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1 Bethsaida

2 BETHSAIDA EXCAVATIONS PROJECT BOARD OF DIRECTORS Rami Arav Director of Excavations and Research Richard A. Freund Project Director and Corresponding Secretary John F. Shroder Jr. Chief Geologist Jimmy Albright, Mark Appold, Hector Avalos, Walter C. Bouzard, Gordon Brubacher, Denny Clark, John T. Greene, Heinz-Wolfgang Kuhn, Elizabeth McNamer, James Olsen, Charles Page, Nicolae Roddy, Carl Savage, Ilona Skupinska-Lovset, Mark Smith, Fred Strickert, Stanley Udd AFFILIATED STAFF Paul Bauman, Monika Bernett, Baruch Brandl, Michael Bishop, Harry Jol, Gloria London, Robert O Connell, Philip Reeder, Robert Shuster Andrea Rottloff Glass Studies Orna Cohen Conservation Charleen Green Restoration Arieh Kindler Numismatics DreAnna Hadash Staff Artist Toni Fisher Zooarchaeology Christine Dalenta Photography Sandra Fortner Assistant to the Director of Excavations and Research Stephen Reynolds Archivist Wendi Chiarbos Jensen Coordinator Christina Etzrodt AutoCAD

3 BETHSAIDA A City by the North Shore of the Sea of Galilee Rami Arav Edited by Richard A. Freund VOLUME FOUR

4 Copyright 2009 Truman State University Press, Kirksville, Missouri All Rights Reserved tsup.truman.edu Cover art: Large crater found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus 212 (front); red-slip and burnished jug found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus 212 (back); with detail from wall of storage house south of the inner city gate. Cover design: Teresa Wheeler Type: ITC Stone Serif Adobe Systems Incorporated, and is a registered trademark of International Typeface Corporation. Centaur Adobe Systems Incorporated, and is a trademark of The Monotype Corporation. Printed by Edwards Brothers, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan USA Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bethsaida Excavations Project Reports and Contextual Studies p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and indexes. Contents: v. 4. Bethsaida : A city by the north shore of the Sea of Galilee / edited by Rami Arav and Richard A. Freund ISBN (casebound) ISBN (paperback) 1. Bethsaida (Extinct city). 2. Excavations (Archaeology) Israel Bethsaida (Extinct city). 3. Bible Antiquities. 4. Rabbinical literature History and criticism. I. Arav, Rami. II. Freund, Richard A. III. Bethsaida Excavations Project Reports and Contextual Studies. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any format by any means without written permission from the publisher. The paper in this publication meets or exceeds the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z

5 Contents Figures, Graphs, and Tables vii Acknowledgments xvii Introduction xxi 1 Final Report on Area A, Stratum V: The City Gate Rami Arav 2 Petrographic Analysis of a Hippo Jar from the Storage Room of the Stratum V City Gate Robert Shuster 3 The Leshem Inscription Carl Savage 4 An Israelite Administrative Jar Handle Impression from Bethsaida (et-tell) Baruch Brandl 5 Persian Period Mortaria at Bethsaida-Julias Sandra Fortner 6 Caprid Tooth Analysis Toni Fisher 7 Pollen Analysis at et-tell, : Laboratory Report on the Iron Age Gate Patrick Scott Geyer with contributions by Thomas Larson, Christine Cyr, and Atheina Mansour 8 Archaeobotanical Remains from Bethsaida Nili Liphschitz 9 Archaeobotanical Finds from an Iron Age II Granary at Bethsaida Nili Liphschitz 10 Notes on Carbon-14 Dating: Purpose and Results Rami Arav and Elisabetta Boaretto

6 vi Contents 11 Pre-Roman, Roman, and Islamic Glass from Bethsaida Andrea Rottloff 12 Bethsaida Numismatic Survey: Seasons of 1997 through Arie Kindler 13 Stamped Amphora Handles from Bethsaida Donald T. Ariel 14 El Araj as Bethsaida: Spatial and Temporal Improbabilities John F. Shroder Jr., Harry D. Jol, and Philip P. Reeder 15 Sedimentologic and Paleogeomorphologic Character of the Bethsaida (Beteiha) Plain of the Sea of Gailiee Laura Banker, John F. Shroder Jr., and Moshe Inbar Contributors Index

7 Figures, Graphs, and Tables Unless otherwise noted, all images are the property of the Bethsaida Excavations Project. Introduction Bethsaida Stratum V City Gate xxiv 1 Final Report on Area A, Stratum V: The City Gate Rami Arav Fig. 1.1 Map of the site showing different areas of excavation Fig. 1.2 Stratum V city gate Fig. 1.3 Aerial photograph showing approaching to the city Fig. 1.4 A patch of plaster preserved on a stone that came off the wall at the outer city gate Fig. 1.5 Cobblestone road, Area A Fig. 1.6 Cobblestone road, Area A Fig. 1.7 Road leading to Bethsaida Fig. 1.8 Stratum V city walls, Area A Fig. 1.9 Outer city wall, Area A, Square O50, Locus Fig Section C-C: Actual remains and proposed reconstructions Fig The remnants of an un-iconic stele in Square N Fig Detail, stone relief from central palace of Tiglathpilesar III, British Museum Fig A section of the outer city wall and the outer city gate Fig The paved courtyard between the inner and outer city walls at the southern wing of the gate, Locus Fig Section of outer city gate, Strata V and VI Fig The paved courtyard with two steles flanking the entrance and the stepped high place at the right Fig Door recesses and threshold of inner gate Fig Locus 1764; wall above pavement of Stratum V Fig Aerial view of Bethsaida, Area A Fig Southern door jamb of inner city gate Fig A piece of carbonized wood behind the threshold, Locus vii

