Jerusalem Tracker: News, Publications, and Media about the Holy City (No. 3)
Jerusalem Tracker: News, Publications, and Media about the Holy City (No. 3)
Helpful lists of new material about Jerusalem
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Update: since posting this article, “Jerusalem Tracker” has become a quarterly publication of new media about historical Jerusalem. Access the archive here.
These periodic “Jerusalem Tracker” newsletters are my attempt to keep up with relevant new material related to the historical city. The eventual goal is to list every new publication for all periods of Jerusalem’s history in one place, including books, articles and book chapters, book reviews, digital resources, and more. This is obviously an impossible goal, but each new iteration of these lists moves the needle a step closer to comprehensively tracking Jerusalem.
I wrote the first of them in September 2022 and the second in February 2023. Today’s newsletter aims to provide an updated list of publications that have been issued since February. A few items from 2022 are included that were omitted in previous lists. Forthcoming publications are not included. I will continue collating and publishing these lists on a rolling basis as often as is needed. Please drop a comment below or contact me (approachingjerusalem@gmail.com) if you think a recent publication about Jerusalem is missing or if you have forthcoming publications or projects about historical Jerusalem. You may also enjoy access to my interactive bibliography of public domain and open-access resources about Jerusalem which is made available to paid subscribers.
New Academic Articles about Jerusalem
Book Reviews
“Maria Chiara Rioli, A Liminal Church: refugees, conversions and the Latin Diocese of Jerusalem, 1946–1956” in CL by Pili
“Baldric of Bourgueil, "History of the Jerusalemites". A Translation of the Historia Ierosolimitana, trans. by Susan B. Edgington” in Crusades by Mortimer
“Eivor Andersen Oftestad, The Lateran Church in Rome and the Ark of the Covenant: Housing the Holy Relics of Jerusalem. With an Edition and Translation of the Descriptio Lateranensis Ecclesiae (BAV Reg. Lat. 712) in Crusades by Wilson
“Eivor Andersen Oftestad, The Lateran Church in Rome and the Ark of the Covenant: Housing the Holy Relics of Jerusalem. With an Edition and Translation of the Descriptio Lateranensis Ecclesiae (BAV Reg. Lat. 712) in JEH by Bruce
“Steven Fine, The Arch of Titus. From Jerusalem to Rome – and back” in JEH by Goodman
History of Jerusalem
“Les sièges de Jérusalem de Pompée et d'Hérode le Grand” in RB by Dominique-Marie
“Itineraria Terrae Sanctae minora IIIa: A Revised edition of Descriptio Ierusalem (Group E2), based on British Library, Royal MS 6.A.I, fols. 134r–135r” in Crusades by Pringle
Selected articles from the latest issue of Jerusalem Quarterly (all open access)
“Nasri and Levon Ohan, the Antiquities Dealers from Jerusalem” in JSAS by Tchekhanovets and Ben-Ami (open access)
Jerusalem and Ancient Literature
“The Ruins of Jerusalem: Psalm LXXVIII, the Crusades and Church Reform” in JEH by Allington
“A lost homily on Gehenna and repentance in Midrash Tehillim” in JJS by Atzmon
“Die Idee der Jerusalemer Tempelbibliothek. Eine kritische Untersuchung des Auffindungsberichtes in 2 Kön 22,3–11” in ZDPV by Oepping
“King Zedekiah’s Release of Slaves for the Strategic Harmony of a Besieged Jerusalem (Jer 34)” in ZDPV by Scolnic
Inscriptions from Jerusalem
“Writings on the Wall? The claim of a controversial expert to have deciphered an ancient inscription is met with doubt” in Ami Mag by Schiffman (open access)
“A Late Second Temple Inscription from a Cave Complex at “Abraham’s House,” Mount of Olives in Jerusalem: Preliminary Publication” in MAARAV by Garfinkel, Cornuke, Matsen, and Misgav
“Incense from Sheba for the Jerusalem Temple” in JJA by Vainstub (open access)
Three chapters in West Semitic Inscriptions & the Hebrew Bible (AOAT 410) by Bob Becking relate to inscriptions in Jerusalem:
4. “The stonecutters struck each man towards his counterpart.” Thoughts on the Siloam Inscription
