FALL 2025 COURSES

 

 

SPRING 2025 COURSES

 

 

CURRICULUM FOR THE 2024-25 ACADEMIC YEAR*

 

The program includes 4 introductory mandatory courses (8 credit points), 3 mandatory complementary courses (12 credit points), 3 seminars courses (12 credit points), 3 elective courses (6 credit points), 6 field trips and 4 weeks of excavation (course not for credit).

* Changes might be done before the academic year starts

Scroll down to see second semester courses

 

  First Semester

 

Introduction to the Archaeology and History of the Land of the Bible in the Late Bronze Age (16734000/01)

 

The Late Bronze Age (ca. 1500 – 1150 BCE) is known to be the first “international” period in the history of the Levant in ancient times: it is characterized by imperial kingdoms controlling vast territories, international trade and diplomacy but also with an urban and demographic decline in Canaan. By the 12th century, the international powers that shaped the social and political history of the region collapsed, bringing with them the collapse of the entire socio-political system. The regeneration after the collapse will bring with it new socio-political forms, which are also known to us from the Hebrew Bible.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Introduction to the Archaeology and History of the Land of the Bible in the Early Iron Age (Iron I-IIA) (16734001/01)

 

The Iron I-IIA (1150 – 800 BCE) is the period in which new socio-political formations emerged throughout the Levant, as the result of the collapse of the Late Bronze world order. Most notable is the formation of kin-based territorial polities throughout the Levant, among them the biblical kingdoms of Israel and Judah. In this class, we shall study the main archaeological feature of the period in relation to historical developments as they can be inferred from the Hebrew Bible and epigraphic finds. We shall focus on the question of state formation in the Iron Age Levant and its archaeological expression.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Introduction to the Archaeology and History of the Land of the Bible in the Iron Age (Iron IIB-IIC) (16734002/01)

The end of the Iron Age (Iron IIB-C) is characterized by the rise of imperial forces – the Assyrian and Babylonian empires – who gradually took over the Levant, eliminated the territorial kingdoms, and established direct imperial rule that changed the Levantine socio-political structure forever. It was in this period the kingdoms of Israel and Judah reached their zenith in every aspect (territorially, economically, and culturally) before they were destroyed by the empires. In this class, you will be introduced to the archaeological characteristics of this troubled period, in light of contemporaneous historical sources. We will discuss the history of the southern Levant under the empires and will try to understand how imperial rule might be reflected in archaeological finds.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Research Workshop (16734006/01)

 

The course primarily targets master’s degree students who have selected a topic for their thesis and already secured an advisor(s). It focuses on a thorough examination of proposals in the preparatory stages. Emphasis will be placed on distinguishing between writing a research paper and other academic publications such as research proposals, grants, articles and excavation reports. Participants will delve into essential components of research work: theoretical framework, research objectives and hypotheses, materials and methodology crucial for constructing a robust academic argument, and the unit of investigation. Instruction will encompass techniques for presenting results, including verbal descriptions, illustrations, tables, and statistical tests applied in analyzing archaeological databases. The course will extensively cover the pivotal discussion section—the core of any research endeavor—and underscore the study’s significance and potential contribution to the research community. Participants will differentiate between research summaries and abstracts. Throughout the course, students will familiarize themselves with academic writing conventions and gain proficiency in accessing theoretical background materials and archival sources using advanced databases. Additionally, the course will explore avenues for publishing thesis findings on academic platforms and discuss strategies for presenting research at academic conferences.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Ancient Language: Ancient Egyptian for Beginners (06712515/01)

 

Learning to read an ancient text in its original language is the key to a deeper understanding of the culture who spoke, wrote, read, and lived that language. This course teaches students to read, translate, and analyse the classical stage of the ancient Egyptian language (Middle Egyptian), which was written in Egyptian hieroglyphs and in use during the Middle Kingdom (c. 2055–1650 BC). By the end of this course, students will feel comfortable reading and understanding texts written in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.

In the first semester, students will be introduced to the grammar, vocabulary, and principles of reading Egyptian hieroglyphs. This introduction incorporates excerpts from longer texts as well as short texts such as titles, inscriptions on tomb walls, and scarabs. In the second semester, students will be able to read longer texts like private letters, the “Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor” (c. 1500 BC), and the description of the Battle of Megiddo from the “Annals of Thutmosis III” (c. 1458 BC).

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Exploring Village Archaeology: Dynamics of Rural Landscapes (16734024/01)

 

This course provides an in-depth exploration of village archaeology in the southern Levant, focusing on rural settlements from the Bronze and Iron Ages. Students will analyze the daily lives, economic activities, social structures, and cultural and ritual practices of village communities using archaeological evidence. The course emphasizes methods and theories in interpreting material culture such as pottery, groundstone tools, architecture, and agricultural remains to reconstruct the development of rural life. Special attention is given to settlement patterns, agricultural practices, and the interplay between rural and urban centers.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Academic Workshop (16734005/01)

 

This workshop is meant to prepare you for your academic studies in the International MA.