8 viii Figures, Graphs, and Tables Fig Reconstruction of wooden beams in the inner gate Fig Remains of Stratum VI under the floor of Chamber 1, Stratum V Fig Section showing two levels of grain found in Chamber Fig Impressions of grain are seen on the plastered floor Fig in Chamber A view from Chamber 2 to the paved passageway and Chamber Fig Construction technology of Chamber Fig Chamber 4 city gate, Locus Fig Picture of the destruction in Chamber Fig Stepped high place at the northern wing of the gate Fig Direct access high place at the northern wing of the city gate Fig The four corner basin Fig Drawing of the incision of the crouching bull Fig The five pieces of the iconic stele in situ Fig The iconic stele Fig Drawing of the iconic stele Fig Fig Fig Fig Fig Fig Drawing of un-iconic stele from west wing of outer city gate, Square N Drawing of un-iconic stele from north entrance near stepped high place, Square M Drawing of un-iconic stele from southern niche, Square M Drawing of un-iconic stele from north wing of inner city gate inside city, Square J Drawing of un-iconic stele from south wing of inner city gate inside city, Square J Drawing of un-iconic stele in secondary use in Chamber 2, Square L Fig The storage house south of the inner city gate Fig The storage house south of the inner city gate Fig The storage house south of the city gate Fig Hippo jar from the storage house Fig Hippo jar from the storage house Fig Key to façades Fig Façade A Fig Façade B Fig Façade C Fig Façade D Fig Façade E Fig Façade F Fig Façade G Fig Façade H Fig Façade I

9 Figures, Graphs, and Tables ix Fig Façade J Fig Façade K Fig Façade L Fig Façade M Fig Façade N Fig Façade O Fig Façade P Fig Façade Q Fig Façade R Fig Façade S Fig Façade T Fig Façade U Fig Façade V Fig Section D-D through center of city gate looking south Fig A bent arrowhead from the gate area Fig An arrowhead welded to a shard of pottery from the city gate Fig Drawing of Section A-A in the city gate Fig Drawings of shallow bowls from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 235 and Fig Shallow bowl (table 1.5a) from City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Shallow bowl (table 1.5b) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 227 and Fig Shallow bowl (table 1.5c) from City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Shallow bowl (table 1.5c) from City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Drawings of carinated bowls from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212, 235, and Fig Carinated bowl (table 1.6a) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Carinated bowl (table 1.6b) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Carinated bowl (table 1.6e) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Carinated bowl (table 1.6c) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212, 227, and Fig Carinated bowl (table 1.6f) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Fig Incisions on base of a carinated bowl (table 1.6h) from City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Drawings of small and large crater found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 235 and Fig Small crater (table 1.7a) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus

10 x Figures, Graphs, and Tables Fig Large crater (table 1.7b) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Drawings of cooking bowl and cooking jug found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 235 and Fig The lid (table 1.8a) for the cooking bowl Fig The cooking bowl (table 1.8b) without the lid Fig Cooking bowl with lid found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Cooking jug (table 1.8c) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 227 and Fig Drawings of pottery stand and perforated cups found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212, 228, and Fig Pottery stand (table 1.9a) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Three-legged vessel (table 1.9b) found in basin on top of high place, City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Three legged vessel (table 1.9c) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212, Fig Three legged vessel (table 1.9d) found in basin on top of stepped high place, City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Drawings of jugs found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Red slip and burnished jug (table 1.10b) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Red slip and burnished jug (table 1.10a) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Drawing of bichrome amphoriskos found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci Fig Bichrome amphoriskos found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Piece of black on red bowl found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus 227, Square L Fig Piece of black on red bowl found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus 227, Square L Fig Drawings of jugs and juglets found in City Gate Fig Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Jug (table 1.12a) with the leshem inscription found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Jug (table 1.12b) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Large jug (1.12c) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig The leshem inscription (table 1.12a) Fig Juglet (1.12d) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus

11 Figures, Graphs, and Tables xi Fig Juglet (1.12e) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Drawings of storage jars found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Fig Hippo jar (1.13a) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Hippo jar (1.13b) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Hippo jar (1.13c) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Hippo jar (1.13d) found in City Gate Chamber 4, Locus Fig Handle of hippo jar with X mark (1.13a) Fig Mending plaster on handle of a hippo jar (1.13b) Fig Horizontal lines on handle of hippo jar (1.13c) Fig Iron projectile points found in City Gate Chamber 4, Loci 212 and Table 1.1 Capital cities of the tenth century Table 1.2 Dimensions of Iron Age outer city gates Table 1.3 Size of courtyards Table 1.4 Size and dimensions of four-chamber city gates Table 1.5 Iron Age shallow bowls found in City Gate Chamber Table 1.6 Iron Age carinated bowls found in City Gate Chamber Table 1.7 Iron Age craters found in City Gate Chamber Table 1.8 Iron Age cooking pots found in City Gate Chamber Table 1.9 Iron Age pottery stand and perforated cups found in Chamber 4 and gates Table 1.10 Iron Age jugs found in Chamber 4 and gates Table 1.11 Iron Age bichrome amphoriskos found in Chamber 4 and gates Table 1.12 Iron Age jugs and juglets found in City Gate Chamber Table 1.13 Iron Age storage jars found in City Gate Chamber Table 1.14 Iron Age arrowheads and spearheads from City Gate Chamber The Leshem Inscription Carl Savage Fig. 3.1 Inscription consisting of three letters followed by a character Fig. 3.2 Drawing of the jug showing the location of the inscription

