Jerusalem at the time of Christ. The beautiful lines of Hebrew are preserved on parchment, and a glass case contains a fragment of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
[...]
Background here.
UPDATE (19 July): The fragment is of Genesis 32:3-7. More here.
The Magdala Center and archaeological site
THE MAGDALA CENTER and archaeological site are the subject of a Travel piece in the Jerusalem Post:
Archaeological site inspires gospel reminiscingBackground here and links.
By NICOLE JANSEZIAN, TRAVELUJAH
07/12/2011 17:49
The Magdala Center's new guesthouse, along with a uniquely written Catholic mass will bring to life New Testament times in the Galilee.
A new guesthouse, an archaeological site and a uniquely written Catholic mass will bring to life New Testament times in the Galilee.
The Magdala Center, Notre Dame Pontifical Institute's planned guesthouse, is on the shores of the Galilee and hosts a peek into the time of Jesus. Even though the Gospels barely mention the city, Magdala (or Migdal) played a historic role in the 1st century as revealed in the ongoing archaeological dig on the site.
[...]
The entire archaeological area uncovered is exclusively 1st century, which is rare. Most sites, even those nearby, usually show an overlap of periods. This one so far is purely Roman era. It has also revealed a community that was likely very wealthy.
“In this synagogue they had a great leader – not common, very rich,” he said.
[Father Juan Maria] Solana listed some of the impressive findings in the excavations including a synagogue, a marketplace, a villa, a perfectly preserved mosaic, rooms paved with well-cut stones and three arches, one of which is still standing. The synagogue contains mosaics, a carved stone menorah and frescoes.
Another key find is the port of Magdala, some 50 meters from the current shoreline and near the marketplace. On one side of the port is all the remnants of the lake that had lapped against the wall.
[...]
Jerusalem Museum of Tolerance gets building permit
JERUSALEM MUSEUM OF TOLERANCE UPDATE:
Museum of Tolerance gets final go-aheadBackground here and many links.
By MELANIE LIDMAN (Jerusalem Post)
07/13/2011 02:23
The building permit was awarded by the Interior Ministry, rather than the Jerusalem Municipality, due to the sensitivity of the site.
Talkbacks (1)
After more than a decade of sitting empty in downtown Jerusalem, the controversial Simon Wiesenthal Museum of Tolerance received final approval for its new campus on Tuesday.
The building permit, from the Ministry of the Interior’s District Planning and Construction Committee, means that work can begin on the site immediately.
[...]
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Ancient Hebrew Shabbat boundary marker
NEW INSCRIPTION:
Shabbat boundary rock with Hebrew etching discovered
By OREN KESSLER (Jerusalem Post)
07/12/2011 05:42
Inscription, discovered by chance by visitor in Lower Galilee, appears to date from the Roman or Byzantine period.
An ancient rock inscription of the word “Shabbat” was uncovered near Lake Kinneret this week – the first and only discovery of a stone Shabbat boundary in Hebrew.
The etching in the Lower Galilee community of Timrat appears to date from the Roman or Byzantine period.
News of the inscription, discovered by chance Sunday by a visitor strolling the community grounds, quickly reached Mordechai Aviam, head of the Institute for Galilean Archeology at Kinneret College.
“This is the first time we’ve found a Shabbat boundary inscription in Hebrew,” he said. “The letters are so clear that there is no doubt that the word is ‘Shabbat.’”
[...]
Benjamin Z. Kedar interviewed in Haaretz
THE OUTGOING CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF THE IAA is interviewed by Haaretz:
Background to MK Livnat's proposed amendment is here.
Professor B.Z. Kedar, is Israeli archaeology an 'old-boys club'?He also expresses doubt that the Essenes wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls and comments on many other archaeological and political issues. Read it all.
The Israel Antiquities Authority has been attacked for not doing enough to preserve the Temple Mount antiquities, on one hand, but also for supposedly being a tool of extreme nationalist groups.
By Nir Hasson
Prof. Benjamin Z. Kedar has been chairman of the board of the Israel Antiquities Authority for 11 years. He is also the deputy chairman of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities. Kedar will leave his position at the authority at the end of July. Haaretz reported yesterday on an amendment to the Antiquities Authority Law, proposed by Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat, that would make it easier for her to find a replacement for Kedar. At present, the chairman of the Antiquities Authority board must belong to the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities. Livnat's bill would require only that the chairman be a "leading scholar in the field of history or archaeology."
Senior archaeologists criticized Livnat on Sunday, claiming that the purpose of the amendment was to enable her to appoint archaeologists who are identified with the right or who will toe the establishment line. Livnat's critics say the bill reflects the anti-intellectual winds blowing through the government ministries. Kedar rejects this interpretation, but cautions against amending the law.
[...]
Background to MK Livnat's proposed amendment is here.
Monday, July 11, 2011
KJB@400: Lecture series in Oklahoma City
KJB@400 WATCH: Cool lecture series in Oklahoma City:
Oklahoma City Museum speaker series connected to Bible exhibit set for debut ‘Passages' speaker series calendarHere is the list of lecturers and their topics:
A speaker series connected to the “Passages” Bible exhibit will debut July 19 at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in downtown Oklahoma City.
BY CARLA HINTON chinton@opubco.com (NewsOK)
Published: July 9, 2011
Renowned scholars and authorities in ancient texts and manuscripts will discuss recent research and developments during lecture presentations connected with the “Passages” exhibit at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.
The “Passages” Speaker Series will begin July 19 in the Noble Theater at the museum, 415 Couch Drive.
“Passages,” a 14,000-square-foot traveling exhibit, opened in May to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible. The interactive exhibit features nearly 300 items from the Green Collection, one of the world's largest private collections of rare biblical texts and artifacts.
[...]
The following guest speakers and lectures will be presented as part of the free 11-week “Passages” Speakers' Series at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive. Each lecture will be from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. Tuesdays.
• July 19: David Lyle Jeffrey, Ph.D., Baylor University, “Beyond the Renaissance: Critical Texts and Bible Translation.”
• July 26: Peter Flint, Ph.D., Canada research chair in Dead Sea Scrolls studies, “The Contents and Challenges of the Dead Sea Biblical Scrolls.”
• Aug. 9: Gordon Campbell, Ph.D., University of Leicester, United Kingdom, “The Making of a Bible Classic: The Translation of the King James Bible.”
• Aug. 16: Edwin Yamauchi, Ph.D., Miami (Fla.) University, “The Greatest Archaeological Discoveries and the Old Testament.”
• Aug. 23: Scott Carroll, Ph.D., director of the Green Collection, “The Green Collection: Scientific Breakthroughs and Bible Translation.”
• Sept. 6: Scot McKendrick, Ph.D., British Library, “Manuscript Discoveries and Bible Translation.”
• Sept. 13: Dirk Obbink, Ph.D., Oxford University, “Papyri Discoveries and Bible Translation.”
• Sept. 20: Alister McGrath, Ph.D., King's College, United Kingdom, “What Do William Tyndale and C.S. Lewis Have in Common.”
• Sept. 27: Ralph Hanna, Ph.D., Oxford University, “Richard Rolle's Impact on the English Bible.”
• Oct. 4: Jerry Pattengale, Ph.D., director of the Green Scholars Initiative, “Answers to New Theories Regarding How We Got the Bible.”
• Oct. 11: Robert Cooley, Ph.D., Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, “The Greatest Archaeological Discoveries and the New Testament.”
For more information, go online to www.explorepassages.com.
Politics and IAA board of directors
SPEAKING OF POLITICS:
Archaeologists: Right-wing culture minister making appointments based on politicsLivnat replies:
Top archaeologists slam Limor Livnat's bid to change make-up of Israel Antiquities Authority's board of directors, say move will allow her to appoint officials identified with the political right.
By Nir Hasson (Haaretz)
Senior archaeologists are up in arms over an amendment to the Antiquities Authority Law proposed by Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat , which they say will shift the political slant of the Israel Antiquities Authority's board of directors to the right.
