Course Description: The archaeology of Palestine (Israel, occupied territories, Jordan) has a long tradition, due largely to European and American biblical and colonial interests. Archaeological remains are important in today's Israel and the Palestinian territories especially because of potential links to the Bible. The goals of this course are to provide an overview of the history of archaeological fieldwork, the changing methods of research in Palestine, and the culture history of the area from prehistory to Islamic times.

This course includes pre-Biblical periods since Palestine is one of the earliest regions in the world where the transition from hunting and gathering modes of living to sedentary societies took place. Remains from later prehistoric periods are of equal importance for the understanding of urbanization and the social, political and economic development of complex societies.

With the Late Bronze/ Iron Ages, beginning in the later 2nd millennium B.C.E., we enter the periods traditionally thought to be recounted in the Bible. In this connection, we will deal with the question of the discrepancies between the archaeological record and the Bible. Can the Biblical accounts be substantiated by archaeological finds? Where is the Bible contradicted by archaeological data? Do we have to read the Bible differently because of archaeological research results? Are the archaeological remains insignificant in comparison to the much more elaborate written sources? These questions are at the core of controversies and heated debates. They concern the times of King David, Solomon, the Babylonian exile as well as the Roman occupation of Palestine, the figure of Jesus and the famous "Qumran rolls".

Format: Lecture and discussion.

Textbooks and other Literature:
Four books have been ordered for this course at the University Bookstore.

Mazar, Amihai
1990 Archaeology of the Land of the Bible. 10,000-586 B.C.E. New York: Doubleday.

Finkelstein, Israel and Neil A. Silberman
2001 The Bible Unearthed. Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of its Sacred Text. New York: The Free Press.

Bartlett, John R., ed.
1997 Archaeology and Biblical Interpretation. London: Routledge.

Hanson, K.C. and Douglas E. Oakman
1998 Palestine in the Time of Jesus. Social Structures and Social Conflicts. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

A note on the content of these books: Mazar's book is an in-depth treatment of all except the late periods, has a lot of illustrations and should be read for a factual overview. Finkelstein and Silberman's new book on the Iron Age is a highly critical synthesis of early Israel, its history and archaeology. The essays in Bartlett's volume look at controversial issues of Biblical and New Testament times from several perspectives. Finally, Hanson and Oakman offer an unusual perspective on the times of Jesus, including archaeological research results.

We will read substantial portions of these books, and discuss some of the illustrations in Mazar's volume, so I urge you to purchase them and bring them along to classes when assigned for readings. All other assigned readings are on reserve in the Bartle Library's Reserve Room except for the Bible, which we will use sometimes. It would be appropriate to have a Bible at hand for this course. Bartle Library has copies which you can consult if you do not have your own.

All reading assignments must be completed BEFORE the class day for which they are assigned. I expect you to be familiar with the readings and to be able to participate in class discussions based upon them. If you have difficulties with the readings or with any of the material presented in class, be sure to ask questions.

In case some terms in the readings seem unfamiliar to you, consult
a) for Biblical terms: the Anchor Bible Dictionary (ed. D.N. Freedman, 1992)
b) for archaeological sites: the New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land (4 vols.), ed. E. Stern, Jerusalem 1993.
Both are available in the reference room of the library.

Finally, there are vivid literary accounts of Biblical periods:
- of life at the time of Solomon (and David) in Stefan Heym's King David Report (latest reprint from 1997). This fascinating, extremely well written and well researched book interweaves political constraints of writing (hi)story with the personal story of a writer in ancient Israel.
- of the Jewish revolt against the Roman domination in the first century A.D., in Lion Feuchtwanger's The Jewish War (translation from 1932).

Grades:
Your grade for the course will be based on a combination of assignments, two exams, and a project:

Your paper should have approximately the following structure:

1) A personal account about why you chose to write about a particular site. This part must be at least 1/2 page long, formulated in the first person, and be personal.
2) A general description of the site, including geographical and historical setting
3) Who excavated the site and when?
4) A chronology of the architectural remains
5) A description of the most important building and its context
6) A general description of one important kind of artifacts (such as pottery, figurines, statuary, jewelry)
7) A general mention of other kinds of artifacts found
8) Biblical or other (Assyrian, Egyptian etc.) references to the site
9) Bibliography: at least 10 entries that are NOT websites, all citations must be in anthropological style.
10) Selected illustrations (copies from books of relevant plans, features, items). Use at least five of them, up to 15. These are important and may improve your grade if well chosen.