12 xii Figures, Graphs, and Tables 4 An Israelite Administrative Jar Handle Impression from Bethsaida (et-tell) Baruch Brandl Fig. 4.1 Photos and drawings of the zkryw jar handle impression found at Bethsaida Fig. 4.2 Seal impressions from et-tell and Tel Dan Fig. 4.3 Map of the Kingdom of Israel in the eighth century BCE Fig. 4.4 Seal impression on a jar handle in the Reifenberg Collection Persian Period Mortaria at Bethsaida-Julias Sandra Fortner Fig. 5.1 The Hellenistic courtyard building at Area B Fig. 5.2 Mortaria rim fragments, catalog numbers Fig. 5.3 Mortaria rim fragments, catalog numbers Fig. 5.4 Mortaria base fragments, catalog numbers Table 5.1 Bethsaida Mortaria Catalog Caprid Tooth Analysis Toni Fisher Fig. 6.1 Fig. 6.2 Fig. 6.3 Iron Age caprid use at Bethsaida compared to Payne s meat production model Hellenistic period caprid use at Bethsaida compared to Payne s wool production model Late Hellenistic/early Roman period caprid use at Bethsaida compared to Payne s milk production model Pollen Analysis at et-tell, : Laboratory Report on the Iron Age Gate Patrick Scott Geyer et al. Table 7.1 Analysis of pollen found at et-tell s Iron Age gate Archaeobotanical Remains from Bethsaida Nili Liphschitz Table 8.1 Wood remains found at Bethsaida, Area A, Archaeobotanical Finds from an Iron Age II Granary at Bethsaida Nili Liphschitz Fig. 9.1 Triticum parvicoccum grains Fig. 9.2 Triticum parvicoccum grains (higher magnification)

13 Figures, Graphs, and Tables xiii 10 Notes on Carbon-14 Dating: Purpose and Results Rami Arav and Elisabetta Boaretto Fig Age range of radiocarbon samples Table 10.1 Radiocarbon results for botanical samples from City Gate Chambers 2 and 3, Stratum V Pre-Roman, Roman, and Islamic Glass from Bethsaida Andrea Rottloff Fig Core-formed vessels, nos Fig Core-formed vessels, nos Fig Molded bowls, nos Fig Molded bowls, nos Fig Ribbed bowls, nos Fig Ribbed bowls, nos Fig Mold-blown vessels, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, beakers, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, beakers, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, beakers, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, beakers, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, bowls and plates, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, bowls and plates, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, bowls and plates, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, bowls and plates, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, bowls and plates nos Fig Free-blown vessels, jugs and bottles, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, containers, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, stopper, no Fig Free-blown vessels, lamps, nos Fig Free-blown vessels, ointment vessels, nos Fig Mold-blown vessels, Islamic, nos Fig Cut glass, Islamic, nos Fig Decorated glass, nos Fig Kohl bottle, no Fig Flat-sided bottles, no Fig Small finds, beads, nos Fig Small finds, beads, nos Fig Small finds, beads, nos Bethsaida Numismatic Survey: Seasons of 1997 through 2000 Arie Kindler Table 12.1 Bethsaida numismatic survey: Coin catalog

14 xiv Figures, Graphs, and Tables 13 Stamped Amphora Handles from Bethsaida Donald T. Ariel Fig Amphora at scale of 1: Cat. No. 1. Reg. No. C9377, Locus Cat. No. 2. Reg. No. A2887, Locus Cat. No. 3. Reg. No. B6142, Locus Cat. No. 4. Reg. No. A2513, Locus Cat. No. 5. Reg. No. A2531, Locus Cat. No. 6. Reg. No. B2034, Locus Cat. No. 7. Reg. No. C9149, Locus Cat. No. 8. Reg. No. A2749, Locus Cat. No. 9. Reg. No. 3003, Locus 8c(?) Cat. No. 10. Reg. No. C Cat. No. 11. Reg. No. C2043, Locus Cat. No. 12. Reg. No. B5104, Locus Cat. No. 13. Reg. No. 3027, Locus Cat. No. 14. Reg. No. B6516, Locus Graph 13.1 Distribution of the Rhodian amphora stamps from Rhodes and Bethsaida El Araj as Bethsaida: Spatial and Temporal Improbabilities John F. Shroder Jr., Harry D. Jol, and Philip P. Reeder Fig Map of El Araj and et-tell/bethsaida on western Beteiha Plain, north shore of Sea of Galilee Fig Photograph taken in low water stand of summer 1999 of the deep Meshoshim inlet Fig View northwest in summer 1999 toward El Araj Fig El Araj site where several thin mounds of rubble exist on the beach ridge Fig Aerial photograph during a highstand of the Sea of Galilee in the late 1980s looking south over the Meshoshim inlet and the El Araj archaeological site Fig View of crude arrangement of stones, which lie underwater during the common highwater stands, but which are cited as evidence of ancient habitation as remnants of a round tower Fig Ground-penetrating radar assessment of El Araj site showing dominance of convex-up beach facies reflections

