The languages of Achaemenid-Hellenistic Central Asia

PHILOLOGY: Lost Multilingual World Shows Greek Culture Flourished Across Ancient Asia (Abdul Moeed, Greek Reporter).

A new study of ancient written records shows that multilingual societies thrived across Hellenistic Central Asia for nearly a thousand years, with scribes regularly switching between languages and scripts to serve whichever empire happened to be in power.

Rachel Mairs, a researcher at the University of Reading, published the findings in “Writing in the Ancient World.” The study examines surviving texts from regions now known as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, covering the period from roughly the fifth century BC to the second century CE.

Mairs identifies four main written languages in the region: Aramaic and Elamite under the Achaemenid Persian Empire, Greek under Macedonian rule, and Prakrit under the Mauryan Empire from India.

[...]

This substantial Cambridge Element is free for download until 20 May (so don't dawdle). The GR article is a good summary of it.

Language and Script in Achaemenid and Hellenistic Central Asia

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 May 2026

Rachel Mairs

Summary

This Element examines – for the first time in a single volume – the written evidence from the 'Far East' of the Hellenistic world (Bactria, Sogdiana, Arachosia, Gandhara). It examines how successive invaders of this region, from Persia, Greece and India, left their linguistic and textual mark. It reviews the surviving Hellenistic-period written material from archaeological sites in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan in Aramaic, Greek and Prakrit.

For more on the Emperor Ashoka and his edicts in Pali, Aramaic, and Greek, see here and links. For lots more on the texts from Persepolis in Aramaic, Old Persian, Elamite, etc., start here and follow the links. And for a bit more on the Bactrian Aramaic texts, see here. Cross-file under Aramaic Watch.

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Nelson, Jesus' Physical Appearance (T&T Clark)

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Jesus' Physical Appearance

Biography, Christology, Philosophy

John D. Nelson (Author)

Hardback
$120.00 $108.00

Ebook (PDF)
$108.00 $86.40

Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
$108.00 $86.40

Product details

Published Dec 11 2025
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Pages 264
ISBN 9780567723208
Imprint T&T Clark
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Series The Library of New Testament Studies
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

John Nelson presents the first full length study of the Gospels' treatment of Jesus' appearance, exploring precisely why, though Christ's image is recognised throughout the modern world, he is not physically described in the texts. Nelson argues that while the Gospels resemble Graeco-Roman biographies in their focus on a single individual, they also frequently depart from the genre's conventions; one of their most glaring omissions, picked up in recent scholarship, is their total silence on what Jesus looked like.

Nelson thus explores how the evangelists as Jewish authors might have uniquely engaged both the genre of the Gospels and the topic of Jesus' physical appearance. He makes clear the distinction between two broad attitudes Jewish authors took to Greek genres: to assimilate that genre's conventions, and to 'indigenise,' or adopt the conventions of Jewish narrative prototypes in their adaption of Greek forms. Utilising genre theory, masculinity studies and post-colonial theory, Nelson consequently argues against the common view that Jewish writers simply adopted the same obsession with appearances that their gentile neighbours expressed, suggesting instead that the Gospels' reticence to describe Jesus' body may have been influenced by the reticence of biblical texts to describe the Lord's body.

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Holmstedt et al., Phoenician Inscriptions (SBL)

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Phoenician Inscriptions
Robert D. Holmstedt, Aaron Schade, Philip C. Schmitz

ISBN 9781628377675
Volume WAW 45
Status Available
Publication Date March 2026

Paperback $70.00
Hardback $90.00
eBook $70.00

Phoenician Inscriptions introduces readers to the writing of the ancient people groups who originated in the ancient Levantine cities of Byblos, Tyre, and Sidon by the late second millennium BCE. Thanks to their establishment of colonies throughout the Mediterranean world, written evidence of their influence has been discovered from the Levant, Anatolia, and Cyprus to Egypt, Greece, Italy, and Spain. Each inscription in this volume is transliterated and includes an English translation and select critical commentary. Helpful maps, discussions of historical context, and drawings of inscribed artifacts supplement the translations. This resource opens a window onto the religious ideas and economic practices of people instrumental in shaping the history and culture of the ancient Mediterranean for a variety of readers, including curious nonspecialists and scholars and students of ancient history, linguistics, and archaeology.

Cross-file under Phoenician Watch.

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Report: the Great Isaiah Scroll exhibit is reopening today

EXHIBITION: Great Isaiah Scroll, oldest near-complete biblical book ever found, to be displayed again after Iran war (Rossella Tercatin, Times of Israel).

The Great Isaiah Scroll, the oldest nearly complete book from the Hebrew Bible ever found, will be back on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem starting from Friday, a spokesperson for the museum says.

[...]

This is very good news, even if the headline is a tad optimistic.

Background on the exhibition, interrupted by the Iran war after only five days, is here and links.

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

Jerusalem in Psalm 122

FOR JERUSALEM DAY: Psalm 122: A Visit to the Jerusalem of Old (Prof. Adele Berlin, TheTorah.com).

What did it feel like to stand inside the gates of ancient Jerusalem at the height of its glory? A postexilic psalm imagines just that—revisiting a bustling city filled with pilgrims, justice, and divine presence. Blending memory, longing, and hope, Psalm 122 transforms Jerusalem into both a vivid past reality and a future ideal, culminating in its enduring call: שַׁאֲלוּ שְׁלוֹם יְרוּשָׁלִָם, “Seek the peace of Jerusalem.”

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More on Lost Books from Jenkins

THE ANXIOUS BENCH: Books, Epics, And Scriptures, Lost And Found.

Lots of good links here. Background here and links. Cross-file under Lost Books.

For more on those lost "Biblical-adjacent texts" cited in the Hebrew Bible, see here and links, plus here and here.

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

US returns smuggled rare coins to Israel

REPATRIATED NUMISMATICS: Early Persian silver coin smuggled from Israel to Big Apple also regained after being offered for sale (Ruth Schuster, Haaretz).

Antiquities detectives in New York have recovered two rare ancient coins smuggled out of Israel, which will be returned home, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Wednesday. They aren't on a plane yet but will be at some point thanks to a massive joint effort by the Israel Antiquities Authority with the Antiquities Trafficking Unit at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office and Homeland Security. ...

One of the recovered coins is a bronze prutah, the lowest known denomination of Judean currency. Its purchasing power was weak: a loaf of bread cost about 10 of these. However, this one had been minted during the reign of the last Hasmonean king, Mattathias Antigonus, who ruled in Jerusalem from 40 to 37 B.C.E. It shows nothing less than the seven-branched menorah that stood in the Second Temple in Jerusalem on one side and the Temple's showbread table on the flip side. ...

The second coin wouldn't have been allowed out of the country either. It was a lovely early silver tetradrachm from the Persian period, minted in Ascalon over 2,500 years ago, only a couple of centuries after the invention of coinage itself. Only one other of its type is known, and that one sits in the Israel Museum. Its design emulates the famous Athenian tetradrachm, which was the standard coin throughout the Eastern Mediterranean at the time.

For more on the prutah, see here and links. And for posts on the tetradrachm, see here and links.

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

Controversial nomination for IAA director

POLITICS AND ARCHAEOLOGY: Esther Shreiber for next IAA director, first woman in role. Her appointment will soon be submitted for approval by the IAA’s council and the government (Miriam Sela-Eitam, Jerusalem Post).

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu tapped Esther Shreiber, CEO of the INEXTG Group, to be the next director of the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), which would make her the first woman to ever serve in the position.

Her appointment will soon be submitted for approval by the IAA’s council and the government. ...

She holds a bachelor’s degree in the History of the Jewish People from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, a master’s degree with honors in Public Administration and Policy from the University of Haifa, and is a Stern Prize recipient for studies of the Second Temple period.

