July/Aug/Sept/Oct 2019 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (45/4&5) is now on newsstands

I’m proud to announce that the July/Aug/Sept/Oct 2019 special double issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (45/4&5) is now on newsstands.

The double issue, which we’ve called “By the Hand of a Woman” (Judges 4:9), is special because all of the contributors have one thing in common: they are all excellent scholars sharing their research.

“The Wise Woman of Abel Beth Maacah”
by Nava Panitz-Cohen and Naama Yahalom-Mack
Appearing in 2 Samuel 20, the Wise Woman of Abel Beth Maacah adroitly saves her town from destruction. Who was this woman, and what role did she play in Israelite tradition that understood cities like Abel Beth Maacah and Tel Dan to be hosts to oracles and seers?

“Reimagining Herod’s Royal Portico”
by Orit Peleg-Barkat
A synthesis of Hellenistic and Roman architecture, King Herod’s Royal Portico on the Temple Mount was one of his most ambitious and impressive construction projects. What archaeological evidence can we use to reconstruct this magnificent structure?

“Baby Burials in the Middle Bronze Age”
by Beth Alpert Nakhai
In ancient Canaan, people often buried their dead babies in storage jars, which they then deposited under the floor or wall of a house, in an open area, or in a tomb. Explore this custom with Beth Alpert Nakhai, who makes sense of these perplexing burials.

“Song of Liberation: Freedom in the Late Bronze Age”
by Eva von Dassow
Preserved in cuneiform tablets from around 1400 B.C.E., the Song of Liberation tells a story of the people of Igingallish being held as captives in the neighboring city of Ebla. When gods rule this to be unjust, it is up to Ebla’s assembly to decide their own fate.

“Stepped Pools and Stone Vessels: Rethinking Jewish Purity Practices in Palestine”
by Cecilia Wassén
It is generally assumed that the increased production of stone vessels and the introduction of stepped pools around the turn of the era reflect Jewish concerns with ritual purity. Cecilia Wassén suggests other, more mundane, factors, such as general Hellenizing influences and the Roman culture of bathing.

“Baking Bread in Ancient Judah”
by Cynthia Shafer-Elliott
Excavations at Tell Halif have uncovered several houses from the eighth century B.C.E. One house in particular offers up a host of information about ancient Judahite food processes and preparation. Explore how bread was baked at Tell Halif—and who did the baking.

“Reactivating Remembrance: Interactive Inscriptions from Mt. Gerizim”
by Anne Katrine de Hemmer Gudme
When people visited temples in ancient Palestine, how did they worship? Archaeologists have uncovered large amounts of dedicatory inscriptions from ancient temples, including the Samaritan temple on Mt. Gerizim. Discover what role these inscriptions played in worship.

“Secrets of the Copper Scroll”
by Joan E. Taylor
In 1952, archaeologists discovered the Copper Scroll in a cave near the Dead Sea. It details a vast treasure hidden in various locations throughout the Judean wilderness. Although none of this treasure has been found, could it refer to articles from the Jerusalem Temple?

“Blurred Lines: The Enigma of Iron Age Timnah”
by Mahri Leonard-Fleckman
Borders and ethnicities are not always as cut and dry as lines on a map. Modern readers tend to place social constructs on ancient peoples that simply did not exist. Sitting at a crossroads, biblical Timnah defies identification, as concepts of identity were fluid.

AND

BIBLICAL VIEWS
“Multicultural Moses: Reexamining an Icon”
by Amanda Mbuvi

ARCHAEOLOGICAL VIEWS
“Missing from the Picture: American Women in Biblical Archaeology”
by Jennie Ebeling

Please visit www.biblicalarchaeology.org/magazines to view the complete contents of the July/August/September/October 2019 issue of BAR. Take a look at Bible History Daily (biblicalarchaeology.org/blog) for additional features. Explore a free eBook about life for everyday people in the biblical world (biblicalarchaeology.org/ancientlives). Enjoy a special collection of articles about biblical heroines, from Esther and Judith to Mary Magdalene, who shaped biblical history and the message of the Bible (biblicalarchaeology.org/biblewomen).

chronicle of higher ed asks what’s best done with the dead sea scrolls

An infrared image of a fragment of Deuteronomy 27, part of Azusa Pacific U.'s Dead Sea Scrolls acquisition.

a new article by jennifer howard of the chronicle of higher education asks an important question: ‘what’s best done with the dead sea scrolls?’ in the article, howard examines the pros and cons of religiously-affiliated universities acquiring fragments of the dead sea scrolls for the sake of publicity.

But for some scholars, the purchases are more a cause for concern than for celebration. Will such acquisitions by academic institutions, even though they are made legally, help drive up the market for looted antiquities and rare artifacts? And is the boost to scholarship really worth the large sums of money those fragments cost?

she also makes note of my recent satirical blog post announcing the acquisition of some dss fragments by other previously unknown dead sea scrolls-centered institutions.

Some scholars feel queasy at the thought that universities will shell out that kind of money in these hard-pressed times, even for objects as symbolically and historically important as pieces of the Dead Sea Scrolls. On his blog, Robert R. Cargill, a Biblical archaeologist, imagined “a race of archaeological one-upmanship,” in which institutions compete to scoop up high-profile objects in order to boost their academic reputations.

Mr. Cargill is the institutional technology coordinator of the Center for Digital Humanities at the University of California at Los Angeles, and the chief architect and designer of UCLA’s Qumran Visualization Project. “Universities are charged with educating people, not acquiring cool artifacts,” he said in an interview. “If someone gives a university something, OK. But universities should spend the bulk of their money on educating students and not on cheap public-relations ploys in an attempt to increase credibility overnight with the purchase of an antiquity.” Mr. Cargill also worries that high-profile acquisitions will encourage would-be looters to see what else they can dig up and put on the market.

jennifer did an excellent job with the article and it is certainly worth the read.