1181-1183 Yuval Goren: Iron Age Seal Impressions

I first heard of Yuval Goren in connection with the James Ossuary investigation. He's the one who marshaled the evidence that the inscription was a forgery. That conclusion is still open for debate, since the issue is still being hashed out before a judge in Israel.

So depending on who you read, he may be seen as a villain (Hershel Shanks and BAR) or a hero (Nina Burleigh in her book Unholy Business). I showed up for his public lecture at Harvard University last November and found him much friendlier than expected (based on what I'd read and his official photo, above). He gave me permission to record his lecture and gave an excellent presentation on his research into Iron Age seal impressions (or bullae, as they're called).

More and more of these seal impressions have been turning up in recent years, some bearing the names of people who are found in the Bible, in part because there's a lot of archaeology going on in some of the oldest areas of Jerusalem. In fact some of the bullae are being found in or near the very area where some archaeologists (like Eilat Mazar) believe the palace of King David was located.

So in these three programs we present some very informative comments by Yuval Goren on a very current issue in Biblical Archaeology.

880 - The Roots of Writing with Denise Schmandt Besserat

The story of how writing developed in Mesopotamia became a little clearer through the research of Denise Schmandt Besserat. As she relates in this program from our Book & The Spade archives, she was researching clay and she kept finding these little tokens all over the place. Eventually she realized that understanding the use of the tokens shed light on the development of writing.

The photo above was taken at a display on writing at the University of Chicago Oriental Institute Museum.

1180 - Shroud of Turin Gap Explained

This program looks at a recent news story that offers an explanation for one of the gaps in the story of the Shroud of Turin. We also spend some time discussing what's happening in the politically sensitive City of David area, right outside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem.

1179 - eBay's Impact on Archaeology and Looting

As with most innovations, the internet has been a mixed blessing. But on this program we discuss an internet innovation that many thought would be a curse on archaeology but has instead turned into a blessing: eBay. Here's the article. We also discuss Babylon, open to visitors once again, as well as the catacombs of Rome and Bethlehem.

And here's some program news: We are making improvements in our online distribution of The Book & The Spade. If you've had trouble downloading our programs through iTunes, try it again. With the help of listener Jerry Gassie we've updated our podcast program and it should work better now. Also, watch for a new website with improved functionality, coming soon. One final note, we're now on Facebook, for those who want to communicate through social networking.