The Jerusalem Post notes and discusses the controversy over the nomination, but doesn't seem to take a position on it. Othe media are less neutral:

Head of NGO Promoting 'Jewish Values' Tapped to Lead Israel's Antiquities Authority. Esther Schreiber was nominated under pressure from far-right minister Amichai Eliyahu, sources said. A senior archaeologist warned the authority could face 'a process of decline' (Nir Hasson, Haaretz)

Archaeologists within and outside the authority reacted with shock to the appointment, calling it unprofessional. According to them, Schreiber lacks the qualifications to lead the authority, and her work has no connection to archaeology or managing large organizations such as the authority, whose annual budget exceeds 400 million shekels (about $138 million).

Heritage Minister taps new Antiquities Authority head with no archaeological experience (Rossella Tercatin, Times of Israel)

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu, of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, taps Esther Shreiber, a Jewish professional with no archaeological experience, as the new head of the Israel Antiquities Authority.

[...]

The Times of Israel does concede the following (also mentioned by the Jerusalem Post).

The current IAA head Eli Escozido also does not have a background in archaeology, nor did his predecessor, former Shin Bet deputy director Israel Hasson, who served in the position between 2014 and 2021.

Haaretz hints at the point, but doesn't state it directly.

There are conflicting claims about Ms. Schreiber's current position and its responsibilities. There are also reports of insider claims from various anonymous sources, which I discount on principle. It is not always easy to distiguish the latter from official statements.

That's the information I can find. I take no position on the nomination. I blog, you decide.

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

Mystery tunnel found in Jerusalem

SPELUNKIC ARCHAEOLOGY: Ancient tunnel with unknown age, purpose found near Kibbutz Ramat Rachel ahead of Jerusalem Day. After descending a set of ancient stairs from the surface, archaeologists found themselves standing at the hewn opening of the tunnel, found to be filled with hundreds of years of ancient sewage (Miriam Sela-Eitam, Jerusalem Post).

A mysterious and ancient stone tunnel was recently discovered near Kibbutz Ramat Rachel in southern Jerusalem during preventative excavations ahead of the construction of the new neighborhood promoted by the Israel Land Authority (ILA).

The find, announced by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) on Thursday morning, is expected to measure approximately 50 meters long, 5 meters high, and 3 meters wide.

[...]

As the headline indicates, the tunnel's date and purpose are unclear. The archaeologists have guesses, though.

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

Turin Egyptian-papyri restoration project funded

PAPYROLOGY: Egyptian Museum of Turin, ME-Scripta, a laboratory for the study of artefacts, is born. Fondazione Crt guarantees 3 million euro for 10-year project combining restoration and philological study (Filomena Greco, Il Sole 24 ore).

The Laboratory of the Egyptian Museum will be called ME-Script and will be directed by Susanne Töpfer, curator in charge of the Egyptian Museum's papyrological collection, with the ambition of uniting the work of restorers with that of philologists, to enable the recovery of artefacts and the study of texts belonging to different types of ancient codices, up to Coptic bindings. It employs two curators, three collaborators, an apprentice and a data manager.

Great news! Cross-file under Philology and Coptic Watch.

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

On the Ptolemaic Era in Egypt

THE WORLD IS FULL OF HISTORY: Alexander’s Legacy: The Ptolemaic Era of Greek Rule in Egypt (Nick Kampouris, Greek Reporter).

When Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 332 BCE, he signaled the beginning of the era of Ptolemaic rule.

His general Ptolemy established the Ptolemaic dynasty that would govern the vast lands of Egypt for the next 300 years. The Ptolemies became the rulers over a complex fusion of Greek and Egyptian cultures.

[...]

A nice, brief overview of the Ptolemaic dynasty.

There are many PaleoJudaica posts on the Ptolemies, who are important for understanding various aspects of Second Temple Judaism, not least the Book of Daniel. Some notable posts are here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here, and follow the many links!

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

Boy finds late-antique god figurine-fragment in Negev

MATERIAL CULTURE IN THE ROUND: Eight-year-old boy finds 1,700-year-old statuette fragment while hiking in Negev. Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologist says the artifact might depict Roman god Jupiter (Rossella Tercatin, Times of Israel).

[IAA Theft Prevention Unit supervisor Akiva] Goldenhersh acknowledged it was difficult to precisely identify who the statuette portrays.

“Stylistically, it might be of the god Jupiter, or Zeus-Dushara, a Nabatean god who was identified and merged with Zeus in the context of the encounter between the Nabatean culture that was widespread in the Negev region, and the Hellenistic-Roman world,” he said. “This tiny find thus reflects the combination of local traditions with influences from the classical world.”

Cross-file under Nabatean (Nabataean) Watch.

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Expansive cultural and material range in the new Posen Library volume

ANCIENT JEW REVIEW: Jewish Cultures and Material Artifacts (Karen Stern).

Jewish Cultures and Material Artifacts: Comments on The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, Vol.2, Emerging Judaism, 332 BCE–600 CE, ed. Carol Bakhos

... In this grand volume, everything is an artifact and everything (appropriately) requires guided interpretation. Indeed, Carol Bakhos and her entire editorial team have gathered into this work one of the richest and most diverse collections of artifacts, both in forms of redacted texts and archaeologically attested objects, amassed to this point in English translation and prose, inclusive of hundreds of pages of analysis and annotation. Through editors’ careful introductions, contextualization, and connections, this volume invites readers to explore and interpret textual and archaeological artifacts anew, demonstrating how it is always possible to tell new stories (or histories) about old things. The results are exciting, generating opportunities for academics and lay readers to reexamine known evidence and develop novel insights into Jewish cultures from 332 BCE to 600 CE. ...

For the first essay in this review series, see here.

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Revised bill for new West Bank antiquity authority passes first Knesset reading

ARCHAEOLOGY AND POLITICS: Knesset advances controversial West Bank antiquity bill in first reading. Legislation’s critics maintain it amounts to de facto annexation, while supporters say it is necessary to preserve territory’s unique heritage (Rossella Tercatin, Times of Israel).

A controversial bill creating a new civilian authority in charge of antiquities in the West Bank was approved by the Knesset plenum in the first reading overnight between Monday and Tuesday. ...

If passed into law, which will require two additional readings by the plenum, the bill will create a “Judea and Samaria Heritage Authority,” using the biblical name for the West Bank.

The authority is set to assume the responsibilities currently held by the Defense Ministry.

The person responsible for the file now is a staff officer of the Archaeology Unit of the Civil Administration, a branch of the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), which is in charge of civilian affairs in the territory.

An earlier version sought to transfer this authority to the Israel Antiquities Authority, but it was widely opposed, including by the IAA. Detailed background is here, here, and (most recent summary) here. This current bill is the revised result.

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

Review of Van Maaren, The Gospel of Mark’s Judaism ....

BOOK REVIEW: The Gospel of Mark’s Judaism and the Death of Christ as a Ransom for Many (R. B. JAMIESON, Themelios).

Many monographs proclaim their ambition to shift a paradigm; few do. In my opinion, this volume stands a better chance than most. This monograph is the second to develop from the author’s doctoral dissertation at McMaster University; the first was published as The Boundaries of Jewishness in the Southern Levant: 200 BCE–132 CE (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2022). The present work applies a nuanced, textured set of conceptualities for discerning and situating the “Jewishness” of an ancient religious text such as the Gospel of Mark, which it employs to undermine the reigning scholarly paradigm, which the author calls “Gentile Mark.”

[...]

For more on the book, see here and here.

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

Josephus' effeminizing propaganda?

THE CLASSICAL QUARTERLY:

SELF-MADE ‘MEN’: THE PROGRESSIVE EMASCULATION OF THE BROTHERS ASINAEUS AND ANILAEUS IN JOSEPHUS, ANTIQUITIES 18

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 April 2026

The Classical Quarterly , First View , pp. 1 - 15
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0009838826101190
Open Access

Joseph Scales and Isaac T. Soon

Abstract

This article analyses how Flavius Josephus presents the conquests of Asinaeus and Anilaeus, two robber-bandits who established a fiefdom in first-century Babylonia. In dialogue with common Roman tropes about gender and his previous writings on the notable physical features of men in times of war, this article focusses on how Josephus progressively effeminizes Asinaeus and Anilaeus. Although their military feats abound, their increasingly risky behaviour and their growing neglect of Jewish ways of life jeopardize their own character and the safety of their Jewish kin. With this strategy of emasculation, Josephus undermines those who self-interestedly seek power and influence.

