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67-512: The Hazor expedition headed by Yigal Yadin in the mid-1950s was the most important dig undertaken by Israel in its early years of statehood. Tel Hazor is the largest archaeological site in northern Israel, featuring an upper tell of 30 acres and a lower city of more than 175 acres. In 2005, the remains of Hazor were designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as part of the Biblical Tels—Megiddo, Hazor, Beer Sheba . The site of Hazor

134-966: A B.D. from the Christian Theological Seminary in 1959. He received his PhD from Harvard University in 1966. He describes himself as "an unreconstructed traditionalist by temperament and training." Dever was director of the Harvard Semitic Museum – Hebrew Union College excavations at Gezer in 1966–1971, 1984, and 1990; director of the dig at Khirbet el-Kôm and Jebel Qa aqir (West Bank) 1967–1971; principal investigator at Tell el-Hayyat excavations (Jordan) 1981–1985, and assistant director, University of Arizona Expedition to Idalion , Cyprus , 1991, among other excavations. He used his background in Near Eastern field archaeology to argue, in Did God Have

201-468: A 'maximalist.' and Archaeology as it is practiced today must be able to challenge, as well as confirm, the Bible stories. Some things described there really did happen, but others did not. The Biblical narratives about Abraham , Moses , Joshua and Solomon probably reflect some historical memories of people and places, but the 'larger than life' portraits of the Bible are unrealistic and contradicted by

268-542: A Canaanite army against Barak , but was ultimately defeated. Textual scholars believe that the prose account of Barak, which differs from the poetic account in the Song of Deborah , is a conflation of accounts of two separate events, one concerning Barak and Sisera like the poetic account, the other concerning Jabin's confederation and defeat. In addition, the Book of Judges and Book of Joshua may be parallel accounts referring to

335-514: A Wife? Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel (2005), for the persistence of the veneration of Asherah in the everyday religion of "ordinary people" in ancient Israel and Judah . Discussing extensive archaeological evidence from a range of Israelite sites, largely dated between the 12th and the 8th centuries BCE, Dever argued that this folk religion , with its local altars and cultic objects, amulets and votive offerings ,

402-734: A complex of cultic standing stones ( matzebot ) from the Iron I and Iron IIa Israelite strata at Hazor was built to commemorate the Israelite conquest of the city. She writes that, whether the Israelites did destroy Hazor or not, this complex shows that the conquest tradition probably emerged at an early date. Some Christian polemicists report that the lunar origins of Allah can be found in Hazor, which has been criticized by archaeologists. The archaeological remains suggest that after its destruction,

469-573: A dedicated five volume set of books by the Israel Exploration Society . Excavation at the site by Hebrew University, joined by the Complutense University of Madrid , resumed in 1990 under Amnon Ben-Tor. Those excavations continue to the present. The work from 1990 to 2012 is detailed in two IEF books. In the 2010 excavation season, two cuneiform tablet fragments, made of local clay, were discovered dating to

536-587: A frequent author on questions relating to the historicity of the Bible , criticizing many scholars who deny any historical value to the biblical accounts. However he is far from being a supporter of biblical literalism either. Instead he has written: I am not reading the Bible as Scripture… I am in fact not even a theist . My view all along—and especially in the recent books—is first that the biblical narratives are indeed 'stories,' often fictional and almost always propagandistic, but that here and there they contain some valid historical information. That hardly makes me

603-471: A key role in distributing them across the country. The study also showed that other types of pottery were made of a different source of local clay. This use of two different local clays for two different families of vessels might indicate a technical decision or otherwise the presence of two or more workshops. One theory suggests that the manufacturers of the Khirbet Kerak tools, which were introduced to

670-565: A large monumental structure dated to the following Middle Bronze Age period was already erected in the Early Bronze Age, sometime after the 27th century BCE. If this is true it implies that already in its beginnings, Hazor was a well-planned settlement that served as an urban center. It also shows one of the earliest examples of basalt slabs used as foundations to walls ( orthostates ) in the Southern Levant , only preceded by

