Biblical Archaeology Review

11/10/2024

Recent discovery reopens the debate about its location

Bethsaida is believed to be located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, but where the city lies remains a fiercely-debated question.

11/09/2024

Can the Book of Enoch shed light on Noah the movie?

Where did the rock giants in Noah the movie come from? Are they merely an invention by Hollywood scriptwriters?

11/09/2024

This “Spring Tower,” as it is known, matches all the clues presented in the various biblical references to the Millo. Built with immense limestone blocks and walls several feet thick, it certainly qualifies as monumental architecture, mentioned with pride alongside the palaces of David and Solomon.

What was the biblical Millo? A new theory proposes Jerusalem’s Millo was a major fortification built around the Gihon Spring, located on the flank of the Kidron Valley on the eastern side of the ancient city.

11/08/2024

“The project records sites from all periods. The earliest are probably eighth or seventh millennium BCE prehistoric hunting sites, with associated walls and circular stone-built features.”

Now in its 26th season, the Aerial Archaeology in Jordan (AAJ) project’s goals have expanded to include monitoring sites that face growing threats from population expansion, development, and especially looting.

11/08/2024

“Based on examples of statuettes found in similar contexts, the figure from Abel Beth Maacah was probably meant as a votive offering that depicted the person who was making the offering to the deity represented by the standing stone.”

A small faience head, excavated at the site of Abel Beth Maacah in northern Israel, may depict the city’s ninth-century BCE ruler.

11/08/2024

Scenes reflect changes in ancient home decor

Archaeologists working in Pompeii have uncovered yet another house filled with magnificent wall paintings.

11/07/2024

Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder?

Many people assume that Jesus’ Last Supper was a Seder, a ritual meal held in celebration of the Jewish holiday of Passover.

11/07/2024

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11/07/2024

Democracy we associate with the modern West and ancient Athens, but little in between

When we think of democracy, we usually think of the ancient Greeks, but identifying the exact origins of political practices can be tricky.

11/06/2024

More than 100 radiocarbon dates were taken from four different excavation areas throughout the City of David, which is located on ancient Jerusalem’s southeastern ridge. Samples were taken from grape seeds, date pits, and even bat skeletons that were found in one of the excavated buildings.

The results of a new study have challenged previous theories regarding Jerusalem’s size during the reigns of the earliest kings of Judah.

11/06/2024

Were these forts used for more than just military operations?

Utilizing declassified images from the CORONA and HEXAGON spy satellite programs, a team of archaeologists identified nearly 400 Roman fortresses throughout the northern Fertile Crescent.

11/06/2024

While the ship has been protected by sand for more than two millennia, recent changes in coastal currents have torn away much of that protective blanket, posing an existential threat to this incredible archaeological wonder.

A team of specialists from the University of Valencia is hard at work lifting a nearly complete Phoenician shipwreck from the seafloor off the Spanish coast of Murcia.

11/06/2024

Rollston ignores context of “sensational” inscriptions

Epigrapher Christopher Rollston takes to task several recent studies of apparent paleo-Hebrew and proto-Canaanite inscriptions and criticizes some of his fellow epigraphers for reading too much into these badly damaged and/or questionable texts.

11/05/2024

Crusades history and the Holy City

For almost 200 years during the Middle Ages, Christian Crusades wrested control of the Palestine region from the Selçuk Turks.

11/03/2024

When we also consider the exceptional relevance of Egypt to the biblical traditions of Joseph, the Exodus from Egypt, and the emergence of ancient Israel, the importance for biblical studies of exploring the Egyptian sources becomes obvious.

The ancient Egyptian language has long been extinct. During its recorded history of more than four millennia, it left behind texts ranging from monumental to mundane that reveal the complexity of the Egyptian civilization.

11/03/2024

Despite dying out as a language two millennia ago, Akkadian’s decipherment in the 18th century unlocked a vast treasure trove of information on the history and peoples of the ancient Near East and the lands of the Bible.

Akkadian, the language of the ancient Babylonians and Assyrians, was once the lingua franca of the entire Near East.

11/02/2024

Who was the real Pontius Pilate?

Is the Pilate of Christian tradition the real Pontius Pilate, the historical Pontius Pilate? How does the picture painted in the New Testament compare to the real Pontius Pilate?

11/02/2024

What is a eu**ch in the Bible?

Should the words of Jesus from the Gospel of Matthew be taken literally? Is he saying that men—who can—should emasculate themselves?