Jerusalem: Siloam Tunnel
description: This map shows the plan of the <span class="tooltip" title=' A water system built in Jerusalem during the reign of Hezekiah (in 701 BCE) to bring water from the Gihon Spring, which was outside the city, into the Pool of Siloam, which was inside the city walls. Further Reading '>Siloam Tunnel (also known as <span class="tooltip" title=' A king of Judah who rebelled against the Assyrian king Sennacherib at the end of the 8th century BCE. Further Reading '>Hezekiah's Tunnel), which was carved around 701 BCE to reroute the water of the <span class="tooltip" title=' The main water source for the City of David and Jerusalem from before 1,000 BCE until the Roman period, when at least two aqueducts were built to bring water to the upper city. Further Reading '>Gihon Spring so that it was accessible to the people living inside Jerusalem's city walls and inaccessible to the besieging <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian army. The source is the Gihon Spring, #2 on the plan, and the <span class="tooltip" title=" A water reservoir in Ancient Jerusalem into which the water from the Gihon Spring runs after it flows through Hezekiah's Tunnel. Further Reading ">Siloam Pool is #16. Warren's Shaft, the place from which people had previously accessed the water, is #6. Note the sharp curves in the middle of the tunnel. This is where, according to the Siloam Tunnel Inscription, workers starting at each end and cutting toward each other, heard the sound of the other team's voices calling out as they got close to each other, and thus cut toward the sound until an opening was created.
date: -0701-01-01/0135-01-01

Jerusalem: Siloam Tunnel Inscription
description: This inscription, which was found carved into the wall at the end of the <span class="tooltip" title=' A water system built in Jerusalem during the reign of Hezekiah (in 701 BCE) to bring water from the Gihon Spring, which was outside the city, into the Pool of Siloam, which was inside the city walls. Further Reading '>Siloam Tunnel (also known as [King] <span class="tooltip" title=' A king of Judah who rebelled against the Assyrian king Sennacherib at the end of the 8th century BCE. Further Reading '>Hezekiah's Tunnel), tells the story of the carving of the tunnel. It reads, '…the tunneling. And this was how the tunneling was completed: As [the stone cutters were swinging their] picks, each man toward his fellow, when there were 3 cubits remaining the voice of a man calling out to his fellow [could be heard], because it got louder (or 'because there was a crevice') on the right. And on the day that the tunnel was completed, each stone cutter cut toward his fellow, pick against pick, and the water flowed from the source to the pool, 1,200 cubits. The height of the rock above the stone cutters' heads was 100 cubits.' The script is consistent with other known inscriptions from the late 8th century BCE. Compare 2 Chronicles 32:1-3, 30 and <span class="tooltip" title=' The biblical books of 1 and 2 Kings portray the history of the Israelite and Judean monarchies from the reign of Solomon until the destruction of the first temple by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. Further Reading '>2 Kings 20:20.
date: -0701-01-01/0135-01-01

Jerusalem: Gihon Spring
description: This photograph shows the modern entrance steps that lead down to the <span class="tooltip" title=' The main water source for the City of David and Jerusalem from before 1,000 BCE until the Roman period, when at least two aqueducts were built to bring water to the upper city. Further Reading '>Gihon spring, which was the water source for the city of Jerusalem in antiquity. When <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 704-681 BCE. Further Reading '>Sennacherib, King of <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyria, came to besiege Jerusalem in 701 BCE, the Judahite king <span class="tooltip" title=' A king of Judah who rebelled against the Assyrian king Sennacherib at the end of the 8th century BCE. Further Reading '>Hezekiah had a tunnel built that would reroute the water so that it was within the city walls and therefore inaccessible to the besieging troops. The steps and the arch seen in the photograph were probably built in the <span class="tooltip" title=" 700-1500 CE ">medieval period.
date: -1000-01-01/0135-01-01

Assyrian Kingdom: Map
description: This map shows the ancient Near East and the expansion of the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian kingdom. The core of the Assyrian kingdom was in Assyria (in the upper right portion of the red area), and the red area depicts the kingdom's expansion under <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 858-824 BCE. He defeated a coalition of tribes led by Ahab at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE. Further Reading '>Shalmaneser III (859-824 BCE). The orange areas, which include the land of Israel/Palestine, were conquered by <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 745-727 BCE. He was responsible for the conquest and destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel in 732 BCE. Further Reading '>Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727 BCE), the green areas (which include the Nile Delta) were conquered by <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 681-699 BCE. Further Reading '>Esarhaddon (681-699 BCE), and the blue area (the rest of Egypt) was conquered by <span class="tooltip" title=' The son of Esarhaddon and the King of Assyria from 685-627 BCE. Further Reading '>Asshurbanipal (685-627 BCE).
date: -0859-01-01/-0627-01-01

Jerusalem: Siloam Tunnel
description: This photograph shows the inside of the <span class="tooltip" title=' A water system built in Jerusalem during the reign of Hezekiah (in 701 BCE) to bring water from the Gihon Spring, which was outside the city, into the Pool of Siloam, which was inside the city walls. Further Reading '>Siloam Tunnel. The water level is higher in the winter than in the summer, this photograph probably having been taken in the winter. The carved ceiling corners and pick marks are clearly visible. The tunnel does not get much lower than this; in other places it reaches 20 feet or more in height. The overall length of the tunnel is approximately 1/3 of a mile.
date: -0701-01-01/0135-01-01