15 Figures, Graphs, and Tables xv 15 Sedimentologic and Paleogeomorphologic Character of the Bethsaida (Beteiha) Plain of the Sea of Galilee Laura Banker, John F. Shroder Jr., and Moshe Inbar Fig Map of western Beteiha Plain with sample locations clustered into three areas: Bethsaida embayment; Jordan River mouth; and Meshoshim River mouth and estuary Fig Map showing location of gravel in the sediment of the western Beteiha Plain Fig Core log of sample site SLP 32 in the original Bethsaida embayment Fig Map showing location of pottery shards and Roman glass in backhoe trenches and borehole cores from western Beteiha Plain Fig Map of a version of a wide Bethsaida embayment of antiquity that would be possible based on the available data Fig Map of a restricted version of the Bethsaida embayment of antiquity that would also be possible based on the data available Table 15.1 Table 15.2 Backhoe trenches with gravel as isolates, lenses, and layers Backhoe trenches and boreholes in the western Beteiha Plain with material finds of potsherds and glass

16 Acknowledgments The list of faculty and staff working on the excavation of the city gate from 1996 until 2006 is too long to list each and every person by name. Almost every year, about one hundred students and faculty have participated in this huge undertaking. Many students and volunteers come annually to unearth the mysteries of the site and add another piece to this puzzle. Without their persistent support and hard labor in the hot summer days, this city and its culture would have not disclosed its secrets to us. The following staff, faculty, and students have taken part in the excavation of the city gate in the past few years. Dr. Rami Arav (University of Nebraska at Omaha), director of excavations Dr. Richard Freund (University of Hartford), project director Dr. Carl Savage (Drew University), assistant director Dr. Elizabeth McNamer (Rocky Mountain College), codirector Dr. Nicolae Roddy (Creighton University), codirector Dr. Frederick Strickert, codirector Dr. Walter Bouzard (Wartburg College) Prof. Dr. Heinz-Wolfgang Kuhn, codirector Dr. Sandra Fortner (University of Munich), assistant director Dr. Regina Franke Dr. Steffi Keim (University of Munich) Dr. Monika Bernett (University of Munich) Dr. Mark Appold (Truman State University), codirector Dr. John T. Greene (Michigan State University), codirector xvii

17 xviii Acknowledgments Stephen Reynolds (University of Nebraska at Omaha), archivist and coordinator Christian Haunton (University of Iowa), area supervisor Christine Dalenta (University of Hartford), photographer DreAnna Hadash (University of Nebraska at Omaha), staff Charleen Green Savage, pottery reconstruction Orna Cohen, conservation Issa Sarie (Hebrew University), anthropologist Maha Darawsha (University of Connecticut) Dr. Harry Jol (University of Wisconsin Eau Claire), geologist Paul Bauman (Komex International Ltd.), tomography Dr. Arie Kindler (Tel Aviv), numismatics Christina Etzrodt, AutoCAD technician Eliot Braun (Israel Antiquities Authority), consultant archaeologist Prof. James Charlesworth (Princeton Seminary) Dr. Aaron Gale (West Virginia University) Dr. Boyd Seevers (Northwestern College) Friedrich Schipper (University of Vienna) Prof. Dr. Ilona Skupinska-Lovset (Lodz University) Shai Schwartz, field data recorder Judith Schwartz, Kibbutz Ginosar Hanan Shafir, photographer Eran Nevo (Haifa University) Dr. John F. Shroder (University of Nebraska at Omaha), chief geologist Dr. Michael Bishop (University of Nebraska at Omaha), geologist Dr. Toni Fisher, zooarchaeology Dr. Denny Clark (College of Idaho)

18 Acknowledgments xix Dr. Philip P. Reeder (University of South Florida) Dr. James Albright (Northwest Missouri State University) Dr. Stanley Udd (Grace University) Wendi Chiarbos Jensen Our steady long list of volunteers includes especially Reginald Bollich, Kelen and Emmit Wilson, and Barney Trams. The finds of the excavations are stored and processed at Beth Allon Museum in Kibbutz Ginosar and we thank the staff and management of Beth Allon for their warm hospitality. The expedition is accommodated at Kibbutz Ginosar and we are very grateful for their warm hospitality throughout the years.

19 Introduction When the material in this volume was completed and ready to be published, we realized that with the articles interpreting the finds and those referring to historical and theological issues, the material assembled would be too large for one volume. Therefore we decided to deviate from the first two volumes on the Bethsaida Excavations Project, each of which presented both archaeological finds and historicaltheological issues in one volume, and to dedicate the third volume to historical issues and this fourth volume to archaeological and physical remains. The first chapter in this volume is a final archaeological account of the city gate in Stratum V (ninth to eighth centuries BCE). The city gate was constructed on the ruins of the former Stratum VI city gate and is classified as a four-chamber city gate. Because of the extraordinary state of preservation, the gate is undoubtedly an excellent example of Iron Age city gates. It consists of two city walls, a paved road approaching the gate, an outer city gate, a spacious courtyard, an inner city gate, and a storage house. The size and magnitude of the discovery suggests that Bethsaida was the capital of the biblical kingdom of Geshur, situated in the Golan. The upper floors of the city gate had collapsed onto the first floor and buried it under a large heap of debris. All that was present at the moment of the collapse remained buried until excavated by our team. Chamber 4 at the gate yielded large and bulky storage jars featuring a deep groove under the rim, of a type sometimes dubbed hippo jars. Although it is impossible to determine how long the jars were stored in Chamber 4 prior to its destruction in 732 BCE, it should be noted that similar jars received different dating in other sites. The excavators of Rosh Zayit dated these jars to the tenth or early ninth centuries BCE. The excavator of Rehov dated them to BCE and the jars of Beth-SheÔan to the tenth century to 732 BCE. A petrographic research by Robert Shuster on the Bethsaida hippo jars revealed that xxi

