Oren Tal

RE-DISCOVERING THE IRON AGE FORTRESS AT TELL QUDADI IN THE CONTEXT OF NEO-ASSYRIAN IMPERIALISTIC POLICIES

Abstract Tell Qudadi (Tell esh-Shuna) is located on the northern bank of the mouth of the Yarkon River. A preliminary trial excavation was conducted at the site in October 1937 under the direction of P. L. O. Guy, followed by extensive excavations carried out from November 1937–March 1938 on behalf of the Hebrew University, headed by E. L. Sukenik and S. Yeivin with the participation of N. Avigad. An impressive Iron Age fortress with two architectural phases was reported to have been found in the excavations. The excavators dated the first phase of the fortress to the 10th/9th century BCE, whereas the second phase, in their opinion, existed from the latter part of the 9th century BCE until 732 BCE, when it was destroyed as a result of the military campaign led by Tiglath-pileser III. Although the excavations were conducted some seventy years ago, the findings were never published. Considering the importance of the site to the history of the Land of Israel during the Iron Age, and as a result of cooperation between the Tel Aviv University and the Hebrew University, it was recently decided to publish the final excavation report. The preliminary study has produced interesting results that challenge the insights gained by the excavators. The ceramic assemblage is now thought to indicate that the site was not established before the second half of the 8th century BCE. Moreover, the ceramic evidence made it possible to determine that the fortress existed during the neo-Assyrian period. It seems reasonable to assume that the Tell Qudadi fortress was one of a series of neo-Assyrian fortresses constructed along the coast of the Land of Israel (some of which were erected at the mouths of rivers) at the end of the 8th and in the first half of the 7th century BCE.

Metallurgical investigation on fourth century BCE silver jewellery of two hoards from Samaria

A fourth century BCE silver jewellery collection, which is part of two hoards of Samarian coins (the Samaria and Nablus Hoards), was studied by non-destructive analyses. The collection, which consists of pendants, rings, beads and earrings, had been examined by visual testing, multi-focal microscopy and SEM-EDS analysis. In order to enhance our knowledge of past technologies of silver jewellery production, we developed a metallurgical methodology based on the chemical composition of the joints and bulk. The results show that all artefacts are made of silver containing a small percentage of copper. Higher copper concentrations were measured in the joining regions. Our research indicates that the manufacturing of the jewellery from both hoards involved similar techniques, including casting, cutting, hammering, bending, granulating and joining methods, indicating that the artefacts were made by trained silversmiths. Although the burial date of the Samaria Hoard – 352 BCE – is some 21 years earlier than that of the Nablus Hoard – circa 331 BCE, a noted continuity in the local production technology is apparent in the analysed items. This information provides better understanding of the technological abilities in the late Persian-period province of Samaria and bears implications on the local silver coins produced in the region.

The Canonization of the Pentateuch: When and Why? (Part I)