Critics say Livnat has proposed the legislation to prevent the appointment of Prof. Yoram Tsafrir as chairman of the board of directors of the authority and to allow her to instead appoint archaeologists identified with the political right. Opponents of the bill also say Livnat has also been changing the makeup of the country's senior archaeological body, the Archaeological Council, which advises the director of the Israel Antiquities Authority and the minister who oversees the Israel Antiquities Authority.
[...]
Livnat's amendment states that the minister "would appoint a senior scientist from the realm of history or archaeology, after consultation with the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities."
The explanatory notes accompanying Livnat's bill state: "The law currently obliges the minister to choose from a limited list of scientists, while in fact there are many worthy candidates who are not members of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities."
Over the past year,three new members were appointed to the Archaeological Council: Dr. Gabriel Barkay, Dr. Ronny Reich and Dr. Eilat Mazar. All three are known for their work in excavations funded by Elad in East Jerusalem. Reich was elected head of the council.
Archaeologists critical of Livnat's moves also say scholars from Bar-Ilan University have a greater representation on the Archaeological Council than other universities.
[...]
"The source of this limitation is a law going back 33 years. Since then, the number of archaeologists and historians who are senior researchers has increased significantly and there is not reason to prevent worthy candidates from heading the board. ... It seems that claims against opening up the appointment to additional worthy candidates stems from extraneous interests and the desire to force a certain appointment as chairman of the board."UPDATE (12 July): More here.
Iraqi Jewish archives update
IRAQI JEWISH ARCHIVE WATCH: Tug-of-war over Iraqi Jewish trove in US hands (AP). Lots of new information, especially about the web of politics in which the archive is now snarled. But the good news is that $3 million has be set aside for the restoration of the manuscripts.
(HT Gerald Rosenberg. Background here and follow the many links back to 2003.)
(HT Gerald Rosenberg. Background here and follow the many links back to 2003.)
Sunday, July 10, 2011
BMCR review responses and reviews
BMCR review responses and reviews:
First, two responses to this review from March:
Bar-Kochva on Wyrick on Bar-Kochva, The Image of the Jews in Greek Literature.
Pelling on Bar-Kochva on Wyrick on Bar-Kochva.
Then, a couple of recent review of possible interest:
First, two responses to this review from March:
Bar-Kochva on Wyrick on Bar-Kochva, The Image of the Jews in Greek Literature.
Pelling on Bar-Kochva on Wyrick on Bar-Kochva.
Then, a couple of recent review of possible interest:
Daniel C. Snell, Religions of the Ancient Near East. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 2011. Pp. xii, 179. ISBN 9780521683364. $25.99 (pb).
Reviewed by Corinne Bonnet, Université de Toulouse II – Le Mirail & Institut Universitaire de France (cbonnet@univ-tlse2.fr)
Preview
Présenter l’ensemble des religions du Proche-Orient en 179 pages est un défi. Daniel C. Snell l’a courageusement relevé et propose à ses lecteurs une synthèse agréable à lire qui balaie les principales thématiques, aires géographiques et périodes en 17 chapitres. La qualité majeure de cet ouvrage est la conjonction entre une érudition vaste et profonde et une présentation accessible aux non spécialistes. Certes, parfois, on y perd en précision ou l’on tombe dans certaines généralisations que les spécialistes regretteront, mais l’objectif est de fournir un premier panorama que les indications bibliographiques permettront, le cas échéant, d’approfondir.
[...]
Dominique Charpin, Writing, Law, and Kingship in Old Babylonian Mesopotamia (translated by Jane Marie Todd). Chicago/London: University of Chicago Press, 2010. Pp. 182. ISBN 9780226101583. $55.00.
Reviewed by Rochelle Altman, Sivan College (willaa@netvision.net.il)
Preview
In Classical studies, since the 1990s, it has become increasingly clear that literacy was more widespread in society than had been previously thought. While many Assyriologists maintain that literacy was the exclusive domain of professional scribes and even kings, clergy, and generals are classed among the illiterate, Dominique Charpin has come to similar conclusions about Classical Babylonia. In this volume, Charpin focuses on the relationship between writing and law and, as we could expect from his previous works, makes a strong and convincing case for writing as a more wide-spread phenomenon than has been assumed.
[...]
A Metatron schism?
AN IMPENDING METATRON SCHISM? El Shaddai will be 'divisive' in America, says Ignition. That can happen.
Background here and links.
Background here and links.
Saturday, July 09, 2011
DSS on list of world's top five treasure troves
THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS are on the WSJ's list of The World’s Top Five Treasure Troves, inspired by that recent discovery of vast treasure in the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Kerala, India.
The list looks about right to me. I would put the Cairo Geniza and the Ugaritic texts in a top-ten list. The treasures of the Copper Scroll (follow those links) would perhaps belong on the top-ten list too, if they could still be found, which is very unlikely.
Also, here's something recent on Massekhet Kelim (The Treatise of the Vessels), an apocryphal account of the fate of the Jerusalem Temple treasures.
I have noted some manuscript treasures from Kerala here (and links) and here (Cochin is in Kerala). (No word so far on any manuscripts in the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple trove.)
The list looks about right to me. I would put the Cairo Geniza and the Ugaritic texts in a top-ten list. The treasures of the Copper Scroll (follow those links) would perhaps belong on the top-ten list too, if they could still be found, which is very unlikely.
Also, here's something recent on Massekhet Kelim (The Treatise of the Vessels), an apocryphal account of the fate of the Jerusalem Temple treasures.
I have noted some manuscript treasures from Kerala here (and links) and here (Cochin is in Kerala). (No word so far on any manuscripts in the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple trove.)
Hundreds at Byzantine-Era Synagogue
ANCIENT SYNAGOGUES WATCH:
Hundreds at Byzantine-Era SynagogueRecent post on other ancient synagogues here.
by Maayana Miskin (Arutz Sheva)
Hundreds of Jews were allowed to visit an ancient synagogue from the Byzantine era on Friday morning. The tour, coordinated with the IDF, took place as part of a program to commemorate young hikers slain by Palestinian Authority terrorists.
The more than 200 hikers first visited the ancient synagogue of Samoa and the nearby village of Anin, mentioned in the book of Joshua. They held morning prayer services in the synagogue.
They then continued on to a second ancient synagogue, this one located in the village of Susiya, a town dating back to Talmud times that in recent decades has enjoyed renewed Jewish settlement.
[...]
Friday, July 08, 2011
Newly Discovered Qumran Photographs from the 1950s
NEWLY DISCOVERED QUMRAN PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE 1950s. (Via Jim West via Joseph Lauer and the Agade list.)
Syriac language at Artuklu University in Turkey
ARAMAIC WATCH:
Southeastern university starts Syriac coursesThis project in Turkey has been in development for some time. More on it here, here, here, and here. It's good to see it up and running.
MARDİN - Doğan News Agency (Hurriyet Daily News)
Kırklar Chapel’s Priest Gabriel Akyüz attended the first lesson of Syriac language courses started by Artuklu University in the southeastern province of Mardin. DHA photo
Kırklar Chapel’s Priest Gabriel Akyüz attended the first lesson of Syriac language courses started by Artuklu University in the southeastern province of Mardin. DHA photo
Already providing Kurdish-language education, Artuklu University in the southeastern province of Mardin, or MAU, is readying to open an intensive course on the Syriac language.
The courses will be provided by the university’s Living Languages Institute. Also, a committee from the faculty of letters is working on establishing a Syriac Language and Culture Department.
[...]
Analyzing The Dead Sea Scrolls' Provenance
TECHNOLOGY WATCH: The latest in non-destructive manuscript analysis from Chemical and Engineering News:
Analyzing The Dead Sea Scrolls' ProvenanceThis short piece links to the page for the technical article that presents the research:
Cultural Analysis: Scientists think that X-ray fluorescence could identify the geographical origin of these ancient texts
Sarah Everts
An X-ray fluorescence analytical technique may help scholars settle a decades-long archaeological debate: Were the multitude of Dead Sea Scroll texts written near the Dead Sea or just stored in caves nearby? This technique could provide an answer without harming the valuable Hebrew documents that have been degrading rapidly since their discovery in the 1940s and 50s, its developers say.
[...]
