{"product_id":"the-iron-age-i-structure-on-mt-ebal-excavation-and-interpretation-9781575062433","title":"The Iron Age I Structure on Mt. Ebal: Excavation and Interpretation","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Josh 8:30–35, Israel constructs an altar on Mt. Ebal in fulfillment of the command of Deut 27:1–8. This structure had very important social, political, and religious implications for Israel, for it was the first structure to be built after the people entered the land of Canaan. Once the altar was completed, sacrifices were to be offered on it, and a renewal of the covenant was to be carried out (patterned after the ritual of Deut 31:9–13). This covenant renewal was necessary to integrate the people into the covenant who had not been a part of the Sinai experience. The event was significant enough to establish nearby Shechem as the tribal league shrine, and it was the first political and religious ceremony that the Israelites undertook following their entry into the land. As a covenant ratification, it could be described as their ratification as a nation. The altar on Mt. Ebal and its concomitant ceremony were, therefore, according to the claims of the Hebrew Bible, of supreme importance in the life of ancient Israel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 1980, during the survey of the territory of Manasseh, Israeli archaeologist Adam Zertal discovered a site on Mt. Ebal dating to the period of Iron I, during which the Israelites began to sedentarize in the central hill country of Canaan. The site was excavated over eight seasons, from 1982 to 1989, under the auspices of the University of Haifa and the Israel Exploration Society. In 1985, Zertal published an article in which he suggested that the structure on Ebal may have been the altar of Josh 8:30–35.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eIn The Iron Age I Structure on Mt. Ebal\u003c\/i\u003e, Ralph Hawkins reviews the excavation on Mt. Ebal and its results, including the scarabs, seals, and animal bones found there. He examines the architecture of the site in relation to Mesopotamian watchtowers, altars, and the descriptions of altars in mishnaic materials, Ezekiel, and Deuteronomic passages.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis fascinating book examines the Mt. Ebal site using a comparative method for both the physical data and the textual data. The site and its artifacts are analyzed and then compared with alternative proposals and literary traditions. The site is placed in its broader regional context in order to determine how it might relate to the larger settlement picture of Iron Age I. The primary purpose is to examine the data with a view to determining the nature and function of the site and its possible relation to Josh 8:30–35. A compelling read for biblical and archaeological students and scholars, who will better be able to envision sites of past events.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003ePreface and Acknowledgments\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAbbreviations\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1. Discovery and Excavation of the Ebal Structure\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOverview of the Survey of Manassesh\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOverview of the Discovery and Excavation of the Mt. Ebal Complex\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOverview of Zertal’s Conclusions Regarding the Ebal Site\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMethodology and Criteria for the Identification of the Site\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2. Analysis of the Ebal Installation \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLocation and Layout of the Site \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStratum II \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStratum IB \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStratum IA \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePottery \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStone and Metal Artifacts \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFaunal Remains \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Faunal Assemblage \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTwo Egyptianized Scarabs from Mt. Ebal \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3. Physical Parallels to el-Burnat: Domestic and Military \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eVillage \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFarmstead \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHouse or Other Domestic Space \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Central Structure at Mt. Ebal and the Four-Room House\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWatchtower\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Biblical Term Migdāl and Ancient Watchtowers \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTowers in the Late Bronze Age \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTowers in Iron Age I\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Tower of Shechem \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e4. Physical Parallels to El-Burnat: Religious Structures \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGilgalim \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAltars \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEarly to Middle Bronze Age \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLate Bronze Age \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIron Age \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDiscussion\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e5. Literary Parallels \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLocation of the Site \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStratum II \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStratum IB \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Faunal Assemblage from Mt. Ebal \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e6. The Ebal Structure in Context: The Ebal Installation, the Survey of Manasseh, and the Emergence of Israel \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHistorical and Sociological Considerations of the Mt. Ebal Site \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Amphictyony Hypothesis \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Mt. Ebal Site and Biblical Tradition \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eScholarly Response \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn Overview of Regional Surveys in Israel \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eObjections \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Survey of Manasseh Compared with Joshua, Judges, and the Question of Israelite Origins \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSummary and Conclusion \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBibliography \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIndexes \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIndex of Authors \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIndex of Scripture\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIndex of Sites and Geographical Names\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Pennsylvania State University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53188735041879,"sku":"9781575062433","price":51.95,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-iron-age-i-structure-on-mt-ebal-excavation-and-interpretation-9781575062433","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}