The canonization of the Pentateuch has preoccupied scholars from different disciplines from antiquity to the present. However, two major questions still require an explanation: when did it happen and why did it happen? In this two-part article an attempt has been made to clarify these issues. Based on an interdisciplinary approach, where the insights of redaction criticism are merged with archaeologically-supported historical analysis, we suggest that the inception of the Torah-canonization should be viewed within the framework of the geopolitical transformation that characterized the first half of the fourth century BCE, when, following a major Egyptian rebellion, Egypt was no longer a part of the Persian Empire, while southern Palestine became the empire’s frontier for the first time in more than a century of Achaemenid rule. The canonization of the essentially anti-Egyptian version of the Torah in the early fourth century BCE should be considered as a conscious response of Jerusalem’s priestly circles to this new reality, signaling to the imperial authorities that they are dealing with loyal subjects that consider Egypt as a world of chaos, an antithesis to the world of cosmic order, so central to Persian imperial self-understanding. La canonisation du Pentateuque a préoccupé les chercheurs depuis l’antiquité jusqu’à nos jours. Deux questions demeurent cependant: quand et pourquoi s’est-elle produite? Cette étude en deux parties tente de répondre à ces questions. A partir d’une approche interdisciplinaire, qui combine les résultats de la critique rédactionnelle avec une analyse historique fondée sur les données archéologiques, la solution suivante est proposée: le début de la canonisation de la Torah se situe dans le cadre des changements géopolitiques qui marquent la première moitié du 4ème siècle av. J.-C. A la suite d’un vaste soulèvement, l’Egypte ne faisait plus partie de l’empire perse, alors que la Palestine du sud formait, pour la première fois depuis plus d’un siècle de domination achéménide, la frontière méridionale de l’empire. La canonisation de la version essentiellement anti-égyptienne de la Torah du début du 4ème siècle doit être comprise comme une réponse consciente des prêtres de Jérusalem à cette nouvelle situation politique. Ils indiquent ainsi à l’administration perse qu’ils sont des sujets loyaux qui considèrent l’Egypte comme une puissance du chaos, à l’inverse de l’ordre cosmique qui caractérise l’auto-compréhension de l’empire perse. Die Kanonisierung des Pentateuch hat Gelehrte verschiedener Disziplinen von der Antike bis in die Gegenwart beschäftigt. Dennoch harren zwei wichtige Fragen noch immer der Erklärung: Wann hat sie sich ereignet, und warum? In diesem zweiteiligen Artikel wird der Versuch unternommen, diese Fragen zu klären. Basierend auf einem interdisziplinären Ansatz, der die Erkenntnisse der Redaktionskritik mit einer archäologisch fundierten historischen Analyse verbindet, schlagen die Autoren vor, dass der Beginn der Kanonisierung der Tora im Zusammenhang der geopolitischen Veränderungen zu sehen ist, welche die erste Hälfte des 4. Jh. v. Chr. prägten. Ägypten war in Folge eines größeren Aufstandes nicht mehr Teil des persischen Großreiches, während der Süden Palästinas erstmals nach mehr als einem Jahrhundert achämenidischer Herrschaft die Reichsgrenze bildete. Die Kanonisierung der wesentlich anti-ägyptischen Version der Tora im frühen 4. Jh. v.Chr. kann als eine bewusste Antwort der Jerusalemer Priester auf diese neue politische Situation verstanden werden. Diese signalisieren der persischen Verwaltung, dass sie loyale Untertanen sind, die Ägypten als eine Chaosmacht betrachten, als Gegenbild der kosmischen Ordnung, die für das Selbstverständnis des persischen Reiches zentral ist.

A Late Iron Age Fortress North of Jerusalem

Studies dealing with the defensive system of the Kingdom of Judah in the Late Iron Age have mentioned the fortress excavated at the French Hill, north of Jerusalem (the possibility of its use during the Persian period has also been raised). The plan and finds from this fortress have never been published, and its description has appeared in a very preliminary form. This article is the final report of the excavation carried out 33 years ago by Professor Ora Negbi, to whom we dedicate this article. Aside from a fully detailed publication of the fortresss architectural plan and the finds retrieved, our objectives are to set the chronological framework on the basis of the finds, suggest a possible geographical-historical identification according to biblical sources, and attempt to reconstruct the defensive system of the Judaean kingdoms capital-Jerusalem.

A Winepress at Apollonia-Arsuf: More Evidence on the Samaritan Presence in Roman-Byzantine Southern Sharon

This article examines the results of the 2006 and 2009 seasons in the far northern end of the site - a large mosaic floor winepress with a Greek inscription in the center of its treading floor. The inscription reads: “One God only, help / Cassianos together with (his) wife / and children and everyone.” Such commemorative inscriptions are mostly known from Samaritan cult buildings (synagogues). Both the inscription and the finds discovered in the area point to a Samaritan ownership over the complex in Byzantine times (ca. fifth-sixth centuries CE). The winepress is thus analyzed against its inscription and other Byzantine winepresses with inscriptions found in Palestine. Based on the archaeological evidence the winepress ceased to function in the first half of the sixth century CE (possibly in relation to the Samaritan revolt [529 CE]).