Follow the link for the full text of this open-access article.

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Narsai: The Homilies. Volume 2 (Peeters)

NEW BOOK FROM PEETERS PUBLISHERS:

Narsai: The Homilies. Volume 2

Series:
Eastern Christian Texts in Translation, 7

Author:
Becker A.H.

Price: 65 euro
Year: 2026
ISBN: 9789042954250
Pages: XIV-203 p.

Summary:

Narsai, who is variously called “the tongue of the East” and “the harp of the Spirit”, is among the most important and influential Syriac authors. His life spanned the fifth century, which was a tumultuous time for Christians following the controversies surrounding the First Council of Ephesus, the Second Council of Ephesus, and the Council of Chalcedon. Playing a crucial role at this critical juncture, Narsai would ultimately be remembered as one of the foundational figures of the Church of the East. This volume, the second in the series Narsai: The Homilies, offers translations of several of Narsai’s homilies that focus on Lent and moral reform. The homilies translated in this volume are “On Lent I” (20), “On Lent III” (23), “On Lent IV” (24), “On Lent V” (26), “On Reproof” (25), “On Reproof of the Clergy” (78), and “On Reproof” (79).

I noted the publication of volume one here. Cross-file under Syriac Watch.

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History, Prophecy, Identity and Language in the Hebrew Bible (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

History, Prophecy, Identity and Language in the Hebrew Bible

Proceedings of the 18th Joint Meeting of the Society for Old ‎Testament Study (SOTS) and the Oudtestamentisch Werkgezelschap in Nederland en België (OTW), Nottingham, 2022

Series:
Oudtestamentische Studiën, Old Testament Studies, Volume: 84

Volume Editors: Hans Ausloos and Charlotte Hempel

This volume contains the Proceedings of the 18th Joint Meeting of the Society ‎for Old ‎Testament Study (SOTS) and the Oudtestamentisch Werkgezelschap ‎in Nederland en België (OTW) in the summer ‎of 2022 in Nottingham. The ten ‎contributions are prefaced by an editorial Introduction (Hempel, Ausloos) followed by studies on ‎Hebrew Semantics (Raymond de Hoop, Paul Sanders, Ellen van Wolde), the Pentateuch (Gert Kwakkel, Jan-Wim Wesselius‎, Philip Yoo), exilic and post-exilic historiography (Carly Crouch, Michaël van der Meer) and two chapters that draw on Sumerian poetry and gender-based violence ‎in contemporary South Africa, respectively, to illuminate biblical narratives in Judges and 1-2 Samuel (Ekaterina E. Kozlova, Nozipho Princess S. Dlodlo).

Copyright Year: 2025

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-74065-5
Publication: 19 Jan 2026
EUR €119.00

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-74064-8
Publication: 19 Feb 2026
EUR €119.00

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New proposals about the Copper Scroll

THAT DARNED TREASURE AGAIN: The Mysterious Copper Scroll and the End of Days. One stood among the Dead Sea Scrolls: made of metal, and seemingly never meant to be read. Who made it, when and why, and how was Bar-Kokhba involved? Shimon Gibson presents a new theory (Ruth Schuster).

"The Copper Scroll has always been an enigma, already from when it was first discovered and published. None of the explanations that have been proposed until now have been especially convincing," commented ancient Judaism expert Yonatan Adler of Ariel University. "Enigmatic finds of this kind absolutely invite thinking outside of the box, and I congratulate Prof. Gibson for his intriguing hypothesis. Even if we still lack a 'smoking gun,' novel and well-argued hypotheses of this kind are what move the inquiry forward."

Agreed. Gibson has valid criticisms of the current most popular understanding of the Copper Scroll, that it listes the Temple treasures:

He also points out that if it was a list of Temple valuables removed and secreted by Jews ahead of a howling Roman advance, surely they would have taken the menorah too; yet we see the Romans took that. "Some of the looted funds were even used to help build the landmark Colosseum in that same city which is admired by tourists to this very day," Gibson adds.

True. But there's no guarantee that all of the treasure would have been successfully smuggled out of Jerusalem and into hiding. The menorah would have been more difficult than most of the treasures to move quietly.

Gibson's hypothesis that the treasures are actually contributions to the Bar Kokhba revolt is interesting, but the amounts seem too large to me. Likewise with Joan Taylor's proposal that they are a list of post-Temple Temple tithes from the Bar Kokhba era. Even if we go with Lefkovits'z karsh (rather than talent) intepretation of the amount listings, which we may or may not do.

But I haven't seen either article. If I saw the full arguments I might change my mind.

For a BAR article by Taylor on the subject, see here. If she is proposing there that the CS treasure includes some Temple paraphrenalia and later tithes, which the summary seems to indicate, that makes more sense to me.

For many other PaleoJudaica posts on the Copper Scroll, start here and follow the links.

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

Collins on the limits of Jewish identity

ANCIENT JEW REVIEW: The Limits of Jewish Identity (John J. Collins).

The Limits of Jewish Identity: Comments on The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, Vol.2, Emerging Judaism, 332 BCE–600 CE, ed. Carol Bakhos

As one might imagine, given the author, this is an excellent review of textual data and methodological issues for the question of what constituted Jewish literature, and therefore Judaism, in antiquity.

I fully agree with his conclusions regarding the Similitudes of Enoch. I have argued much the same about it in my book The Provenance of the Pseudepigrapha: Jewish, Christian, or other? (Brill, 2005), pp. 132-37. Incidentally, Professor Collins was the editor.

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

Cyprus and the Diaspora Revolt of 115-117 CE

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: When Cypriot Jews Revolted Against Rome. Archaeology shines light on little-known revolt (Marek Dospěl).

To explore the historical evidence for the Diaspora Revolt—including the New Testament and Roman historians—read Thomas Davis’s article “The Diaspora Revolt: Cyprus’s Forgotten Jewish Uprising,” published in the Spring 2026 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

The article is behind the subscription wall, but this BHD essay gives an informative summary of it.

The Diaspora Revolt took place in Cyprus, Cyrene (the Kitos War), Egypt, and Mesopotamia. PaleoJudaica has touched on this revolt here and there, but this is first detailed account I have found of its Cypriot component.

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

Holm, Aramaic Literature from Egypt and the Levant (SBL)

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Aramaic Literature from Egypt and the Levant

Tawny L. Holm

ISBN 9781628377521
Volume WAW 30
Status Available
Publication Date May 2026

Paperback $90.00
Hardback $110.00
eBook $90.00

In this volume, Tawny L. Holm provides bilingual editions of the majority of Aramaic literary compositions written between the fifth century BCE and first century CE. Each text is presented in transliteration and accompanied by an introduction, notes, and an English translation. The section on Egypt includes, among others, the fascinating anthology found on Papyrus Amherst 63, an Aramaic text written in the Demotic Egyptian script, as well as the Story and Proverbs of Ahiqar. The Levant section includes a selection of texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls, such as Tales from the Persian Court. These compositions cover a broad array of themes, from insights into the human condition to unique portraits of kings, heroes, and deities. The book also addresses matters of history, language, genres, poetics, and scribalism, and it offers a comprehensive collection of primary sources for use in ancient Near Eastern studies courses as well as biblical studies.

HT Bibliographia Iranica.

I have been waiting a long time for this one. (Even well before these posts.) And the volume contains much more than I expected.

For PaleoJudaica posts on the remarkable collection of Aramaic and Canaanite texts in Demotic script in Papyrus Amherst 63, see the links in the previous paragraph, plus here, here, here, here, and here. And follow the links in those posts for more.

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

Review of Identities in antiquity

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Identities in antiquity.

Joseph Skinner, Vicky Manolopoulou, Christina Tsouparopoulou, Identities in antiquity. Rewriting antiquity. London: Routledge, 2025. Pp. 590. ISBN 9781138545168.

