CURRENT ISSUETable of Contents • Biblical Archaeology Review
|
|||||||||||
![]() |
ON THE COVER: The faint etchings on this small terra-cotta sphinx bear witness to the birth of the alphabet. In “How the Alphabet Was Born from Hieroglyphs,” Orly Goldwasser explains how simple Canaanite miners made one of the world’s greatest inventions. |

Free articles are marked with this star.
In honor of our 35th anniversary, we take a look at how BAR and the Biblical Archaeology Society have developed over the years to bring you the latest in Biblical archaeology. We’ll also be bringing you exclusive interviews with top scholars to discuss how the field has changed in the past three-and-a-half decades.
How the Alphabet Was Born from HieroglyphsMore than 3,800 years ago, illiterate Canaanite laborers working in the turquoise mines of Sinai were responsible for one of the most significant inventions in human history: the alphabet. An Egyptologist and expert in hieroglyphs explores the simple but ingenious ideas that led these miners under hieroglyphic inspiration to create the first-ever alphabetic script.
Last year we introduced BAR readers to the exciting excavation at Khirbet Qeiyafa, where archaeologist Yosef Garfinkel had just uncovered a fortified Judahite city from David and Solomon’s time and hinted at an important new inscription (but wouldn’t show it to us). Now, following the speedy publication of Qeiyafa’s first two excavation seasons, including an epigraphical study of the inscription, here’s an update about the site and its elusive and enigmatic text—the earliest known Hebrew inscription.
When the Romans burned Jerusalem’s Temple Mount in 70 C.E., marble architectural fragments from Herod’s Royal Stoa fell to the street below. They have now been recovered in an archaeological excavation and are published here for the first time. Their beauty preserved, they also evidence the conflagration, some of whose flames exceeded a thousand degrees centigrade.

First Person
Free articles are marked with this star.
A “Do-er” Dies: Mendel Kaplan (1936–2009)
Opening New Worlds
My Mom Dated Morton
Appalled by BAR’s Joke
Biblical ViewsJesus Has the Last Word
Archaeological ViewsHow Archaeologists Decide Where to Dig: The Case of Tel Burna
Tunisian Mosaics by Aicha Ben Abed
Stories in Stone by Aicha Ben Abed
The Resurrection by Geza Vermes
Jesus, the Final Days by Craig Evans and N.T. Wright
Jesus’ Last Night with His Disciples by Hannaniah O. Pinto and James W. Fleming
An Artist’s Impression of Turkish Jerusalem
Greece

Free articles are marked with this star.
This 2,400-pound model of Herod’s Temple is the world’s largest.
Prizes for papers at 2010 ASOR and SBL meetings.
Biblical coin specialist reconstructs Herod Philip’s portrait.
The Joseph Aviram Fellowship will help new scholars present at conferences.
The Bible in the News
Cartoon Caption Contest| Join us on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter | ||


Letter from the Managing Web Editor
A “Do-er” Dies: Mendel Kaplan (1936–2009)
How Archaeologists Decide Where to Dig: The Case of Tel Burna
The Bible in the News: Nothing New Under the Sun

Easter: Exploring the Resurrection of Jesus
I Volunteered for This?! Life on an Archaeological Dig
The First Christmas: The Story of Jesus’ Birth in History and Legend
Israel: An Archaeological Journey
From Babylon to Baghdad: Ancient Iraq and the Modern West
Exploring Jordan: The Other Biblical Land
Island Jewels: Understanding Ancient Cyprus and Crete
The Olympic Games: How They All Began
The Dead Sea Scrolls—What They Really Say
Real or Fake? Forgery Conference Report

INFORMATION |
PUBLICATIONS |
FREE EMAIL NEWSLETTER |