East Meets West: The Uncanny Parallels in the Lives of Buddha and Jesus
Ecclesiastes
Elba Update
Elgin Marbles Debate
Excavation Opportunities 1985
Excavation Opportunities 1986
Excavation Opportunities 1989
Excavation Opportunities 1995
Forgotten Kingdom
Frank Moore Cross—An Interview
Has Richard Friedman Really Discovered a Long-Hidden Book in the Bible?
In Private Hands
Israel Comes to Canaan
Israel Underground
Issue 200
James
Jerusalem 3
Jerusalem Explores and Preserves Its Past
Jerusalem Update
Jerusalem’s Underground Water Systems
Jonah and the Whale
Megiddo Stables or Storehouses?
Michelangelo’s Sistine Ceiling
New Directions In Dead Sea Scroll Research
One if by Sea…Two if by Land: How Did the Philistines Get to Canaan?
Ossuary Update
Pilate in the Dock
Point/Counterpoint: Pros and Cons of the Contemporary English Version
Portraits In Heroism
Questioning Masada
Qumran
Redating the Exodus—The Debate Goes On
Remembering Ugarit
Rewriting Jerusalem History
Riches at Ein Yael
Roman Jerusalem
Scholars Disagree: Can You Name the Panel with the Israelites?
Sea Peoples Saga
Should the Bible Be Taught in Public Schools?
Special Bible Section
Spotlight on Sepphoris
Sumer
Supporting Roles
Temple Mount
Temple Scroll Revisited
The Age of BAR
The Amman Citadel: An Archaeological Biography
The Babylonian Gap Revisited
The Bible Code: Cracked and Crumbling
the Brother of Jesus
The Dead Sea Scrolls
The God-Fearers: Did They Exist?
The Jacob Cycle in Genesis
The Minoans of Crete: Europe’s Oldest Civilization
The Most Original Bible Text: How to Get There
The Pools of Sepphoris: Ritual Baths or Bathtubs?
The Search for History in the Bible
What Was Qumran?
Where Was Jesus Born?
Where Was the Temple?
Who Invented the Alphabet
Introduction
025
Jerusalem is probably the most excavated city in the world. And few cities hold such fascination for the public as well as for the scholar. What was the city like when the Israelites entered Canaan? (Apparently it was strong enough to resist Israelite pressure for 200 years.) What was the city like when David conquered it in about 1000 B.C.E.? And finally, what was the city like during the glorious reigns of David and Solomon?
The answer that some scholars have recently given to these questions is that the city didn’t exist during this period. Among those who have taken essentially this position is a distinguished Dutch scholar, Margreet Steiner, who is preparing the relevant parts of the final report of the famous excavation of Jerusalem by Dame Kathleen Kenyon (who died in 1978), which was conducted from 1961 to 1967. If there is anyone who could effectively present this position from the archaeological viewpoint, it is Dr. Steiner. So we have asked her to address these questions for our readers.
We have also asked two scholars to respond: the first, Jane Cahill, because she, like Steiner, is publishing the relevant parts of an extremely important Jerusalem excavation, conducted by the distinguished Israeli archaeologist Yigal Shiloh (who died in 1987) from 1978 to 1985; the second, Nadav Na’aman, because Steiner directly criticizes an article of his addressing this subject that previously appeared in BAR.
We think you will find this debate fascinating. We leave it to you to make up your own minds as to the appropriate conclusion. But whatever you decide, you will begin to understand how archaeologists reason and why the issues they deal with are so difficult. And you will also have the evidence to defend your own conclusion. If it takes some study, you will be well repaid—and you will also enjoy the intellectual adventure.—Ed.
Jerusalem is probably the most excavated city in the world. And few cities hold such fascination for the public as well as for the scholar. What was the city like when the Israelites entered Canaan? (Apparently it was strong enough to resist Israelite pressure for 200 years.) What was the city like when David conquered it in about 1000 B.C.E.? And finally, what was the city like during the glorious reigns of David and Solomon? The answer that some scholars have recently given to these questions is that the city didn’t exist during this period. Among those who have […]
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