3D Micro-XRF for cultural heritage objects – new analysis strategies for the investigation of the Dead Sea ScrollsThis new technique sounds like it has promise to answer some difficult and controversial questions about the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Ioanna Mantouvalou , Timo Wolff , Oliver Hahn , Irene Rabin , Lars Lühl , Marcel Pagels , Wolfgang Malzer , and Birgit Kanngiesser
Anal. Chem., Just Accepted Manuscript
DOI: 10.1021/ac2011262
Publication Date (Web): June 29, 2011
Copyright © 2011 American Chemical Society
Abstract
A combination of 3D Micro X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (3D Micro-XRF) and Micro-XRF was utilized for the investigation of a small collection of highly heterogeneous, partly degraded Dead Sea Scroll parchment samples from known excavation sites. The quantitative combination of the two techniques proves to be suitable for the identification of reliable marker elements which may be used for classification and provenance studies. With 3D Micro-XRF the three-dimensional nature, i.e. the depth resolved elemental composition as well as density variations, of the samples was investigated and bromine could be identified as a suitable marker element. It is shown through a comparison of quantitative and semi-quantitative values for the bromine content derived using both techniques that, for elements which are homogeneously distributed in the sample matrix, quantification with Micro-XRF using a one-layer model is feasible. Thus, the possibility for routine provenance studies using portable Micro-XRF instrumentation on a vast amount of samples, even on site, is obtained through this work.
Thursday, July 07, 2011
BAR: "New Synagogue Excavations In Israel and Beyond"
BAR: New Synagogue Excavations In Israel and Beyond by Joey Corbett, with discussions of the synagogues found at Magdala, Wadi Hamam and Horvat Kur.
More on the Magdala synagogue here and links, on the Wadi Hamam synagogue here and here, and on the Horvat Kur synagogue here.
More on the Magdala synagogue here and links, on the Wadi Hamam synagogue here and here, and on the Horvat Kur synagogue here.
New curator for Bodleian's Hebrew & Judaica collection
CONGRATULATIONS to Dr Cesar Merchan Hamann and the Bodleian Library:
Curator named for Oxford Hebrew Centre
By Jennifer Lipman, July 6, 2011 (thejc.com)
The Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies has announced the successor to its longtime curator Dr Piet van Boxel.
Dr Cesar Merchan Hamann will take over from Dr van Boxel in September as curator of the Bodleian Library's Hebrew and Judaica collections.
[...]
Report on Waqf's Temple Mount excavations to be released?
TEMPLE MOUNT WATCH: That State Comptroller's report on the Waqf's excavations on the Temple Mount may be released after all, according to Arutz Sheva:
Report on Muslim Temple Mount Digs to Be Declassified?Background here and links.
by Gil Ronen
A special Knesset subcommittee convened Wednesday afternoon to discuss declassifying a report by the State Comptroller on illegal excavation by Muslim authorities on the Temple Mount.
The Chairman of the Knesset’s State Control Committee, MK Yoel Hasson (Kadima), toured the Temple Mount Wednesday after he received the full and detailed report by the Comptroller regarding unauthorized Waqf digs on the Mount.
[...]
Rollston on the Mariam Ossuary
THE MIRIAM (MARIAM?) OSSUARY is the subject of a blog post by Christopher Rollston: The Ossuary of Mariam Daughter of Yeshua’ in Context: Limning the Broad Tableau of the Epigraphic and Literary Data. A useful discussion with lots of information.
Background here and link.
Background here and link.
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
If we are in a computer simulation
MORE ON THE SIMULATION ARGUMENT: If We Are In A Computer Simulation (FuturePundit). As already noted, the Gnostics worried about some of these questions centuries ago.
The Talmud Blog relaunched
THE TALMUD BLOG has been relaunched by Shai Secunda as a collective enterprise.
I’m proud to announce the opening of a new collective Talmud Blog. Here scholars of rabbinic literature will find announcements (of articles, new publications, conferences, and more); a curated list of links (in the “tools” section) for aiding in talmudic research; original posts that present new research; discussions of critical methodologies, and of course the French import even more beloved than “freedom fries” – Critique.Be sure and update your link.
Review of Grossman (ed.), "Rediscovering the Dead Sea Scrolls"
H-JUDAIC BOOK REVIEW:
Maxine L. Grossman, ed. Rediscovering the Dead Sea Scrolls: An Assessment of Old and New Approaches and Methods. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Pub., 2010. xiii + 318 pp. $28.00 (paper), ISBN 978-0-8028-4009-7.More on this book here, here, and here.
Reviewed by Jean Duhaime (Université de Montréal)
Published on H-Judaic (July, 2011)
Commissioned by Jason Kalman
Old and New Tools at Work on the Dead Sea Scrolls
This book is the result of a few years of collaborative work between the authors in order to produce a volume that would "bring together a range of diverse perspectives on and scholarly approaches" to the Dead Sea Scrolls (p. 1). The contributors were asked to provide an introduction to an approach to the scrolls and an example of it, but also a "more self-reflective assessment" (p. 1) of its limits and the potential pitfalls associated with it. The book consists of an introduction, "Tools for Our Work," by Maxine L. Grossman, and fifteen chapters clustered according to their contents.
[...]
Three new books from the SBL
THREE NEW BOOKS from the Society of Biblical Literature:
John, Qumran, and the Dead Sea Scrolls: Sixty Years of Discovery and DebateThe Gabriel Revelation (a.k.a. the Vision of Gabriel) has been discussed many times at this blog. See here and follow the links.
Mary L. Coloe, Tom Thatcher
The Dead Sea Scrolls reveal a Palestinian form of Second Temple Judaism in which the seeds of Johannine Christianity may have first sprouted. Although many texts from the Judean Desert are now widely available, the Scrolls have had little part in discussions of the Johannine literature over the past several decades. The essays in this book, ranging from focused studies of key passages in the Fourth Gospel to its broader social world, consider the past and potential impact of the Scrolls on Johannine studies in the context of a growing interest in the historical roots of the Johannine tradition and the origins and nature of the “Johannine community” and its relationship to mainstream Judaism. Future scholarship will be interested in connections between the Gospel of John and the Scrolls and also in Qumran Judaism and Johannine Christianity as parallel religious movements. The contributors are Mary L. Coloe and Tom Thatcher, Eileen Schuller, Paul N. Anderson, John Ashton, George J. Brooke, Brian J. Capper, Hannah K. Harrington, Loren T. Stuckenbruck, and James H. Charlesworth.
Paper $28.95 • 242 pages • ISBN 9781589835467 • Early Judaism and Its Literature 32
Was 1 Esdras First? An Investigation into the Priority and Nature of 1 Esdras
Lisbeth S. Fried
The books of Ezra-Nehemiah and 1 Esdras tell the story of the Judean return from exile in Babylon, of rebuilding the temple, and of creating a new community in Zion. For scholars and students trying to understand the Second Temple period, there are no other contemporary narratives available, giving these books prime importance. In Was 1 Esdras First? world-renowned scholars fully discuss, without arriving at a consensus, the relationship between Ezra-Nehemiah and 1 Esdras. In addition, they delve into these books’ dates and methods of composition, the sources used, their respective historical and social milieus, their original languages, and their authority and status in antiquity. This collection adds to our understanding of the history of Second Temple Judah, the formation of early Judaism, and the processes by which biblical books were composed. The contributors are Lisbeth S. Fried, Deirdre N. Fulton and Gary N. Knoppers, Lester L. Grabbe, Adrian Schenker, Bob Becking, Kristin De Troyer, Juha Pakkala, Zipora Talshir, James C. VanderKam, Jacob L. Wright, Sebastian Grätz, Paul B. Harvey Jr., Sylvie Honigman, Sara Japhet, Ralph W. Klein, and H. G. M. Williamson.
