Biblical Archaeology Review, December 1977
Features
What the stock market is to Wall Street and government to Washington, archaeology is to Jerusalem. It is full of archaeological talk and archaeological gossip, of new finds and ideas and speculations.
Anson Rainey’s vicious and vulgar attack on my theory concerning the Beer-Sheva cult place (“Beer-Sheva Excavator Blasts Yadin—No Bama at Beer-Sheva,” BAR 03:03) deserves no reply. But since BAR is widely read by people whose only interest is the archaeological truth, I will disregard any reference to some of Rainey’s unprecedented personal attacks and […]
Fitting the “Patriarchal Age” into a historical framework is a formidable task. The issues are complex and our ignorance profound. There is no known synchronism between a single patriarchal Biblical event and a datable occurrence recorded in extra-Biblical sources.a Egyptian dynastic lists are of no help because the Bible designates the king of Egypt […]
One of the most sensational finds of recent excavations in Jerusalem was Professor Nachman Avigad’s discovery of the ancient Cardo, the main north-south thoroughfare through the city.
An American congressional delegation visiting Egypt recently was shown in to see the world’s oldest boat, a stunningly sleek and graceful vessel belonging to the Pharaoh Cheops and dating from 2700 B.C. For the occasion, the museum’s ventilation system, entrusted with preserving this priceless treasure, was activated to full capacity—all 16 household fans were […]
Byzantine Jerusalem was Christian Jerusalem—par excellence. The Byzantine era began when the Emperor Constantine—soon to convert to Christianity—became master of Palestine in 324 A.D. It did not end in Jerusalem until the Patriarch Sophronius surrendered the city to the Moslem caliph Omar in the spring of 638. The Byzantine period was a prosperous one, […]
Shortly before the Six Day War, Israeli composer and singer Naomi Shemer introduced a new song which she called “Yerushalaiyim Shel Zahav,” “Jerusalem of Gold”:
The compound of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is not only Christianity’s holiest site it is also one of the most fascinating buildings in the world. Its nucleus goes back to the 4th century A.D.—how many 4th century buildings are still in existence and in use?—and its various components represent almost […]