Near Tel Dothan: Bronze Bull
description: This bronze bull was found on a hilltop southwest of Mt. Gilboa, all the way at the northern end of the <span class="tooltip" title=' The hilly region that runs north-south through the middle of the Land of Israel/Palestine. It is bounded by the Jezreel Valley to the north, by the Jordan River Valley to the east, by the Negev Desert to the south, and by the Seashore Plains to the west. Further Reading '>central hill. When the site was excavated, excavators found an elliptical wall, 70 feet in diameter, inside of which was a large, roughly hewn stone that was 4 feet long, 3 feet high, and 1.75 feet thick. Next to the large stone were some paving stones. Nearby was a piece of folded bronze that had a handle attached and a square fragment of pottery that might have been part of a square-based incense burner like those found at Beit Shean, Megiddo, and Taanach. The excavator interpreted the wall as a temenos (i.e., a sacred enclosure), the bronze fragment as a mirror, and the large stone as an altar. The placement of the site and the combination of the above evidence also led him to conclude that the bull figure had been used at this site and that it was an early <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite open-air high place, or bamah. Early Israelite bull worship is known from the Bible (<span class="tooltip" title=' The second book of the Bible and the name for the Israelite migration from Egypt in the days of Moses. Further Reading | Even Further Reading '>Exodus 32), as well as in the northern Kingdom of Israel in the <span class="tooltip" title=" 900-700 BCE ">Iron Age II (<span class="tooltip" title=' The biblical books of 1 and 2 Kings portray the history of the Israelite and Judean monarchies from the reign of Solomon until the destruction of the first temple by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. Further Reading '>1 Kings 12:28-33; 2 Kings 10:29). Othe…
date: -1200-01-01/-1000-01-01

Central Hill and Jordan Valley: Relief Map
description: This relief map shows the <span class="tooltip" title=' The western part of the Land of Israel/Palestine that sits between the Mediterranean Sea and the Central Hill. Further Reading '>Coastal Plain, <span class="tooltip" title=' The hilly region that runs north-south through the middle of the Land of Israel/Palestine. It is bounded by the Jezreel Valley to the north, by the Jordan River Valley to the east, by the Negev Desert to the south, and by the Seashore Plains to the west. Further Reading '>Central Hill, and <span class="tooltip" title=' Divides modern Israel from Jordan between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea (to the east of the Central Hill). The Jordan River flows through it and it has often been a natural boundary throughout history. Further Reading '>Jordan Valley in the central part of the country. Jerusalem is just off the map to the south, and Megiddo, on the edge of <span class="tooltip" title=' "The Galilee" is the hilly region north of the Central Hill in the Land of Israel/Palestine. It consists of two parts, Upper and Lower. The Sea of Galilee in Lower Galilee and the Huleh Valley in Upper Galilee mark its eastern border. Further Reading '>Galilee, is at the northern edge. In the period before the <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite Monarchies, the <span class="tooltip" title=' A Semitic Iron Age tribe turned into a nation who had their capital in Ammon (modern Amman, Jordan). Further Reading '>Ammonites, <span class="tooltip" title=' An amalgamation of tribes turned into a nation that lived in Transjordan, east of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea. Regional Map | Further Reading '>Moabites, and Edomites lived on the other side of the Jordan Valley (past Succoth and Pehel), and the <span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Re…

Nimrud/Kalhu: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III - detail 4 of 4
description: This detail photograph of the Black Obelisk of the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian King <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 858-824 BCE. He defeated a coalition of tribes led by Ahab at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE. Further Reading '>Shalmaneser III (858-824 BCE) shows an inscription (at the top, in <span class="tooltip" title=' A wedge-shaped non-alphabetic script that was used for the ancient languages of Akkadian, Sumerian, Babylonian, and Ugaritic. These languages were written on clay tablets, not paper, and the symbols were pressed into the clay with a stylus. Further Reading '>cuneiform script) that reads, in part, 'The tribute of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from ca. 841-814 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. Further Reading '>Jehu (Iaua), son of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from 880-847 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III and the Mesha Stele. Further Reading '>Omri (Humri); I received from him silver, gold, a golden saplu bowl, a golden vase with pointed bottom, golden tumblers, golden buckets, tin, a staff for a king, and wooden [meaning unknown].' The people below the inscription are servants bringing these precious objects to the king. Though we cannot know if their attire was representative of <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite dress, it is noteworthy that they, like Jehu, are dressed differently than other people on the obelisk and that their dress was meant to <span class="tooltip" title=' The Gospel of Mark is most likely the earliest of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) that are contained in the New Testament. Further Reading | Even…
date: -0825-01-01

Nimrud/Kalhu: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III - detail 3 of 4
description: This detail photograph of the Black Obelisk of the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian King <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 858-824 BCE. He defeated a coalition of tribes led by Ahab at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE. Further Reading '>Shalmaneser III (858-824 BCE) shows an inscription (at the top, in <span class="tooltip" title=' A wedge-shaped non-alphabetic script that was used for the ancient languages of Akkadian, Sumerian, Babylonian, and Ugaritic. These languages were written on clay tablets, not paper, and the symbols were pressed into the clay with a stylus. Further Reading '>cuneiform script) that reads, in part, 'The tribute of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from ca. 841-814 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. Further Reading '>Jehu (Iaua), son of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from 880-847 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III and the Mesha Stele. Further Reading '>Omri (Humri); I received from him silver, gold, a golden saplu bowl, a golden vase with pointed bottom, golden tumblers, golden buckets, tin, a staff for a king, and wooden [meaning unknown].' The people below the inscription are servants bringing these precious objects to the king. Though we cannot know if their attire was representative of <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite dress, it is noteworthy that they, like Jehu, are dressed differently than other people on the obelisk and that their dress was meant to <span class="tooltip" title=' The Gospel of Mark is most likely the earliest of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) that are contained in the New Testament. Further Reading | Even…
date: -0825-01-01