Paper $34.95 • 298 pages • ISBN 9781589835443 • Ancient Israel and Its Literature 7
Hazon Gabriel: New Readings of the Gabriel Revelation
Matthias Henze, editor
Since its rediscovery a decade ago, the Hazon Gabriel or Gabriel Revelation, a Hebrew inscription of the first century B.C.E., has attracted considerable attention. The inscription, of which about 87 lines are preserved, written in black ink on a slab of gray limestone, has been compared to the Dead Sea Scrolls. This book makes accessible in one place all existing editions of the Hazon Gabriel together with annotated English translations and offers initial interpretations of the text as a whole, its language, and its most prominent motifs. The volume, originating from a 2009 conference at Rice University, compares the Gabriel Revelation to other literature of the time—the book of Daniel, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the New Testament in particular—to determine its place in early Judaism. The contributors are David Jeselsohn, Ada Yardeni and Binyamin Elizur, Elisha Qimron and Alexey (Eliyahu) Yuditsky, Israel Knohl, Gary A. Rendsburg, Adela Yarbro Collins, John J. Collins, Matthias Henze, Kelley Coblentz Bautch, Daewoong Kim, and David Capes.
Paper $29.95 • 234 pages • ISBN 9781589835412 • Early Judaism and Its Literature 29
A homily on Elisha ben Avuyah (Acher)
A HOMILY ON ELISHA BEN AVUYAH (ACHER/AHER/AKHER) by Rabbi Andrea Myers appears in The Jewish Week: From Elisha Ben Abuyah To Morris, The Golfer: Hearing the voice of the Other. Excerpt:
Morris is in good company. When we talk about what it means to be Other in the Jewish community, it is essential to look at the first Other: Elisha ben Abuyah, the first/second-century rabbi who becomes known as Acher, or Other, because of his apostasy. There are many stories about why he lost his faith, but the most powerful one describes the incident that may have pushed him to reject the central tenets of the Judaism of his time:How interesting. I was not aware of this passage and Simon Holloway did not include it in his three-part survey of the Akher traditions at his blog Davar Akher. Actually, Elisha ben Avuyah shows up a number of times in the rabbinic literature, especially in connection with the story of the four who entered paradise. The better-known account of his apostasy, which is associated with that story, is translated (from 3 Enoch) and discussed here. And I have one more post on Aher here.
For it was taught: R. Jacob said … in connection with honoring parents it is written, “that your days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with you” (Deut 5:16). In reference to the dismissal of the nest it is written, “that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days” (Deut 22:6). Now, if one’s father said to him, ’Ascend to the loft and bring me young birds,’ and he ascends to the loft, dismisses the dam and takes the young, and on his return falls and is killed, where is this man’s happiness and where is this man’s prolonging of days? ... Now, what happened with Acher? Some say, he saw something of this nature. (B. Kid.39b)
Like Morris, Elisha ben Abuyah had a problem of theodicy: the question of how God can exist if there is evil in the world. His experience led him away from the Jewish community; he went from being a respected scholar to an apostate. After this break with the tradition, his name was no longer cited in the Talmud.
Tuesday, July 05, 2011
Computer source criticism?
TECHNOLOGY WATCH: Computer source criticism?
Algorithm developed by Israeli scholars sheds light on the Bible’s authorship (AP).
As described by this article, this new algorithm, which has been developed by a team led by Prof. Moshe Koppel at Bar-Ilan University, might just be useful. It sounds like a fairly blunt instrument; the source criticism of both the Pentateuch and Isaiah is considerably more complicated than indicated, although this may just be the article simplifying what the program actually did. The designers have clearly put some thought into verifying their results independently (with the experiment on the mixed texts of Ezekiel and Jeremiah) and seem to have gotten encouraging results. I want to see this published in a peer-review journal, to have the raw data looked at by both biblical scholars and computer experts, and to have more tests run on documents whose sources we can verify independently for comparison. But on the basis of this early report I am cautiously optimistic.
The Singularity may be nearer than I thought.
UPDATE: Reader David Clark is skeptical:
UPDATE (20 July) More here. Also,this e-mail from reader Ed Kaneen came in on the 11th and I've been meaning to post it, so I will do so while I'm linking to this post.
Algorithm developed by Israeli scholars sheds light on the Bible’s authorship (AP).
As described by this article, this new algorithm, which has been developed by a team led by Prof. Moshe Koppel at Bar-Ilan University, might just be useful. It sounds like a fairly blunt instrument; the source criticism of both the Pentateuch and Isaiah is considerably more complicated than indicated, although this may just be the article simplifying what the program actually did. The designers have clearly put some thought into verifying their results independently (with the experiment on the mixed texts of Ezekiel and Jeremiah) and seem to have gotten encouraging results. I want to see this published in a peer-review journal, to have the raw data looked at by both biblical scholars and computer experts, and to have more tests run on documents whose sources we can verify independently for comparison. But on the basis of this early report I am cautiously optimistic.
The Singularity may be nearer than I thought.
UPDATE: Reader David Clark is skeptical:
I saw your post this morning on computer source criticism. I intended to add a comment to your blog, but it appears you do not allow comments. In any case, software like this make me very suspicious for two reasons.Much depends on whether the software can deduce the sources in documents that were not in the minds of the developers and whose sources we know with confidence on other grounds. If it can do that, I will be impressed.
First, the software tends to know what humans know. That is, they are biased by how the researchers code the software. Thus, if researchers are testing a theory about word choice and authorship, they will necessarily code in information about what a word choice is and how that may relate to authorship. Software like this tends to find what the authors think it will find, no matter how objective and careful they tend to be. Even very subtle biases in a complex computer program behave in non-linear ways, which can have disproportionate effects in the outcome. My point is that even though I think the scholarly consensus on the Pentateuch and Isaiah is correct, I highly doubt this kind of program adds much new insight.
Second, these kinds of software programs have played out already in other religious communities. The best one I can think of is the Mormon faith and the attempt to identify the author(s) of the Book of Mormon. Teams made up of mostly Mormons have written software to identify authorship, as have teams of people not affiliated (or no longer affiliated) with the Mormon faith. Not suprisingly, the software of the former tends to find that the Book of Mormon was not authored by Joseph Smith or his contemporaries, from which they conclude this is evidence of a divine origin. While the latter tend to find evidence for the authorship of the Book of Mormon by Joseph Smith or one of his contemporaries. The bottom line is that computer programs tend to find what people want them to find.
UPDATE (20 July) More here. Also,this e-mail from reader Ed Kaneen came in on the 11th and I've been meaning to post it, so I will do so while I'm linking to this post.
I'm afraid I've only just picked up your post of 5/7 on Computer Source Criticism, and David Clark's comment. As a former computer scientist, I don't feel the criticism is entirely justified in this case. The original paper offered to the Association of Computational Linguistics Conference is available here: http://www.dershowitz.net/files/unsupervised-decomposition-of-a-document-into-authorial-components.pdf. The method used by Koppel et al. is to first of all group units of text according to the presence of synonyms (as defined by Strong's Concordance), on the assumption that one author will prefer one set of synonyms, and another a different set (this is explained under 'Exploiting Synonym Usage' and they give some examples in section 1.3). This, they suggest, fairly reliably assigns portions of texts to separate authors. However, there are not many such synonyms. Therefore, on the basis of the few units that can be separated in this way, they then use the combination of common words (which occur >5 times in 10, unnamed, biblical books) in these already identified sections as a seed from which to automatically learn a measure for discriminating between the remaining non-identified sections. Their test texts consist of random combinations of two biblical books, primarily Jeremiah and Ezekiel but others too. They do this first at the chapter level, and then at the verse level (i.e. by drawing a random number of chapters/verses from Jeremiah, and then a random number from Ezekiel, and so on – described in section 1.6). Their method seems to be remarkably successful at separating these chapters/verses into their correct original books. They likewise claim in their conclusion a 90% success rate in identifying P and non-P in the Pentateuch (based on Driver).
The point of the above description is that their method is essentially automated, and not dependent on the results they are trying to find. Having said that, of course they will optimise the method to get better results, that is the point isn't it? Nevertheless, I suggest there is at least one problem with both the method and this experiment. With respect to the method, the assumption that there are exactly two authors for a text is a significant restriction – can this be overcome or does the lack of data make the method unreliable for innumerable authors? What results would have been given by applying the method to, say, Ezekiel alone? If the two-author restriction cannot be overcome then it not useful to biblical studies, except perhaps as some measure of confirmation of pre-existing hypotheses. The problem with the experiment is how reliable is the combination of KJV and Strong's Concordance in identifying synonyms, and where does a style of deliberately using synonyms for variety fit into this? In this case however, we should bear in mind that their primary interest is in the novel computational method used, rather than the problem of biblical authorship.