20 xxii Introduction the clay is similar to the clay of the Beth SheÔan jars and the place of manufacture was in the vicinity of the Sea of Galilee. Chamber 4 of the city gate included offering vessels assigned to the high places at the gate. Among the vessels there was a jug bearing a short incised inscription. The inscription is mentioned in the general description of the finds and Carl Savage s contribution discusses his research on the jar, the meaning of the inscription, and the symbol following the inscription. Stratum V yielded an Israelite jar handle bearing an impression with another inscription. Baruch Brandl examined this rare find and compares it to similar discoveries at Dan and Samaria. The identification of the person mentioned is still a mystery. Strata III and II yielded Persian period vessels known as mortaria. Sandra Fortner deals with this find in her article and suggests a typology of this interesting vessel. The zooarchaeologist of Bethsaida is Toni Fisher and she examined the carpid teeth from the Hellenistic stratum. Her article discusses some cultural and economic bearings of this find. Pollen is indestructible and survives for many millennia. Pollen analysis and study produces information about the vegetation coverage needed for reconstructing the environment of Bethsaida. Many species found in this analysis still exist in the surroundings of Bethsaida; however, some others are long extinct from the region. Patrick Geyer has shown that flax, which was common during the Hellenistic period, had disappeared in the periods after that. The Iron Age city gate was built with a large amount of timber. Wooden beams made the ceiling and were entwined in the walls of the passageway of the inner gate. Some carbonized pieces of the timber were found in the dig and were analyzed and identified by Nili Liphschitz. The Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman periods are represented by several articles. Arie Kindler presents the coin discoveries of Bethsaida. This continues the reports on coins in previous volumes and, similar to glass and pottery, it reflects the settlement pattern of the site. It clearly shows that after the destruction in the Iron Age and the meager settlement during the Persian period, the occupation of Bethsaida resumed during the end of the Ptolemaic period (ca. 200 BCE), and that it flourished during the Seleucid period. Approximately around the turn of the century, the occupation of Bethsaida drastically dwindled or perhaps

21 Introduction xxiii ceased. The occupation resumed only during the Herodian period and continued until the site was abandoned in the early fourth century CE. Glass fragments and some complete vessels were found in Stratum II, dating from the Hellenistic-Roman periods, and Stratum I, dating from the medieval to recent periods. Andrea Rottloff analyzes the glass finds. Her findings indicate that the frequencies of glass are parallel to frequencies in coins and pottery that reflect the density of the populations in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Shards of Rhodian wine amphorae are a common discovery at Bethsaida. However, thus far, only fifteen stamped handles have been discovered at the dig. Donald Ariel researched the handles and suggests the reading, identification, and dating of the handles. Two articles deal with the geology and geomorphology of environment of Bethsaida, the plain, and the site of El Araj. Ground-Penetrating Radar research carried out by Harry Jol and John Shroder made it clear that under a single layer of occupation, there is nothing but beach sediments. This single layer was identified in 1987 as dating to the Byzantine early Islamic period of the fourth to eighth centuries CE. Therefore El Araj cannot be identified with Bethsaida. The excavations are organized as a consortium of universities and scholars called the Consortium for the Bethsaida Excavations Project. The consortium is comprised of seventeen universities and colleges headed by the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

22 Bethsaida Stratum V City Gate.

23 Contributors RAMI ARAV earned his PhD at New York University and his MA from Tel Aviv University in Israel. As director of excavations and research, Dr. Arav supervises all on-site archaeological work and directs research and publication efforts of the Bethsaida Excavations Project. He is professor of religion and foreign languages at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. DONALD T. ARIEL received his PhD from Tel Aviv University and his MA from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Dr. Ariel has served as field archaeologist, as well as numismatist and/or amphora specialist in excavations at Jerualem, Tel Qedesh, Yodefat, Banias, Qasrin, and Kfar Hananya, and as numismatist/amphora specialist in dozens of other excavation projects. He heads the coins department of the Israel Antiquities Authority. LAURA BANKER received her bachelor's degree in geology and master's degree in geography from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. She presently works at the US Army Corps of Engineers in their Omaha office. ELISABETTA BOARETTO earned her PhD in physics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel) and her MSc in physics at the Padua University (Italy). She is the director of the Radiocarbon Laboratory at the Weizman Institute of Science and teaches archaeological science at Bar Ilan University. BARUCH BRANDL has been the Library Director for the Israel Antiquities Authority since 2002, and the Archives and Library Director for the Israel Antiquities Authority since Both units are located in the Rockefeller Museum Building, Jerusalem. TONI FISHER earned her PhD from the University of Tennessee. She has been with the Bethsaida Excavations Project since it was initiated in 327

