Features

The Hittites: Between Tradition and History

Archaeology tells us a lot about the Hittites—and the Neo-Hittites too. But it’s hard to reconcile this with the Hittites of the Bible.

Archaeologists on Crutches
Yoram Tsafrir (1938–2015) and Adam Zertal (1936–2015) By Benny Arubas, Shay Bar, Hershel Shanks

Two eminent Israeli archaeologists, Yoram Tsafrir and Adam Zertal, recently passed away. Connected in death as in life, both triumphed over incredible obstacles.

Israelite Footprints
Has Adam Zertal Found the Biblical Altar on Mt. Ebal and the Footprints of the Israelites Settling the Promised Land? By Ralph K. Hawkins

Foot-shaped sites have been found throughout the Jordan Valley, including an extraordinary cultic site on Mt. Ebal. Is this the Israelite altar described in Joshua 8? Were these foot-shaped enclosures built by the Israelites as they entered the Promised Land?

Ivory Pomegranate: Under the Microscope at the Israel Museum

The famous inscribed ivory pomegranate, which, if authentic, may have been the head of a scepter from Solomon’s Temple, has endured decades of debate. Is the inscription real, or is it a forgery? A meeting between world-class paleographers in the summer of 2015 may have settled the debate.

Creating Woman

How was the first woman created in Genesis 2? Was she made from the man’s rib or, as recently suggested in BAR, from his os baculum (penis bone)?

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