737-525: A letter fragment addressed to king Ibni-Addu of Hazor is known. In Egypt, Hazor is mentioned in the execration texts . At Mari (Syria), on the Euphrates River, letters mention Hazor during the reigns of Yasmah-Adad and Zimri-Lim (1775–1761 BC). Hazor is part of a trade route Hazor-Qatna-Mari. A tablet fragment was also found at Hazor which listed an expected trade path from Hazor to Mari and then on to Ekallatum. The Mari Letter (IAA 1997-3305)

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804-602: A liberal". A 2004 debate between Finkelstein and William G. Dever, mediated by Hershel Shanks (then-editor of the Biblical Archaeology Review ), quickly degenerated into insults, forcing Shanks to halt the debate. Shanks described the exchange between the two as "embarrassing". Dever is the son of an evangelical pastor , was raised as an evangelical Christian, and became an evangelical preacher as well. He later rejected Christianity and converted to Reform Judaism , although he now identifies as

871-565: A major destruction event with extensive burning. In the 2014 and 2015 seasons the Iron Age II thru 8th century BCE layer of area M3 and the Iron age M4 area were worked. A number of unbaked loom weights were found there. The excavation of 2016 was in the LBA administrative palace destruction layer of area M3. Finds included fragments of an Egyptian statue. The 10 century BCE standing stone complex and 9th century BCE fortifications, built on top of

938-697: A temple from Tel Megiddo . The transition to the Early Bronze Age III period is characterized by the movement of people from rural areas within the valley to major urban sites such as Hazor, Dan and Abel Beth Maachah. Thus the establishment of a possible palace in Hazor, as well as in Dan, attest to this phenomenon. A large part of Hazor's pottery from that time belongs to the Khirbet Kerak type. A petrographic study of these vessels has shown that they were made with local clays and that Hazor played

1005-580: Is a list of commodities from Mari to Hazor. At the beginning of the early New Kingdom , Ahmose I started military campaigns into the southern Levant to evict the Hyksos. Several cities were attacked and more military campaigns came with Thutmose I and later Thutmose III . Under Thutmose III Canaan was an Egyptian vassal state . In the Amarna Period (c. 1350 BC), the king of Hazor (Hasura) saw its petty king Abdi-Tirshi , as swearing loyalty to

1072-812: Is an active scholar of the Old Testament , and historian, specialized in the history of the Ancient Near East and the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah in biblical times. He was Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Arizona in Tucson from 1975 to 2002. He is a Distinguished Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology at Lycoming College in Pennsylvania. Dever earned his B.A. from Milligan College in 1955, an M.A. from Butler University in 1959, and

1139-475: Is around 200 acres (0.81 km) in area, with an upper city making up about 1/8 of that. The upper mound has a height of about 40 meters. Initial soundings were carried out by John Garstang in 1926. Major excavations were conducted for four seasons from 1955 to 1958 by a Hebrew University team led by Yigael Yadin . Yadin returned to Hazor for a final season of excavation in 1968. The excavations were supported by James A. de Rothschild , and were published in

1206-539: Is dated to the Early Bronze Age II and III periods, existing at around the 28th and 24th centuries BCE. It was part of a system of settlements around the Hula Valley , including Abel Beth Maachah , Dan and Kedesh . The settlement was exposed in limited areas where a few houses were discovered. Based on these finds, Early Bronze Age Hazor was not a significant settlement. With that said, it seems that

1273-588: Is that the pottery of the Iron Age IIA is basically the same for much of the 10th and 9th centuries (Ben-Tor and Ben-Ami 1998: 30; Halpern 2000: 102; Mazar and Carmi 2001: 1340; Mazar 2005: 19; Dever 2005: 75-76; Mazar 2007: 147-48). Thus, the Jezreel compound and Megiddo VA-IVB might have the same pottery, but that does not mean they both represent the 9th century." The first settlement excavated in Tel Hazor

