Nadav Na'aman

The Judahite Shephelah in the late 8th and early 7th centuries BCE

Abstract In a recent article, Blakely and Hardin (2002) reviewed the results of excavations at several sites in the Shephelah and Beersheba Valley and interpreted them as evidence of an early Assyrian attack by Tiglath-pileser III on Judah. This study questions their proposal from both the archaeological and textual perspectives. It suggests an alternative interpretation, according to which the sites under discussion were devastated by Sennacherib in 701 BCE and partly reoccupied in the early 7th century, in the days of Manasseh.

Hezekiah's Fortified Cities and the LMLK Stamps

The attribution of the list of 15 fortified cities (2 Chr 11, 5-10) to Rehoboam is untenable, and it is suggested that the Chronicler erroneously ascribed to him an undated list of towns from the period of the First Temple. The fortified cities were strategically located to protect the kingdom of Judah from an attack on its western front. The layout of the towns and their names match only one situation: Hezekiahs preparations for the Assyrian campaign of 701 B. C. The plan of the 15 cities is congruent to the distribution of the lmlk seal impressions. The entire procedure related to the manufacture and distribution of the lmlk jars is discussed. By combining the biblical account of the days of Hezekiah and the list of fortified cities with the archaeological evidence and in particular with the distribution of the lmlk seal impressions, one may reconstruct the measures taken by Hezekiah to prepare against the impending Assyrian attack of 701.

The contribution of the Amarna letters to the debate on Jerusalem's political position in the tenth century B.C.E.

Understanding of the problems involved in the excavations of multilayered highland sites and an examination of the long-range perspective are both essential for the correct appreciation of Jerusalems political position in the tenth century B.C.E. No negative conclusions about Jerusalem in the Late Bronze II and Iron Age I-IIA should be drawn from the results of the excavations conducted on the Ophel Hill. A comparison between the evidence of the Amarna tablets and contemporaneous archaeological data is essentialfor the correct evaluation of the data about Jerusalem. Investigation of the archaeological data and written sources indicates that tenth-century Jerusalem must have been a highland stronghold and the center ofa kingdom, dominating large, hilly territories with many settlements, and thus was able to expand to nearby lowland territories and possibly even to the areas of neighboring kingdoms. According to modern socioarchaeological criteria, the tenth-century kingdom was a prestate, polymorphous chiefdom with Jerusalem as its center of government.

Dating the appearance of imitations of assyrian ware in southern palestine

Abstract The article analyzes the extent and the date of imitation of Assyrian pottery in southern Palestine in the late 8th-7th centuries BCE. Contrary to the commonlyheld assumption that imitations of Assyrian ware appeared in the last third of the 8th century and that a large variety of local vessels imitate Assyrian prototypes, we suggest that imitation began no earlier than the 7th century and that its extentis considerably more limited than has been suggested by other scholars.

Sennacherib's "Letter to God" on His Campaign to Judah

Gordian III (238-44) or Elagabalus (218-22), five Roman coins of the early 4th century, one Islamic coin that appears to be Mamluk, two datable Islamic coins 1342-45 and 1389-90), four otherwise unidentifiable Islamic coins and one coin of Charles, Duke of Calabria, Lorraine, Burgundy and Guelders, minted at Nancy early in his reign (1545-1608 C.E.)24 These data fall into two distinguishable spans of time: (1) the 1st century B.C.E.-4th century C.E., and (2) the Islamic period. Whether this can be taken to indicate periods of habitation is quite another question.25 The latest coins were very likely dropped by religious pilgrims who undoubtedly began visiting this site in the Middle Ages.