Nimrud/Kalhu: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III - detail 2 of 4
description: This detail photograph of the Black Obelisk of the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian King <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 858-824 BCE. He defeated a coalition of tribes led by Ahab at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE. Further Reading '>Shalmaneser III (858-824 BCE) shows an inscription (at the top, in <span class="tooltip" title=' A wedge-shaped non-alphabetic script that was used for the ancient languages of Akkadian, Sumerian, Babylonian, and Ugaritic. These languages were written on clay tablets, not paper, and the symbols were pressed into the clay with a stylus. Further Reading '>cuneiform script), part of which reads: "The tribute of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from ca. 841-814 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. Further Reading '>Jehu (Iaua), son of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from 880-847 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III and the Mesha Stele. Further Reading '>Omri (Humri); I received from him silver, gold, a golden saplu bowl, a golden vase with pointed bottom, golden tumblers, golden buckets, tin, a staff for a king, and wooden [meaning unknown]." The people below the inscription are servants bringing these precious objects to the king. Though we cannot know if their attire was representative of <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite dress, it is noteworthy that they, like Jehu, are dressed differently than other people on the obelisk and that their dress was meant to <span class="tooltip" title=' The Gospel of Mark is most likely the earliest of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) that are contained in the New Testament. Further Reading | Eve…
date: -0825-01-01

Luxor: The Great Harris Papyrus
description: This wonderfully preserved <span class="tooltip" title=' The ancient equivalent of paper. It was made from the stalk of the papyrus reed, a plant that was best known for growing in the Nile River in Egypt Further Reading '>papyrus, probably created around 1,200 BCE, is one of the longest papyri that has been preserved from ancient Egypt (it is almost 138 feet long). It is divided into three parts; this section is in the part describing the reign of <span class="tooltip" title=' The Pharoah of Egypt from 1184-1153 BCE. His mortuary temple at Medinet Habu in Thebes, Egypt, records his conquest of the Philistines. Further Reading '>Ramses III (1184-1153 BCE) and the internal civil conflict that was present in Egypt at the beginning of the 20th Dynasty (which lasted from 1186-1069 BCE). In part it describes his battles against the <span class="tooltip" title=' The name used for an otherwise unknown group (or groups) who colonized the eastern Mediterranean at the end of the Bronze Age. Further Reading '>Peoples of the Sea. The text is written in <span class="tooltip" title=' A cursive script that evolved from hieroglyphics (and was easier and quicker to write than the cumbersome symbols of hieroglyphics). Further Reading '>hieratic, which is a cursive script that evolved from hieroglyphics (and was easier and quicker to write than the cumbersome symbols of hieroglyphics).
date: -1200-01-01

Nimrud/Kalhu: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III - overview
description: The Black Obelisk of the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian King <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 858-824 BCE. He defeated a coalition of tribes led by Ahab at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE. Further Reading '>Shalmaneser III (858-824 BCE) was carved on all four sides and five registers of reliefs illustrate the obeisance of four rulers from Shalmaneser's western campaigns. It is important for the history of Israel/Palestine because it is one of the few archaeological finds that bears directly on the Biblical narrative, as one of the conquered rulers is <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from ca. 841-814 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. Further Reading '>Jehu, son of <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from 880-847 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III and the Mesha Stele. Further Reading '>Omri.
date: -0825-01-01

Ashkelon: Bronze Osiris Figurine
description: This bronze figurine of Osiris (one of the two traditional Egyptian gods, the other being Isis) was found at <span class="tooltip" title=' A coastal city in the southern part of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Ashkelon and dates to the 4th century BCE. Both Isis and Osiris had become very popular throughout the Mediterranean, and although this figurine depicts Osiris in the traditional Egyptian attire and stance, it was found in the bronzesmith's shop and so is known to have been cast at Ashkelon.
date: -0400-01-01/-0300-01-01

Nimrud/Kalhu: Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III - detail 1 of 4
description: This detail photograph of the Black Obelisk of the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian king <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 858-824 BCE. He defeated a coalition of tribes led by Ahab at the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE. Further Reading '>Shalmaneser III (858-824 BCE) shows King <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from ca. 841-814 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. Further Reading '>Jehu, son of King <span class="tooltip" title=' The king of the northern kingdom of Israel from 880-847 BCE. He is mentioned in the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III and the Mesha Stele. Further Reading '>Omri, kissing the ground at Shalmaneser's feet. The divine symbols of the god Shamash (the winged disk) and the goddess Ishtar (the star) hover above the scene. It is worth noting that although Shalmaneser was suggesting with this obelisk that his victory against Jehu and the other western rulers was complete, he retreated from the area after exacting tribute and did not return to the west during the remainder of his reign.
date: -0825-01-01

Southern Coastal Plain: Relief Map
description: This relief map shows the southern <span class="tooltip" title=' The western part of the Land of Israel/Palestine that sits between the Mediterranean Sea and the Central Hill. Further Reading '>coastal plain from Jerusalem (in the east) to the coast (in the west), and from Joppa (the area of modern Tel Aviv - in the north) down to Gaza (in the south). In the period preceding the <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite monarchies, this coastal plain was the territory of the <span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Reading '>Philistines. 'Philistia' - the name of the land of the Philistines - is the root of the word 'Palestine.' Note the distinctive topographical features of the region: the <span class="tooltip" title=' The hilly region that runs north-south through the middle of the Land of Israel/Palestine. It is bounded by the Jezreel Valley to the north, by the Jordan River Valley to the east, by the Negev Desert to the south, and by the Seashore Plains to the west. Further Reading '>Central Hill, running from north to south, and the <span class="tooltip" title=' The foothill region between the Seashore Plains and the Central Hill in the Land of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Shephelah (an intermediary hilly region) and the <span class="tooltip" title=' The western region of the Land of Israel/Palestine that sits between the Mediterranean Sea and the Central Hill. Further Reading '>seashore plains to its west.