In sum, this is an impressive result, but unsurprisingly relies on the quality of biblical scholarship at its source.
Cinema’s 10 most underrated monsters
THE GOLEM is one of Cinema’s 10 most underrated monsters.
A beast formed from clay according to Jewish folklore, the Golem has suffered mix fortunes in the movies. Where Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein monster was immortalised in James Whale’s classic movies, German expressionist Paul Wegener’s 1915 movie The Golem survives only in fragments. His second Golem feature, The Golem And The Dancing Girl, has disappeared from history altogether.More on the Golem here and links.
The director’s third, 1920’s The Golem: How He Came Into The World, however, does survive, and it’s a masterpiece of early filmmaking and design. Based on the famous 16th century story of the Golem of Prague, the film sees a Rabbi bringing the creature to life in order to protect his people from racist attacks.
[...]
Monday, July 04, 2011
Review of Hoffman & Cole, "Sacred Trash"
HOFFMAN AND COLE, SACRED TRASH, is reviewed in Haaretz by Avi Steinberg. Excerpt:
As they approach the end of their book, the authors admit that they haven’t even begun to begin. They haven’t, they write, adequately dealt with Biblical literature. “Another Geniza book, or three,” they admit, “could be written around what we’ve left out.” This confession turns out to be a lesson: that the problem of what has been left out of “Sacred Trash” is not truly a problem but rather the unavoidable consequence of dipping into the Geniza’s seemingly fathomless ocean of possibilities. Apparently the deeper one swims in this ocean, the sharper this lesson becomes. Of “A Mediterranean Society,” the multi-volume, several-thousand-page scholarly masterpiece that emerged over decades from Geniza sources, S.D. Goitein, its author, said it was “only a sketch.”Earlier reviews noted here and links. And another recent post on the Cairo Geniza is here.
There is a tendency among the obsessed to speak in occult terms about the Geniza, about specters and miracles. “Suddenly,” wrote scholar Ezra Fleischer, “with the Geniza’s discovery, [tens of thousands of recovered lost poems were] released like spirits or ghosts through the square opening of that sealed room at the end of the women’s gallery of the Ben Ezra synagogue.” With the Cairo Geniza, it is difficult to avoid the uncanny, disorienting experience of encountering lost memory − it is a testament to Cole and Hoffman that they have fleshed out these ghosts, and patiently constructed a vivid, human saga every bit extraordinary as a miracle.
More on the Miriam Ossuary
MORE ON THE MIRIAM OSSUARY: Ossuary Yields New Detail of Gospel Story (The Media Line). This covers the story as already reported, but includes new details here and there. Excerpt:
Assahel Lavi, a former member of the government’s unit for the prevention of the theft of antiquities, said the Judean hills are riddled with thousands of ancient graves, many containing ossuaries and other items spanning the millennium.Indeed and indeed.
“But what attracts the grave robbers the most are the artifacts from the Second Temple period,” Lavi told The Media Line. “Grave robbers want anything with a Jewish symbol on it, like a menorah, from that period because it fetches a lot more money than from other periods.”
Lavi said items with crosses and other symbols from latter times, such as the Byzantine period, were much more common.
“This is one of the leading drivers for grave robbers seeking out ancient Jewish sites from the time of Second Temple,” he said.
Zissu, who was once the commander of the anti-grave robbing unit, said he was very disappointed that the ossuary had not been found in situ, which prevented him from examining it in its archaeological context.
“Sadly, the robbers’ desire of monetary gain has erased entire pages of the country’s cultural history,” Zissu said. “But I’m sure there is more to discover. This land is still full of surprises.”
International SBL and KJB@400
TODAY BEGINS the International Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature in London and its celebration of the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible. Wish I could be there. Oh well, maybe in 2111 ...
Sunday, July 03, 2011
Tombouctou Manuscripts Project
TIMBUKTU ARCHIVES UPDATE: Tombouctou Manuscripts Project.
Background here and links.The Tombouctou Manuscripts Project
Timbuktu has often been invoked as a symbol of the most distant place on Earth, as a mysterious and exotic, but unreachable, attraction. Yet, it is a real city with a history.
Indeed, it has a rich and diverse heritage and a fascinating past. The city and its desert environs are an archive of handwritten texts in Arabic and in African languages in the Arabic script, produced between the 13th and the 20th centuries. The manuscript libraries of Timbuktu are significant repositories of scholarly production in West Africa and the Sahara. Given the large number of manuscript collections it is surprising that Timbuktu as an archive remains largely unknown and under-used. Timbuktu’s manuscript collections deserve close study. It is a significant starting-point for reflecting on Africa’s written traditions.
Recognising its significance as a site of African architecture and of its scholarly past, Unesco declared Timbuktu a World Heritage Site in 1990.
A South Africa-Mali Timbuktu Manuscripts Project was officially launched in 2003 and a major achievement of this project was the new library-archive building, which was inaugurated in Timbuktu in January 2009.
The Tombouctou Manuscripts Project at the University of Cape Town (UCT) is dedicated to research various aspects of writing and reading the handwritten works of Timbuktu and beyond. Training young researchers is an integral part of its work.
Saturday, July 02, 2011
Biblical Studies Carnival
THE LATEST BIBLICAL STUDIES CARNIVAL has been posted by Christian Brady at Targuman.
Friday, July 01, 2011
Aramaic cuneiforms?
ARAMAIC WATCH?
Important Archeological Discoveries in Hasaka for the Current Excavation Season Jun 29, 2011 HASKA, (SANA) - The excavation works conducted by the national, foreign and joint expeditions in Hasaka Province have unearthed several important archeological monuments dating back to different ages. In a statement to SANA, Director of Hasaka Antiquities Department, Abdul-Masih Baghdou said that the researches conducted by the national archeological expedition in Tal Mabtouh Sharqi indicated that Mabtouh City includes tracks for the streets and spillways which indicates the progress of the social life in it. Baghdou indicated that during the current season, four archeological levels were unearthed at the site including the level of metal clay which dates back to the Akkadian era, inside the level walls and floors were found, in addition to a squeezer consisting of a basin. [...] He added that inside the level which dates back to the Ancient Babylonian Era, the expedition unearthed a number of the brick-made buildings and tombs including human skulls and funerary materials such as bronze-made tool and spear blades, in addition to Aramaic cuneiforms dating back to the Ancient Babylonian era. [...]Aramaic cuneiforms? Aramaic written in cuneiform script is not unknown (one example is the Uruk incantation), but it is extremely rare. If that is really what these tablets are, it is quite an exciting discovery. But given SANA's track record for garbling in these articles (see here, here, and here), I suspect the original announcement said something different, perhaps that Aramaic and cuneiform texts had been discovered. That's still good, though. UPDATE: If "the Ancient Babylonian Era" means the Old Babylonian period, there could be cuneiform tablets, but Aramaic did not yet exist. Then again, perhaps they mean the Neo-Babylonian era, in which case Aramaic inscriptions are possible. But the indications of periods are very unclear. The "Akkadian era" seems to be distinguished from the "Ancient Babylonian Era" and the "Modern and Middle Assyrian Age." Perhaps this is a garbled way of referring to the Old Babylonian, Neo-Babylonian, Neo-Assyrian, and Middle Assyrian periods? As I said, it's very unclear. UPDATE (2 July): Duane Smith comments at Abnormal Interests.
ILAB profiles the Cairo Geniza
THE CAIRO GENIZA is profiled briefly by Linda Hedrick at the International League of Antiquitarian Booksellers website: Buried Books - The Cairo Genizah.
More recently on the Cairo Geniza here.
More recently on the Cairo Geniza here.
Mughrabi Gate bridge controversy once again
TEMPLE MOUNT WATCH: The latest on the Mughrabi (Mugrabi) Gate bridge:
Israel furious with Jordan over condemnation of Jerusalem's Old City renovationBackground here.