On the Identification of the Ships of kzd/ry in the Erased Customs Account from Elephantine

The Aramaic text from Elephantine known as the Words of Ahiqar was written over a multicolumn, erased text known as the Customs Account; it was deciphered by Ada Yardeni and published in full in 1993.1 The deciphering of this text, which has been dated to year 11 of Xerxes I—475 b.c.e.2 or, alternatively, to Artaxerxes I—454 b.c.e.,3 reveals a succession of Egyptian months that enables us to follow the order of the papyrus sheets and to establish the number of missing columns.4 The text records the dates (day and month) and customs duties collected at the arrival and departure of Ionian and Phoenician ships and given to the Achaemenid royal treasury during one ten-month sailing season (approximately from March to December). The information from the Customs Account concerning maritime trade includes the types of ships sailing to and from Egypt and the kinds of goods they carried as well as information about the system of duty collection and the royal practice of accounting in Achaemenid Egypt in the early Persian period.5 Four types of ships are mentioned in the account. Two types are large Ionian ships; nineteen are related to spynh rbh (large ships), and seventeen are related to another type of large ship with the enigmatic designation aswt khmws spynh rbh; most of them are identified by the name of their Greek (iwny) captains (owners?). The other two types are Phoenician ships; three are related to dwgy qnd/rtoa (large boats), and an additional three are related to dwgy qnd/rtsyry (small boats), which are apparently types of ships called spynt kzd/ry (ships of kzd/r). Each ship had its own specific cargo and had to pay specific duties: either the mndta, which apparently amounted to one-fifth of the goods imported, which was paid by the Ionian ships, or the tithe, mosra, which was paid by the Phoenician ships. Taxes were collected (gby) from each ship and “turned (over)” (obyd ) to the royal treasury (byt mlka). This article proposes identifying the term kzd/ry, which appears in papyrus sheet FV3, 25—////// yor zoko t(w)nyps—“ships of kzd/ry 6,” as a toponym, namely, the Persian-period site of Tell Ghazza (Arabic)/Tel Yaooz (Hebrew), which has been the subject of several recent

Arsur Castle Maritime Installation (1241–1265 CE)*

The maritime installation, sometimes called the ‘port’ or the ‘military harbour’ of Apollonia-Arsuf, is located at the foot of the cliff on which the Crusader castle of Arsur stands, about 37u2005km south of Caesarea, Israel. Opinions have differed as to the true nature of the site: was it a real port or harbour? Was it just a mooring basin for small craft? Or was it just an installation designed to prevent an approach from the coast to the cliff on which the castle itself stood? In an attempt to elucidate these questions various investigations have been carried out in the course of the last five years, within the ‘harbour’ itself, as well as outside.

The Canonization of the Pentateuch: When and Why? (Continued, Part II)