Review by
Jeremy McInerney, University of Pennsylvania. jmcinern@sas.upenn.edu

... Overall, this volume is a valuable contribution to the discourse around identity. Its strength lies in its coverage of a wide variety of times and places, resulting a tome of nearly 600 pages, covering large segments of the ancient Mediterranean world over a span of hundreds of years.

Articles of particular interest:

11. Ancient Judaism: nation, ethnicity, or religion?: Erich S. Gruen
20. Identity construction in Alexandria: Greeks, Jews and Romans: Kimberley Czajkowski

And with articles on Mespotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Phoenicia, etc.

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

New Lachish ostracon confirms Joseph's Canaanite title?

NORTHWEST SEMITIC EPIGRAPHY: New Inscription From Lachish Proves Early Use of Joseph’s Title. As Joseph was ‘šalit’ in Bronze Age Egypt, Baal was ‘šalit’ at Bronze Age Lachish (CHRISTOPHER EAMES, Armstrong Institute of Biblical Research).

Nevertheless, šalit has at least been generally recognized as a later Persian Period loan word, applied either during the editing or composition of these texts perhaps somewhere as late as the second half of the first millennium B.C.E.

A brand new inscription from Lachish, discovered just last year and published in a recent Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology article, challenges that conclusion—revealing the use of this word in the Levant as early as the second half of the second millennium B.C.E.—the end of the Late Bronze Age.

The underlying open-access article in the Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology:

A Late Bronze Age Canaanite Jar Inscription from the 2025 Excavation Season at Lachish

Daniel Vainstub^a, Itamar Weissbein^b, Hoo-Goo Kang^c, Shai Halevi^d, and Yosef Garfinkel^e

a Independent Researcher, dvainstub@gmail.com
b The Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel, itamar.weissbein@mail.huji.ac.il
c Seoul Jangsin University, Korea, hoogoo7008@gmail.com
d Israel Antiquities Authority, shaih@israntique.org.il
e The Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel, garfinkel@mail.huji.ac.il

Abstract During the 2025 season of excavations at Tel Lachish, a partially preserved inscription was found in an unambiguous 12th-century BCE archaeological context associated with the site’s last Late Bronze Age settlement. The inscription consists of six letters written in red ink on the shoulder of a ceramic jar. Although the potsherd is horizontally broken, at the mid-height of the inscription, the surviving parts of the letters allow one to read the personal name Bʻlšlṭ. This name is built on the root šlṭ, which hitherto has been widely considered a much later (Persian period) loan from Aramaic. Furthermore, the inscription was written in the standardized Linear Canaanite script displaying cursive features, apparently by a person accustomed to writing with a stylus and ink.

A new Iron Age II Hebrew ostracon from Lachish was also published last year in the same journal.

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

The Nessana excavation

THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST TODAY: Ancient Nessana: A Pilgrimage Site at the Edge of the Desert (Yana Tchekhanovets).

Located in the southwestern Negev, along the principal route linking Jerusalem and other significant holy sites with Mount Sinai, ancient Nessana is not associated with any biblical events or major relics. However, during the Byzantine period (ca. 5th-7th centuries CE), it emerged as a prominent Christian center and a vital caravan hub, facilitating travel to Sinai and the Egyptian monasteries.

Established during the Late Hellenistic period (2nd – 1st centuries BCE), Nessana subsequently accommodated a Byzantine garrison and attained its peak during the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods. The site is considered among the most significant Late Antique locations in the Eastern Mediterranean, largely due to the discovery of two papyri archives preserved by the arid climate. These documents, uncovered in the 1930s and dated to approximately 500–700 CE, offer critical insights into the daily life and economy of the settlement and its inhabitants, particularly their roles in agriculture and pilgrimage services; they also revealed the ancient name of the village: Νεσάνα.

[...]

Good. I'm glad the archaeologists are back at Nessana. I hope they make lots of discoveries, hopefully including more papyri. The previously discovered archives seem to have held mostly administrative texts. While I'm hoping, I hope that this time they find the library, ideally including some Greek and Aramaic Enochic books.

Background on Nessana (Nitzana) is here and links.

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

Bremer-McCollum, The Pearlsong (Harvard University Press)

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: The Pearlsong.

Notice of a New Book: Bremer-McCollum, Adam. 2025. The Pearlsong (Texts & Translations of Transcendence and Transformation). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Better known as The Hymn of the Pearl, this song is embedded in the Syriac text of the apocryphal Acts of Thomas. It arguably had a pre-history. There is a Greek version in the Greek translation of the Acts of Thomas. You can read an old English translation of it here.

There is a closely related collection of Coptic Manichean songs called The Psalms of Thomas. Links to an old English translation are at the bottom of that link.

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

On the IAA's anti-theft unit

PROACTIVE ARCHAEOLOGY: The Fight to Preserve Israel’s History. The Israel Antiquities Authority’s anti-theft unit is waging its own war (HEATHER LEXA, Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology).

For nine years, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) and Israel’s Ministry of Heritage have been working together to preserve the history of the Jewish people and their ties to the land of Israel.

By excavating sites throughout Israel, the iaa’s Theft Prevention Unit, directed by Dr. Amir Ganor, has been able to prevent looters from stumbling upon and stealing ancient artifacts; the specialized unit also works to prevent illegal excavations. Ganor told Archaeology magazine that his crew is “a special police for antiquities.”

[...]

PaleoJudaica covered all of the stories mentioned in the article as they came out. For the ancient coins seized from a West Bank checkpoint, see here. For the half-shekel coin excavated in February, see here. For the 2014 Cave of Skulls looting, see here and for the scroll fragments subsequently excavated there, see here and links. For the Cave of Horror scroll fragments discovered in 2021, see here and links. The Neolithic basket comes up in some of those links too.

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

Filming completed for "The Resurrection of the Christ"

CINEMA: Mel Gibson’s ‘The Resurrection of the Christ’ Sequel, Out in 2027, Wraps Filming. (Stephanie Martin, ChurchLeaders).

“The Resurrection of the Christ,” the long-awaited follow-up to Mel Gibson’s 2004 blockbuster “The Passion of the Christ,” has completed seven months of shooting in Italy. In videos shared on social media, the cast and crew celebrate the completion of principal photography on the project.

[...]

This should be interesting. I'm especially looking forward to seeing how Gibson interacts with the Enochic literature:

The premise is so massive, Gibson added, because “you have to start with the fall of the angels in the firmament…right at the beginning.” The director said “The Resurrection of the Christ” will feature battles between angels and demons, as well as Jesus descending into hell.

See the above link and here for background. I don't know whether Aramaic or other ancient languages feature in the dialogue of these two movies, as it did in the first one.

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

Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai in the Talmud

FOR LAG B'OMER: Lag b’Omer: celebrating Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. Long before the advent of modern-day celebrations of Yom Ha’atzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim one date pierced the gloom of the Omer period –Lag b’Omer. (YOSSI AARON, The Australian Jewish News).

But leaving aside mystical actions and teachings attributed to Rashbi in the Zohar, what do we know of him from sources such as the Talmud? We all know that he spent a total of 13 years hiding in a cave. But why?

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

Lag B'Omer 2026

LAG B'OMER, the 33rd day of the Counting of the Omer, begins tonight at sundown. Best wishes to all observing it.

My 2025 Lag B'Omer post is here. A subsequent related post is here.

For the biblical and rabbinic background of the holiday, see here and here.

UPDATE (5 May): More here.

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

New ISF study on Hebrew bullae announced

HEBREW EPIGRAPHY AND ANCIENT MATERIAL CULTURE: IAA reveals new study focused on ancient Jerusalem bullae in honor of Israel Excellence Week. According to the IAA, the study aims to examine Jerusalem's administrative systems from the First Temple period through the end of the Second Temple period (Miriam Sela-Eitam, Jerusalem Post).

Dr. Joe Uziel and Dr. Yiftah Shalev have been researching the bullae found in Jerusalem in order to study the finds from a “broad, long-term perspective,” the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) revealed in honor of Israel Excellence Week 2026.

The study, titled “Sealed and Sent: A Long-Term Follow-Up Study of Bullae from Jerusalem and Its Implications for Understanding the City's Administration,” will be conducted by Uziel and Shalev alongside scholars from academic institutions. ...