Ambassador Barkan says Israel is upset over the Jordanian about-face concerning the Mughrabi renovations near the Western Wall in Jerusalem.
By Danna Harman
ATHENS - Israel is furious with Jordan, Israel's ambassador to UNESCO said yesterday.
Nimrod Barkan said Israel is shocked that Amman had led a successful effort within the international body to condemn Israel over the renovations planned for the Mughrabi Gate Bridge - after signing an agreement with Israel to allow the work to go ahead.
kotel - Daniel Bar-On - June 28 2011
"The Jordanians lied in a way that cannot be believed, both to us and to the Americans," Barkan said in a phone call from Paris. "They lied all along the way. They wanted to get it both ways."
[...]
Miriam Ossuary
THE OSSUARY OF A DAUGHTER OF THE CAIAPHAS FAMILY has been getting lots of attention while I was away. Here's the IAA press release:
UPDATE: Also, a good post from Robert Cargill.
Ossuary Belonging to a Daughter of the Caiaphas Family of High Priests was Discovered (JUNE 2011)Todd Bolen has links to media articles and blog commentary at his Bible Places blog. Joseph Lauer has also been sending out good collections of links on his e-mail list.
Three years ago the Israel Antiquities Authority Unit for the Prevention of Antiquities Robbery acquired a decorated ossuary bearing an engraved inscription. The ossuary was discovered by antiquities robbers who plundered an ancient Jewish tomb of the Second Temple period. During the course of the investigation it was determined that the ossuary came from a burial cave in the area of the Valley of ’Elah, in the Judean Shephelah.
To check the authenticity of the artifact and the significance of the engraved inscription, the Israel Antiquities Authority turned to Dr. Boaz Zissu of the Department of the Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology of Bar Ilan University and Professor Yuval Goren of the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Civilizations of the Tel Aviv University.
This week, the two scientists published the results of their research, which summarize the importance of the find and confirm its genuineness. The study appears in the Israel Exploration Journal (Volume 61) published this week by the Israel Exploration Society.
Ossuaries are small stone chests that Jews used for secondary burial of bones; they were quite common in tombs in Israel from the late first century BCE until the beginning of the second century CE. The front of the ossuary that was found is decorated with a stylized floral motif above which is a long Aramaic inscription engraved in Jewish script:
‘Miriam Daughter of Yeshua Son of Caiaphas, Priests [of] Ma'aziah from Beth ’Imri’
(or, an alternative reading:
‘Miriam Daughter of Yeshua Son of Caiaphas, Priest of Ma'aziah from Beth ’Imri’)
In the conclusion of their study Dr. Boaz Zissu and Professor Yuval Goren write, “the prime importance of the inscription lies in the reference to the ancestry of the deceased – Miriam daughter of Yeshua – to the Caiaphas family, indicating the connection to the family of the Ma'aziahcourse of priests of Beth ’Imri”. Caiaphas is the name of Yeshua’s father, and Miriam‘s grandfather. From the wording of the inscription we learn that he belonged to a famous family of priests that was active in the first century CE. One family member, the high priest Yehosef Bar Caiaphas, is especially famous for his involvement in the trial and crucifixion of Jesus.
Ma'aziah /Ma'aziahu is the last of the twenty four priestly courses that served in the Temple in Jerusalem. The list of courses, which was formulated during King David’s reign, appears in the Bible in I Chronicles (I Chronicles 24:18). The signatories to the pledge in the days of Nehemiah include among others, “Maʽaziah, Bilgai, Shem'aiah; these are the priests” (Nehemiah 10: 9). This is the first reference to the Maʽaziah course in an epigraphic find from the Second Temple period. For the first time we learn from an inscription that the Caiaphas family was related to the Ma'aziah course.
The names of other courses, such as Abijah, Eliashib, Bilgah, Delaiah, Hakkoz, Shecaniah, Hezir, Jehoiarib, Jakim (Jakin) and Jeshebeab, are known from historical and epigraphic texts from the Second Temple period, including inscriptions discovered in tombs.
The ending “from Beth ’Imri” can be interpreted two ways:
The first possibility is that Beth ’Imri is the name of a priestly family – the sons of ’Immer (Ezra 2: 36-37; Nehemiah 7:39-42) whose descendents include members of the Maʽaziah course.
The second possibility is the place of origin of the deceased or of her entire family.The name of the ancient settlement was probably preserved in the name Beit ’Ummar, a village in the northern Hebron Hills. In that village and in nearby Khirbet Kufin, remains of a Jewish settlement were identified from the Second Temple period and the time of the Bar Kokhba Revolt.
In view of the inscription on the ossuary it is worth examining the linguistic relationship between the names Caiaphas – a prominent family that seems to have lived in Beth ’Imri/ Beit ’Ummar – and Khirbet Kufin, which perhaps preserves the name of the Caiaphas family.
Since the ossuary in question was not found in a controlled archaeological excavation and because of its special scientific importance, it was subjected to microscopic examinations using an environmental scanning electron microscope/energy dispersive spectrometer (ESEM/EDS), the purpose of which was to evaluate its authenticity.The patina covering the sides was checked, with emphasis on the patina covering the inscription. The examinations determined that the inscription is genuine and ancient.
The Israel Antiquities Authority is distressed by the fact that this important find, which was plundered from its original provenance, was removed from its archeological context, thus it will never be possible to know the full story of the burial cave. Sadly, the robbers’ desire of monetary gain has erased entire pages of the country’s cultural history
UPDATE: Also, a good post from Robert Cargill.
Enoch Seminar: Response to Najman
MY RESPONSE TO HINDY NAJMAN'S PAPER at the Sixth Enoch Seminar generated enough discussion (and amusement) in the session and afterwards that it seems worth it to post it here. Professor Najman's paper is unpublished, but you can get the gist from my summary at the beginning. (Warning: my response contains a few spoilers for the series Lost.)
Also, at the Enoch Seminar a couple of people pointed out that the book of 4 Ezra arguably contains flashessideways when Ezra tells God how he ought to have done things differently, for example, in 7:46[116]:
You can read an early draft of my counterfactual history article here and a related piece here.Response to Hindy Najman, "Con-figuring 4Ezra" I am very happy to have this opportunity to respond to Hindy's very rich paper in which she develops some of her earlier reflections on the implications of pseudepigraphy in the sorts of works to which this conference is devoted. John Collins has advanced the figure of Ezra in 4 Ezra as a counterexample to her paradigm of pseudepigraphy as the tying of a discourse to a great founding figure so as to emulate that figure in a way that authorizes the new discourse. Drawing on reflections on the Homeric problem by Nietzsche, Hindy highlights his proposed reconstruction of the development of the concept "Homer" as the retrospective reframing of the Iliad and the Odyssey as the genuine and only works by the author Homer as constructed by the Alexandrian grammarians. The importance for 4 Ezra is that in terms of the perception of time Nietzsche's approach exemplifies "the very fact that there are alternatives, that both the subject matter and the philological approach can instantiate a variety of complex temporal patterns." In the case of 4 Ezra, "it creates its own precursors." It retroactively intensifies the traumatic character of the destruction of the First Temple, especially by viewing it implicitly through the lens of the author's own experience of the destruction of the Second Temple. The Ezra figure of Ezra-Nehemiah is reimagined as a prophet and as an angelically glorified being who ascends to heaven. 4 Ezra also redirects other figures to become his precursors, notably Job, Moses, Daniel, Ezekiel, and in some ways Zion herself. The old figure of Ezra in the earliest texts is thus enveloped retroactively in a web of associations which gives the figure and his context an entirely new meaning.
James R. Davila, University of St Andrews
In the few minutes I have here to respond, I want to develop Hindy's core insight that "philological work may exhibit varying patterns of temporality." In a sense this can be taken as one aspect of Kristeva's intertextuality: any text can be brought into conversation with any other text and in some cases unexpected conversation partners can produce philologically interesting results. Hindy challenges us to explore how employing variations in temporal perception can create useful textual conversations. The cases that occurred to me as I pondered Hindy's paper involved cinematic techniques of manipulating time for dramatic effect, and so I ask you indulgence when I use those techniques as framing categories here. Moreover, all three of these cinematic categories are well exemplified by their use in the six seasons of the television series Lost, so I will draw even further on your indulgence, hopefully not exhausting it entirely, by using this series alongside Hindy's paper to structure my discussion.