1340-658: The Democratic Movement , but it too split up and he sat as an independent MK for the remainder of his term. During a cabinet meeting, May 1981, while still Deputy Prime Minister, he accused Chief of Staff Rafael Eitan of "lying to the government" and told Prime Minister Begin "You have lost control of the defence establishment." He retired from politics in 1981. Yadin was married to Carmela (née Ruppin ), who worked with him throughout his career in translating and editing his books and with whom he had two daughters, Orly and Littal. He died in 1984 from heart attack and

1407-729: The Old Babylonian period of the Middle Bronze Age. The 2nd fragment is small, containing only 7 signs. They are inscribed with laws in the style of Hammurabi's Code , the Laws of Eshnunna , the Book of Exodus, and Hittite laws, seven in total. The fragments include laws pertaining to body parts and damages including those of slaves. The 2013 excavation season involved the Late Bronze Age (LBA) area M-East, and M-West. M-East included small elements of MBA and represented

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1474-536: The Yadlin affair , the suicide of Housing Minister Avraham Ofer , and Leah Rabin 's illegal dollar-denominated account in the United States. Furthermore, Dash was a response to the increasing sense of frustration and despair in the aftermath of the 1973 war, and the social and political developments that followed in its wake. Many people regarded Yadin, a warrior and a scholar, as the quintessential prototype of

1541-435: The "larger-than-life" portrait of the Bible is exaggerated, Judah was a centralized kingdom around 10th century BCE and likely ruled by Solomon. The conventional date of stratum X in the 10th century is also supported by Amnon Ben-Tor and Shlomit Bechar, the chief excavators at the site. A more nuanced position is held by Avraham Faust et al. (2021), who consider the chronological difference between Finkelstein and his opponents

1608-616: The 2019 season, the 13th of the current excavation, areas M4 and M68 were worked, both Iron Age. In total, Hazor has provided more cuneiform tablets than any other site in the Southern Levant. They fall into two groups. Those from the Middle Bronze period are in standard Old Babylonian Akkadian language while those from the Late Bronze Age are in a local dialect typical of New Kingdom Egyptian times. Finds from

1675-500: The Bible Because of these positions, Dever can be considered a centrist in the biblical field: while he is far more skeptical on the historicity of the Bible than biblical maximalists (whom he often accuses of fundamentalism), he is also vigorously critical of biblical minimalists like Philip R. Davies , Thomas L. Thompson and Niels Peter Lemche (whom he accuses of postmodernism and nihilism ). In his books Who Were

1742-545: The Bible from the Book of Judges onward: "In his What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It? , we have a robust and very valuable reply to minimalists, ruthlessly exposing their suspect agendas and sham "scholarship", following on from his refutations of Finkelstein's archaeological revisionism. It should be read and appreciated (from the period 1200 B.C. onward) for his firsthand contribution on

1809-468: The Biblical account. In 2012, a team led Ben-Tor and Sharon Zuckerman discovered a scorched palace from the 13th century BCE in whose storerooms they found 3,400-year-old ewers holding burned crops; Sharon Zuckerman did not agree with Ben-Tor's theory, and claimed that the burning was the result of the city's numerous factions opposing each other with excessive force. More recently, Shlomit Bechar holds that

1876-528: The Early Israelites and Where Did They Come From? and Has Archeology Buried the Bible? Dever denies the historicity of much of the Pentateuch (while admitting that its content may contain some historical kernels) and the Book of Joshua , but states that historical materials can be found from the Book of Judges and onwards. Dever joined the faculty at Lycoming College in autumn 2008. He