Program for the History and Archaeology of the Land of the Bible. This course is designed provide you with the academic tools to succeed in the MA program. How to read an academic article? How to know what is important and what is not? What is a research proposal? How do archaeological or historical research work? And what is academic writing”? All these and more will be the topics discussed and practiced in this academic workshop, which will help you to better prepare for academic studies in the research track, for MA.

 

 

An Introduction to Field Archaeology: Theory and Method (1673-4004-01)

 

The course will introduce the disciplinary foundations of archaeology: the essence of archaeology as a scientific discipline, the nature of archaeological data, archaeological field methods and approaches to archaeological interpretation. We will also explore how archaeology attempts to reconstruct the social and economic organization of ancient societies, as well as their cognitive world.

The focus of the course will be on field excavation methods, terminology, documentation and scientific methodology and approaches, all of which comprise the multi-disciplinary toolkit that every modern archaeologist must be acquainted with and utilize. The course will also discuss the role of archaeology in modern society and its intricate relationship with different areas of life, such as religion, politics, environment and development.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Seminar: Technology, Knowledge, and Elite in Bronze and Iron Ages Israel (06714377/01)

 

The creation of social stratification is based, among other things, on the control over knowledge and superior technology. Written evidence from different parts of the ancient near east, reveal how specialized craft persons were employed within royal courts and/or temples acting as ‘attached specialists”. The archaeological record is rich with items that had to be manufactured by highly sophisticated craft persons. At the same time, we know very little regarding workshops and how they were tied into the palatial systems. We also know very little about the way knowledge, in this case, technological knowledge was shared or monopolized by the elite.

The seminar is intended to explore the connection between technology and society, specifically elite control over knowledge. By exploring different case studies from the Bronze and Iron Age southern Levant, we will try examining questions such as: How can we differentiate between different levels of production? What is the role played by knowledge in forming social stratification? Can technology and knowledge be shared as a gift? And what can we learn about capitals like Late Bronze Hazor or Iron Age Samaria and Jerusalem through their control/lack of control over technology and knowledge?

 

Final grade components:

 

 

The Archaeology and History of the Southern Levant during the Persian and Hellenistic Periods (1673-4003-01)

 

This course will introduce students to the archaeology and history of the southern Levant during the Persian and Hellenistic periods, from 539-332 BCE, with a focus on Phoenicia and Judah. We will cover a brief historical background for each period and discuss the relevant material culture, including architecture and city planning, religion and cult, funerary practices, pottery, coinage, and other everyday items. We will analyze changes, influences, and development patterns in the material culture and their possible significance to the various cultures of the southern Levant.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Introduction to the Prehistory of the Levant (16734022/01)

 

Prehistoric archaeology focuses on the earliest evidence of human presence in the Old World, encompassing the Southern Levant and the modern boundaries of Israel. This course offers a deep dive into the extensive timeline of human culture in this area during the Paleolithic periods, starting around 1.5 million years ago and ending with the Neolithic revolution approximately 10,000 years ago. Throughout this journey of human cultural and biological evolution, we will explore the cultural complexes, types of stone tools, and hominin species found in the Paleolithic Periods in Israel. The archaeological data will be integrated with insights derived from the fields of paleoanthropology, biology, paleontology, and ethnography. We will critically examine and discuss pivotal topics in Prehistoric archaeology, such as early human dispersals out of Africa, the nexus between animals and technology, the origin of Homo sapiens and the extinction of Neanderthals, the Paleolithic art enigma, the advent of agriculture, and early human perception of the cosmos.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

The Book of the Twelve: Textual and Archaeological Perspectives (06714380/01)

 

The basic idea of this seminar is to bring together the biblical data from the prophetic books of the Book of the Twelve and extra-biblical, especially archaeological, insights of the respective periods. In this way, the seminar will show that not only the historical books of the Hebrew Bible, but also other texts, in our case prophetic books, are valuable sources for the reconstruction of the (political, social, economic, and religious) history of ancient Israel and Judah.

 

All meetings will consist of two lectures by the teachers of the seminar and guests. The first lecture will focus more on the prophetic text, the second on the archaeological/historical data. The second part of the meeting will give time for group discussion and a final plenary discussion.

 

All the international meetings are on ZOOM and will take place on Thursdays, 18:00-20:00 Israeli time. The second meeting every week will be an in-person meeting in class, only with the Tel Aviv students.

 

The first meeting will give an overview of current research about the Book of the Twelve, mainly regarding the formation of prophetic books and the collections of such books. The next eight meetings will be dedicated to individual books or collections of books (the Book of the Four, the Haggai-Zechariah corpus). Of course, not all books of the Book of the Twelve can and shall be treated in the seminar. In three blocks, we will rather focus on important prophetic texts from different periods: the Assyrian, the Babylonian and the Persian period.