The canonization of the Pentateuch has preoccupied scholars from different disciplines from antiquity to the present. However, two major questions still require an explanation: when did it happen and why did it happen? In this two-part article an attempt has been made to clarify these issues. Based on an interdisciplinary approach, where the insights of redaction criticism are merged with archaeologically-supported historical analysis, we suggest that the inception of the Torah-canonization should be viewed within the framework of the geopolitical transformation that characterized the first half of the fourth century BCE, when, following a major Egyptian rebellion, Egypt was no longer a part of the Persian Empire, while southern Palestine became the empire’s frontier for the first time in more than a century of Achaemenid rule. The canonization of the essentially anti-Egyptian version of the Torah in the early fourth century BCE should be considered as a conscious response of Jerusalem’s priestly circles to this new reality, signaling to the imperial authorities that they are dealing with loyal subjects that consider Egypt as a world of chaos, an antithesis to the world of cosmic order, so central to Persian imperial self-understanding. La canonisation du Pentateuque a préoccupé les chercheurs depuis l’antiquité jusqu’à nos jours. Deux questions demeurent cependant: quand et pourquoi s’est-elle produite? Cette étude en deux parties tente de répondre à ces questions. A partir d’une approche interdisciplinaire, qui combine les résultats de la critique rédactionnelle avec une analyse historique fondée sur les données archéologiques, la solution suivante est proposée: le début de la canonisation de la Torah se situe dans le cadre des changements géopolitiques qui marquent la première moitié du 4ème siècle av. J.-C. A la suite d’un vaste soulèvement, l’Egypte ne faisait plus partie de l’empire perse, alors que la Palestine du sud formait, pour la première fois depuis plus d’un siècle de domination achéménide, la frontière méridionale de l’empire. La canonisation de la version essentiellement anti-égyptienne de la Torah du début du 4ème siècle doit être comprise comme une réponse consciente des prêtres de Jérusalem à cette nouvelle situation politique. Ils indiquent ainsi à l’administration perse qu’ils sont des sujets loyaux qui considèrent l’Egypte comme une puissance du chaos, à l’inverse de l’ordre cosmique qui caractérise l’auto-compréhension de l’empire perse. Die Kanonisierung des Pentateuch hat Gelehrte verschiedener Disziplinen von der Antike bis in die Gegenwart beschäftigt. Dennoch harren zwei wichtige Fragen noch immer der Erklärung: Wann hat sie sich ereignet, und warum? In diesem zweiteiligen Artikel wird der Versuch unternommen, diese Fragen zu klären. Basierend auf einem interdisziplinären Ansatz, der die Erkenntnisse der Redaktionskritik mit einer archäologisch fundierten historischen Analyse verbindet, schlagen die Autoren vor, dass der Beginn der Kanonisierung der Tora im Zusammenhang der geopolitischen Veränderungen zu sehen ist, welche die erste Hälfte des 4. Jh. v. Chr. prägten. Ägypten war in Folge eines größeren Aufstandes nicht mehr Teil des persischen Großreiches, während der Süden Palästinas erstmals nach mehr als einem Jahrhundert achämenidischer Herrschaft die Reichsgrenze bildete. Die Kanonisierung der wesentlich anti-ägyptischen Version der Tora im frühen 4. Jh. v. Chr. kann als eine bewusste Antwort der Jerusalemer Priester auf diese neue politische Situation verstanden werden. Diese signalisieren der persischen Verwaltung, dass sie loyale Untertanen sind, die Ägypten als eine Chaosmacht betrachten, als Gegenbild der kosmischen Ordnung, die für das Selbstverständnis des persischen Reiches zentral ist.

Persian and Hellenistic Remains At Tel Yacoz

Abstract The article summarizes the 1981 excavation at Tel Yacoz, which revealed remains from the Persian and Hellenistic periods. The Persian period settlement extended over an area of at least 1.5 ha and was probably the largest settlement in the lower Nahal Śoreq basin at that time. Remains of Greek-style fresco and stucco architectural elements seem to indicate that a monumental complex existed at the site during the Hellenistic period. In the second part of the article we propose identifying Tel Yacoz with ancient Gazara, mentioned in Hellenistic sources.

Intentionally Broken Discus Lamps from Roman Apollonia: A New Interpretation

Abstract The Apollonia-Arsuf Excavations yielded hundreds of Roman discus lamps. The typical pagan and erotic figurative motifs had been intentionally broken off, an act familiar at other sites in Roman Palestine that was often said to be the work of monotheists of either the Samaritan or Jewish faiths. This article surveys the evidence at hand and considers the intentional breaking of Roman discus lamps in Roman Palestine as the work of members of all monotheistic faiths. In the case of Roman Apollonia, however, this act was performed by Samaritans or early Christians (or both).