The procession of Bacchus depicted on a frieze in Pompeii. Courtesy Pompeii Archaeological Park.

While carrying out excavations at the archaeological site of Pompeii in Italy, archaeologists uncovered a large banqueting room painted with a nearly life-size frieze of the sacred procession of Bacchus. Buried by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 CE, the frieze reveals fascinating details about Roman culture and the mystery cult of Bacchus.

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Scene of Mystery Cult Initiation

The Initiate and Silenus on the Pompeii frieze. Courtesy Pompeii Archaeological Park.

The frieze was uncovered in the central part of Pompeii, as part of an ongoing project aimed at regenerating the archaeological and urban landscape of the ancient Roman city. Covering three walls of a large banquet hall, the frieze depicts the Thiasus (procession) of the god Bacchus, the Roman equivalent of the Greek Dionysus, the god of wine and festivity. This procession was primarily made up of women, known as bacchantes, and human-goat hybrids called satyrs. The frieze depicts the bacchantes as dancers and ferocious hunters, shown either with slaughtered goats or holding a sword and the innards of an animal. Meanwhile, one satyr is playing a double flute while the other offers a libation of wine. In the center of the frieze is a woman standing beside Silenus, the tutor and companion of Bacchus. The frieze depicts the woman as an initiate into the mysteries of Bacchus who, according to myth, died and was reborn, promising his followers the same. Above the procession of Bacchus was painted a second, smaller frieze with various animals, including deer, wild boar, chickens, birds, and fish.

The archaeologists at Pompeii gave the house the name Thiasus, in reference to the procession. Dated to the 40s or 30s BCE, the frieze connects directly to the mystery cult of Bacchus, one among many cults in antiquity that were only accessible by those who went through an initiation ritual, as illustrated in the frieze. It was only after initiation that one could learn the secrets of the cult. These cults were often linked to the promise of a new blissful life, in this world and the next.

One of the bacchantes with a goat over her shoulder. Courtesy Pompeii Archaeological Park.

According to Alessandro Giuli, the Italian Minister of Culture, the frieze “provides another glimpse into the rituals of the mysteries of Dionysus. It is an exceptional historical document and, together with the fresco of the Villa of the Mysteries, constitutes a one-of-a-kind, making Pompeii an extraordinary testimony to an aspect of life in classical Mediterranean life that is largely unknown.”

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View of the banquet hall of the house of Thiasus. Courtesy Pompeii Archaeological Park.

The house of the Thiasus was just one of many buildings in its neighborhood at Pompeii that included incredible and vibrant paintings. Other such examples were a large reception room decorated with scenes from the Trojan War, and a massive private bath complex with paintings of athletes and more scenes of the Trojan War.

This article was first published in Bible History Daily on September 8, 2025.

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Aerial view of the partially excavated monument at the top of Tel Shimron. The favissa is in the lower right of the complex. Courtesy Tel Shimron Excavations, Andrew Wright.

Archaeologists at Tel Shimron in Israel’s Jezreel Valley have uncovered a remarkable megastructure, so far unique within the southern Levant. Rising nearly 20 feet above the ancient mound, the cone-shaped structure is thought to have been some sort of Bronze Age monument. But what kind of monument was it and what function did it serve?

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Forging a Bronze Age Wonder

Dating to around 1800 BCE and still only partly excavated, the megastructure takes up a large section of Shimron’s already imposing tell, and therein may lie part of its purpose. While the glacis surrounding most of the site is covered with black basalt, the megastructure is covered by white chalk, which has the effect of making the already imposing feature stand out in the landscape, even from a great distance.

“We are dealing with something that’s very much an intentional, monumental thing that was designed to be seen from very far away,” Daniel Master, co-director of the Tel Shimron Excavation, told Haaretz. “We are still trying to figure out the political implications and why it was originally built.”

In addition to the monument’s potential political or symbolic significance, it also appears to have been a site of significant cultic activity. While excavating the structure, archaeologists stumbled across a large room that served as a favissa, a storage space for cultic and votive objects that had gone out of use. The over 700-square-foot favissa was originally unroofed, with thick mudbrick walls and two staircases, one leading into the room and another leading into the megastructure. Not long after it was built, the doors and staircases were blocked, making the favissa an open-air pit. Around that time, the pit became a dumping ground for religious ceremonies.

Excavating the favissa, the team at Tel Shimron discovered 40,000 animal bones, primarily from cattle, sheep, and goat. The bones showed signs of having been burned at extremely high temperatures, suggesting that they had been used for sacrificial rituals rather than meals. The team also found around 57,000 pottery fragments, including rare miniature jugs and bowls. Many of the fragments came from vessels that were typically used in temples instead of domestic contexts. Two bronze bull figurines—possibly representing the chief Canaanite deity El or the storm god Baal—were also discovered.

