Abstract: this note summarizes what is known at present about the coins minted in Jerusalem in the last years of the reign of Antiochus VII Sidetes. A (unique?) coin with a new date, SE 183=130/129 BCE, is presented and a possible minting distribution of this series during the time span 132–129 BCE is discussed. All this is historically and numismatically important because it stands at the beginning of Hasmonean full autonomy and at the beginning of Hasmonean coin minting.

Abstract: New hoard evidence and a die study allow for the reassessment of a single mint that extensively produced imitative Ptolemaic tetradrachms. Besides the long-known imitations of dated tetradrachms of ‘Akko-Ptolemais from the reign of Ptolemy II, it also minted less familiar imitations, mainly of selected Alexandrian portrait tetradrachms of Ptolemy I. This imitative mint apparently began its activity during the Fourth or Fifth Syrian War and continued in the first decades of the second century BCE, perhaps c. 170‒169. In all likelihood located in Ammanitis, it probably operated under the authority of members of the Tobiad family.

Abstract: This article examines Akhtem Seitablaiev’s 2017 film, 87 Children, which depicts Stalin’s 1944 deportation of the Crimean Tatars through the prism of another genocide – the Nazis’ 1941–1943 murder of Crimean Jews. It uses Michael Rothberg’s theory of multidirectional memory to illustrate how the history of the Holocaust, Stalin’s deportation of the Crimean Tatars, and the personal story of the film’s protagonists conflate in Seitablaiev’s work in an attempt both to foreground silenced pasts and to comment on the pernicious instrumentalization of history in Putin’s Crimea. Seitablaiev makes an important contribution to the deconstruction of competition and hierarchies within traumatic histories of the peninsula, offering new forms of solidarity and new visions of justice – all of which are found in the specificities, overlaps, and echoes of different historical experiences that continue to shape current events in post-annexation Crimea.

Abstract: The dated Ptolemaic silver coinage described as of an ‘uncertain era’ consists of three series of issues, the first two consisting of almost entirely of tetradrachms inscribed ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ while the third consists almost entirely of didrachms inscribed ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ. I show that the third series is the direct continuation of the second series on the basis of new didrachms that completely close what had appeared to be a nine-year gap between them. The circumstances that connect the two series in this way provide a new perspective on the second series’ purpose.

