Uncovering Ancient Editing

The Hebrew Bible is a product of ancient editing, but to what degree can this editing be uncovered? “Uncovering Ancient Editing” argues that divergent textual witnesses of the same text, so-called documented evidence, should be the starting point for such an endeavor. The book presents a fresh analysis of Josh 24 and related texts as a test case for refining our knowledge of how scribes edited texts. Josh 24 is envisioned as a gradually growing Persian period text, whose editorial history can be reconstructed with the help of documented evidence preserved in the MT, LXX, and other ancient sources. This study has major implications for both the study of the book of Joshua and text-historical methodology in general.

Explore pilgrimage routes, epigraphy, and the history of writing with an expert guide From the late 1970s through 1982, Michael E. Stone conducted a number of expeditions to the Sinai peninsula, searching for ancient inscriptions. In this book Stone describes his search, crowned by the discovery of the most ancient Armenian inscriptions known. Here Stone describes not only the inscriptions discovered along his journeys but also the Sinai, its past and present, its human inhabitants, its flora and fauna, and its history. Though once common, well-informed travel books to the Middle East with a broad academic interest and a specific focus have become rare. Stone’s diary of his expeditions in the Sinai fill this gap with vivid descriptions, poetry, and illustrations. Features An account of five expeditions into the Sinai Thirteen poems written by Stone Twenty-six figures and five maps

Second edition, updated March 2023 Ancient Rome is still with us, more than ever. Every year, with new metro lines, roadworks, digs, restorations and repairs, new discoveries are made and old errors corrected – and new questions raised. This electronic book is intended as both a walking guide to ancient Rome and a resource for the city and the people who left their mark on history. Each of the eight excursions illustrates an aspect of the city from the foundation to the fall, and in passing explains the bits of modern Rome whose roots lie in that distant past. These walks are not meant to be a tourist guide of the "Rome in 3 days" style nor a nutshell guide to the well-documented and overrun sites such as the Colosseum and the Forum. Instead, they lead through the city itself, along paths that have been trod for thousands of years.

Discovering Cyrus: The Persian Conqueror Astride the Ancient World Some of the most fascinating human epochs lie in the borderlands between history and mystery. So it is with the life of Cyrus the Great, founder of the Persian Empire in the sixth century B.C. By conquest or gentler means, he brought under his rule a dominion stretching from the Aegean Sea to the Hindu Kush and encompassing some tens of millions of people. All across this immense imperium, he earned support and stability by respecting local customs and religions, avoiding the brutal ways of tyranny, and efficiently administering the realm through provincial governors. The empire would last another two centuries, leaving an indelible Persian imprint on much of the ancient world. The Greek chronicler Xenophon, looking back from a distance of several generations, wrote: “Cyrus did indeed eclipse all other monarchs, before or since.” The biblical prophet Second Isaiah anticipated Cyrus’ repatriation of the Jews living in exile in Babylon by having the Lord say, “He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please.” Despite what he achieved and bequeathed, much about Cyrus remains uncertain. Persians of his era had no great respect for the written word and kept no annals. The most complete accounts of his life were composed by Greeks. More fragmentary or tangential evidence takes many forms – among them, archaeological remains, administrative records in subject lands, and the always tricky stuff of legend. Given these challenges, Discovering Cyrus: The Persian Conqueror Astride the Ancient World is a remarkable feat of portraiture. In his vast sweep, Reza S. Zarghamee draws on sources of every kind, painstakingly assembling detail, and always weighing evidence carefully where contradictions arise. He describes the background of the Persian people, the turbulence of the times, and the roots of Cyrus’ policies. His account of the imperial era itself delves into religion, military methods, commerce, court life, and much else besides. The result is a living, breathing Cyrus standing atop a distant world that played a key role in shaping our own.

Proverbs 1-9 has long been called a 'prologue' and 'introduction' to the book of Proverbs, a label that this book clarifies by answering the question: how does Proverbs 1-9 function with respect to the interpretation of Proverbs 10-31? Arthur Keefer argues that, in the detail and holistic context of Proverbs, Proverbs 1-9 functions didactically by supplying interpretive frameworks in literary, rhetorical and theological contexts for representative portions of Proverbs 10-31. Keefer suggests that Proverbs 1-9 functions didactically by teaching interpretive skills, and allows interpretation of Proverbs 10-31 by instilling the competence required to explicate this material. As a result, Proverbs 1-9 provides a didactic introduction for the remainder of the book, particularly with respect to its character types, educational goals, and theology. This volume demonstrates the function of Proverbs 1-9 for Proverbs 10-31 in some of the most prominent interpretive contexts of the book, and in doing so advances current key interpretive debates within Proverbs scholarship.

This volume presents the work of the international, interdisciplinary research project Changes in Sacred Texts and Traditions (CSTT), whose members focused on cultural, ideological, and material changes in the period when the sacred traditions of the Hebrew Bible were created, transmitted, and transformed. Specialists in the textual study of the Hebrew and Greek Bibles, archaeology, Assyriology, and history, working across their fields of expertise, trace how changes occurred in biblical and ancient Near Eastern texts and traditions. Contributors Tero Alstola, Anneli Aejmelaeus , Rick Bonnie, Francis Borchardt, George J. Brooke, Cynthia Edenburg, Sebastian Fink, Izaak J. deHulster , Patrik Jansson, Jutta Jokiranta, Tuukka Kauhanen, Gina Konstantopoulos, Lauri Laine, Michael C. Legaspi, Christoph Levin, Ville Mäkipelto, Reinhard Müller, Martti Nissinen, Jessi Orpana, Juha Pakkala, Dalit Rom-Shiloni, Christian Seppänen, Jason M. Silverman, Saana Svärd, Timo Tekoniemi, Hanna Tervanotko, Joanna Töyräänvuori, and Miika Tucker demonstrate that rigorous yet respectful debate results in a nuanced and complex understanding of how ancient texts developed.

A new, expanded edition of a classic reference tool This volume of more than 170 documents of prophecy from the ancient Near East brings together a representative sample of written documents from Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Egypt dating to the second and first millennia BCE. Nissinen's collection provides nonspecialist readers clear translations, transliterations, and discussions of oracles reports and collections, quotations of prophetic messages in letters and literature, and texts that reference persons with prophetic titles. This second edition includes thirty-four new texts. Features: Modern, idiomatic, and readable English translations Thirty-four new translations Contributions of West Semitic, Egyptian, and Luwian sources from C. L. Seow, Robert K. Ritner, and H. Craig Melchert

Teaching Ancient Egypt in Museums: Pedagogies in Practice explores what best practices in museum pedagogy look like when working with ancient Egyptian material culture. The contributions within the volume reflect the breadth and collaborative nature of museum learning. They are written by Egyptologists, teachers, curators, museum educators, artists, and community partners working in a variety of institutions around the world—from public, children’s, and university museums, to classrooms and the virtual environment—who bring a broad scope of expertise to the conversation and offer inspiration for tackling a diverse range of challenges. Contributors foreground their first-hand experiences, pedagogical justifications, and reflective teaching practices, offering practical examples of ethical and equitable teaching with ancient Egyptian artifacts. Teaching Ancient Egypt in Museums serves as a resource for teaching with Egyptian collections at any museum, and at any level. It will also be of great interest to academics and students who are engaged in the study of museums, ancient Egypt, anthropology, and education.