24 328 Contributors 1990, while working on her BA from the University of Nebraska. She has been the zooarchaeologist for the project since SANDRA ANN FORTNER studied at Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich, where her dissertation focused the pottery and smallfinds of the Hellenistic and Roman period at Bethsaida-Julias. She was assistant to the Director of Excavation for the Bethsaida Excavations Project from 1994 to RICHARD A. FREUND received his PhD from the Jewish Theological Seminary. He serves as project director and corresponding secretary for the Bethsaida Excavations Project, which he initiated, along with Dr. Arav, during his tenure at the University of Nebraska Omaha. He is director of the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies at the University of Hartford. PATRICK SCOTT GEYER earned his MA from Arizona State University, where he apprenticed under Dr. James Schoenwetter in the anthropology department s palynology laboratory. As director of his own laboratory at the University of San Diego, Geyer trains student interns in the techniques of pollen analysis on samples taken from archaeological sites in the Middle East and the Americas. He is also on the teaching faculties of San Diego State University and the San Diego Community College District. MOSHE INBAR received his MSc and PhD from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and is the head of the Geomorphology Lab at the University of Haifa in Israel. His research areas are the morphology of the Jordan River and the volcanic geomorphology of the Golan Heights. ARIE KINDLER was the founder and first curator of the Kadman Numismatic Museum, which is part of the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel Aviv. He served in this capacity from 1955 until his retirement in the mid- 1990s. Kindler s contributions to scholarship began when he published an article on Alexander Jannaeus lead coins in 1948 and continued vigorously for more than sixty-one years. His publications focused on coins of the Holy Land and Jewish coins in particular. Kindler was the one of the founders of the Israel Numismatic Society and served as chairperson. He also taught at Tel Aviv and Bar-Ilan Universities. In 2003, an Arie Kindler Prize was established in his honor by the Tel Aviv branch of the Numismatic Society.

25 Contributors 329 THOMAS LARSON was trained in pollen analysis as a senior intern at the University of San Diego and then continued his palynological studies with work on the et-tell Iron Age Gate samples as part of his doctoral studies at Texas A&M. He is currently finishing a PhD in nautical archaeology with a specialty in metallurgy. CHRISTINE CYR and ATHEINA MANSOUR continued the work on the Iron Age Gate samples begun by Larson as part of their senior intern studies at USD. NILI LIPHSCHITZ recieved her PhD in botany from Tel Aviv University, where she is currently a professor. Her main areas of research include dendroarchaeology, dendrochronology, wood anatomy, tree ecology, and pathology. Her latest book, Timber in Ancient Israel: Dendroarchaeology and Dendrochronology, appeared recently. HARRY M. JOL earned his PhD at the University of Calgary (Alberta) and his MSc from Simon Fraser University (British Columbia). Jol has a broad background in the earth sciences, particularly geomorphology, sedimentology, and geoarchaeology. To better understand the near subsurface, he has utilized ground-penetrating radar at more than 1,200 sites worldwide. As associate researcher with the Bethsaida Excavations Project, he has investigated numerous biblical archaeological sites in Israel. Jol is a professor in the Department of Geography and Anthropology at the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire. PHILIP REEDER is associate professor in the Department of Geography at the University of South Florida. He received his PhD in geography with from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He has conducted water and soil resource management research in the Central Kentucky Karst, west-central Florida, Wisconsin, the island of Bohol in the Philippines, and the Huautla Plateau in Mexico. He has conducted geoarchaeologic research in Israel, Spain, Poland, and the Belize River Valley, and Vaca Plateau in Belize. ANDREA ROTTLOFF received her PhD in provincial Roman archaeology at the University of Munich in She is currently working as a freelancing archaeologist and writer. Her publications include works on Roman women and female pilgrims in the Middle Ages. Her latest book is a historical novel dealing with the siege and fall of Akko during the Third Crusade titled The Woman in the Green Mantle. She is currently working on a book about famous archaeologists.

26 330 Contributors CARL SAVAGE is a Registered Professional Archaeologist who earned his PhD at Drew University. As assistant director of excavations, Dr. Savage aids in the supervision of the on-site archaeological research at the Bethsaida Excavations Project and the maintenance of the digital database of pottery reading and small finds. He is director of the Doctor of Ministry Program at Drew University and adjunct instructor of archaeology at Seton Hall University. JOHN (JACK) SHRODER earned his PhD in geology at the University of Utah and his MS at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. As chief geoscientist of the Bethsaida Excavations Project, Dr. Shroder has guided a series of investigations to elucidate the role of geological and physical geographic realms in controlling the development of the environs of Bethsaida. He is Assistant Dean of International Studies and professor of geography and geology at the University of Nebraska Omaha. ROBERT SHUSTER is associate professor of geology in the Department of Geography and Geology at the University of Nebraska Omaha. He earned his PhD at the University of Kansas. He has published his petrographic/geochemical research on pottery from Bethsaida and from two sites in Jordan (Hisban and Tell al-umayri). He is also interested in the geochemistry of rocks and minerals, as well as geoscience education.