Ekron: Horned altars
description: Six of the eleven altars that were found during the excavation of Tel Miqne (biblical Ekron) stand in front of the excavation's directors, Trude Dothan and Sy Gitin. They concluded that Ekron had a primarily <span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Reading '>Philistine population in the 7th century BCE, with some admixture of <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelites. Each altar except the round one at the very bottom of the photo has corner horns, and all but that one were found in an industrial building (the one without horns was found in the city's domestic quarter). Many scholars have suggested that this round, unhorned 'altar' from the domestic quarter might instead have been used for non-religious functions, such as mixing cosmetics or burning incense in homes simply to add a pleasant scent. Such discussions raise important questions about how we identify objects from archaeological excavations, especially religious ones.
date: -0700-01-01/-0600-01-01

Ashdod: Bronze Age chair figure
description: This miniature clay chair with breasts and head stands 7 inches high and dates to the 12th century BCE. So many fragments of other chair figures such as this were uncovered at <span class="tooltip" title=' A coastal city in the southern part of the Land of Israel/Palestine, near Ashkelon Further Reading '>Ashdod that they came to be called 'Ashdod' figures. They were subsequently found at other sites identified as <span class="tooltip" title=' A seafaring Semitic people who are most closely associated with the cities of Tyre and Sidon. However, they established colonies throughout the Mediterranean, the most well known of which was Carthage. They are generally credited with the invention of the alphabet. Further Reading '>Phoenician. The concept of the throne-seat and the stylized shape of the head is similar to late <span class="tooltip" title=' The last people to live in Bronze Age Greece, in the islands of the Aegean Sea, with striking similarities to the Philistines. Further Reading '>Mycenaean representations of a seated female deity found on the Greek mainland, Rhodes, and Cyprus.
date: -1200-01-01/-1100-01-01

Timna: Hathor Mask
description: This faience mask, discovered at the Temple of Hathor near the copper mines of Timna in the eastern <span class="tooltip" title=' A relatively large desert south of the Land of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Sinai Desert, was made to be a representation of the goddess. The eyes are characteristically Egyptian, and clearly were colored. It was one of more than 11,000 small objects discovered to have been left at the shrine as a votive offering to the goddess.
date: -1400-01-01/-1200-01-01

Qitmit: Edomite shrine
description: This artist's rendition of a cult structure at Horvat Qitmit in the eastern <span class="tooltip" title=' The arid region south of the Central Hill in the Land of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Negev Desert has been identified as being <span class="tooltip" title=' Edom is the region where the tribe of the Edomites lived in the Iron Age. It is located in southern Jordan, east of the Dead Sea and the Negev Desert. In the Persian and Hellenistic periods some of the Edomites appear to have migrated west into the Negev Desert and became the Idumaeans. Further Reading '>Edomite, and as dating to the 7th-6th centuries BCE, on the basis of its pottery. In addition to the pottery, many fragments of clay figures and life-sized statues were also found. The building to the upper right has three rectangular rooms that open to the south. The floors were found to be under a foot of ashes. In front of the building were two major open-air installations: a 3-foot by 4-foot platform standing within a walled court (upper left) and a circular stone enclosure within which was found a stone altar, a 3-foot-wide plaster-lined basin and a 3-foot-deep stone-lined pit. Nothing is known of how these features were used, but the presence of figures and figurines, as well as the ashes in the rectangular rooms, have led scholars to suggest that these structures served religious purposes. Note the open-air characteristics of this structure, which may point to the nomadic nature of its builders/users.
date: -0700-01-01/-0500-01-01

Timna: Temple of Hathor
description: This photo shows a small one-room temple enclosure near the copper mines of Timna in the eastern <span class="tooltip" title=' A relatively large desert south of the Land of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Sinai Desert. It was originally built to the Egyptian goddess Hathor in the 14th or 13th century BCE. Later in the 13th or early 12th century BCE the Egyptian shrine was refurbished by Midianites. The Egyptian <span class="tooltip" title=' An ancient pictorial writing system that was used by the Egyptians. Further Reading '>hieroglyphs were removed and the Hathor pillared-images were moved (one was planted in the ground upside-down). It seems that in this period the object of worship was a copper serpent with a gilded head.
date: -1300-01-01/-1100-01-01

Amman: Model of a Shrine and 'Pillar Astarte' Figurines
description: This shrine model and pillar figurines were not actually found together, but have been photographed together because they are cult objects from the end of the <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite period (8th-7th centuries BCE). The shrine model was made from an inverted water jug, one side of which was sliced off, after which the two pillars with double volutes were applied. The dove with spread wings (above the doorway) and the three figurines were closely associated with the cult of <span class="tooltip" title=' The Greek name for an originally Mesopotamian goddess (Ishtar). Astarte is best known as a principal Phoenician goddess in the Iron Age and was associated with fertility, sexuality, and war. Further Reading '>Astarte.
date: -0800-01-01/-0600-01-01

Jerusalem: Iron II Israelite Pottery
description: The pottery shown here is typical of <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelite pottery from the <span class="tooltip" title=" 900-700 BCE ">Iron II period (10th-7th centuries BCE). The folded shapes in the foreground are folded lamps. Oil would be placed in the bowl-like part and a wick would be placed in the narrow portion (note that soot is still visible there).
date: -1000-01-01/-0600-01-01

