Archaeology of the Land of the Bible (3 Volumes)

Requires Accordance 10.4 or above.

Imagine seeing artwork, buildings, towers, roads, chariots, ships, and more from the time of Abraham and Sarah, Joseph, Moses, David and Bathsheba, Solomon, Mary and Joseph, Jesus, the Apostles, and the first millennium that followed. Imagine learning the fascinating stories of many of the most interesting and sometimes startling items unearthed in recent years.

Volume 1: 10,000–586 B.C.E. by Amihai Mazar (1990)

** Winner of the 1991 Biblical Archaeology Society Award for Best Scholarly Book on Archaeology **

Step by step, era by era, author Amihai Mazar shows just what each major archaeological discovery has to say about the mysterious stories of the Bible. It’s all here, from the mundane clay jars of the ancient households of Palestine to the beautiful sculpture and jewelry that passed through these lands on the primitive trade routes. From the first permanent settlements in the land of the Bible (10,000 B.C.E.) to the tumultuous period of the divided monarchy of Israel and Judah and the destruction of the First Temple by Nebuchadnezzar (586 B.C.E.), Mazar’s overview of biblical life and the archaeological evidence to support it is without parallel.

Archaeology of the Land of the Bible has quickly established itself as the standard text in biblical archaeology.

Volume 2: The Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian Periods 732–332 BCE (Ephraim Stern) (2001)

Every year thousands of enthusiasts, both amateur and professional, spend the summer months digging in the sands of Israel hoping to find items that relate in some way to the places or events depicted in the Bible. Thousands more view artifacts in museums and long to know the full stories behind them. Archaeology of the Land of the Bible, Volume II, is the essential book for all of them.

In Ephraim Stern’s sequel to Archaeology of the Land of the Bible, Volume I , by Amihai Mazar, this world-renowned archaeologist who has directed excavations in the Holy Land for many years offers a dramatic look at how archaeological research contributes to our understanding of the connections between history and the stories recounted in the Bible. Stern writes about various artifacts unearthed in recent years and relates them to the Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian periods in the Bible. Accompanied by photographs and illustrations of rare ancient relics ranging from household pottery to beautifully crafted jewelry and sculpture. His discussions bring the biblical world to life.

Volume 3: Alexander to Constantine (Eric M. Meyers, Mark A. Chancey)  (2012)

Drawing on the most recent, groundbreaking archaeological research, Eric M. Meyers and Mark A. Chancey re-narrate the history of ancient Palestine in this richly illustrated and expertly integrated book. Spanning from the conquest of Alexander the Great in the fourth century BCE until the reign of the Roman emperor Constantine in the fourth century CE, they synthesize archaeological evidence with ancient literary sources (including the Bible) to offer a sustained overview of the tumultuous intellectual and religious changes that impacted world history during the Greco-Roman period.

The authors demonstrate how the transformation of the ancient Near East under the influence of the Greeks and then the Romans led to foundational changes in both the material and intellectual worlds of the Levant. Palestine’s subjection to Hellenistic kingdoms, its rule by the Hasmonean and Herodian dynasties, the two disastrous Jewish revolts against Rome, and its full incorporation into the Roman Empire provide a background for the emergence of Christianity. The authors observe in the archaeological record how Judaism and Christianity were virtually undistinguishable for centuries, until the rise of imperial Christianity with Emperor Constantine.

The only book-length overview available that focuses on the archaeology of Palestine in this period, this comprehensive and powerfully illuminating work sheds new light on the lands of the Bible.

For even more information, see this release announcement.