27 Index Note: Illustrations are listed in Figures, Graphs, and Tables on pages vii xv. A Abila, 273 Abzu/Apsu (freshwater god), 42, 47, 91 94, 114 Afula, 156 Aharoni, Miriam, 160 Aharoni, Yohanan, 160 Akkadian texts, about water, Aleppo Museum, 92 Alexandre, Yardenna, 104, 108, 117n42 altars, 44, 91, 127 Amiran, Ruth, 73, 127, 160 Amman pottery, 87, 89, 228 Ammonites, 88 89, 91, amphora handle catalog, animals age of slaughter, analysis methods used, and Assyrian destruction, in Assyrian wall reliefs, 24 bones/teeth of, 44, bovine predominance, 24, 116n29 ÔAqraba, 273 Arad, 152 Arameans, 46 47, 89, 91, 94 archaeobotanical analyses, Ariel, Donald T., 273 Arizona State University, 180 arrowheads, 66 67, 109, Ashdod, 29 30, 90, 156, 209, 241n107 AshmonaÔzar sarcophagus, 103 Ashtart Shem-BaÔl, 103 Assyrians demolition expertise, 116n33 destruction of Bethsaida: at city gate, 5, 20, 23, 26, 35, 53, 67 70, 125; at Stratum V, 64 70, 75, measuring systems, 148 wall reliefs, 16 17, 24 Asvan Kale, Turkey, 173 Atallah, N., 273 Auth, Susan, 239n82 Avigad, N., 136 Avi-Yonah, M., 273 Awas stele, 48, 116n31 Ayios Philon, 153 B Bab el-hawa, 263 BaÔil, king, 113 Banias, Banker, Laura, 294 Barag, Dan, 216, 218 barley, 37, 68, Baruch, Uri, 182 basalt, 5, 8 9, 15, 23 24, 47 basket numbering/definition, 3 4 bastion, 24 27, 30, 68, 70 Beer Sheba, 22, 24, 30, 43 Belibel palace, 125 benches, 18, 25, 31, Bennett, W. J., Jr., 151, 157 Ben-Tor, L.,

28 332 Index Berlin, Andrea M., 156 Bernett, Monika, 47 Beteiha Plain, , Beth SheÔan, 78 81, 88 91, 104, 108, 271 Bethsaida (et-tell). See also Geshur Assyrian destruction of, as capital of Geshur, xxi, 6 decline of, economy of, 28, 30 excavation methods, 1 4 mural representation of, 16, 115n7 Persian period inhabitation of, physical features of, 17 20, 24 25, 33 40, 64, , significance of city gate, 28 (See also gates) biblical references Gen. 4:26, 104 Exod. 20:26, 43 Lev. 5:5, 5:50, 93 Num. 5:17,17:19, 93; 6:20, 131 Deut., 194; 12:3, 133n4; 28:58, 103 Josh. 19:47, Sam. 7:5 6, 93 2 Sam. 18:24, 23, 24 1 Kings 5:2, 5:17, 8:16, 8:29, 104; 7:12, 33 2 Kings 10:19, 133; 12:21, 128; 14:29, 138; 23:8, 116n20 2 Chron. 24:26, 128 Neh. 8:1 12, 25 Ps. 122:4, 103 Ezek. 8:14, 94 Amos 4:13, 132 Biran, Avraham, 136n, , Bishop, Michael P., 310 Blakely, Jeffrey A., 151, 157 Blomquist, Tina Haettner, 43 Boaretto, E., 200 bones, at high place, 44 botanical finds, 33, 37, Boulter, C., 155 bricks, 5, 25, 33, 37, 43, 67 68, 91, 187 Briend, Jacques, 158 British Museum, 16, 65, 116n33 Bronk-Ramsey, C., 201 bull-head depictions, 44, 47, , 132 Buzaglo, E., 124 C Caesarea Maritima, 209 Capernaum, 156, 216, 220, 222 capital cities, 5 6, 28 caprid tooth analysis, Carmi, I., 200 carts, 9, 24, 65, 115n3 catalogs amphora handles, IAA number system, 4 mortaria, numismatic, cattail (Typha) pollen, 183 chambers of city gate, 27 28, 35 39, 50, 66, 68, 72, and pollen fossils, pottery found at, , purposes of, size of, uses of, chronology. See dating Ciasca, Antonia, 160 city gate. See gates city walls. See walls cobblestones, 9 12, at city gate area, pollen samples from, 181 coin finds, , 273 Corinth glass, 216 courtyard, 20, 23 26, Crowfoot, Grace M., 87 88, 90 cults. See religious/cultic material Cyprus mortaria, 162 Cyr, Christine, 180

29 Index 333 D dagger (stele depiction), 47 Damascus kingdom, Dan. See Tel Dan dating of amphora handles, and coins, , 269, 273 of hippo jars, xxi xxii of mortaria, of pottery, 70 73, of strata, 3, deities, 46 47, 91 94, 103 bull-headed figure, of Geshurites, 47, 49 moon god, 47 storm god, Delos, 209 Delougaz, Pinhas, 273 Dothan, M., duplat-taylor, J., 155 Dura-Europas, 221 Dyer, K. R, 299 E earthquakes, and Bethsaida site uplift, 312 economy, and pollen evidence, Edelstein, G., 160 Ekron, 156 El Araj survey, El Mesudiyah, 293 elders use of courtyard, 25 Elgavish, J., 160 Eliahu Dobkin Pavilion, 205 el-wad Cave, 197 En Gedi, 156 Ephraim, Y. Ben, 272 Erech, 92 et Tell. See Bethsaida Ewbank, J. M., F façades. See list of figures, graphs, and tables (pp. vii xv) field diary, 4 field stones. See basalt Finkelstein, I., 161 Finkielsztejn, Gérald, , 275, 277, , 284 fire, at city gate, 67 68, 71 flora, flora analyses, food production barley, 37, 68, 200 meat/dairy, wheat, Foothills and Yarkon Basin Survey, 161 Fortner, Sandra, 268, 273 fossils, of Beteiha Plain, 315 Furumark, Arne, 90 G Gadara, 273 Gamla, 272 Garbini, G., 139 gates of Babylonian Ishtar, 16 of Bethsaida: approach to, 8 9; Assyrian destruction of, 67; bastion function of, 27; conflagration of, 67 68, 71; as cultic center, 24 25, , 188; fortification/vulnerability of, 64 65, 112; four-chamber, 27; inner, 27 30; outer, 19 22; preservation of, xxi, 5 6; radiocarbon dating of, ; as synagogue forerunner, 25 city planning concepts of, 30 relative sizes of, as representative of economy, significance of, 40, of Timnah, 17 geomorphological survey, of El Araj/Beteiha Plain, Gesher Haziv, 216, 222