Select readings indicated in the Encyclopedia for research on the above sections. The Encyclopedia bibliographies are almost all abbreviations. A list of what these abbreviations mean can be found in each of the 4 volumes.
A first version of your paper is due on Monday, November 10 which you will get back with my comments. No comments will be given for papers that I receive after this deadline. The second version, revised according to my comments, is due on Wednesday, December 3. Papers must have a length of at least 12 pages, double spaced, bibliography and illustrations excluded. Bibliographies, however, will contribute to your grade. Late papers will be penalized: each day beyond the deadline results in one notch down from the original grade (for example, from B to B-). The project is worth 35% of your course grade.

NOTE: Cheating and plagiarism - the misrepresentation of work as one's own which is not - are forms of academic dishonesty that are punishable through university regulations. If you have questions about what constitutes cheating or plagiarism, see the University Rules and Expectations, ask someone in the Writing Center, or speak to me. Especially in your papers, any direct quote from a publication must be in quotation marks (limit such quotations to no more than 2 lines!) and any paraphrased material must have a reference to the relevant readings.

- Harpur College has a rule according to which you automatically fail a course if you miss more than 25 % of all classes. I take this rule very seriously. No exceptions will be made.

Class Schedule

Wednesday, September 3: Introduction to the Course

Friday, September 5: The geography of Palestine
Readings:
- Rast, Walter E., 1992: Through the Ages in Palestinian Archaeology. Philadelphia: Trinity Press. Read Chapter 2 (page 16-32).
- Mazar, Chapter 1, pages 1-9

Monday, September 8: Introduction to archaeological methods I
Readings:
- Mazar, Chapter 1, pages 21-33.

Wednesday, September 10: Introduction to archaeological methods II
- Rast, - Rast, Walter E., 1992: Through the Ages in Palestinian Archaeology. Philadelphia: Trinity Press. Read Chapters 1 and 3 (page 1-15; 33-46).

Friday, September 12: Written and material sources
Readings:
- Traill, D.A., 1995: Schliemann of Troy: Treasure and Deceit. London: John Murray. Read pp. 1-13; 102-124.

Monday, September 15: A History of Research
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 1 (page 1-19).
- Silberman, N.A., 1982: Digging for God and Country, New York: A. Knopf. Read pp. 100-112.

Wednesday, September 17: Palaeolithic of the Levant
Readings:
- Rast, Walter, 1992: Through the Ages in Palestinian Archaeology. Philadelphia: Trinity Press. Read Chapter 4 (pages 47-59).

Friday, September 19: The Transition from Mobile Groups to Sedentary Villages I
Readings:
- Mazar, Chapter 2, "The Neolithic Age" (pages 38-58).

Monday, September 22: The Transition from Mobile Groups to Sedentary Villages II
Readings:
- Banning, E.B., 1998: "The Neolithic Period: Triumphs of Architecture, Agriculture, and Art". Near Eastern Archaeology 61 (4): 188-237.

Wednesday, September 24: Early Hierarchical Societies: the Chalcolithic Period
Readings:
- Mazar, Chapter 3 (pages 59-90).

Friday, September 26: Rosh Hashanah, NO CLASS ***********

Monday, September 29: Tuesday, October 2: The First Urban Societies
Readings:
- Richard, S., 1987: "The Early Bronze Age: the Rise and Collapse of Urbanism". Biblical Archaeologist 50: 22-44.

Wednesday, October 1: Breakdown of Urban Society and Nomadism
Readings:
- Mazar, Chapter 5 (pages 151-172).

Friday, October 3: Re-Urbanization in the 2nd Millennium B.C.E.
Readings:
- Dever, W.G., 1987: "The Middle Bronze Age. The Zenith of the Urban Canaanite Era". Biblical Archaeologist 50: 148-177.

Monday, October 6: Yom Kippur, NO CLASS **********

Wednesday, October 8: ********* FIRST EXAM ********

Friday, October 10: Biblical Texts and Archaeological Remains
Readings:
- Dever, W.G. 1998: "Archaeology, Ideology, and the Quest for an 'Ancient' or 'Biblical Israel'". Near Eastern Archaeology 61 (1): 39-52.