Abstract: In 2002–2005, salvage excavations were conducted at the site located in the central and southern parts of Moshav Kerem Maharal, on the southwestern slopes of the Carmel range (Fig. 1). From the Arab village Ijzim on the summit of the northern hill survived the remains of a two-story building (Sheikh’s house), which according to its style was built in the Ottoman period (probably the seventeenth century CE); it still incorporates some ancient architectural elements (Figs. 2–4).On the northern hill, two squares were excavated in each lot designated for construction (Areas A–E, H, I, K, L; Fig. 5; Table 1); in some areas the excavation reached the bedrock at a depth of 3.5 m below surface, cutting eight occupation layers. About 10% of the summit of the northern hill (15–20 dunams) was excavated. The excavations on the southern hill were conducted only in the lots and on the road connecting them (c. 35 dunams; Areas F1–23; Fig. 5), only where archaeological remains were detected in preliminary test trenches dug mechanically. In most of the area of the southern hill, bedrock was reached close to the surface (up to a depth of 0.5 m).The excavations revealed agricultural installations, quarries, rock-cuttings, cisterns, tombs, including a burial cave, and cup marks from 12 occupation layers (ten periods; Figs. 6–21; Plans 1–25; Appendix 1): Stratum XII, the Geometric Kebaran period (fourteenth–thirteenth millennia BP; see Marder, this volume); Strata XI–X, the Persian–early Hellenistic periods (sixth–fourth centuries BCE); Stratum IX, the Roman period (late first–early second century CE); Strata VIII–VII, the Byzantine period (fifth–seventh centuries CE); Stratum VI, the late Byzantine–beginning of the Early Islamic periods (seventh–eighth centuries CE); Stratum V, eleventh century CE; Stratum IV, twelfth–thirteenth centuries CE; Stratum III, the Mamluk period (late thirteenth–fifteenth centuries CE); Stratum II, the Ottoman and British Mandate periodS (until 1948); Stratum I, the modern era (after 1948). The pottery, glass and numismatic finds from these strata are discussed by Gendelman and Sai’d, this volume; Cytryn-Silverman, this volume; Katsnelson, this volume; and Kool, this volume. Additional periods are represented at the site by pottery alone: the Chalcolithic period, Late Bronze Age II and Iron Age II (tenth–seventh centuries BCE), the Hellenistic period (fourth–third centuries BCE; see Gendelman and Sa’id, this volume), and from the Early Islamic period (ninth–tenth centuries CE; see Cytryn-Silverman, this volume).The results of the excavations attest that Moshav Kerem Maharal is a multi-period site, occupied almost continuously from the Byzantine period to the modern era. During periods, there was also some activity to the north, east and west of the excavated areas. The Kerem Maharal site was an important rural site in Lower Carmel, and perhaps in the entire Carmel region during these periods.From the findings it can be deduced that in prehistoric and protohistoric times—the Geometric Kebaran and the Chalcolithic period—the site was located mainly on the southern hill, although similar cup marks were also discovered in the southern part of the northern hill. During the Persian period, and perhaps also at the beginning of the Hellenistic period, the settlement extended over most of the eastern slope of the northern hill. The settlement from the Roman period was exposed in the same area, but it seems to have been limited, and it is possible that it was mostly licated in the center of the site (Areas B–H). During these periods, the settlement’s cemetery was located on the southern hill, possibly also on the hill to the east of the site.During the Byzantine period, the settlement reached its peak. The northern hill was densely inhabited and according to the architectural remains, it appears that at the top of the hill (Areas F and F2) stood a large public building. The southern hill served as an industrial area, which included winepresses (one of which was a complex winepress), quarries and other installations whose function was not clear. In the Early Islamic period, the settlement at the site diminished in size and its remains were found only on the eastern slope, north of Area H.During the Mamluk period, the site flourished once again, and it extended over the entire northern hill and in several locations on the southern hill. The construction quality in this period was poorer than that of the Byzantine period, apart from the large structure that stood on the hill summit.In the Late Ottoman period, and possibly even in its earlier stages, the settlement extended over both hills, where dwellings were built. The large extent of this settlement is further attested by the location of the cemetery (Area F23) in the middle of the settlement, indicating its expansion beyond its previous boundaries. The oil press in Area C attests to the cultivation of olives and the production of olive oil during the Ottoman period. The crushing basin was probably reused, perhaps from the Byzantine period; therefore, it is probable that this economic branch had also existed during this period.The settlement at the site was rural in nature. It seems that throughout the periods the residents engaged in agriculture, as can be seen from the vast agricultural installations that were exposed. The large number of winepresses indicates the extensive cultivation of vines and wine production. The agricultural activities continued into the sixteenth century CE and later. Based on the ceramic finds and the petrographic analyses, it seems that the inhabitants of the site maintained close ties mainly with their immediate surroundings.The excavations at Kerem Maharal were the first to reveal a large-scale multi-period site in the Carmel range, as opposed to other nearby sites, such as ‘Usfiyya and Daliyat el-Karmel, where only a few excavations were conducted in limited areas, and the remains were poorly preserved.