 

The first block dealing with prophetic texts from the Assyrian period could focus on the books of Hosea, Amos, or Micah. The earthquake in the book of Amos, the social distortions of the 8th century Northern Kingdom, kingship in the book of Hosea, Hosea and the Syro-Ephraimite war, the insights about the events from 701 from the book of Micah – these and other topics could be subjects of the first block.

 

The second block about prophetic texts from the Babylonian period will focus on the political, social, and religious situation in Judah before and after the downfall of the Southern Kingdom. Possible subjects are, among others: The political and social situation in Judah according to the book of Zephaniah, Habakkuk and the Babylonian threat, the destruction of the Southern Kingdom and the role of Edom according to the book of Obadiah, the situation of the remainees according to the Book of the Four.

 

The third and last block about prophetic texts from the Persian period will, of course, have a strong focus on the Haggai-Zechariah-corpus. However, also the books of Joel, Malachi and Jonah could be subject of a meeting. Possible topics are the rebuilding of the second temple and the Haggai-Zechariah-corpus, returnees and remainees in early Persian times according to this corpus, cult or the social structure of Persian Yehud according to Haggai-Zechariah or Malachi, the economic situation in Yehud and the book of Joel et al.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

  Second Semester

 

Seminar: Metallurgy and Social Processes in the Bronze and Iron Ages (06714376/01)

 

This course, "Metallurgy and Social Processes in the Bronze and Iron Ages," examines the transformative impact of metalworking on ancient societies from 3300 BCE to 500 BCE, with a focus on recent research in the Timna and Arabah Valleys. The course explores how advances in bronze and iron metallurgy drove significant changes in social structures, economies, and cultural practices.

Central to the curriculum are the latest archaeological discoveries from the Timna and Arabah Valleys, which have provided new insights into ancient mining and smelting techniques. These findings have also enhanced our understanding of the historical context of the Hebrew Bible, offering new perspectives on biblical narratives.

Students will study the extraction, smelting, and alloying techniques of the Bronze Age and how the transition to iron reshaped societies with its more abundant and durable properties. The course integrates archaeological evidence, historical records, and contemporary metallurgical research to elucidate the technological processes and their societal implications.

Key themes include the role of metalworkers in social change, the influence of metallurgy on trade and warfare, and the diffusion of metallurgical knowledge. By incorporating interdisciplinary approaches from archaeology, history, and materials science, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between technological innovation and social evolution during these pivotal periods.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Introduction to Writing and Literature in Mesopotamia (16734023/01)

 

The cuneiform script emerged in southern Mesopotamia toward the end of the fourth millennium BC and remained in use until the end of the first millennium BC. Throughout this period, cuneiform was employed by various languages across the Near East, including those in Mesopotamia, Syria, Anatolia, Egypt and the Land of Israel. This course will explore the evolution of cuneiform, tracing its development from a pictorial script, through subsequent changes over the years, to its eventual decline and the transition to the alphabet. We will survey the main textual genres in Mesopotamia, encompassing cuneiform’s initial use for administrative purposes, and later for professional writing, historical accounts, and literature.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Seminar: Interconnectivity in the 2nd Millennium BCE Eastern Mediterranean

 

"Like frogs around a pond," Plato observed the vibrant communities of the Mediterranean interacting for millennia. This international seminar, co-led by Ido Koch (Tel Aviv University) and Philipp Stockhammer (LMU Munich), delves into the intricate web of interconnections that shaped the Eastern Mediterranean during the 2nd and early 1st millennium BCE. We will investigate the movements of people, commodities, luxuries, and knowledge, examining how these exchanges transformed societies in an ever-evolving dialogue. Through a multidisciplinary lens, we will analyze archaeological data from maritime sites, inland routes, and urban centers, exploring the impact of interregional encounters on the dissemination of knowledge, the appropriation of objects, and their translation into local contexts. Students will engage with primary and secondary sources to develop research essays on topics such as maritime networks, urban centers as hubs, migrations and cultural encounters, culinary exchanges, knowledge transfer, visual language and communication, and changes in local practices.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Seminar: Iron Age Transjordan: Archaeology, History and Biblical Traditions (06714374/01)

 

The geographical designation “Transjordan” refers to the highland rising east of the Jordan Valley. In spite of the rather arid nature of this region, it inhabited an important trade route crossing the Levant from south to north. The inhabitants of this region, whether mobile-pastoralists, rural peasants or urban population, played a prominent role in the social and economic life of the southern Levant. There is no wonder therefore that this region is well commemorated in biblical traditions. Not only in light of the interaction of Israel and Judah with the three Transjordanian polities (Ammon, Moab, and Edom), but also, there is substantial material in the Hebrew Bible which places the origins of Israelite identity in the Transjordanian highlands.