Tel Megiddo: Late Bronze Age cuneiform tablet
description: This inscription is written in the <span class="tooltip" title=' Akkadian is a cuneiform (wedge-shaped) language that was used primarily in Mesopotamia between ca. 2,500 and 700 BCE. Further Reading '>Akkadian language that used a <span class="tooltip" title=' A wedge-shaped non-alphabetic script that was used for the ancient languages of Akkadian, Sumerian, Babylonian, and Ugaritic. These languages were written on clay tablets, not paper, and the symbols were pressed into the clay with a stylus. Further Reading '>cuneiform (literally, 'wedge-shaped') script for letters. The earliest examples of writing from Israel/Palestine are in this script and language. This particular fragment is from Megiddo and dates to the 15th-14th centuries BCE. It records a portion of the ancient Mesopotamian legend called the Epic of Gilgamesh, which has many interesting parallels to the <span class="tooltip" title=' A Semitic language from the region of Judea and Samaria. Most biblical books were written in this language. In the 19th century the Zionist movement revived it and it became the common language for modern-day Jews living in Israel. Further Reading '>Hebrew Bible's story of Noah and the flood.
date: -1600-01-01/-1500-01-01

Ashdod: Iron Age Incense Stand
description: This incense stand from 10th BCE <span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Reading '>Philistine <span class="tooltip" title=' A coastal city in the southern part of the Land of Israel/Palestine, near Ashkelon Further Reading '>Ashdod shows 5 musicians playing double flutes, cymbals, and a lyre. Incense was placed on top and hot coals were placed inside. The incense would burn and release a pleasant smell.
date: -1000-01-01/-0900-01-01

Tel Dor: aerial view
description: The excavations at Tel Dor, on the coast of Israel between Tel Aviv and Haifa, are barely visibly on the rocky promontory in the low center of this photograph. Dor was one of the <span class="tooltip" title=' A seafaring Semitic people who are most closely associated with the cities of Tyre and Sidon. However, they established colonies throughout the Mediterranean, the most well known of which was Carthage. They are generally credited with the invention of the alphabet. Further Reading '>Phoenician harbors in antiquity, first settled in the 15th century BCE and inhabited well into the Roman period. It was especially prominent as a port city of maritime trade in the <span class="tooltip" title=' The lands, people, and Empire east of Mesopotamia (in the regions of modern Iran). It conquered the Near East in the mid-6th century. Map of Cyrus&#39; kingdom | Further Reading '>Persian and <span class="tooltip" title=' Refers both to a period (i.e., from Alexander the Great to the Romans, which is 332 - 64 BCE in our region) and the Greek culture that Alexander brought. Further Reading '>Hellenistic periods.
date: -1500-01-01/0230-01-01

Tel Megiddo: the silo
description: This stone-lined pit is 21 feet deep and 34 feet across and was a municipal grain storage silo between ca. 780-650 BCE. There were two winding staircases that went down into it (one of which is visible on the right side of the photograph). Though no trace of a roof was found, it must have been roofed in antiquity.
date: -0780-01-01/-0650-01-01

Luxor: Merneptah Stele - detail
description: This close-up of the name 'Israel,' written in Egyptian hieroglyphics, comes from an inscription written on granite during the reign of the Egyptian king <span class="tooltip" title=' The Egyptian pharaoh who gave us the first extra-biblical reference to Israel (ca. 1207 BCE). Further Reading | Even Further Reading '>Merneptah (1213-1203 BCE). This is the earliest preserved inscriptional evidence of Israel and it is mentioned together with three other defeated states in <span class="tooltip" title=' The name of the Land of Israel/Palestine prior to period of the Monarchy (ca. 1000 BCE). The people who lived in the land prior to the Israelites are called "Canaanites" in the Hebrew Bible and other sources. Further Reading '>Canaan (Gezer, Yanoam, and <span class="tooltip" title=' A coastal city in the southern part of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Ashkelon). The hieroglyphic symbols used designate a foreign people group, as opposed to a city (as the words for Ashkelon, Gezer, and Yano'am are marked), suggesting that in the late 12th century Israel had achieved a specific identity as a people but had not yet developed into a fixed political entity or state.
date: -1213-01-01/-1203-01-01

Luxor: The Sea Peoples Inscription
description: This slide shows the second monumental gateway (called by the Greek word for gateway, 'pylon') of the great mortuary temple of <span class="tooltip" title=' The Pharoah of Egypt from 1184-1153 BCE. His mortuary temple at Medinet Habu in Thebes, Egypt, records his conquest of the Philistines. Further Reading '>Ramses III at Medinet Habu in Thebes. To the left is a relief showing Ramses leading enemy captives, including a row of <span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Reading '>Philistines, before Amun, the god of Thebes. On the right is a long hieroglyphic inscription in which Ramses describes the advance toward Egypt of an alliance of <span class="tooltip" title=' The name used for an otherwise unknown group (or groups) who colonized the eastern Mediterranean at the end of the Bronze Age. Further Reading '>Sea Peoples who were defeated by Ramses (according to him).
date: -1186-01-01/-1154-01-01

Tel Qasile: ceramic cult stands
description: These pottery stands are shown <span class="tooltip" title=' In Latin: "in place," referring to objects that archaeologists find in the exact place where they were left in antiquity. Further Reading '>in situ (as they were left in the 10th century BCE), in a shrine next to the main sanctuary. The stands held bowls, which were found with them. They were used in the temple complex for ritual offering of food to the <span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Reading '>Philistine gods. The two tall vessels were incense altars, which spread the smell of incense (which was put on the top plate) after coals were put in the hollow inside portion.
date: -1100-01-01/-0900-01-01

