Semester normally offered: Fall
This course explores the archaeology of Israelite religion from the Iron Age I through the Roman period. It examines the challenges of identifying religious sites, structures, and objects, especially in light of biblical claims about religious practices and beliefs. The course also analyzes specific archaeological features and sites identified as cultic, highlighting their roles in the religious history of ancient Israel.
Special attention is given to the complexity of Israel’s cultic expressions, both in terms of synchronic (at a given time) and diachronic (over time) perspectives. The course emphasizes how major political epochs—from the pre-monarchic to the monarchic and post-monarchic periods—shaped the material expressions of Israelite religion.
Additionally, the transition from Yahwism (or various Yahwisms) to Judaism, and the accompanying changes in material culture, are traced throughout the semester.
Join Drs. Kyle Keimer and Chris McKinny as they investigate the archaeology of Israel’s religion.
Biblical Archaeology
History and Culture of Ancient Israel
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.
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