Ceramics and a bronze bull (or calf) found in the favissa of Tel Shimron. Courtesy Tel Shimron Excavations, Sasha Flit.

The favissa’s lack of stratification shows that it was not used for an extended period and that nearly all of the finds resulted from several events that took place quite close together, or even as part of a single ceremony. “In terms of religion, we don’t have anything like this; there are elements we find elsewhere but this is on a scale that we don’t have anywhere else in this region,” Master said.

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This article was first published in Bible History Daily on November 25, 2024

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Excavations at the Bronze Age temple on Failaka Island. Courtesy NCCAL.

Archaeologists working in Kuwait made a remarkable discovery when they uncovered the remains of a Bronze Age temple on Failaka Island. Only a year earlier, the team had discovered another Bronze Age temple on the island. Both temples belonged to the kingdom of Dilmun, an important trade center from the fourth through the first millennia BCE, and they joined two others in the same area, underscoring Failaka Island’s incredible religious importance in antiquity.

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Multiplying Temples

The two Bronze Age temples were discovered superimposed one on top of the other, with the older temple revealed only after the later temple was fully excavated. Both temples date back to the early second millennium, with the later temple—discovered in the earlier excavation season—likely built as an intentional modification of the older one, much the same as Herod the Great’s Temple Mount expanded the initial Second Temple in Jerusalem.

The two temples are located in the southwest of Failaka, on a mound known to archaeologists as Tell F6. These Bronze Age temples join two other temples and a large administrative building excavated at the site, underscoring the area’s importance for religious and cultural purposes. Like the previously discovered temple, the new temple contained a large amount of pottery and stamp seals.

The kingdom of Dilmun held strategic control over the ocean trade routes that connected Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley. Extending across the lands of modern Kuwait, eastern Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain, ancient Dilmun had much in common with Mesopotamia, its northern neighbor, including inhabitants that used a dialect of Akkadian. Dilmun, however, had its own unique pantheon. At times, Dilmun was also directly controlled by Mesopotamian kingdoms and empires.

Dilmun plays a significant role in several Mesopotamian myths. In flood myths, the region is the eternal home of Utnapishtim, the Mesopotamian Noah. And in some myths, it is even the location where the world was created.

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Neolithic homes: A standing Stone Circle with upright stone walls. McMahon et al.

While little is known about the Neolithic people of northwest Arabia, recent excavations in the region have showcased their cultural complexity as well as their connections with the Levant. Publishing in the journal Levant, an international team of archaeologists presented the first detailed description of long-term Neolithic homes in the region, showing that northern Arabia had a much higher level of occupation than previously assumed. The study also shed new light on what these Neolithic people ate, the tools they used, and who they traded with.

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Building Homes in the Stone Age

Part of a multiyear regional project in the Harrat ‘Uwayrid, between the Hijaz mountains and Nefud desert, the team identified hundreds of domestic structures known as standing stone circles. Dating to the sixth and fifth millennia BCE, these structures consist of concentric rings of massive upright stone slabs placed end to end, with another single stone slab in the center of the structure. According to one of the researchers, timbers would then be placed between the rows of stones, leaning in towards a central pillar, with the roof of the dwelling placed over top.

While most of the houses ranged from 13 feet to 26 feet in diameter, some complex examples reached diameters as large as 80 feet. Despite some of the excavated circles being in use for a thousand years, they were not year-around dwellings but seasonal structures, built by the nomadic people of the region who likely returned to the site year after year.

Map of Saudi Arabia, showing the location of the Neolithic houses. Courtesy McMahon et al.

The finds discovered inside the circles that the team excavated shed even more light on the people who used them. Among the faunal remains are many domesticated animals, including sheep and goats but also cattle. These domestic animals were likely introduced directly from their Levantine neighbors, as they are not indigenous to the area.

Animals, however, were not the only thing imported from the Levant. Among the stone tools discovered in the circles, a number are very similar to Levantine styles, especially the arrowheads, which are nearly identical to Levantine examples. It is not known if these arrowheads were traded items or were made locally using adopted technology. Indeed, even the stone circles are comparable to the domestic structures of hunter-herder groups found hundreds of miles away in Jordan.

Neolithic chert arrowheads found in the standing stone circles that are similar to Levantine models. Courtesy McMahon et al.

In addition to the Levant, these Neolithic people also appear to have traded for items— including decorative shells and jewelry—that came from the Red Sea, 75 miles to the west. Indeed, trade may have allowed the people of the Harrat ‘Uwayrid to flourish in this period, as the introduction of domestic animal species provided them with the flexibility to withstand the region’s highly variable weather conditions.

Not all aspects of Neolithic life in North Arabia were influenced by the Levant. One particularly local expression of culture is the presence of monumental stone structures known as mustatils. Dating from the same time, these open-air sanctuaries, which could reach hundreds of feet long, contain similar finds to those of the stone circles and likely served the religious and cultic needs of the local nomadic peoples.