Abstract: In July 2011, an excavation was conducted in the southwestern part of the city of Yehud, c. 300 m north of Road 461, in an area known as Ashkenazi Market (Fig. 1). Several archaeological excavations have been undertaken nearby, revealing construction remains, installations and tombs from the Chalcolithic to the Ottoman periods. In the present excavation, 85 squares were opened, and remains from several periods (Plans 1–3) were discovered.The remains from the Chalcolithic period included two wide and deep shafts that contained pottery vessels and flint artifacts chracteristic of the Late Chalcolithic period (see Lupu, this volume; Fig. 2). Such shafts were previously documented in Yehud and Tel Aviv, and they were reused as refuse pits. So far, no settlement remains from the Chalcolithic period have been unearthed at Yehud. Based on the distribution of the pits and shafts at Yehud, it can be concluded that this area was the periphery of a large settlement, where waste dumping and possibly industrial activities were carried out.Finds from the Late Bronze and Iron Ages, and from the Persian and Hellenistic periods, are scarce (Fig. 11). No architectural remains survived, and the ceramic assemblage is small. From the Early Roman period, pottery, glass and stone vessels were exposed, indicating activity at the site (Fig. 12; see Gorin-Rosen, this volume). The finds dating from the period between the two Jewish revolts and later in the second century CE reflect continuity, although no architectural remains could be attributed to this phase.In the Middle–Late Roman period (second–third centuries CE), an industrial area operated at the site, mainly for the production of pottery. Five pottery kilns were found in two areas (L633, L635, L725, L761, L771; Plan 3; Figs. 3–6), and another kiln was probably used in the metal industry (L808; Fig. 7). The pottery kilns are of the round type, with a central pillar from which arches emerge (Plan 2). The kilns produced household vessels, such as bowls, cooking pots, jugs and juglets (Figs. 12, 13). The remains of glass industry might point to the existence of a glass workshop at the site (see Gorin-Rosen, this volume). Between the pottery kilns were the remains of a structure that was probably related to the operation of the kilns, or for storage (Fig. 8). The fills in and above the structure included animal bones (see Agha, this volume).In the Byzantine period, the kilns were filled in, sealed and leveled with a plaster floor. Buildings that probably served as dwellings (Fig. 9) were exposed at the site, alongside pottery vessels (Figs. 14–16) and contemporary coins (studied by Donald T. Ariel), and refuse pits. Despite the poor preservation, overall planning is evident in the mostly east–west orientation of the architectural remains. Next to the Byzantine buildings were the scanty remains of an Early Islamic settlement, dated by the pottery finds (Fig. 17).The site was resettled in the Late Ottoman period. The remains included buildings, refuse pits and cesspits (Fig. 10) of the Arab village el-Yehudiya (Abbasia). Pottery (Fig. 18), pipes (studied by Lior Rauchberger; Fig. 19), metal objects and jewelry (Fig. 20), were found from this phase.

Abstract: For the past seventy years, numerous conflicting interpretations have been proposed regarding the site of Qumran and the identity of its inhabitants, resulting in a highly complex scholarly landscape. Jean-Baptiste Humbert and Alain Chambon’s recent publication of Roland de Vaux’s 1951-56 excavations, and Yitzhak Magen and Yuval Peleg’s report on excavations they conducted between 1994 and 2004 present important new data to the scholarly community, but they also contribute further to the existing confusion. This article evaluates these reports and highlights methodological and epistemic shortcomings that undermine their usefulness. The analysis focuses on the question of the site’s stratigraphy and chronology — with a particular emphasis on the development of the water system, the dating of the pottery deposit in L89, and the history of pottery production at Qumran — and on various matters of interpretation, including Humbert and Chambon’s and Magen and Peleg’s reconstructions of Qumran as a Hasmonean villa or military outpost and their interpretation of particular site features, such as the kiln in L64 and the stepped pools. These examples serve as a showcase for the larger problems that permeate both volumes and should help scholars use the reports judiciously. The article demonstrates that the main problem with both works is ultimately one of method.

Abstract: The article investigates the way in which the character of David was used in Judah Halevi’s Book of the Kuzari. It demonstrates how the author used David’s idealized image as an instrument to convey and underscore what he considered the chief values and most important legacy of Judaism. It argues that the figure of David served Halevi as a vehicle to transmit a constructive critique of his present day Jewry, aimed at healing or repairing and improving the entire Jewish nation – in terms of Rabbanites and Karaites alike – and bringing about their re-unification, thereby restoring Judaism to its former glory.