In this seminar, we will discuss some of the issues pertaining to the history of the Transjordanian Highlands during the Iron Age, by reviewing the local settlement patterns and material culture, and the ways these may attest to socio-political formations. In addition, we will read some of the contemporary textual sources in order to provide a broad historical-archaeological overview. These will be the base to further discuss the biblical traditions related to Transjordan.
 

Final grade components:

 

 

Monetization of the Southern Levant (06712662/01)

 

Ancient coinage provides archaeologists with a wide array of information. From an economic perspective it allows insights into trade networks and value systems, from an iconographic viewpoint coinage yields information on the self-perception and intended representation of the different minting authorities. Therefore, the monetary system of e.g., the Persian satrapies differs from the coins minted under the Hellenistic kings, which in return varies from the coinage produced by Jewish dynasties and rebels as well as Roman authorities. During the seminar students will receive a comprehensive introduction into numismatic terminology and methodology. The course covers the southern Levantine numismatic history from its beginning during the Achaemenid period in the fifth century BCE until the cease of civic coinage under Roman rule during the reign of Valerian and Gallienus in 268 CE. 

 

Final grade components:

 

 

Beyond the Gods: The Sacred Architecture of Judah and its Material Culture (16734025/01)

 

In this class, we will study the archaeological record of different sites in Judah with a special focus on sacred structures and material culture. We will apply a longue durée approach and start our investigation in the Judean Lowlands of the Late Bronze Age and the city-states of the Canaanites. In comparison to the evidence from the Iron Age Kingdom of Judah, we will explore: its characteristics; how cult changed and developed over time; how it was influenced by the neighboring Philistine architecture and material culture; and how it conforms with the biblical record. Finally, we will address the question about its terminal phase and the historicity of Hezekiah’s reform.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

The Phoenicians and Their Culture (16734021/01)

 

The Phoenicians were a Western Semitic people that inhabited the central part of the eastern Mediterranean coast. They were renowned throughout the Ancient Near East as exceptional merchants, expert seafarers, and gifted artisans capable of producing magnificent works of art from bone, metal, and textiles. Greek and Roman authors credited them with the invention of the cargo ship and marveled at their skills in the sciences of astronomy and arithmetic, which they utilized for sailing. Their superior navigational and ship construction abilities allowed them to sail farther than any other contemporary Mediterranean civilization. They ventured through the waters of the Mediterranean basin and beyond the Pillars of Herakles (straits of Gibraltar), sailing as far as Western Europe and even circumnavigated Africa. During the Iron Age, they began colonizing northern Africa, the Iberian Peninsula, and prominent islands in the central and western Mediterranean, founding an empire that would rival Rome.

However, despite these acknowledged traits, and despite ca. two centuries of research, much of our knowledge on the Phoenicians is still largely based on anachronistic and bias exterior written sources that treated the Phoenicians as ‘the other’. The archaeology of Phoenicia had flourished during the early 20th century, but the Lebanese civil war that broke put in the 1970’s had effectively put a halt to archaeological research in the Phoenician homeland. Only in recent years, renewed archaeological excavations were launched in several key sites on the Lebanese and Israeli sides of the border, including Beirut, Sidon, Tyre, Achziv, Akko, and Dor. This renewed interest with Phoenician studies has already supplied a wealth of new data and insights and will surely challenge some of our presupposed and well-founded assumptions. This course will review important subjects related to the Phoenician culture both in the Orient and Occident. It will highlight key questions and discuss them in relation to the current state of research.

 

Final Grade components:

 

 

Seminar: Interconnectivity in the 2nd Millennium BCE Eastern Mediterranean (06714371/01)

 

"Like frogs around a pond," Plato observed the vibrant communities of the Mediterranean interacting for millennia. This international seminar, co-led by Ido Koch (Tel Aviv University) and Philipp Stockhammer (LMU Munich), delves into the intricate web of interconnections that shaped the Eastern Mediterranean during the 2nd and early 1st millennium BCE. We will investigate the movements of people, commodities, luxuries, and knowledge, examining how these exchanges transformed societies in an ever-evolving dialogue. Through a multidisciplinary lens, we will analyze archaeological data from maritime sites, inland routes, and urban centers, exploring the impact of interregional encounters on the dissemination of knowledge, the appropriation of objects, and their translation into local contexts. Students will engage with primary and secondary sources to develop research essays on topics such as maritime networks, urban centers as hubs, migrations and cultural encounters, culinary exchanges, knowledge transfer, visual language and communication, and changes in local practices.

 

Final grade components:

 

 

  Third Semester Field Experience 

 

The summer semester is dedicated to active participation in one of the excavation projects for four weeks, conducted under the auspices of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University.

Program participants will be digging at Tel Azekah (prof. Oded Lipschits)