This post was first published in BHD on Aug 2, 2024.

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Modern tefillin, painted black, being strapped to the arm. Courtesy Emil Aladjem, IAA.

Tefillin, commonly known as phylacteries in English, are Jewish ritual leather cases containing Bible verses written on tiny scrolls, strapped on the forehead and arm during morning prayer. Still worn by religious Jews today, tefillin have roots stretching back 2,000 years into the archaeological record. But how similar were these ancient religious objects to the tefillin of today? Publishing in the journal PLOS ONE, a team of scholars set out to answer just that question.

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Coloring Tefillin

Traditionally (though not exclusively) worn by men, tefillin are often given as gifts once a child (typically male) reaches 13 and completes their bar/bat mitzvah. The oldest-known tefillin were found at the site of Qumran, dating to the end of the Second Temple period (before 70 CE). Rabbinic law requires that tefillin leather be colored black; however, a recent study by a joint Israeli-British research team has shown that 17 of the tefillin from Qumran were not dyed black.

Discovered in the Judean Desert caves at Wadi Murabba‘at and at Nahal Se’eli, the tefillin were subjected to a battery of scientific testing to determine if the leather was dyed black or darkened naturally over time. According to Ilit Cohen-Ofri, head of the conservation laboratory at the Israel Antiquities Authority’s (IAA) Dead Sea Scrolls Unit: “In ancient times, there were two main methods for dyeing leather black. The first method used carbon-based materials—soot or charcoal—to give the leather a black color. The second method was based on a chemical reaction between tannin, a complex organic compound found in many plants, and iron oxides.”

One of the ancient tefillin in the laboratories of the Israel Antiquities Authority, ready to undergo testing. Courtesy Emil Aladjem, IAA.

The arid conditions of the desert allowed for the leather cases to be remarkably well preserved. The researchers tested the leather to find evidence for both dying methods mentioned above, and in all cases, they determined that the dark leather was not due to any ancient dying process, but rather, the natural aging of leather, which could have been hastened due to the leakage of water into the caves. Thus, the team speculates that the rabbinic law to dye tefillin black was not in place during the Second Temple period and that the practice must have developed as a later tradition.

“It is likely that in the beginning, there was no halakhic significance to the color of tefillin,” explained Yonatan Adler of Ariel University, who led the study. “Only at a later period did the rabbis rule that tefillin should be colored black. However, even after this, the halakhic authorities continued to debate whether the requirement to color tefillin cases black was an absolute obligation or merely preferable for aesthetic reasons. It is commonly thought that Jewish law is static and does not develop. Our ongoing research on ancient tefillin shows that the exact opposite is true; Jewish law has always been dynamic. In my view, it is this vibrancy that makes halakhah so beautiful.”

The command to “Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads” found in Deuteronomy 6:8 (also mentioned in Exodus 13:9,16 and Deuteronomy 11:18) is commonly interpreted as the source behind the tradition of wearing tefillin, although it is sometimes debated whether this directive was literal. The word tefillin itself is not found in the Hebrew Bible, and it is unclear exactly what was meant to be tied or bound to the worshipers. By the first century CE, however, many early Jews understood the command to be literal and wore tefillin during their prayers. Jesus himself addresses this practice in Matthew 23:5: “[The Pharisees] make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long.”

This article was first published in Bible History Daily on June 22, 2024.

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Dionysus and his retinue on the Caesarea sarcophagus. Courtesy Emil Aladjem, IAA.

While excavating the Herodian city of Caesarea Maritima, archaeologists with the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) made a startlingly beautiful discovery: a marble sarcophagus depicting the famous drinking contest between Heracles and Dionysus. Although similar depictions have been found in Roman-era mosaics, this is the first time the scene has been discovered on a sarcophagus, shedding fascinating new light on Roman perspectives of death in the important biblical city.

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Celebrating Death

Built by Herod the Great (r. 37–4 BCE) and dedicated to the Roman emperor Caesar Augustus, Caesarea was, for a time, one of the most impressive cities in Judea and the entire Roman Empire. It was also in Caesarea that Paul was imprisoned for two years (Acts 23–25). The newly discovered marble sarcophagus is just one example of the city’s wealth, opulence, and firmly Hellenistic culture during the Roman period (c. 37 BCE–324 CE). Roughly 1,700 years old, the sarcophagus was discovered in an area outside the city walls, along with other archaeological remains, indicating the city at the time was significantly larger than previously thought.

Aerial view of the Caesarea excavation. Courtesy Emil Aladjem, IAA.