Abstract: The article explores the complex relationship between the biblical and extra-biblical evidence for David, discussing inter alia the etymology of the name David, the reliability of extra-biblical testimonies (inscriptions) to the House of David, as well as historical context and circumstances in which the biblical character was supposedly active. It conjectures that, assuming the historicity of this figure, David might have been a local leader of a small, Habiru-like group active in the tenth century BCE in the Southern territories dominated by the Tribe of Benjamin and politically controlled by the Philistines from the City of Gath.

Abstract: Focusing on Hebrew-language children’s books published in Palestine in the 1930s and 40s by first-generation immigrants from German-speaking countries, this article explores the cultural and social legacy that this community of recently arrived German speakers sought to transmit to its children. It illustrates this immigrant community’s ambivalence toward both socialist-Zionist discourse—which was hegemonic among Jews in Palestine—and its own German cultural heritage. It shows that these publishing initiatives gave voice to an alternative model of immigrant adaptation: accepting and even embracing the patriotic local culture in Palestine, without completely merging with it. Even in the 1940s, when German culture was generally taboo, subtle yet persistent attempts to reproduce Germanness in Hebrew-language children’s books revealed that this first generation of immigrants harbored conflicting feelings about their country of origin and their new national identity.

Abstract: One of the great challenges in dealing with a text is to address the event or events that cannot be included within it. Nowhere is this more crucial than when the text turns on the revelation of the transcendent, that which transcends not just the text but all that is. Voegelin was familiar with this problem and developed a sophisticated philosophical perspective that allowed him to navigate the perennial complications of biblical literary criticism. In particular, he understood that this was not merely a challenge for readers of sacred texts, but a pivotal issue in comprehending the emergence of history as the framework within which we locate the events of history. Where in history is history itself properly located? The perspective that includes all perspectives, it would seem, is not a perspective. My essay will be a rereading of Israel and Revelation in light of such questions.

Abstract: This paper raises a number of critical questions concerning Eric Voegelin’s work, Israel and Revelation. First, does Voegelin’s vision that the kingdom of G-d entail the dissolution of national, racial, and ethnic groups, most notably the Jewish people, provide a basis for a peaceful and viable world order? Or does it in fact give expression to Christian supersessionism that does not tolerate different or competing world views and therefore calls for their suppression and destruction? Second, writing in the immediate aftermath of the Shoah, his work does not address the fundamental questions of divine righteousness, i.e., is G-d truly omnipotent, omnipresent, engaged, and just in dealing with human beings? Apart from his model of submission, do human beings bear responsibility for bringing order into the world in which we live? Third, Voegelin misjudges the character of the literary sources found in the Hebrew Bible, insofar as he simplistically presupposes that biblical literature is too closely identified with the events that it portrays. Such a perspective prevents him from understanding how biblical literature portrays and interprets events to serve as a basis from which later generations of readers, such as Judaism and Christianity, might learn and construct their own understandings of the world and of G-d. Fourth, to what degree does Voegelin artificially choose elements of biblical literature, such as the prophetic books of Isaiah and Jeremiah, that support his understanding of G-d and history, and ignore those that do not, such as Ezekiel and the Book of the Twelve Prophets, that present very different understandings of ideal human and divine interrelationships? Furthermore, to what extent does he selectively read elements of the Book of Isaiah that support his understanding, prompting him to misunderstand the book? Finally, to what degree does he misunderstand Judaism, particularly its concept of the chosen people, thereby ignoring Judaism’s view that nations can and should live together in peace in keeping with the laws of Noah? The balance of the paper addresses each of these questions.

