The prophecy of the Valley of Dry Bones, as envisioned by the prophet Ezekiel, stands as one of the most potent revelations in his repertoire. Within this vision, Ezekiel is transported to a desolate...
Girona in Catalonia, Spain, is an experience in polarities, capturing the romance of Paris but also a tinge of foreboding prevalent in Moscow. Girona is both a very popular modern destination and an...
Art history resembles detective work , often concealing mysteries waiting to be unraveled. Among the array of crossbows at the New York Met, one stands out as truly exceptional. Its ivory panels bear...
A metal detectorist had the good fortune to hit upon an incredible garnet and gold pendant dating to the Middle Ages at Great Tey near Colchester, Essex, in August 2021. The pendant was inscribed...
Renowned auction house, Sotheby’s in New York, prepares itself for the sale of possibly the most expensive historical document ever sold at an auction, in the form of Codex Sassoon. This is one of...
One of two mountains in the West Bank, Mount Ebal occupies a special place in the hearts and mythology of the Israelites, but not in the most positive light. In advance of the entry of the Jews into...
The cherubim are a somewhat mysterious topic that occurs numerous times in the Hebrew Bible, but is never truly explained. We are given only brief glimpses into their role and their nature. Since the...
In the Hebrew Bible, the Book of Kings tells a story about how an Aramean king named Hazael conquered and destroyed the famed Philistine city-state of Gath, the home of the legendary giant Goliath...
As the world’s powers perpetually rise and fall, exile and banishment have forever been ubiquitous elements of human history. Exile and ostracism have afflicted individuals and nations, inspiring...
Jaffa, or Yafo in Hebrew, is a city port and southern suburb of Tel Aviv, located on the Mediterranean coast of Israel. As one of the oldest ports in the world, the Bible says Jaffa was founded by...
The Untersberg is a great mountain straddling the Austro-German border opposite Salzburg. It was reputed in local legend to be the seat of the god Wotan and to be haunted. The Knights Templar of the...
A rare 3,000-year-old Canaanite temple full of ancient religious artifacts has been unearthed in southern Israel. Built around the time of the ancient Israelite invasion described in the Bible , the...
All modern concepts of the Garden of Eden stem from a few verses in the biblical Book of Genesis, none of which is entirely free from ambiguity. The ancient Hebraic documents, from which the early...
The twelve tribes of ancient Judaism were united into a single kingdom under the reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon. The destruction of this kingdom and the forced exile of its population is known as...
The Hyksos were a dynasty of kings who ruled over the northern part of Egypt during the 2 nd millennium BC. They were not native Egyptians, but came from the East, most likely Western Asia...
Among the thousands of pieces of parchment found in caves near the Dead Sea, one scroll was unique among the rest. The Temple Scroll was the best preserved and with the clearest writing. Now...
The ‘Magical Treatise of Solomon’ and the ‘ Key of Solomon’ are two grimoires (magic handbooks) commonly said to have been written by the biblical King Solomon . The latter grimoire has been...
Within the varied teachings of the Jewish mystical tradition known as Kabbalah there is a minor tradition known as Practical Kabbalah (Kabbalah Ma’asit). This branch concerns itself with the use of...
The Tucson Artifacts created quite a sensation when they were discovered in the 1920s. Over 30 crosses and other relics were recovered, and they tell the story of a group of Roman colonists who were...
Moloch, or Molech, is well known in the Bible for being the god to whom child sacrifices appear to have been made in a shrine outside the city of Jerusalem. Although Moloch is well known in the Bible...
The earliest-ever carved inscription of the word ‘Jerusalem’ has been discovered on a waist-high lime stone column, in a Roman building, near the ancient city's entrance. Whispers From A Holy Past...
Back in 2009, archaeologists working near Temple Mount came across a collection of clay seals. One was identified in 2015 as belonging to King Hezekiah, an 8th century BC biblical king. Now, another...
Researchers from the Haifa University have reconstructed the contents of one of the last two undeciphered Dead Sea Scrolls , disclosing a distinctive calendar used by a Jewish sect that lived in the...
The story of David rise to power is very political. The well-known tale of the famous giant-slayer and second king of the Israelites, according to the Hebrew Bible, goes that after an exchange of...