5. Does a Recently Published Paleo-Hebrew Inscription Refer to the Solomonic Temple?
6. The Enigmatic Garden of Uzza—A religio-historical Footnote to 2 Kings 21:18.26
Jerusalem and Ideology
The latest volume of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel is focused on “Jerusalem in Transition”:
“Jerusalem in Transition – Decisive Moments in the Creation of Jerusalem in Reality and as a Myth” by Shalom and Gadot
“Jerusalem And Empires. Long Term Observations” by Finkelstein
“Make Jerusalem Great Again. The Role of Alexander Jannaeus in Shaping the Hasmonean Capital City” by Lieberman
“Jerusalem as a Symbol and in Reality” by Lipschits
“Continuity and Change in 6th-4th Century bce Jerusalem” by Freud and Shalev
“Jerusalem in History: The Hard and Life Sciences Perspective” by Gadot and Uziel
Archaeology of Jerusalem
“The Russian Collection of Antiquities in Jerusalem: A First Reconstruction” in LA by Tchekhanovets and Belyaev
“A New Type of Yehud Stamp Impression on a Body Sherd and Two More Yehud Stamped Handles from Mordôt Arnona, Jerusalem” in MAARAV by Vanderhooft, Ben-Ari, Sapir, and Lipschits
“Philosophy Etched in Stone: The Geometry of Jerusalem's ‘Absalom Pillar’” (published conference paper) by Petry (open access)
“The Production and Iconography of Luxury Tableware in Roman Jerusalem” in Bentz and Heinzelmann (eds) by Rosenthal-Heginbottom (open access)
“Archaeological excavations in Jerusalem, Holy Sepulchre: a preliminary report” in LA by Stasolla
“Opus Sectile Tiles from the Stepped Street Excavations: Reconstructing a Portion of a Decorative Wall Panel from the Byzantine Church at the Pool of Siloam” in LA by Snyder, Chalaf, Szanton, Hagbi, and Levy
New salvage excavation reports in Hadashot Arkheologiyot, some on notable and important structures:
“Jerusalem, the Old City, the Archaeological Park” by Hagbi, Zilberbod, and Uziel
“Jerusalem, City of David, the Stepped Street” by Levy and Baruch
“Jerusalem, Wilson’s Arch” by Monnickendam-Givon and Lieberman
Selected articles in the latest edition of ‘Atiqot (visit through this link). All are open access.
“A New Assemblage of ‘Private’ Stamped Jar Handles from the Mordot Arnona Excavations, Jerusalem” by Sapir, Ben-Ari, Koch, and Lipschits
“A Second Temple Period Inscription on a Stone Ossuary Lid from the City of David, Jerusalem” by Eshel and Szanton
“A Bilingual Greek-Georgian Inscription from Mount Zion, Jerusalem, and the Location of the ‘Monastery of the Iberians’” by Chernin
“A Greek Inscribed Early Islamic-Period Oil Lamp from Jerusalem” by Di Segni, Storchan, and Weksler-Bdolah
“An Abbasid-Period Stone Mold with an Engraved Kufic Arabic Inscription from the Giv‘ati Parking Lot excavations, Jerusalem” by Chernin, Bejarano, Gadot, and Shalev
“A Terracotta Pen-and-Inkwell Case from Jerusalem” by Amitai-Preiss, Gendelman, Chalaf, and Shapiro
“A Unique Crusader-Period Lead Seal from the Old City of Jerusalem” by Kool and Landes-Nagar
New Books about Jerusalem
Jerusalem Falls: Seven Centuries of War and Peace by John D. Hosler
Owning Books and Preserving Documents in Medieval Jerusalem. The Library of Burhan al-Din by Said Aljoumani and Konrad Hirschler
Free PDF or ePub download
The “Exodus” in Jerusalem (Luke 9:31) by W. Gil Shin
In the Shadow of the Wall. The Life and Death of Jerusalem's Maghrebi Quarter, 1187–1967 by Vincent Lemire
New Pop Media and Blog Articles about Jerusalem
The “Tomb of Absalom”: The Earliest Judeo-Christian Place of Pilgrimage in Jerusalem
Golden artifacts from a Late Roman Period tomb on the Mount of Olives put on exhibit
A new study interprets an inscription as Ancient South Arabian
Hebrew inscription, possibly a receipt, found along the Early Roman Period street in a trench of Bliss and Dickie’s 19th century excavation
Recent Approaching Jerusalem articles:
New Digital Resources related to Jerusalem
Jerusalem Unplugged Pod