Abstract: Administrators in ancient Judah used schematic 30-day months and a 360-day year alongside other annual frameworks. This year was never practiced as a “calendar” for any cultic or administrative purpose, but rather served as a convenient framework for long-term planning, as well as for literary accounts that were not anchored to a concrete calendar year. Examples for such a usage are attested here from Mesopotamian texts. Material evidence for the 360-day year in Judah comes forth from a series of small perforated bone plaques from various sites in Iron Age Judah. One such item was recently unearthed in the city of David. These objects can reasonably be understood as reflecting a schematic 360-day year, serving as desk calendars for Judahite administrators. Several priestly pentateuchal texts are best understood against this background, such as the dating of some festivals and most notably the dates in the Flood narrative (Gen 7–8). The original dating system is best represented in LXX Gen 7:11, while the reading of MT is a late modification, inserted later, when calendar debates took a central place in the religious discourse. MT is thus a link in a chain of later reworking of this narrative in Second Temple literature. The 360-day year is thus a unique case where material culture dovetails with literary evidence, and may shed light on the material culture of priestly sources. This insight is significant for future studies of biblical time reckoning.

Abstract: Excavations at Gane Ṭal uncovered sporadic pre-Roman remains; large, plastered pits dating to the Early Roman period (first–early second centuries CE); a rural settlement and cemetery from the Late Roman and Byzantine periods; and meager architectural remains from the Mamluk period. Two settlement phases were related to the Byzantine period: an earlier occupation, probably a farmstead, comprising a large assemblage of simple grinding stones, clay ovens and a domestic ceramic assemblage; and a later occupation, including a manor house and an adjacent, multi-compartment storage facility. The source of wealth at the site was probably the production of wine, as attested by the complex winepresses found at the site and the presence of numerous Gaza jars, possibly of local production. The Byzantine occupation at Gane Ṭal ended sometime in the eighth century CE, probably due to economic pressure applied by the Muslim rulers against the non-Muslim population.

Abstract: Excavations at Ḥorbat Ṭarbenet in the Jezreel Valley revealed four settlement strata: Stratum IV (Hellenistic period) yielded pottery and a coin, but no architectural remains; Stratum III (Roman period) included the remains of a bathhouse; Stratum II (Byzantine period) yielded the remains of a house and a plastered installation; and Stratum I (Early Islamic period) yielded pottery and coins, but no architectural remains. The bathhouse pool (natatio) yielded a large number of tubuli and fragments of a marble statue of Heracles that might have adorned it.

Abstract: The malacological remains excavated at Gane Ṭal include Mediterranean shells and land snails dating from the Early Roman, Byzantine and Mamluk periods. Most of the shells had plaster inside their valves, indicating that they were used in construction material. Two shells might have served as ornaments or amulets.

Abstract: Excavations at el-Munṭar el-Abyad uncovered several buildings of a one-period settlement dating to Middle Bronze Age IIB (mid-seventeenth century BCE), a burial ground dating to the Persian period (fifth century BCE) and several stone sarcophagi from the Roman period (third century CE). The rural character of the MB IIB site is attested by the architectural finds, the ṭabuns, the infant burials below the floors, and the ceramic and ground stone assemblages, as well as by the lack of luxury or prestige items. The MB II rural occupation, located in the immediate region of Tel Bet She’an, seems to have been part of a settlement floruit during this period in the Bet She’an Valley.

Abstract: A large quantity of glass vessels, as well as glass production debris, was retrieved from Gane Ṭal. The glass repertoire exhibits a wide range of types, including bowls, a single beaker, a wineglass, bottles, cosmetic vessels and bowl-shaped oil lamps—all well-known types of the Late Roman and early Byzantine periods (fourth–fifth centuries CE). The glass-production debris found at the site includes the remains of furnace floors and a large number of raw-glass chunks, probably indicating the manufacture of raw glass.

Abstract: The ceramic finds from the excavation at Gane Ṭal date from the Roman (first century BCE–first century CE), Byzantine and Mamluk periods. The large Byzantine-period assemblage, associated with industrial activity at the site, mainly comprises storage vessels, which were produced on-site or nearby. The rich assemblage from the Mamluk period presents a variety of vessel types and decoration styles, including locally produced handmade wares, characteristic of contemporary rural sites.