Rather than studying on the names and text inscribed on the bullae, Uziel and Shalev’s research focuses on the inner side of the bullae in attempt to figure out what they had been attached to. ...

That's a good idea. The results should be illuminating.

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Hebron's Second Temple-era mikveh almost ready for visitors

CONSERVATION: Project to make Tel Hebron’s Second Temple mikveh accessible to visitors nearly complete, INPA says. Burda added that visitors to the site will be able to learn about the bath’s significance, its place within daily life, and “momentarily experience the religious and social reality of that era” (Miriam Sela-Eitam, Jerusalem Post).

The project to make the Second Temple mikveh (Jewish ritual bath) at the Tel Hebron archaeological site near Kiryat Arba more accessible to visitors is almost complete, the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA) said on Thursday.

One of the largest of its kind in the country with a volume of nearly 200 cubic meters, the mikveh was was discovered in 2014 by the Civil Administration's Archaeology Staff Officer, under the direction of Dr. Emanuel Eisenberg and Professor David Ben Shlomo.

[...]

For more on the Second Temple-era ritual baths at Hebron, see here and here.

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Was the Roman destruction of Jerusalem inevitable?

HISTORY: 2,000 years ago, ancient Roman forces annihilated Jerusalem. Was its destruction inevitable? The first of the Jewish-Roman wars was interrupted by one of the defining events of the 1st century, and gave birth to one of ancient Rome’s most powerful dynastie (James Osborne, HistoryExtra). HT Rogue Classicism.

A high flyover review of the first Jewish revolt against Rome (the Great Revolt) with some thoughtful observations.

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Dillon, John the Baptist and Composite Intertextuality in the Fourth Gospel (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

John the Baptist and Composite Intertextuality in the Fourth Gospel

The Evangelist's Archetypal Witness

Series:
Biblical Interpretation Series, Volume: 237

Author: Amber M. Dillon

Recent scholarship has focused on John’s relationship to Judaism, his intertextual method, and his portrayal of John the Baptist, yet few connect these topics. We know the Evangelist is a masterful storyteller, particularly with his characters, which raises the question: Could we view the relationship between the Fourth Gospel and Judaism through the lens of the Baptist? This study explores the intersection of scriptural allusions and characterization related to John the Baptist, uncovering another perspective to the complex interplay between Judaism and the Fourth Gospel. Readers will discover how John the Baptist emerges as a key figure, illuminating the narrative and reinforcing the Gospel’s themes. This engaging exploration challenges conventional interpretations and invites the reader to see the Fourth Gospel in a new light.

Copyright Year: 2026

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-75970-1
Publication: 17 Mar 2026
EUR €109.00

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-75500-0
Publication: 08 Apr 2026
EUR €109.00

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Mirotznik, The Portrayal of Pagan Worship in the Hebrew Bible and Ancient Judaism (CUP)

NEW BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

The Portrayal of Pagan Worship in the Hebrew Bible and Ancient Judaism

Author: Jesse Mirotznik, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Published: April 2026
Availability: Available
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9781009691970

£95.00 GBP
Hardback

£95.00 USD
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Description

How did Jews in the ancient world depict the practices of their pagan contemporaries? In this study, Jesse Mirotznik investigates the portrayal of pagan worship in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Jewish literature. Scholars have assumed that the portrayals in these corpora are consistent over time. Mirotznik, however, shows that there is a fundamental discontinuity between earlier and later depictions of pagan worship. In the Hebrew Bible, these forms of worship are, for the most part, simply assumed to be sincere. By contrast, in ancient Jewish texts from approximately the end of the third century BCE and onward, such worship is increasingly presented as insincere, performed only instrumentally in the service of an ulterior motive. While the worshipers of other gods seem genuine in their devotion, these texts contend, they too must recognize the folly of such worship.

• The book introduces a distinction between the normative elements of ancient Jewish views of the Other and the descriptive elements
• Introduces the concept of Bad Faith as a lens through which to understand rhetoric about the Other
• Examines the influence of Classical Studies on scholarship in ancient Judaism

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

What was Pontius Pilate's actual title?

FOR ROMAN HISTORY NERDS: The Debate That Reveals How the Roman Empire Operated on Its Frontiers: Was Pontius Pilate a Procurator or a Prefect? (Guillermo Carvajal, LBV).

An academic study analyzes ancient sources and the famous "Pilate Stone" to resolve a centuries-old debate: Was he governor, procurator, or prefect?

Spoiler: the article argues that he was all of the above. Seems plausible.

The underlying article:

Kosior, W. J. (2026). Procurator or Prefect – remarks on the administration of Roman provinces in the context of Pontius Pilate’s title. Journal of Modern Science, 65(1), 564–585. doi.org/10.13166/jms/218203

The link is given at the bottom of the LBV article. The JMS article is open access, and there is an English abstract, but the article itself is in Polish.

For more on that Pontius Pilate inscription, see here. And there are many other posts on Pilate in the archives.

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

The Idumean fiscal system in the Aramaic ostraca

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: Land Tenure and Fiscal Practices in the Aramaic Corpus of Idumea.

Notice of a New Article: Shahryari, Mitchka L.M.J. 2026. Land Tenure and Fiscal Practices in the Aramaic Corpus of Idumea: Bow-Fields and Horse Estates. BASOR 395: 179-194.

Alas, behind a subscription wall. But you can read the abstract for free.

Cross-file under Aramaic Watch.

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

Forthcoming: Ross, Baylor Handbook of Greek Ruth

WILLIAM A. ROSS: FOOK ANNOUNCEMENT: BAYLOR HANDBOOK ON GREEK RUTH.

This morning I’m excited to announce a new book coming to press very soon: Ruth: A Handbook on the Greek Text. This new volume is part of the ongoing Baylor Handbook on the Septuagint series (BHLXX).

[...]

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

Joel Kaminsky: autobiographical retrospective

ANCIENT JEW REVIEW: A Retrospective from Joel Kaminsky.

Let me begin by thanking the editors of Ancient Jew Review for the opportunity to reflect on my scholarship and career. One way to illuminate my development as a teacher and scholar is to explain how my background and life experiences shaped me as a student, a professor, and a person.

[...]

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

Lost Theban epics

THE ANXIOUS BENCH: The Lost Epics Of Thebes (Philip Jenkins).

Taken together, the Twelve-item cycle covered the history of the Greek world from the days of the primal gods and their struggles right up to the end of the “Homeric” era. The Titanomachia describes the war between the Titans and the Olympian deities. We then proceed to three works focused on the city and dynasty of Thebes, events that would have occurred in the generation or so before the Trojan struggle. And then on to Troy.

This essay continues Professor Jenkins's survey of lost Classical epics, begun here. See my comments there on the surviving sources for what we know about them.

Cross-file under Lost Books.

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

Review of Sekita & Southwood (eds.), Death imagined

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Death imagined: ancient perceptions of death and dying.

Karolina Sekita, Katherine Southwood, Death imagined: ancient perceptions of death and dying. Liverpool studies in ancient history. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2025. Pp. 336. ISBN 9781802077582.

Review by
Karen Bassi, University of California at Santa Cruz. bassi@ucsc.edu

Non-existence is unknowable. This philosophical truism underlies the myriad ways in which humans imagine and respond to death. In the succinct formulation of Michel Conche, “Death is the horizon of thought.”[1] Sekita and Southwood approach this horizon in a volume devoted to perceptions of death and dying within a broadly defined timeframe (antiquity) and geographical focus (the Mediterranean); a single chapter on Mesoamerica is included. Controlled for space and time, the principal variable is culture, specified as Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Etruscan, Incan, Judaic. The sources are literary and (predominantly) archaeological. ...

Chapters of notable interest for PaleoJudaica:

8. Memory, Monumentality, and the Tomb of the Royal Steward, Matthew J. Suriano

11. Imagining the Afterlife in the Psalms: The Episode of Mitchell Dahood and His Commentary, Christopher B. Hays

Also, lots of chapters of background interest.

The volume is available as open-access.