1943-518: The Egyptian pharaoh. According to the Book of Joshua , Hazor was the seat of Jabin , a powerful Canaanite king who led a Canaanite confederation against Joshua , an Israelite military commander. However, Joshua and his soldiers defeated the Canaanites and burnt Hazor to the ground. According to the Book of Judges , Hazor was the seat of Jabin, the king of Canaan, whose commander, Sisera , led

2010-533: The Haganah following an argument with its commander Yitzhak Sadeh over the inclusion of a machine gun as part of standard squad equipment. In 1948, shortly before the State of Israel declared its independence, Yadin, interrupted his university studies to return to active service. He served as Israel's Head of Operations during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War , and was responsible for many of the key decisions made during

2077-473: The LBA destruction layer, were also further explored. In 2017 excavation work concentrated in the LBA M3 area containing an administrative palace with a basalt monumental entrance stair. Work also continued on the Iron Age II fortifications. In the 2018 excavation season, the 29th season, from June to July 2018, areas worked were the LBA M3, the 8th century BCE and Persian M4, and the 8th and 10th century BC M68. In

Tel Hazor - Misplaced Pages Continue

2144-597: The actions that led to the war. In 1976 Yadin formed the Democratic Movement for Change , commonly known by its Hebrew acronym Dash , together with Professor Amnon Rubinstein , Shmuel Tamir , Meir Amit , Meir Zorea , and many other prominent public figures. The new party seemed to be an ideal solution for many Israelis who were fed up with alleged corruption in the Labor Alignment (the dominant party in Israel from its founding and up to that time), which included

2211-478: The archaeological aspects, as well in conjunction with this book. There is much solid rock here, and all of us may rejoice in that fact. To one's sorrow there is also sinking sand". Dever also has a long and bitter feud with fellow archaeologist Israel Finkelstein , whom he has described as "idiosyncratic and doctrinaire" and "a magician and a showman", to which Finkelstein answered by calling Dever "a jealous academic parasite" and "a biblical literalist disguised as

2278-459: The archaeological evidence. However, Dever is also clear that his historical field should be seen on a much broader canvas than merely how it relates to the Bible: The most naïve misconception about Syro-Palestinian archaeology is that the rationale and purpose of ' biblical archaeology ' (and, by extrapolation, Syro-Palestinian archaeology) is simply to elucidate the Bible, or the lands of

2345-473: The army as a whole into an army of one political party ( Mapai )". Yadin was appointed Chief of Staff of the IDF on 9 November 1949, following the resignation of Yaakov Dori , and served in that capacity for three years. He resigned on 7 December 1952, over disagreements with then prime minister and defense minister David Ben-Gurion about cuts to the military budget, which he argued should be at least one third of

2412-516: The bargaining power of Dash. Dash joined the coalition after a few months. As the new Deputy Prime Minister , Yadin played a pivotal role in many events that took place, particularly the contacts with Egypt , which eventually led to the signing of the Camp David Accords and the peace treaty between Israel and its neighbor. Nevertheless, Dash itself proved to be a failure, and the party broke up into numerous splinter factions; Yadin joined

2479-401: The base of which were rock cut tunnels leading to a well that reached the water table , as water-supply systems, which Yadin attributed to the rule of Ahab ; Yadin also attributed to Ahab a citadel, measuring 25 × 21 m, with two-meter thick walls, which was erected in the western part of Hazor. It has been claimed that Yadin's dating was based on the assumption that the layer connected with

2546-500: The centuries, and artificially attributes them to a single leader, Joshua. One archaeological stratum dating from around 1200 BCE shows signs of catastrophic fire, and cuneiform tablets found at the site refer to monarchs named Ibni Addi , where Ibni may be the etymological origin of Yavin ( Jabin ). The city also show signs of having been a magnificent Canaanite city prior to its destruction, with great temples and opulent palaces, split into an upper acropolis , and lower city;