The first technique is the venerable one of the "flashback." The first three seasons of Lost include frequent flashbacks of the past history of the individual survivors of the Oceanic Flight 815 crash and these flashbacks place the characters into contexts that gives us insights into their current behavior on the Island, which insights would otherwise be unavailable to us. There is nothing particularly innovative about the use of flashbacks in the series.
Flashbacks correspond to the standard historical-critical method used by philologists. The center is typically a text, such as Ezra-Nehemiah (or perhaps a figure, such as Ezra, in the text), and the frame is the historical background in the form of archaeology and other texts of the same period or earlier which place the center text or figure in a historical context so that their meaning can be better understood. This is the most traditional temporal framework associated with philology, so much so that it tends to be taken for granted as the default framework.
In the fourth and fifth seasons of Lost, the series shifted its backgrounders from flashbacks to "flashforwards." The efforts of the survivors of Flight 815 to escape from the Island were periodically interrupted with scenes from three years in the future, which gradually reveal that a handful of them had escaped, that the consequences for those left behind on the Island had been catastrophic, and that those who had escaped were coming to terms with the fact that they had to go back to repair the damage. Now we learn more about the characters not by seeing their backgrounds, but rather by seeing the future consequences of what they are doing in the present. Lost is not the first film project to employ flashforwards, and they have been used as a literary technique for a long time, but Lost pioneered the use of the cinematic technique over an extended story-arc.
What Hindy is doing in this paper bears a striking resemblance to the flashforward. The center is again, the book of Ezra-Nehemiah or the figure of Ezra in that book, but the frame is now the much later book of 4 Ezra. Her prospective approach produces a retrogressive reading in which the future history of the figure of Ezra as presented in 4 Ezra gives a new, retrospective context and meaning to Ezra and the original Ezra texts, one quite different from its "original" meaning in the historical-critical sense.
These two temporal frameworks by no means exhaust the possible varying patterns of temporality. The final season of Lost uses another such pattern, which has come to be called the "flashsideways" by fans. The "Oceanic six" returned to the Island in season five, where they were caught up in waves of temporal shifts and they resorted to extreme measures to try to cancel out their own past history and replace it with a timeline in which Flight 815 never crashed and, indeed, in which the work of the Dharma Initiative was annihilated thirty years before the crash. Unbeknownst to them, they succeed—or initially appear to, in that the final season alternates between the plight of the crash victims still trapped on the Island and an alternate timeline in which none of the contributing factors to the crash—going back many years—happened, and so the crash itself did not happen. In this new timeline the characters live different lives in which they face challenges that force them to confront personal weaknesses already revealed in the crash timeline, sometimes successfully overcoming them and sometimes not.
Hindy hints at the possibility of the philological flashsideways when she calls on us to "use our historical ability to understand without anachronism, our ability to imagine pasts that differ radically from our present, in order to imagine alternative futures." Here we have yet another potential frame for the philological enterprise. Its most obvious application is in "counterfactual history," in which a historical event or a text is placed in an alternate historical context different from our timeline, which new context gives us insights, for example, into the nature and transmission of the text which we would not otherwise have. This method has not been applied often in our field, but, for example, in 1994 Abraham Terian published an article that reflected wistfully on how much more attention the works of Philo would receive today had they been discovered recently like the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi Library, and last year I published an article that explored what we could learn about the transmission of Jewish pseudepigrapha in Christian circles by following a counterfactual transmission of the Qumran Hodayot by the ancient Syriac-speaking church. In this article I also offered methodological reflections on how counterfactual history might profitably be more widely applied in the fields of ancient history and philology.
A less stark application of the flashsideways by literary critics is the widespread practice of bringing one or more ancient documents into dialogue with other documents from roughly the same time in order to enrich our understanding of these texts, even though we cannot establish that the authors ever met or knew each other's work. A good example involving one of the two documents we are here this week to study is the 1995 book by Edith Humphrey, The Ladies and the Cities: Transformation and Apocalyptic Identity in Joseph and Aseneth, 4 Ezra, The Apocalypse and the Shepherd of Hermas.
I am not aware of the flashsideways being used by any ancient documents in the Western tradition and it may be that the concept of parallel mutually counterfactual timelines was too alien to their worldview. But that said, ancient Hinduism and Buddhism has a much more supple conception of time, and it would surprise me if no texts in those traditions ever explored such notions.
As well as thanking Hindy for a very thought-provoking paper, I will conclude with two brief questions for her. First, are my reflections here anything like what you had in mind when you said that philological work may exhibit varying patterns of temporality and do you find my extended framework potentially useful? And second, do you have in mind other temporal patterns whose instantiation can enrich our philological approach?
Works Cited
James R. Davila, "Counterfactual History and the Dead Sea Scrolls," in Rediscovering the Dead Sea Scrolls: An Assessment of Old and New Approaches and Methods (ed. Maxine L. Grossman; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2010), 128-44.
Edith McEwan Humphrey, The Ladies and the Cities: Transformation and Apocalyptic Identity in Joseph and Aseneth, 4 Ezra, The Apocalypse and the Shepherd of Hermas (JSPSup 17; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1995).
Abraham Terian, "Had the Works of Philo Been Newly Discovered," BA 57 (1994): 86-97.
Also, at the Enoch Seminar a couple of people pointed out that the book of 4 Ezra arguably contains flashessideways when Ezra tells God how he ought to have done things differently, for example, in 7:46[116]:
I answered and said, "This is my first and last word, that it would have been better if the earth had not produced Adam, or else, when it had produced him, had restrained him from sinning. (RSV)Another post on the Sixth Enoch Seminar, with photos, is here.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Back in St. Andrews
BACK IN ST. ANDREWS. More on the Enoch Seminar when I get a chance.
UPDATE: I have added a photo of 4 Ezra to the At the Biblioteca Ambrosiana post.
UPDATE: I have added a photo of 4 Ezra to the At the Biblioteca Ambrosiana post.
Index to Hugoye
NEW BOOK:
Walters, J., and Logan Wilmoth. Index to Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies
Title: Index to Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies
Subtitle: Volumes 1-10
Series: Gorgias Handbooks 22
Availability: In Print
Publisher: Gorgias Press
Edited by J. Walters
Edited by Logan Wilmoth
ISBN: 978-1-4632-0078-7
Availability: In Print
Publication Date: 6/2011
Language: English
Format: Paperback, Black, 6 x 9 in
Pages: 72
This index provides an index to the contents of Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies, Volumes 1-10, organized into five parts. Part I provides the article titles, authors, abstracts, and page numbers organized by volume. Part II is an index of all articles organized alphabetically by article title. Part III is an index of all articles organized alphabetically by the last name of the author. Part IV is an index of all the books reviewed in Hugoye and presents this material in two sections: 1) alphabetically by author of the book reviewed, and 2) alphabetically by author of the review. Part V provides a subject index in five sections: manuscripts, ancient texts, people, places, and keywords.
Table of Contents
* Index to Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies Volumes 1-10 by J. Edward Walters and Logan Wilmoth (page 5)
* Introduction (page 5)
* I. Index of Volume Contents (page 7)
* II. Index by Article Titles (page 36)
* III. Index by Author (page 44)
* IV. Book Reviews (page 53)
* V. Subject Index (page 65)
Walters, J., and Logan Wilmoth. Index to Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies
ISBN: 978-1-4632-0078-7
Weight: 1 LBS.
Price: $30.80
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
BMCR: Ulrich et al, "Continuity and Discontinuity in Early Christian Apologetics"
BMCR REVIEW:
Jörg Ulrich, Anders-Christian Jacobsen, Maijastina Kahlos (ed.), Continuity and Discontinuity in Early Christian Apologetics. Early Christianity in the Context of Antiquity 5. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 2009. Pp. 130. ISBN 9783631579763. $33.95.These apologetics were aimed, of course, at both contemporary pagans and contemporary Jews.