Monday, October 13: Moses, a Historical Figure?
Readings:
- Marcus, Amy D. 2000: The View from Nebo. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. Read Introduction and Chapter 2 (page 3-28; 51-77).

Wednesday, October 15: Philistines
Readings:
- Mazar, A., Read from Chapter 8 pages 295-327.

Friday, October 17: Israelite "Conquest" in the Iron Age I: Stager's Hypothesis
Readings:
- Skim the Bible, "Book of Joshua".
- Stager, L.E. 1985: "The Archaeology of the Family in Ancient Israel". Bulletin of the American School of Oriental Research 260: 1-35.

Monday, October 20: Other Views on the Israelite "Conquest"
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 2 (by Dever, page 20-50).

Wednesday, October 22: The United Monarchy: David's Kingdom
Readings:
- Finkelstein and Silberman, Chapter 5 (pages 123-148).
Skim: - Mazar, Chapter 9 (pages 368-402).

Friday, October 24: The Divided Monarchy: The Traditional View
Readings:
- Mazar, Chapter 10: read pages 416-444.

Monday, October 27: The Divided Monarchy: New Research
- Finkelstein and Silberman, Chapter 7 (pages 169-195).

Wednesday, October 29: Israelite Religion and Archaeology
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 3 (by A. Mayes, page 51-68).
- Dever, W.G. 1984: "Asherah, Consort of Yahweh? New Evidence from Kuntillet Ajrud". Bulletin of the American Schools for Oriental Research 255: 21-37.

Friday, October 31: Writing Systems in Ancient Palestine
Readings:
- Mazar, Chapter 11, pages 514-520.

Monday, November 3: Babylonian Exile and Archaeology
- Finkelstein and Silberman, Chapters 11 and 12 (pages 275-314).

Wednesday, November 5: Palestine under Persian and Hellenistic Rule
Readings:
- Rast, Walter, 1992: Through the Ages in Palestinian Archaeology. Philadelphia: Trinity Press. Read Chapter 11 (page 145-159).

Friday, November 7: Roman Palestine: Herodes and the Second Temple
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 5 (by B. Lalor, page 95-116).

Monday, November 10: Roman Palestine: Political Economy
********* FIRST VERSION OF PAPER DUE **********
Readings:
- Hanson and Oakman, Chapter 4, pages 99-130.

Wednesday, November 12: Roman Palestine: Social Structures
Readings:
- Hanson and Oakman, Chapter 2, pages 19-30; 51-60.

Friday, November 14: Archaeology and the Historicity of Jesus
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 6 (by S.V. Freyne, page 117-144).

Monday, November 17: The Archaeology of Qumran
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 4 (Pages 67-94).

Wednesday, November 19: Problems with Qumran Rolls
Readings:
- Davies, P.R., 1988: "How Not to Do Archaeology: the Story of Qumran". Biblical Archaeologist 51 (4): 203-207.

Friday, November 21: Archaeology of the Masada
Readings:
- Make yourself familiar with basics of: Yadin, Yigael, 1966: Masada: Herod's Fortress and the Zealots' Last Stand. New York: Random House.

Monday, November 24: The Masada Revolt, Archaeology and Israeli Nationalism
Readings:
- Ben-Yehuda, N., 1995: The Masada Myth, Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. Read pp. 27-49; 228-259.
- check also: Lion Feuchtwanger, The Jewish War (a novel).

Wednesday, November 26: NO CLASS, THANKSGIVING **********

Friday, November 28: NO CLASS, THANKSGIVING ***********

Monday, December 1: Friday, November 21: Late Roman Palestine
Readings:
- Meyers, E.M., 1988: "Early Judaism and Christianity in the Light of Archaeology". Biblical Archaeologist 51: 69-79.

Wednesday, December 3: Byzantine Palestine
*********** FINAL VERSION OF PAPER DUE *********
Readings:
- Bartlett, Chapter 7 (by C. Dauphin, page 145-166).

Friday, December 5: The Islamic Period
Readings:
- Schick, R., 1998: "Luxuriant Legacy. Palestine in the Early Islamic Period". Biblical Archaeologist 61 (2): 74-108.

Monday, December 8: Final Discussion

Wednesday, December 10: Review Session for Second Exam

Friday, December 12: ******** SECOND EXAM ********