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Were the Temple lavers celestial chariots and did Josiah remove them?

PROF. JOANN SCURLOCK: The Ten Lavers in the Temple: Ezekiel-like, Celestial Chariots. (TheTorah.com).

Ten lavers, mounted on wheels, and decorated with images of lions, bulls, and cherubs, stood on either side of the bronze sea in the Jerusalem Temple’s courtyard. Are these the “chariots of the sun” (2 Kings 23:11) that Josiah’s reform purges from the Temple?

This is a very interesting idea, although the fact that the lavers were in the Temple for the Babylonians to take away (as noted in the essay), is a point against it.

It is also true that the sun rides in a chariot in extra-Israelite mythology (e.g. Greek Helios and Mesopotamian Utu/Shamash), so Josiah could have been removing mythological architectual additions by his predecessor King Manasseh (cf. 2 Kings 21:3-7). But who knows?

If Prof. Scurlock is right, perhaps Ezekiel approved of Josiah's reform. His (imaginary) restored Temple had cherub decorations (Ezek 41:17-20, 25), but there is no mention of the lavers.

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Lilith art exhibition

SIDNEY AND GERTRUDE ZACK GALLERY, VANCOUVER:

Lilian Broca: Lilith Part of the Festival of Jewish Culture

Sponsored by Averbach Family Foundation and Ben Shneiderman

May 20 – June 29
ARTIST RECEPTION: Wednesday May 20, 6pm – 8pm
ARTIST TALK: Tuesday, May 26, 7pm

View Photo Book

Throughout her career, Lilian Broca has explored subjects ranging from intimate relationships and personal objects to brides, goddesses, and foundational myths, examining narratives that have shaped Western cultural identity. Since 1980, her work has increasingly focused on women and the forces that shape female self-image.

In this exhibition, Broca revisits the myth of Lilith, Adam’s first wife, with symbolic intensity, exploring the struggle of an empowered, independent woman whose conflicts echo those faced by women today. Drawing on lesser-known texts, she highlights Lilith’s refusal to submit, her departure from Adam, and her embrace of autonomy—offering an alternative origin story that challenges dominant narratives and reclaims female agency.

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“Syria: From Symbol to Letter” Exhibition

ON THE HISTORY OF WRITING: Damascus exhibition traces origins of writing in Syria from symbols to alphabet (R.H., SANA).

Damascus, April 28 (SANA) A new exhibition at the National Museum in Damascus traces the evolution of writing in Syria, from prehistoric symbols carved in stone to the emergence of the world’s earliest alphabet, highlighting Syria’s historical role in the development of writing.

Organized by the Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums, the exhibition “Syria: From Symbol to Letter” presents key milestones in the development of writing over the millennia. ...

Includes displays of Mari cuneiform tablets, Ugaritic tablets, and lots more.

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Top Ten Discoveries Related to Ezra and Nehemiah

BIBLE ARCHAEOLOGY REPORT: Top Ten Discoveries Related to Ezra and Nehemiah (Bryan Windle). HT Todd Bolen at the Bible Places Blog.

The books of Ezra and Nehemiah record the return of the Jewish exiles to Jerusalem in the Persian era, focusing on the rebuilding of the temple and the city walls, as well as the spiritual reforms they initiated. In the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament in Christian Bibles), Ezra and Nehemiah form a single book. Not everyone agrees that these accounts are historically reliable. Lester L. Grabbe, for example, calls them a “ripping yarn” and claims that they “do not inspire confidence that we have genuine historical data.”1 On the other hand, archaeology has demonstrated that numerous people, places, and events within the books are historically accurate. Here are the top ten archaeological discoveries related to Ezra and Nehemiah, which help demonstrate the historicity of these biblical books.

The discoveries are informative, whatever they demonstrate.

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

What do women contribute to making babies?

DR. SHANA STRAUCH-SCHICK: What Do Women Contribute to a Baby’s Conception? (TheTorah.com).

Seed, blood, or nothing? This debate among the Greeks about the role of women in the development of a fetus influenced the way Second Temple and Rabbinic interpreters understood the meaning of the biblical verse "If a woman emits seed" (Leviticus 12:2).

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Another "ancient" Hebrew manuscript in Turkey

APPREHENDED BUT FAKE: Turkey seizes rare ancient Hebrew manuscript in major antiquities smuggling crackdown (All Israel News).

The Turkish media portal Türkiye Today published a report on Monday about the ongoing efforts to combat the illegal trade in antiquities that are often looted from legitimate archaeological digs throughout the region.

The report included details about an archaeological artifact recently seized by police, along with other contraband that smugglers were attempting to sell on the black market. The item is a two-meter manuscript inscribed on python skin with gold Hebrew script, which is of particular interest to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). It had been rolled up and stored inside a copper case with an “ornate, embossed lid,” according to the report.

[...]

Granted, the parchment medium for this manuscript is creative, but is the IAA really interested in it? I doubt it.

YNet News has also covered the story, with a marginally better copy of the very bad photo:

Hebrew text in gold on python skin seized in Turkey black-market antiquities probe. Authorities in Gaziantep say they seized a two-meter python-skin manuscript inscribed with Hebrew letters in gold and detained a foreign national suspected of illegal excavations and trying to sell the rare artifact on the black market (Yogev Israeli).

The item is consistent with the types of finds usually uncovered by antiquities traffickers operating across the region. Illegal excavations at archaeological sites remain an ongoing problem that Turkish authorities are trying to combat.

This scroll is indeed consistent with some finds seized from antiquities traffickers in the region. My assessment is that, like many of them, it is clearly a fake.

By expanding the bad photo you can get a blurry look at the the text on the scroll. It consists of a continuous string of Hebrew letters with no clear word divisions and no words, at least that I can make out. As the headline notes, the letters and images are gold, which is a hallmark of recent fakes.

I am not a specialist in ancient iconography, but the images don't look ancient to me either. Compare, for example, the hexagram design to the hexagram in another Turkish fake noted here (second link). The article noted here has a photo with a very similar hexagram design and a griffin underneath it holding a menorah. The griffin design in the current (python parchment) manuscript on the right side has a nearly identical griffin that appears to be next to an (only partly visible) large menorah image.

All that said, as always, I commend the Turkish police for going hard on antiquities smuggling.

There are many legitimate ancient epigraphic and other archaeological discoveries coming out of Turkey. I cover them all the time. But many dodgy "ancient" Hebrew, Aramaic, and Syriac manuscripts also turn up, generally recovered by the police from smugglers. This looks to me to be one of the latter. I tend to ignore them, but I do note one occasionally. For lots more of them see here and the relevant link.

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Niehoff, Philo of Alexandria: Every Good Man is Free (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Philo of Alexandria: Every Good Man is Free

Introduction, Translation, and Commentary

Series:
Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series, Volume: 9

Author: Maren R. Niehoff

Philo’s treatise on freedom is the first extant exposition of the topic, which became neuralgic in the first century CE. Philosophical, historical, literary and exegetical aspects are explored. The Essenes are presented as an exemplary group of free individuals, who reject slavery and study Torah on the Sabbath. In this first commentary on the treatise, Philo’s thought is explained in the context of the circumstances in which it was written, namely in the aftermath of the Alexandrian pogrom in 38 CE, when he served as the head of the Jewish embassy in Rome. The main contemporary figures are introduced and Philo’s role in the debates of first century Rome is highlighted. Special attention is paid to Cynic philosophy, which prized individual freedom and saw a revival in Rome that is otherwise attested only fragmentarily. Philo’s treatise emerges as a precious source, which illuminates subsequent advocates of freedom, such as Paul and Epictetus.

Copyright Year: 2026

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-68930-5
Publication: 18 Mar 2026
EUR €250.00

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-68929-9
Publication: 01 Apr 2026
EUR €250.00

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Meshel, Two Models of Biblical Purity (OUP open access)

NEW BOOK FROM OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS:

Two Models of Biblical Purity

The Science of Ritual

Naphtali S. Meshel

The Bible and the Humanities

Open Access

£104.00
Hardback

Published: 24 March 2026
288 Pages
234x156mm
ISBN: 9780198883326

Also Available As:
E-book

Description

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read on Oxford Academic and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations.