Ashdod: Iron I Philistine Pottery
description: This distinctive type of painted pottery has been found at sites along the southern coast of Palestine from the 12th and 11th centuries BCE, which has led scholars to conclude that this is '<span class="tooltip" title=' One of the Sea Peoples who settled along the southern shores of Canaan around 1150 BCE. Overview | Further Reading '>Philistine pottery,' as the Philistines were known to have lived in the area in this period. The decoration seems to be clearly derived from late <span class="tooltip" title=' The last people to live in Bronze Age Greece, in the islands of the Aegean Sea, with striking similarities to the Philistines. Further Reading '>Mycenaean painted pottery (i.e., painted pottery from Mycenae), which was produced in Greece in this period, and the shapes of the vessels seem to be a mixture of Mycenaean and <span class="tooltip" title=' The people who lived in the Land prior to the Israelites (i.e., prior to ca. 1000 BCE). They continued to live in the Seashore Plains for centuries after the rise of David. Further Reading '>Canaanite shapes. These similarities have led many scholars to conclude that the Philistines either originated in the Aegean or appropriated Mycenaean forms and styles through interaction with them.
date: -1200-01-01/-1000-01-01

Tel Qasile: Philistine temple
description: The remains of this well-preserved house temple at Tel Qasile, near the exit of the Yarkon river to the Mediterranean in central Israel, dates to the 12th-10th century BCE. Excavators recovered a number of cult objects such as incense stands and libation bowls <span class="tooltip" title=' In Latin: "in place," referring to objects that archaeologists find in the exact place where they were left in antiquity. Further Reading '>in situ (i.e., still in place). A worshipper would have entered the temple from the east (off the top of the photo) and would first come into the open courtyard (where the altar was located). He would have then entered the temple at its northeast corner, coming into an entrance room lined with narrow benches which probably held votive statuettes or vessels. He then would have entered into the main hall through the doorway facing west. Against the west wall he would have seen the cult statue on its raised platform. Perhaps only the priests would have had access to the small treasury room behind the platform.
date: -1200-01-01/-0900-01-01

Tel Megiddo: aerial view
description: This aerial photograph shows the site of ancient Megiddo, the most important city of Lower <span class="tooltip" title=' "The Galilee" is the hilly region north of the Central Hill in the Land of Israel/Palestine. It consists of two parts, Upper and Lower. The Sea of Galilee in Lower Galilee and the Huleh Valley in Upper Galilee mark its eastern border. Further Reading '>Galilee in antiquity. It sits at a major crossroads at the western end of the <span class="tooltip" title=' A wide open plateau that runs east/west from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee, just north of the Central Hill. The city of Megiddo is located in it. Further Reading '>Jezreel Valley. Megiddo was inhabited from the Pre-pottery Neolithic period until the <span class="tooltip" title=' The lands, people, and Empire east of Mesopotamia (in the regions of modern Iran). It conquered the Near East in the mid-6th century. Map of Cyrus&#39; kingdom | Further Reading '>Persian period.
date: -9000-01-01/-0332-01-01

Tel Megiddo: Canaanite outdoor altar (1)
description: This aerial photograph shows a huge outdoor altar, up to 5 feet high, that was built in the <span class="tooltip" title=" 3,200-2,350 BCE ">Early Bronze Age (2850-2650 BCE). The altar was accessed via the steps on the left side of the photo, and excavators found pottery and bones surrounding the altar, confirming its use in the local <span class="tooltip" title=' The people who lived in the Land prior to the Israelites (i.e., prior to ca. 1000 BCE). They continued to live in the Seashore Plains for centuries after the rise of David. Further Reading '>Canaanite cult. The walls surrounding the altar of a later date, when it was part of a huge temple. The structure continued to be used until around 2,000 BCE.
date: -2850-01-01/-2000-01-01

Tel Megiddo: Canaanite outdoor altar (2)
description: The round stone mound in this photo—a <span class="tooltip" title=' The people who lived in the Land prior to the Israelites (i.e., prior to ca. 1000 BCE). They continued to live in the Seashore Plains for centuries after the rise of David. Further Reading '>Canaanite outdoor altar—is also referred to as a 'high place'. It was built around 2,700 BCE and used up to around 1,800 BCE. A 'high place' ('bamah' in the <span class="tooltip" title=' A Semitic language from the region of Judea and Samaria. Most biblical books were written in this language. In the 19th century the Zionist movement revived it and it became the common language for modern-day Jews living in Israel. Further Reading '>Hebrew Bible) was a place used for worship, in part because the smell of sacrifices performed on them were more likely to catch the attention of the deity who lived in the heavens.
date: -2700-01-01/-1800-01-01

Tel Hazor: Shrine of the Stelae
description: This photograph shows an intact shrine from inside the <span class="tooltip" title=' The holiest place in a temple. In the Jerusalem Temple the phrase refers to the room where it was believed that God’s intangible presence dwelt. Further Reading '>Holy of Holies of a small broadhouse temple (i.e., the entrance is on the broad side of the building). It dates to the 13th century BCE. The stones were all cut from basalt, a local rock. Eight standing stones, or stelae, flank the central standing stone that depicts two suppliant hands engraved with a lunar crescent and circle between and above them. To the right stands a massive stone (an orthostat), originally from the temple's porch, with a lion carved on it. To the left is a statuette of a man or god sitting on his throne, holding a cup. The excavator, Yigael Yadin, concluded that this shrine was destroyed by <span class="tooltip" title=' The sixth book of the Hebrew Bible, which portrays the "Conquest of Canaan" by the Israelites (ca. 1250 BCE). It is named after the central figure in the book, who was the General of the Israelite army. Further Reading '>Joshua in the 13th century BCE.
date: -1400-01-01/1200-01-01

Tel Hazor: the Pillared Storehouse
description: This large rectangular building with its double row of pillars was a royal storehouse from the 9th century BCE. Other storehouses like it have been discovered at Megiddo and at Tel Be'er Sheva.
date: -0900-01-01/-0800-01-01