Reviewed by E. J. Hutchinson, Hillsdale College (ehutchinson@hillsdale.edu)
Table of Contents
Continuity and Discontinuity in Early Christian Apologetics is a collection of seven essays presented in a workshop organized by German, Finnish, and Danish scholars at the Fifteenth International Conference on Patristic Studies at Oxford in 2007. The goal of the editors in publishing the papers is "to reach a larger audience and…to further the discussion" (3) of early Christian apologetics. The papers cover the second to the fifth centuries and include analysis of both Latin and Greek apologists (a category which is defined—rightly, in my view—rather broadly).
[...]
At the Biblioteca Ambrosiana
AT THE BIBLIOTECA AMBROSIANA, MILAN
Click on the images to see a larger version.
Codex Ambrosianus B.21, the earliest complete Syriac Bible (background here, with images from a photolithographic facsimile), open to 2 Baruch. This is the actual manuscript, on display for the Enoch Seminar yesterday.
Liv Ingeborg Lied
L->R: Gianantonio Borgonovo (Ambrosian Library), Liv Ingeborg Lied, Ted Erho, Bob Kraft, Jim Davila
Codex Ambrosianus B. 21, open to the beginning of the biblical book of Ezra (red ink)
Codex Ambrosianus B. 21, colophons page (notes of its transmission history at the end of the codex)
UPDATE (30 June): One more:
The beginning of 4 Ezra (red ink, middle of page, below the blank spot)
UPDATE (1 July): More on the Sixth Enoch Seminar here.
UPDATE (2 July): Another photo:
2 Baruch 21:1, the prayer of Baruch (red ink)
Note (4 July): I have corrected two text attributions above after having a chance to look more closely at the texts.
Click on the images to see a larger version.
Codex Ambrosianus B.21, the earliest complete Syriac Bible (background here, with images from a photolithographic facsimile), open to 2 Baruch. This is the actual manuscript, on display for the Enoch Seminar yesterday.
L->R: Gianantonio Borgonovo (Ambrosian Library), Liv Ingeborg Lied, Ted Erho, Bob Kraft, Jim Davila
Codex Ambrosianus B. 21, open to the beginning of the biblical book of Ezra (red ink)
Codex Ambrosianus B. 21, colophons page (notes of its transmission history at the end of the codex)UPDATE (30 June): One more:
UPDATE (1 July): More on the Sixth Enoch Seminar here.
UPDATE (2 July): Another photo:
Note (4 July): I have corrected two text attributions above after having a chance to look more closely at the texts.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
BMCR: O'Loughlin, "The Didache"
BMCR REVIEW:
Thomas O'Loughlin, The Didache: A Window on the Earliest Christians. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2010. Pp. xvii, 185. ISBN 9780801045394. $24.99 (pb).
Reviewed by Vincent Hunink, Radboud University Nijmegen (v.hunink@let.ru.nl)
Ever since its discovery in 1873, the Early Christian Greek text known as the Didache has stirred controversy on numerous points. Is this an authentic document from the earliest times of Christianity or a later forger? Does it confirm modern theological views, whether Catholic or Protestant, or threaten to undermine them? Does the text represent early Christians at large or merely a minority limited in time and place?
Some of these issues seem to have been settled by now: scholars generally agree that the text is authentic and must be considered very early. Doctrinal debates, however, remain very much alive.
[...]
City events today and manuscript
WE'RE HEADING INTO MILAN today for city events and to see that manuscript at the Ambrosian Library.
Another fake metal codex photo?
FAKE METAL CODICES WATCH: Looks like another photo and some more plates gossip. (HT Thomas Verenna.)
Background here.
Background here.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Garber, "The Jewish Jesus" at Bible and Interpretation
ESSAY AT BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:
A review of the book is noted here.
The Jewish JesusFollow the link to download the PDF file.
Revelation, Reflection, Reclamation
(Purdue University Press: 2011)
Part I: Introduction
Part II: The Jewish Jesus: A Partisan’s
Imagination
My Jewish reading of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels puts him in history and not in divinity. The Jesus of different Christologies could never find support in Judaism, since the God-man of the “hypostatic union” is foreign to Judaism’s teaching on absolute monotheism. As the promised Messiah, he did not meet the conditions which the prophetic-rabbinic tradition associated with the coming of the Messiah. Indeed, there was no harmony, freedom, peace and unity in the land of Israel—signs of the messianic age—and enmity and strife abounded everywhere. Not a false but failed Redeemer of the Jews, as witnessed by the words of the “King of the Jews” at the cross: Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani (“My God, my God, why have You forsaken me”)?
By Zev Garber
Professor Emeritus and Chair of Jewish Studies,
Los Angeles Valley College
June 2011
A review of the book is noted here.
More Hekhalot exegesis from Jared Calaway
MORE HEKHALOT EXEGESIS from Jared Calaway: Daily Hekhalot: Hekhalot Zutarti §420b (Burning the Hands).
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Conference: Ancient Jewish Texts and the ‘Literary’
CONFERENCE:
From Karolien Vermeulen (Karolien.Vermeulen@ugent.be):(From the Agade list.)
===========================================
Ancient Jewish Texts and the ‘Literary’
14,15 March 2012
Institute of Jewish Studies (University of Antwerp)
The Institute of Jewish Studies (University of Antwerp) in collaboration with Ghent University is happy to announce an international seminar on Ancient Jewish Texts and the ‘Literary.’ The aim is to bring together scholars working on various ancient Jewish
texts and their distinct textual – often called literary - features. The goal is to exchange ideas on the ‘literary’ in these works and stimulate future research and collaboration.
Invited keynote speakers:
Prof. Dr. Scott Noegel, University of Washington (United States of America) (confirmed)
Prof. Dr. Ellen Van Wolde, Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen (Netherlands)
Prof. Dr. Wilfred Watson, Newcastle University (United Kingdom)
Prof. Dr. Robert Gordon, Cambridge University (United Kingdom)
Since the 60s and 70s of the previous century the form and exact wording of ancient Jewish texts has been the focus of attention of a literary approach within biblical/Jewish studies. This subfield relies on the insights of narratology on the one hand and rhetoric on the other. Resulting from this approach any research involving the creative use of language, e.g. in the Hebrew Bible, is considered literary.
In recent years this term has increasingly been questioned as being a presupposition rather than the result of research. ‘Literary’ therefore should be understood as the common though not necessarily apt umbrella term for all studies focusing on the form of ancient texts. Contributors are encouraged to interpret the term either in defense of literariness or against it.
We invite participants from all related fields: Jewish studies, biblical studies, ancient Near Eastern studies, classical studies, literary studies, and stylistics. Possible approaches include among others analyses of the Hebrew Bible, its old translations, early commentaries and retellings, as long as they can be considered ancient (i.e., pre-medieval) and Jewish (i.e., written by Jews or in a Jewish setting).
Proposals up to 300 words can be submitted no later than July 31 2011, to Karolien Vermeulen (karolien.vermeulen@ua.ac.be or karolien.vermeulen@ugent.be).
Sixth Enoch Seminar
I'M OFF TO MILAN for the Sixth Enoch Seminar. I'm not giving a paper myself, but I am responding to one by Hindy Najman. But since her paper is not yet published, I'm not going to post my response here. I should note, though, for James McGrath's attention in particular, that my response makes considerable use of the series Lost.
I am looking forward very much not only to the many excellent papers, but also to the opportunity to get a direct look at manuscript Codex Ambrosianus B.21. And to the weather in Milan.
I will probably have some Internet access and will do some blogging if I can. I have also pre-posted some items. There will be something new each day, so do keep coming by this week. I expect to be back in St. Andrews on Thursday evening.
I am looking forward very much not only to the many excellent papers, but also to the opportunity to get a direct look at manuscript Codex Ambrosianus B.21. And to the weather in Milan.
I will probably have some Internet access and will do some blogging if I can. I have also pre-posted some items. There will be something new each day, so do keep coming by this week. I expect to be back in St. Andrews on Thursday evening.
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