Course Descriptions

ONLINE ARCH 5/307 Archaeology of the Hill Country of Judah and Israel - Credit Hours: 3

Semester normally offered:

Course Description

This course will focus on the history and archaeology of the Israelite and Judean Hill Countries from the Middle Bronze Age through the Roman Period. The Israelite and Judean Hill Country are the heartlands of the Israelites and Judahites in the Hebrew Bible. Here the tribes of Manasseh, Ephraim, Benjamin, and Judah settled; and the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah began, flourished, and fell. These regions are also a major focal point for the Samaritans, the Judeans, and the Idumeans of the New Testament. The hills are defined by high limestone hills with good soils and an adequate water supply throughout much of the region – especially near the significant towns of Hebron, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Bethel, Shiloh, Shechem, Samaria, Tirzah, and Dothan. While not as open to routes as other regions, the hills had vital ridge routes that connected it to the lower surrounding regions (i.e., Jezreel Valley, Jordan Valley, Negev, Shephelah, and Coastal Plain) that enabled trade into the hills, and especially the capital cities of Shechem, Samaria, and Jerusalem. Join Drs. Chris McKinny and Kyle Keimer as they investigate the archaeology, history, and cultures of this complex and diverse region.

Course Equivalencies

• Bible 
• Biblical Archaeology

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, the student should be able to: 

• describe basic principles and methods related to the techniques of archaeological research, including survey and excavation, as well as advanced methods of analytical research that have been integrated into archaeological studies;
• describe basic principles and methods of dating archaeological finds in the hill country of Israel and Judah;
• describe the material culture of the hill country from each of the major archaeological periods covered and distinguish significant differences between them (from the Middle Bronze Age to the Early Roman Period);
• recall the major sites associated with each of the time periods covered and the work of the archaeologists who excavated them;
• describe, compare, and contrast significant connections between the material culture of the hill country and that of neighboring cultures for each time-period covered; and
• associate specific archaeological finds with descriptions of events or items mentioned in literary sources, including the Bible.

Field Study