2613-634: The city of Hazor was rebuilt as a minor village within "the territory of Naphtali" ( Joshua 19:36). According to the Books of Kings , the town, along with Megiddo , and Gezer , was substantially fortified and expanded by Solomon . Like Megiddo and Gezer, the remains at Hazor show that during the Early Iron Age the town gained a highly distinctive six-chambered gate , as well as a characteristic style to its administration buildings; archaeologists determined that these constructions at Hazor were built by

2680-541: The content of contemporary historical sources. In a recent article (2021), Israel Finkelstein , quoting his past articles regarding stratum X in Tel Hazor (shown in the table above), commonly attributed to Solomon, states: "In past articles I proposed identifying Omride architecture. ... I therefore see no alternative to the Omride identity of Hazor X..." Finkelstein's Low Chronology is disputed by other archaeologists, such as William G. Dever , who considers that although

2747-464: The course of that war. In April, probably under the authorization of Ben-Gurion , he oversaw the secret biological warfare operation, Cast Thy Bread , in a campaign designed to poison the wells of Palestinian villages with bacteria, and prevent the return of the evicted. In June 1948 he threatened to resign during the Generals' Revolt during which he accused Ben-Gurion of attempting "to transform

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2814-440: The dig are housed in a museum at Kibbutz Ayelet HaShahar . In 2008, some artifacts in the museum were damaged in an earthquake. This table lists the strata (layers) of ruined settlements that accumulated to form Tel Hazor according to Hazor archeologist Sharon Zuckerman . The shades represent the different archeological periods: Bronze Age , Iron Age , Persian period and Hellenistic period . Some layers are associated with

2881-577: The existence of ancient Israel (and even of historical 'facts' at all!); (b) Dever has been, and remains, the guardian of truth in matters archaeological; and (c) archaeology can confirm the reliability of Biblical history. The first two of these issues obscure the central thesis." Peter James was critical of Dever, accusing him of dismissing contrary evidence without argument and failing to engage with detail as against wider cultural context: "If Dever's attempts to link narrative biblical history and archaeology represent mainstream thinking (as he claims), then

2948-619: The expedition and its findings in his 1971 book Bar-Kokhba: The Rediscovery of the Legendary Hero of the Second Jewish Revolt against Rome . Yadin considered the Solomonic Gate at Tel Gezer to be the highpoint of his career. He was sometimes forced to deal with the theft of important artifacts, occasionally by prominent political and military figures. In one instance, where the thefts were commonly attributed to

3015-627: The famous one-eyed general Moshe Dayan , he remarked: "I know who did it, and I am not going to say who it is, but if I catch him, I'll poke out his other eye, too." Even as an archaeologist, Yadin never completely abandoned public life. On the eve of the Six-Day War , he served as a military adviser to prime minister Levi Eshkol , and following the Yom Kippur War , he was a member of the Agranat Commission that investigated

3082-432: The field is indeed in deep trouble. It is the kind of blind acceptance of traditional (unsubstantiated) 'synchronisms' espoused by Dever that has provided the very fuel for the minimalists’ criticisms. In short, Dever may prove to be his own worst enemy." Maximalist scholar Kenneth Kitchen criticized Dever for not supporting the historicity of the Pentateuch and of the Book of Joshua , but praised him for his defence of

3149-521: The forces of the Assyrian ruler, Tiglath-Pileser III ; the evidence on the ground suggests that hasty attempts were made to reinforce the defenses of Hazor. Despite the defences, in 732 BCE Hazor was captured, its population deported, and the city was burnt to the ground. Yigal Yadin Yigael Yadin ( Hebrew : יִגָּאֵל יָדִין [jigaˈel jaˈdin] ; 20 March 1917 – 28 June 1984)

3216-618: The gates and administration buildings were built by Solomon. Archaeological remains indicate that towards the later half of the 9th century BCE, when the king of Israel was Jehu , Hazor fell into the control of Aram Damascus . Some archaeologists suspect that subsequent to this conquest Hazor was rebuilt by Aram, probably as an Aramaean city. When the Assyrians later defeated the Aramaeans, Hazor seemingly returned to Israelite control; Assyrian records indicate that Joash , king of Israel at