30 334 Index Geshur, xxi, 6, 64 70, , 115n2. See also Bethsaida Gezer, 90, 156 Gilgamesh walls, Gitin, Seymour, 152, glass finds analysis criteria for, 204 beakers, from Beteiha Plain, bowls and plates, core-formed, free-blown vessels, 213 household vessels, jugs and bottles, mold-blown vessels, 213 molded bowls, parallels for, ribbed bowls, small finds, 230 widespread development of, Goren, Yuval, 124, 141 Gorin-Rosen, Yael, , 235n30 Grace, V. R., 282 grain/granaries, 34, 37, 44, 64, 68, , Green, Charleen, 132n1 Greenberg, R., 272 H Hadad (storm god), Haevernick, Thea Elizabeth, 205, 230 Ha-Goshrim, 273 Haines, Richard C., 273 Hamilton, R. W., 157 Hanita, , 222 Har Senaim cult enclosure, 273 Haran (city), 47 Haran (moon god), 47 Harden, Donald V., 205 Hazor, 73, 79, 81, 83 84, 157 Hebrew script on jar handle, Hellenistic-Roman period amphora handles and dating, 267 animal usage, coin evidence, 225 glass vessels of, 205 9, mortaria of, , stratigraphy of, 3 Hennesey, J. B., 160 Hershkowitz, Malka, 142 high places (cultic niches) construction methods, 33 placement of, 24 25, 40 50, 116n20 significance of, 92 93, 116n20, types of, Hill Country of Benjamin Survey, 161 Hippos-Susita, 272 Hopf, Maria, 197 Horbat Kanaf, 272 Horbat Namra, 273 Horowitz, Aharon, Horshat Tal (Trees of the Ten), 194 Horvat Rosh Zayit. See Rosh Zayit Humbert, Jean-Baptiste, 158 I Immadiyau inscription, 139 Inanna/Ishtar (goddess), 92 Inbar, Moshe, 30, 294, 310, 312, 316 inscriptions, in the name of, Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), 4, 294 J Jalame, 216, Jennings, Sarah, 229 Jerash, 212 Jericho, 90, 197 Jerusalem parallels to Bethsaida, 158, 209, 213 Jöhrens, Gerhard, , 285 Jordan mortaria, 162 Jordan River, and geomorphic processes, , Judah, 90 K Kadesh-Barnea, 158

31 Index 335 Karageorghis, Vassos, 155 Karaindash temple, 92 Kasr Gehainije/Mezad Tamar, 218 Kedesh Naftali, 158 Kerestes, T. M., 273 Khirbet Kinniyeh, 158 Khirbet Shema, 207, 209 Khirbet Zemel, 273 Kibbutz Hagoshrim, 211 Kislev, M. E., 197 Kochavi, M., 158 Krueger Laboratory, 315 Kuntilet Ajarud, wall inscription, 103 L Lachish, 17, 90, 98, 112, 158 Lake Kinneret pollen, Land of Issachar Survey, Lapp, Paul W., 160 Larson, Thomas, 180 Lebanon, 89, 162 Lehman, Gunnar, 147, 151, 153, 155 leshem inscription on jug, 103, Levant construction comparison, 5, 17, 28, 33 34, 51, pottery parallels in, 90 92, , Liphschitz, Nili, 32 loci, defined, 3 4 Loffreda, S., 156, 220 Lohamei ha-getaôot, 222 London, Gloria, 124 M MaÔagan Mikhael, 158 Machaerus glass, 216 Magen, Y., 159, 161 Maisler, B., 159 Manasseh Hill Country Survey, 161 Mansosur, Atheina, 181 MaÔoz, Z. U., 272 Maqarin reservoir basin, 273 MaÔr ShabÔa, 273 Marco, S., 300 Marduk (Babylonian god), 91 Mazar, Amihai, 76, 78, 108 9, 156, 159 Mazar, B., 273 McClellan, M., 205 Megiddo courtyard, 24 gates, 22, 24, 30, 33 high place, 33, 43 pottery, 73, 84, 87, 89 90, 98 walls, Meiron, 209, 232 Mesad Hashavyahu, 152, 158 Meshoshim River survey, Mesopotamia, Messika, N., 160 metals, 4, 66 67, 109, Mezad Ateret, 272 Mezad Tamar, 221 Migdol, 152, 158 Misch-Brandl, Osnat, 4 MNI analysis, moon god, 47, 103 N Nahariya, 217 Naveh, J., 152, 156, 158 Nazareth, 216 Nessana, 209 NISP analysis, Notley, R. W., 294 numismaic survey, Nun, Mendel, 294, 300, 304 O oak (Quercus) usage, 183, O Hea, Margaret, 221 On, A., 272 Oren, E. D., 158 Ornan, Tallay, 47 Ovadiah, R., 158 P Pakman, Daliya, 142