Sumer: Cuneiform script
description: Writing was invented in southern <span class="tooltip" title=' Literally "between the rivers," it is the region that surrounds the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, in modern-day Iraq and Iran. It is the "cradle of civilization," so-called because the earliest cities and evidence of written language come from this area. Further Reading '>Mesopotamia, in the ancient kingdom of <span class="tooltip" title=' An ancient city in southern Mesopotamia from which come the earliest writing and language (Sumerian), as well as the earliest known texts and myths. Further Reading '>Sumer, sometime before 3,000 BCE. <span class="tooltip" title=' A wedge-shaped non-alphabetic script that was used for the ancient languages of Akkadian, Sumerian, Babylonian, and Ugaritic. These languages were written on clay tablets, not paper, and the symbols were pressed into the clay with a stylus. Further Reading '>Cuneiform, the type of writing seen in column 6 of this slide, was a development from earlier 'logographic' writing, in which signs stood for words (e.g., the sign for fish is a drawing of a fish, which was called 'kha' in the Sumerian language). Later cuneiform symbols (those in columns 5 and 6) were both logographic and syllabic - that is, they could be used to mean the thing that they represent or the sound of that word. So, for instance, the cuneiform symbol for 'fish' could mean either 'fish' or be combined with the 'la' sign to form the word 'kha.la,' which means 'share' or 'part.'
date: -4000-01-01/-3000-01-01

Tel Hazor: aerial view
description: Hazor, an ancient city and tel that sits at the southern end of the <span class="tooltip" title=' A valley in Upper Galilee, to the west of the Golan Heights. Today it is a rich agricultural valley surrounded by steep heights to the east and west; however, in antiquity it was a swamp. Further Reading '>Huleh Valley in eastern upper <span class="tooltip" title=' "The Galilee" is the hilly region north of the Central Hill in the Land of Israel/Palestine. It consists of two parts, Upper and Lower. The Sea of Galilee in Lower Galilee and the Huleh Valley in Upper Galilee mark its eastern border. Further Reading '>Galilee, was one of the largest and most important cities in the region from ca 1,900 BCE until 732 BCE when it was destroyed by the <span class="tooltip" title=' Assyria was a major Mesopotamian empire which ruled over Palestine in the 8th-7th centuries BCE. Further Reading '>Assyrian king <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of Assyria from 745-727 BCE. He was responsible for the conquest and destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel in 732 BCE. Further Reading '>Tiglath-Pileser III. Intensive archaeological excavation on the tel and at its base revealed a great deal about the early history of the region.
date: -1900-01-01/-0732-01-01

Uruk: Sumerian King List
description: The Sumerian King List is the name given to a traditional canon of the early kings of <span class="tooltip" title=' Literally "between the rivers," it is the region that surrounds the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, in modern-day Iraq and Iran. It is the "cradle of civilization," so-called because the earliest cities and evidence of written language come from this area. Further Reading '>Mesopotamia, thought by some scholars to have been composed in the time of Utu-hegal, a king of the city of Uruk who restored Sumerian independence after the invasion of the Gutians near the end of the third millennium BCE. As with the pre-flood patriarchs in Genesis 5, the kings listed in the pre-flood section of this text lived for extraordinarily long reigns (the longest being 64,800 years).
date: -3000-01-01/-2000-01-01

Saqqara: Execration Text
description: This figurine, modeled in unbaked clay, has the form of a kneeling prisoner with his arms tied behind him at the elbows. The writing is <span class="tooltip" title=' A cursive script that evolved from hieroglyphics (and was easier and quicker to write than the cumbersome symbols of hieroglyphics). Further Reading '>hieratic, a script much like Egyptian hieroglyphics; the inscription contains the names of enemies. After it was inscribed it was deliberately smashed in order to curse the enemies listed in the text (probably people who posed a threat to some important Egyptian or to Egypt in general).
date: -1878-01-01/-1842-01-01

Tel Megiddo: the water tunnel
description: This photograph shows an underground tunnel that was part of Megiddo's water system, which was built in the 9th century BCE. Water was a precious defensive commodity - if a city had any hope of surviving a siege, they had to make sure that their inhabitants had water to drink and that their enemies did not. In order to reach the spring that fed the city from within the city walls, ancient engineers cut a 75-foot shaft equipped with a spiral staircase and then a 210-foot long horizontal underground tunnel.
date: -1000-01-01/-0332-01-01

Tel Hazor: the Upper City
description: The area with pillars in this photo shows the ancient ruins of a storehouse that dates to the 9th century BCE. The large rooms in the foreground date to the time of <span class="tooltip" title=' The King of the northern kingdom of Israel from ca. 786-753 BCE. Further Reading '>Jeroboam II (793-753 BCE). In the background is the snow-covered peak of Mt. Hermon.
date: -1900-01-01/-0732-01-01

Luxor: Merneptah Stele - overview
description: The <span class="tooltip" title=' The Egyptian pharaoh who gave us the first extra-biblical reference to Israel (ca. 1207 BCE). Further Reading | Even Further Reading '>Merneptah Stele, pictured here, is an inscription written in <span class="tooltip" title=' An ancient pictorial writing system that was used by the Egyptians. Further Reading '>hieroglyphs on granite during the reign of the Egyptian king Merneptah (1213-1203 BCE). It contains the earliest preserved inscriptional evidence of the name Israel (and perhaps therefore the <span class="tooltip" title=' According to the Bible, the descendents of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel who formed the nation of Israel. Further Reading '>Israelites). In the inscription 'Israel' it is mentioned together with three other defeated states in <span class="tooltip" title=' The name of the Land of Israel/Palestine prior to period of the Monarchy (ca. 1000 BCE). The people who lived in the land prior to the Israelites are called "Canaanites" in the Hebrew Bible and other sources. Further Reading '>Canaan (Gezer, Yanoam, and <span class="tooltip" title=' A coastal city in the southern part of Israel/Palestine. Further Reading '>Ashkelon). The hieroglyphic symbols used designate a foreign people group, as opposed to a city (as the words for Ashkelon, Gezer, and Yano'am are marked), suggesting that in the late 12th century Israel had achieved a specific identity as a people but had not yet developed into a fixed political entity or state.
date: -1213-01-01/-1203-01-01