3283-549: The ideal Israeli, untainted by corruption, who could lead the country on a new path. In the 1977 elections , which transformed the Israeli political landscape, the new party did remarkably well for its first attempt to enter the Knesset , winning 15 of the 120 seats. As a result of the election, Likud party leader Menachem Begin was initially able to form a coalition without Dash (or parties to its left), significantly lowering

3350-470: The lower chronology and dates Megiddo VA-IVB to the 9th century, following the date of the pottery from the Jezreel enclosure. Accordingly, Hazor X−IX would also be dated to the same century." However, other scholars such as Thomas E. Levy and Daniel Frese have noted that the evidence of the pottery from Jezreel is insufficient to support the Low chronology: "A more serious objection, made by many researchers,

3417-600: The national budget. By age thirty-five, he had completed his military career. Upon leaving the military, he devoted himself to research and began his life's work in archaeology. In 1956 he received the Israel Prize in Jewish studies , for his doctoral thesis on the translation of the Dead Sea Scrolls . His father had bought three of the seven scrolls discovered in 1947 by a Bedouin goat-herd, and he had bought

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3484-767: The other four in New York in 1954. As an archeologist, he excavated some of the most important sites in the region, including the Qumran Caves , Masada , Hazor , Tel Megiddo and caves in the Judean Desert where artifacts from the Bar Kokhba revolt were found. In 1960 he initiated scholarly archeological exploration of caves south of Ein Gedi , an enterprise approved by Ben-Gurion in which Israel Defense Forces rendered considerable support. He wrote about

3551-578: The rest of Canaan, Hazor and Megiddo did not show signs of urban decline in the Intermediate Bronze Age. In Hazor, there was evidence of human settlements and a thriving economy, based on copper ingots and pottery from the Megiddo Ware family. In 2021, archaeologists discovered that Intermediate Bronze Age (ca. 2300–2200 BC) Hazor was preceded by years of abandonment, which started in the Early Bronze Age III (ca. 2500 BC). The latter

3618-530: The same events, rather than describing different time periods, and thus they may refer to the same Jabin, a powerful king based in Hazor, whose Canaanite confederation was defeated by an Israelite army. Israel Finkelstein claims that the Israelites emerged as a subculture within Canaanite society and rejects the biblical account of the Israelite conquest of Canaan. In this view, the Book of Joshua conflates several independent battles between disparate groups over

3685-476: The same leadership as those at Megiddo and Gezer. Many archaeologists conclude that they were constructed in the tenth century by King Solomon; others date these structures to the early 9th century BCE, during the reign of the Omrides . Yigael Yadin , one of the earliest archaeologists to work on the site, saw certain features as clearly being Omride; Megiddo, Gezer, and Hazor, all feature deep rock cut pits, from

3752-468: The settlement, chose or were forced to use a different source of clay, not controlled by the other workshops. Noteworthy is the discovery of 15 cylinder seal impressions on pottery from this period, added to another found some 2 kilometers south. This assemblage is one of the largest in the southern Levant and the fact it was found in such a small excavation area further supports the reconstruction of Hazor as an important city during this period. Compared to

3819-518: The significance of a cultic stand from Taanach ), as well as thousands of Asherah figurines that archaeologists have found in various Israel locations, including a dump near the First Temple (a dump he attributes to Josiah's iconoclastic reform efforts). His views on worship of the goddess as expressed in this book have been criticised by some. On his methodological approach more generally, Francesca Stavrakopoulou has suggested that his use of

3886-515: The south, often instigated by Yamhad. In any case, Hazor was under strong Syrian influence from the north. A king Ibni-Addu of Hazor (c. 1770–1765 BC) is known. There are trade routes connecting Hazor with Zimri-Lim of Mari and Yarim-Lim of Yamhad. Tin trade was important used together with copper to make the alloy bronze. For a brief period, Mari received tin from Elam before their friendship collapsed. ARMT 23 556 (dating to year 9–10 of Zimri-Lim) mentions this tin trade and Ibni-Addu of Hazor. At Hazor,