Two Models of Biblical Purity: The Science of Ritual investigates the ancient Israelite and early Jewish purity systems, proposing a framework that distinguishes between two conceptual approaches to ritual pollution: the qualitative and quantitative models. In the qualitative model, forms of pollution differ fundamentally in type, like distinct illnesses with unique symptoms and treatments. The quantitative model, on the other hand, views pollution as varying in intensity or degree, similar to temperature, where different sources simply make one "more" or "less" impure. The book argues that the Hebrew Bible primarily reflects a qualitative model, where impurities are categorized by type rather than severity. Through careful philological analysis, the study develops "litmus tests" to detect these models within biblical and late Second Temple texts, showing a gradual shift toward quantitative thought in later Jewish sources. Each chapter applies these methods to pivotal texts, including the Priestly literature, the Temple Scroll, and other late Second Temple and rabbinic writings, revealing the complex evolution of purity laws. This approach provides insights into the inner logic and diachronic development of ritual systems, offering a foundational perspective for comparative studies across diverse ritual traditions. Finally, it examines the historical contexts that may have instigated the shift and considers the advantages of the "fundamental science" approach to the study of biblical purity.

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Aitken memorial volume

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Language and Identity in Hellenistic Judaism

Essays in Memory of James K. Aitken

William A. Ross (Anthology Editor) , Marieke Dhont (Anthology Editor) , Christopher J. Fresch (Anthology Editor)

Hardback
$120.00 $108.00

Ebook (PDF)
$108.00 $86.40

Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
$108.00 $86.40

Product details

Published Feb 05 2026
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Pages 304
ISBN 9780567715081
Imprint T&T Clark
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

This volume honours the life and scholarship of James K. Aitken (1968–2023), a distinguished scholar of Hebrew and Early Jewish Studies at the University of Cambridge. Bringing together fourteen original essays by colleagues, students, and friends, the collection explores themes central to Aitken's work. Contributors examine the interplay between language and identity in ancient Jewish communities, with particular attention to the Septuagint and its place within the history of Greek.
Aitken's intellectual legacy is reflected in the breadth of topics covered, from lexical studies and syntactic analysis to sociolinguistic phenomena and historical context. The essays build on his pioneering research and continue conversations he began, offering fresh insights into the lived realities of Jews in the Hellenistic world.
More than a scholarly tribute, this volume is a testament to Aitken's collegial spirit and mentorship. The editors-William A. Ross, Marieke Dhont, and Christopher Fresch-were all shaped by his guidance and friendship, and have curated a collection that reflects both his academic influence and personal impact. With contributions from leading international scholars, this book stands as a fitting memorial to a beloved teacher, collaborator, and friend.

Noted as forthcoming, with links, here.

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Karen Stern awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship

CONGRATULATIONS! PROFESSOR KAREN B. STERN NAMED 2026 GUGGENHEIM FELLOW. Karen B. Stern, who studies ancient Jewish life through archaeology, material culture, and the senses, has been named a 2026 Guggenheim Fellow (CUNY Graduate Center).

Her work explores Jewish communities in the Greek, Roman, and Sassanian worlds, drawing on archaeology, inscriptions, and sensory history to understand lived religious experience. She is the author of Writing on the Wall: Graffiti and the Forgotten Jews of Antiquity, which won a 2020 Jordan Schnitzer Book Award, as well as Inscribing Devotion and Death. Her research has been supported by organizations including the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Getty Villa, and she has received multiple teaching awards from Brooklyn College.

The fellowship will support Stern’s new project, “Sanctity: An Archaeology of the Senses in the Ancient Synagogue,” which reexamines ancient synagogues through fieldwork, artifacts, and sensory analysis. It will enable travel to sites and collections across the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

Professor Stern is interviewed in this press release.

For PaleoJudaica posts on her work, see here and links.

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Moses in the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions?

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Stop Trying to Make MŠ Happen! Or Why Moses Does Not Appear in the Proto-Sinaitic Inscriptions

Claims linking the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions to Moses are unconvincing and continue a long pattern in which biblical apologists overread fragmentary evidence. Michael Bar-Ron’s proposed “Moses” readings fail on epigraphic, linguistic, and historical grounds: the supposed letters are not actually present, the spelling does not fit, and even a genuine occurrence of the name would not establish a connection to the biblical figure. More broadly, sensational media coverage turned a weak scholarly claim into clickbait. The Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions are significant enough on their own for what they reveal about the early history of alphabetic writing, without the need for apologetic overreach or manufactured controversy.

See also The Lost Language of the Ghassulians: Proto-Writing at Nahal Mishmar?

On the Origin of Alphabetic Writing 2019

Hebrew or Not?: Reviewing the Linguistic Claims of Douglas Petrovich’s The World’s Oldest Alphabet 2017

Wandering in the Desert?: A Review of Charles R. Krahmalkov’s “The Chief of Miners Mashe/Moshe

By Aren Wilson-Wright
University of Chicago
Department of Middle Eastern Studies
Assistant Instructional Professor
April 2026

I've been aware of recent claims of finding Moses in the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions, but they sounded dubious, so I have not posted on them. This essay has a detailed epigraphic and philological evaluation. The other links discuss other, sometimes similar, proposals.

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An Aramean bull stele and the New Moon?

LUNAR ARTIFACT? New moon takes the bull by the horns. Magnificent 8th century stone monument at Israel Museum preserves link between ancient Aramean god and Jewish calendar (Ilan Ben Zion, Times of Israel).

So the god depicted on the stele was an incarnation of Baal? It’s not as clearcut as that, Arie admits. The bull’s head on the Bethsaida stele is surmounted by horns forming a clearly defined crescent moon, suggesting it may represent a lunar deity.

Google in its wisdom, or whatever it is, has started showing me old articles in my searches. Usually I ignore them, but this one from 2013 is about an artifact that I knew little about which is worth a look. (I noted its existence in passing many years ago, but hadn't heard about it since.)

The "Bethsaida" mentioned in both places above is et-Tell/e-Tel, identified as the site of Geshur mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The other site competing for recognition as ancient Bethsaida is el-Araj. The latter seems to be winning at present. For the details of the long debate, start here (cf. here, here, and here) and follow the links.

For PaleoJudaica posts on golden calf and other metal bull artifacts, some of them quite ancient, see here and links. It sounds like the Israel Museum has a substantial collection of terra cotta and metal bulls.

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Who was the "Ethiopian" "Eunuch?"

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Who Was the Ethiopian Eunuch? Rethinking identity, language, and narrative with Mark Wilson (Lauren K. McCormick).

The narrative in Acts is organized around the expansion of Christianity from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria, and ultimately to the “ends of the earth.” The Ethiopian eunuch is geographically distant, socially elevated, and—if Wilson is correct—a Jew open to seeing Jesus as the fulfillment of scripture. In this sense, the Ethiopian eunuch functions as a node within the larger narrative structure of Acts, which is less concerned with individual life stories than with the unstoppable crossing of boundaries that defines its vision of the early Christian movement.

Wilson's BAR article is behind the subscription wall, but this BHD essay gives a summary of it.

A couple of PaleoJudaica posts involving the Ethiopian Eunuch are here and here.

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Lost Classical epics

THE ANXIOUS BENCH: All The Epics We Have Lost (Philip Jenkins).

My current research involves the loss and rediscovery of Jewish and Christian scriptures, with a focus on the years between roughly 1870 and 1940. However, my next few blogposts are going to explore these themes of “lost and found” much more broadly and cross-culturally, before circling back round to that Biblical/Scriptural focus. I think the themes that emerge are really enlightening in many areas. So today, I will begin far away from the Christian world, in the deepest foundations of the Classical tradition.

There follows an excellent overview of lost Greek Classical epics known from references in later literature, with a sideline of lost plays by some of the great Classical playwrights.

You can read what we know about many of the lost epics and a little on the lost plays in the work of the Hellenistic-era mythographer (Pseudo-?) Apollodorus, The Library of Greek Mythology. The Suda gives more fulsome information on the lost plays.