I was grateful to join this podcast to discuss Iron Age Jerusalem and Jerusalem during covid with host Roberto Mazza
This Week in the Ancient Near East Pod
Asian Review of Books Podcast
Videos
Religion for Breakfast - Where is the tomb of Jesus in Jerusalem? (I served as the main script writer for this video)
Palestine Exploration Fund - The oddest archaeologists ever to visit Jerusalem with Graham Addison
XKV8R - Jesus's Triumphal Entry: A Well-Orchestrated Mock Coronation
Ir Amim/Peace Now/Emek Shaveh - The Noble Sanctuary/Temple Mount and the Status Quo in Jerusalem
Manuscripts from four Jerusalem family libraries (Āl Budeiry, Khalidi, Issaf Nashashibi, and al-Zāwiyah al-Uzbakīyah) have been digitized
The Virtual Illés Initiative, a digital humanities project, has created a 3D model of Stefan Illés’s sensational relief map of Late Ottoman Jerusalem. A downloadable app allows users to overlay historical maps on the city’s topography, interact with landscapes and buildings of 19th century Jerusalem, and explore information and photos about key hotspots.
The National Library of Israel shares part of Zev Radovan’s photo archive which includes photographs of Jerusalem during the years it was a divided city (1948-1967) and after the war in 1967.
Summaries of lectures by Shimon Gibson on the Iron Age Western Hill and Oded Lipschits on various aspects of Iron Age Jerusalem are available on the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society’s website.
New Developments in Jerusalem
Don Binder shares photos of the “excavations” in the area of the Roman Period Pool of Siloam (Birket al-Hamra). In an effort to reach the bottom of the pool as soon as possible, backhoes have removed large amounts of soil. The removal of debris with big machinery undoubtedly destroyed evidence of Jerusalem’s past that can never be recovered.
El Ad is building a suspension bridge across the Hinnom Valley.
A new altar has been consecrated after the renovations at Dormition Abbey Church
The Davidson Center has reopened its newly remodeled museum located in the basement of an 8th-century CE Umayyad Palace.
The Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of the Land of Israel has opened and is the new headquarters for the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Renovations at the Citadel have been completed.
Update on the Museum of Tolerance.
The new “Saller” wing has opened at the Terra Sancta Museum on the Via Dolorosa, featuring artifacts from: Bethlehem, Cana, Tabgha, the Crusader Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, ossuaries from the tombs at Dominus Flevit, and impressive pieces from the Holy Sepulcher.
Upcoming Events about Jerusalem
24 May 18:00 JT - Book launch for The Noble Sanctuary: A Photographic and Historical Exploration of Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque by Bashar Tabbah & Robert Schick. Sponsored by the Albright Institute and Educational Bookshop. In person only at the Albright Institute.
28 May 1:00pm EST - Lecture by Dr. Shimon Lev on Women and Men Photograph Jerusalem, 1839-1970s. Offered on Zoom and open to all. Register here.
1 June 12:00pm ET - Lecture by Dr. Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah on archaeological projects on and around the Western Wall Plaza (former Moroccan Quarter) and finds from Hellenistic and Roman Jerusalem.
29 June 12:00 ET - Lecture by Prof. Ronny Reich on the The Jewish Character of Jerusalem of the early Roman (Second Temple) Period as Attested by the Archaeological Record. Signup link not yet available.
16-19 October - Celebrating 125 Years of the German Protestant Archaeological Institute. The conference schedule features several lectures on archaeology in Jerusalem. Hosted by the Konrad Adenauer Conference Center in Mishkenot Shana’anim.
Note: This post has been updated to include some additional resources since it was initially published.
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