3953-468: The term " folk religion " "ultimately endorses the old stereotype of 'popular' or 'folk' religion as the simplistic practices of rural communities", so perpetuating existing "derogatory assumptions" that more recent discourses on the topic have sought to counter. Others, however, praise Dever's contributions to understanding the history of Israel and Judah in the Iron Age. In retirement, Dever has become

4020-485: The time, had paid tribute to Assyria and Israel had become an Assyrian vassal state. Subsequently, the town, along with the remainder of the kingdom of Israel, entered a period of great prosperity, particularly during the rule of Jeroboam II . Some archaeologists attribute the later large scale constructions at Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer, including the rock cut water supply systems, to this era. Israel's attempted rebellion against Assyrian domination resulted in an invasion by

4087-546: The town evidently had been a major Canaanite city. He theorized that the destruction of Hazor was the result of civil strife, attacks by the Sea Peoples , and/or a result of the general collapse of civilization across the whole Eastern Mediterranean in the Late Bronze Age. Amnon Ben-Tor of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem believes that recently unearthed evidence of violent destruction by burning verifies

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4154-508: Was already narrowed when he agreed that "not only the Iron Age IIA, but perhaps even the late Iron Age IIA, started already in the 10th century", but that most scholars have instead adopted various versions of the traditional, or modified, chronology. Among scholars who support Finkelstein's Low chronology, regarding Tel Hazor's stratum X, is Merja Alanne, which in her (2017) Doctoral dissertation, quoting late Dr. Orna Zimhoni's work (1997), writes: "Unlike Zarzegi-Peleg, Zimhoni leans towards

4221-638: Was an Israeli archeologist , soldier and politician. He was the second Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces and Deputy Prime Minister from 1977 to 1981. Yigael Sukenik (later Yadin) was born in Ottoman Palestine to archaeologist Eleazar Sukenik and his wife Hasya Sukenik-Feinsold, a teacher and women's rights activist. He joined the Haganah at age 15, and served in a variety of different capacities. In 1946, he left

4288-455: Was appointed Distinguished Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology. Dever's views have been criticized by some of his fellow scholars, both on the minimalist and maximalist field. Minimalist scholar Philip R. Davies , who is often criticized by Dever in the book, chided his inability to distance himself from his obsessions: "[Dever's] agendas are that (a) a coordinated team of 'minimalists'/'revisionist' biblical historians are conspiring to deny

4355-630: Was buried in the military cemetery in Mount Herzl in Jerusalem . The Israeli actor Yossi Yadin  [ fr ; he ] was his brother. Yadin published many research papers and ancient text explanations, at the Hebrew University press (in Hebrew): William G. Dever William Gwinn Dever (born November 27, 1933, Louisville, Kentucky ) is an American archaeologist, scholar , historian, semiticist, and theologian. He

4422-445: Was left in ruins but the new city built on top followed similar architectural patterns. During the Middle Bronze II (1820–1550 BC), Hazor was a vassal of Ishi-Addu of Qatna and his son Amutpiel II . Qatna was at the time a rival of the Great Kingdom of Yamhad centered on Aleppo, which also included Ebla and Hamath. Qatna controlled territory towards the Akkar Plain and the Beqa Valley to Hazor. However, Qatna also faced rebellions in

4489-428: Was representative of the outlook of the majority of the population, and that the Jerusalem -centred "book religion" of the Deuteronomist circle set out in the Hebrew Bible was only ever the preserve of an elite, a "largely impractical" religious ideal. Dever's views on the worship of Asherah are based to a significant extent on inscriptions at Khirbet el-Qom and Kuntillet Ajrud (though see also his discussion of

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