Near Nahal Tabor: Female Figurine
description: This 6 inch-high clay figurine dates to the Late Neolithic Age (6,000-5,000 BCE), which is the same time that the earliest baked clay vessels were being made. It is the only complete one of its kind from this period, although fragments have been found elsewhere. Its interpretation is contested - for instance, some scholars think that the figurine is nude; others that the deep lines around the shoulders indicate some kind of garment. Its significance and use are also debated - was it used for religious purposes (and if so, how?), or was it nothing more than a child's toy? Figurines, often depicting naked females, are well known from later periods and have often been understood to be associated with fertility rites, whether for human or agricultural fertility.
date: -6000-01-01/-5000-01-01

Southern Mesopotamia: Cuneiform tablets
description: The earliest writing was not on paper, but on clay tablets. Instead of a pen, scribes used an instrument called a stylus that was triangular in cross-section. They would press the tip of the stylus into the clay to make the triangular portions of the symbol and drag the edge of the stylus across the clay to make the lines. The size and shape of clay tablets varied with the type of text being recorded and with changing scribal preferences. When a scribe finished with one side of the tablet he would turn the bottom edge up and write on the back. After he was done writing, the tablet would usually be set in the sun to dry (though tablets were sometimes fired in a kiln).
date: -4000-01-01/-3000-01-01

Jericho: Neolithic Tower
description: This photograph shows the earliest fortification structure thus far discovered anywhere in the world. It is a circular tower that was probably built around 7,000 BCE and was connected to a massive stone wall. The position of the tower would have given those on top of it a commanding view of the broad <span class="tooltip" title=' A river that runs south from its source on the slopes of Mt. Hermon to the Sea of Galilee and south again from the Sea of Galilee through the Jordan River Valley to the Dead Sea. Further Reading '>Jordan River Valley. The top of the tower was accessed by 22 steps that lead from the doorway, visible at the bottom, to the place on top of the tower that is covered by the modern grate (also visible).
date: -7000-01-01

Tel Megiddo: Cuneiform tablets
description: The earliest writing preserved from Israel/Palestine are in the form of <span class="tooltip" title=' A wedge-shaped non-alphabetic script that was used for the ancient languages of Akkadian, Sumerian, Babylonian, and Ugaritic. These languages were written on clay tablets, not paper, and the symbols were pressed into the clay with a stylus. Further Reading '>cuneiform on clay tablets like this one. The cuneiform script and the languages that were written in it (like <span class="tooltip" title=' Akkadian is a cuneiform (wedge-shaped) language that was used primarily in Mesopotamia between ca. 2,500 and 700 BCE. Further Reading '>Akkadian) were developed in <span class="tooltip" title=' Literally "between the rivers," it is the region that surrounds the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, in modern-day Iraq and Iran. It is the "cradle of civilization," so-called because the earliest cities and evidence of written language come from this area. Further Reading '>Mesopotamia. This tablet fragment preserves part of the text of the Epic of Gilgamesh, a Mesopotamian story that includes an account of the origin of the world, a worldwide flood, and a figure much like Noah from the biblical book of Genesis.
date: -1500-01-01/-1300-01-01

Tel Dan: Middle Bronze Age gate
description: This photo shows the fully preserved arched gateway at Tel Dan, which was made of mud bricks and is the first such structure found intact in Israel. In the <span class="tooltip" title=" 3,200-2,350 BCE ">Early Bronze Age, sun-dried mud bricks began to replace the stones that had been used for city walls and towers, perhaps because they could be erected more quickly and raised higher than boulder walls.
date: -1800-01-01/-1700-01-01

Female Figurines from the Late Bronze Age
description: These three figurines are characteristic of Late Bronze Age molded plaque figurines. All tend to be nude and standing in frontal position. They probably represented the <span class="tooltip" title=' The people who lived in the Land prior to the Israelites (i.e., prior to ca. 1000 BCE). They continued to live in the Seashore Plains for centuries after the rise of David. Further Reading '>Canaanite goddess <span class="tooltip" title=' A Canaanite goddess of love and procreation. She had many correlations with the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar and the Phoenician goddess Astarte. Further Reading '>Ashtaroth in her role as goddess of love and procreation. Figurines such as these were made in molds and are often found in domestic quarters.
date: -1600-01-01/-1200-01-01

Tale of Sinuhe
description: The story of Sinuhe has been preserved on numerous papyri and ostraca. This manuscript is written in an Egyptian script called <span class="tooltip" title=' A cursive script that evolved from hieroglyphics (and was easier and quicker to write than the cumbersome symbols of hieroglyphics). Further Reading '>hieratic, which is closely related to Egyptian <span class="tooltip" title=' An ancient pictorial writing system that was used by the Egyptians. Further Reading '>hieroglyphs, and dates to the Egyptian 12th Dynasty (ca. 1991-1785 BCE). It tells the story of an Egyptian official who lived in voluntary exile in southern Syria/northern <span class="tooltip" title=' The name of the Land of Israel/Palestine prior to period of the Monarchy (ca. 1000 BCE). The people who lived in the land prior to the Israelites are called "Canaanites" in the Hebrew Bible and other sources. Further Reading '>Canaan. The details of the story are valuable for the light that they shed on life in southern Syria during the early <span class="tooltip" title=" 2,200-1,750 BCE ">Middle Bronze I (2000-1800 BCE). The descriptions mention tents and encampments but not towns and cities, suggesting that nomadism persisted.
date: -2000-01-01/-1800-01-01