Ekron under the Assyrian and Egyptian empires

This article discusses four problems that are central to the history and archaeology of Ekron in the late eighth-seventh century B. C. E.: (1) The accession of the dynasty of Padi to the throne of Ekron; (2) Ekron in Assyrian letters and administrative documents; (3) the foundation of Stratum IC; and (4) the economic growth of Ekron under the Assyrian and Egyptian empires. It is suggested that Stratum IC at Ekron was found in the second half of the eighth century B. C. E. and that the city was an important center in the time of Sargon II, and probably earlier. The available sources do not suggest that Ekron enjoyed preferred status among the western vassals of Assyria. Most of the artifacts unearthed at Stratum IB at Ekron should be assigned to the period in which it was a vassal of Egypt. The Tel Miqne publication team has not yet published data that enables scholars to establish the scope of the citys flourishing in the first half of the seventh century, or estimate the extent of the citys assumed decline in the late seventh century B. C. E. Ekrons prosperity arose from the results of Sennacheribs campaign against Judah in 701 B. C. E., from the stability produced by the pax Assyriaca, and from the new economic opportunities created by the empire-rather than the result of a deliberate imperial policy of economic development of its vassal.This article discusses four problems that are central to the history and archaeology of Ekron in the late eighth-seventh century B.C.E.: (1) The accession of the dynasty of Padi to the throne of Ekron; (2) Ekron in Assyrian letters and administrative documents; (3) the foundation of Stratum IC; and (4) the economic growth of Ekron under the Assyrian and Egyptian empires. It is suggested that Stratum IC at Ekron was found in the second half of the eighth century B.C.E. and that the city was an important center in the time of Sargon II, and probably earlier. The available sources do not suggest that Ekron enjoyed preferred status among the western vassals of Assyria. Most of the artifacts unearthed at Stratum IB at Ekron should be assigned to the period in which it was a vassal of Egypt. The Tel Miqne publication team has not yet published data that enables scholars to establish the scope of the citys flourishing in the first half of the seventh century, or estimate the extent of the citys assumed decline in the late seventh century B.C.E. Ekrons prosperity arose from the results of Sennacheribs campaign against Judah in 701 B.C.E., from the stability produced by the pax Assyriaca, and from the new economic opportunities created by the empire-rather than the result of a deliberate imperial policy of economic development of its vassal.

The contribution of the Trojan Grey ware from Lachish and Tel Miqne-Ekron to the chronology of the Philistine Monochrome pottery

This article deals with the chronology of the locally made Mycenaean IIIC:1b pottery in relation to the date of the imported Mycenaean IIIC pottery and the time of the Egyptian withdrawal from southern Canaan. It is suggested that the Trojan Grey Ware unearthed at Lachish Stratum VI and at Tel Miqne Stratum VIIIA is the key for the correct dating of the Philistine Monochrome pottery. The paper also criticizes I. Finkelsteins methodology, which rests partly on conclusions based on negative evidence (the not-found ergo does-not-exist principle). It suggests a revision of the dates of strata at some south and north Palestinian sites.

The Sanctuary of the Gibeonites Revisited

The article examines three biblical narratives in which the city of Gibeon and its inhabitants play a major role ( Joshua 9; II Sam 21:1-14; I Kgs 3:3-15a). It is suggested that Gibeons sanctuary played—directly or by inference—a significant role in the plot of the three stories. The story of Joshuas treaty with the Gibeonites, ostensibly describing an event in the conquest of Canaan, in reality reflects a hidden Deuteronomistic satirical polemic whose background must be sought in the time of its Jerusalemite author of the late 7th to early 6th centuries BCE. The polemics stimulus lies in a Gibeonite reaction to Josiahs cancellation of their sanctuary in the time of the author. Clarifying the relation of the Jerusalem and Gibeon temples is important for understanding the rise of the former, as well as the absence of the latter in the Dtr historiography.

The expansion of the kingdom of Amurru according to the petrographic investigation of the Amarna tablets

A petrographic investigation of the Amarna tablets has been carried out by the authors since 1997. Over 300 tablets have so far been examined, including 14 letters sent by the rulers of Amurru. The petrographic data makes it possible to trace the territorial expansion of the kingdom of Amurru in the days of Abdi-Ashirta and Aziru. The Amurru letters fall into four distinct petrographic groups. The first includes two letters, which were sent from the mountainous area east of Tripoli, the core area of the kingdom. The second includes four letters, which were probably dispatched from the city of Ardata in the foothills. Five letters were sent from TellʿArqa. This seems to indicate that after consolidating his reign, Aziru transferred his capital to Irqata in the ʿAkkar Plain. Finally, three of Azirus letters were sent from the Egyptian center of Sumur. No Amurru letter was sent from the city of Tunip, which was also captured by Aziru. The analysis of the letter of the citizens of Tunip supports the identification of this important city at Tell ʿAsharneh northwest of Hama. This city was too remote from the main arena of Azirus operations, which was focused on the Lebanese coast.

David's Sojourn in Keilah in Light of the Amarna Letters

The article examines the story of David’s sojourn in Keilah (1 Sam. 23:1-13) in light of the episode of the sojourn of a band of ‘Apiru in the same city in the Amarna period. The biblical story is analyzed in the first part of the article, and is followed by a reconstruction of the 14th century BCE historical episode on the basis of some Amarna letters. The remarkable accord between the biblical and extra-biblical descriptions with regard to location and social conditions opens the way to a better understanding of both. The pro-Davidic character of the biblical story is evident from what the narrator includes in his story, as much as by what he left out. The extra-biblical source is the key to filling in the missing details that the narrator deliberately left out of his story.