I look forward to Professor Jenkins's promised further posts on Lost Books.

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Review of Osborne, The origins of Christianity in the Calendar Wars of the second century BCE

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: The origins of Christianity in the Calendar Wars of the second century BCE.

Alfred Osborne, The origins of Christianity in the Calendar Wars of the second century BCE. Studia traditionis theologiae, 60. Turnhout: Brepols, 2025. Pp. 325. ISBN 9782503613062.

Review by
Amit Gvaryahu, University of Copenhagen. amgv@teol.ku.dk

Excerpt:

Osborne’s book is erudite, and the sources dealt with span the gamut between the Hebrew Bible and the Cairo Genizah, in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. His command of Josephus, the books of the Maccabees, and the New Testament is impressive, as is his ability to cogently present a historical narrative. At the end of the day, however, it is unconvincing. As Osborne cheerily admits often, none of this narrative is explicit in the sources. ...

I haven't read the book, but from the description, that sounds about right to me. And if the calendar were so important for the origins of Christianity, I would expect the debate to figure, or at least to surface periodically, in the New Testament.

But feel free to read the book and decide for yourself.

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New scrolls coming to Museum of the Bible DSS exhibit

EXHIBITION ROTATION: Museum of the Bible prepares to receive Dead Sea Scrolls Isaiah fragments (Elizabeth Black, The Sift).

An ancient fragment of the book of Isaiah will go on display at the Museum of the Bible from May through September before returning to Israel to spend five years in a vault. The leather fragment is part of the Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in the 1940s and 50s in the caves of Qumran in the West Bank, or what the Israeli government refers to as Judea. It contains portions of several chapters of Isaiah and dates back to sometime around the first century A.D. The Isaiah fragment is part of the final stage of a Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit at the museum, according to Bobby Duke, the museum’s chief curatorial officer.

... The new display will also include other Dead Sea Scrolls fragments, including an apocryphal account of the birth of Noah, part of the ancient Jewish book of Tobit, and Duke’s favorite item: pieces of phylactery scrolls.

This is the third lot of scrolls in this exhibition. That Isaiah fragment mentioned is 4QIsaiah^d (4Q58). For details on the other scrolls in this rotation, follow the "exhibit" link to the museum page and scroll (heh) down.

Earlier posts on this exhibition are here (cf. here) and here.

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Homer at Oxyrhyncus?

OXYRHYNCHUS WATCH: Archaeological mission in Oxyrhynchus has found Homer's 'Iliad' inside a Roman-era mummy (PhysOrg/University of Barcelona, edited by Stephanie Baum, reviewed by Robert Egan).

During the campaign carried out between November and December 2025, Núria Castellano's team discovered a Roman-era mummy in Tomb 65 of Sector 22 that featured an unusual element: a papyrus placed on the abdomen as part of the embalming ritual. In previous campaigns, the Oxyrhynchus Archaeological Mission had already documented papyri written in Greek in similar positions, but all contained magical or ritualistic content. A literary text such as the "Iliad" had never before been found in this context.

The text is from the Catalogue of Ships in Iliad book II.

For a recent overview of the Oxyrhynchus papyri, see here. There are endless PaleoJudaica post on the site and the papyri in the archives.

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Online Oxford Septuagint Seminar, TODAY and going forward

WILLIAM A. ROSS: (VIRTUAL) OXFORD SEPTUAGINT SEMINAR, 22 APRIL.

I’m happy to publicize information for the new Trinity term schedule for the Septuagint Seminar at Christ Church, Oxford. As you can see in the schedule below, there are a handful of seminars on the roster (including one by yours truly). I’ll post links here as they become available. But the very first one of the term is tomorrow. Info below:

That is now today, in just a few hours. Follow the link for the Zoom link and passcode.

Dr. Ross has been posting these lectures for a while, but usually too late for me to see them in time to relay them. But have a look at the list in his post. If any of the seminars interest you, keep an eye on his blog for Zoom info. I will try to relay it too, depending on the timing of the announcement.

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On "Masada syndrome"

ARCHAEOLOGY AND POLITICS: Why Israel Is Falling Again for the Masada Syndrome (Moshe Gilad, Haaretz).

Generations of Israelis grew up on Masada's myth of heroism and noble suicide. What really happened on the mountain does not quite fit the national narrative, yet the it keeps shaping Israeli society

Mixed with the political observations in this long article are observations about what we can infer really happened at the fall of Masada. The answer is not straightforward.

For some PaleoJudaica posts on the archaeology of Masada and the question of the reliability of Josephus' account of its fall to the Romans, see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and links. And you can dig up still more in the archives.

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

The Zoroastrian World (Routledge)

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: The Zoroastrian World. Notice of a New Book: Rose, Jenny, Albert De Jong & Sarah Stewart (eds.). 2026. The Zoroastrian World. New York: Routledge.

Follow the link for description and TOC. The volume looks comprehensive, with lots of articles of interest to PaleoJudaica.

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The Suda

A MASSIVE COMPILATION: The Suda, The Greek Encyclopedia Written in the Year 1100 (Patricia Claus, The Greek Reporter).

The lexicon copiously draws from scholia to the classics of the greatest Greek writers, including Homer, Aristophanes, Thucydides, Sophocles, and others. Later, the works of Polybius, Josephus, the Chronicon Paschale, George Syncellus, George Hamartolus, were used as sources.

The Suda quotes or paraphrases these sources at length. Since many of the original works have indeed been lost, The Suda serves an invaluable repository of literary history; this preservation of literary history is more vital than the lexicographical compilation itself, some scholars believe.

I noted the preliminary completion of the online English translation in 2014 here. The links have rotted, but you can now find the site here in its "temporary home."

Cross-file under Lost Books.

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Trauma hermeneutics and the Bible

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Trauma, the Body, and Politics in the Bible

Trauma hermeneutics offers a valuable lens for interpreting biblical texts by examining how violence, suffering, and injustice are embodied in characters, represented in literary form, and shaped by political and social power. Attending to trauma in the Bible can deepen interpretation, challenge moralizing readings, and reveal how narratives of suffering are used both to process harm and to construct communal identity, while also reminding readers that not all suffering is recognized or treated equally.

See also Esther Keeps the Score: Trauma, Body and Politics in the Hebrew Bible (SCM Press, 2026).

By Alexiana Fry
University of Copenhagen
Guest Researcher
April 2026

Cross-file under New Book.

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Niehoff & Markschies (eds.), Aspects of Time in Jewish and Christian Exegesis (De Gruyter, open access)

THE AWOL BLOG: Aspects of Time in Jewish and Christian Exegesis.

Aspects of Time in Jewish and Christian Exegesis. Edited by Maren R. Niehoff and Christoph Markschies. De Gruyter, 2026. Open access.

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The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Law

NEW BOOK FROM OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS:

The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Law

Zev Eleff, Roberta Rosenthal Kwall, and Chaim Saiman

Oxford Handbooks

£142.50

Hardback
Published: 03 March 2026
828 Pages
248x171mm
ISBN: 9780197508305

Description

Jewish law, known as halakhah, is a unique legal system that has developed over nearly two millennia, across multiple continents, and in innumerable different contexts. Dealing not only with ritual, Jewish law extends to virtually every aspect of life, including ethics, business, war, and sex. This Handbook highlights foundational questions about the nature of Jewish law, emphasizing what distinguishes it from other legal systems and illuminating its vitality throughout history.

The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Law navigates core issues such as halakhah's authority, interpretation, and the meaningfulness of an ancient legal system in a modern period. With contributions from an interdisciplinary cast of authors, the Handbook spans law, history, sociology, and religion. Its chapters draw from a wide range of sources, including traditional texts such as Mishnah and Talmud, rabbinical codes, and legal opinions known as responsa. Moreover, chapters addressing pressing modern issues cover the material from diverse denominational perspectives.

As halakhah remains deeply woven into the fabric of Jewish life and scholarship, The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Law offers readers an in-depth understanding of this rich and enduring legal tradition.

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