However, the most remarkable aspect of the sarcophagus is its depiction of Heracles and Dionysus. “It was like a scene out of a movie,” said IAA archaeologists Nohar Shahar and Shani Amit in a statement. “We began removing the soft, light sand of the dune when suddenly the tip of a marble object popped up. The entire excavation team stood around excitedly, and as we cleared more sand, we couldn’t believe what we were seeing—parts of a sarcophagus, upon which figures were carved: gods, animals, and trees. Each uncovered fragment was more impressive than the one before. In fact, in the very last hour of the excavation came the climax—an entire intact side of the sarcophagus, which was buried in the sand, was uncovered, which portrays the scene of Hercules lying on a lion skin, holding a cup in his hand.”

The side of the marble sarcophagus, depicting the scene of Hercules, sprawled on a lion’s skin and holding a cup in his hand. Courtesy Emil Aladjem, IAA.

After being conserved, the whole scene of the Caesarea Maritima sarcophagus was revealed. In the center of one of the long sides stands Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and revelries. Surrounding him is an entourage of maenads, satyrs, lions, tigers, and the gods Hermes and Pan. Meanwhile, on one of the short sides is the mighty hero Heracles, the Greek version of Hercules. In one of his hands is a wine glass, and he is depicted reclining on a lion skin, clearly overcome by drink.

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Various officials standing before the Ostia Mikveh. Courtesy Ministero Della Cultura Italia.

Excavators in the ancient Roman port city of Ostia made an incredible discovery when they uncovered a semi-subterranean Jewish ritual bath, or mikveh. Likely built in the second century CE as part of the Ostia synagogue, the mikveh is the earliest ever discovered outside of the Holy Land, showing the importance of the Jewish community of Ostia, located only 16 miles from Rome.

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Ritual Purity Near Rome

The mikveh consists of a rectangular room with a semicircular apse and three heavily worn stairs leading down into it. The floor of the mikveh had the remains of brick pavement and a drainage system connected to a spring-fed well that ensured continually moving fresh water in line with Jewish purification practices. The walls of the bath were decorated with blue plaster and were framed by a series of columns. Inside the bath, the team also found small statues, a glass goblet, and clay oil lamps decorated with a menorah and lulav, both typical Jewish symbols. The objects date to the fourth through sixth centuries and suggest that the mikveh was in use until late into the Byzantine period (c. 324–634 CE) when Christianity was  the official state religion of the empire.

The discovery of the mikveh strengthens the view of Ostia as a crossroads of cultures. As one of the major ports in the Roman world, the city was a melting pot of cultures. Despite Ostia’s many temples dedicated to Roman gods and a later Christian basilica built by Constantine the Great, the city also boasted a thriving Jewish community. According to Alessandro D’Alessio, director of the Archaeological Park of Ostia Antica, the city was already home to the “oldest known Jewish inscription,” which dates to the first century CE and was discovered in the nearby Pianabella necropolis.

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Aerial view of Philistine Gath. Courtesy Photo Companion to the Bible, Joshua.

Although the Philistines are well known from ancient texts, including the Hebrew Bible, and their cities have been extensively excavated, many questions remain about their culture and religion. A study published in the journal Scientific Reports attempts to provide answers to some of these questions by examining the plant remains from two excavated Philistine temples in the ancient city of Gath, the birthplace of the biblical figure Goliath.

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Gath’s Nature Cult

Examining two successive temples at Gath, which dated from the tenth to ninth centuries BCE, archaeologists identified dozens of plant species, including cereals, fruits, pulses, and herbs. While it is not surprising to find plant remains in an ancient temple, the types and quantities could tell researchers a great deal about Philistine cultic practices. The results of the study indicate the Philistine temple at Gath was likely associated with nature and agriculture. More interestingly, it suggests temple worship had close similarities with later Aegean cults, specifically the cult of Hera, the Greek mother goddess.

Among the plants identified in the temples, several stood out, including the fruit of the chaste tree. Although a local plant, the large quantity of chaste tree fruit is unique in the region and indicates its importance in Philistine cult. The only other region where the fruit took on a religious significance was Greece, where it was used in both Sparta and on the island of Samos as part of the cult of Hera. Numerous loom weights were also found in the temple, suggesting its association with weaving and Asherah, one of the Canaanite mother goddesses.

Flowers of the chaste tree. Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Researchers also discovered the floral remains of crown daisies, which are known to have been used in ancient Greek religion to adorn statues of the goddess Artemis, while flowers were also a common element in the cult of Hera. This is a notable difference from Levantine religions, whose cultic symbolism was focused more on crops and trees. The presence of the chaste tree and the crown daisy could connect Philistine cultic tradition to the wider cult of Aegean and Mycenean mother-goddess worship. The similarities between the Aegean and Philistine religions would be telling, as many scholars believe the Philistines, part of the infamous Sea Peoples, originated in the Aegean.

Other plants discovered in the temples included those used for medicine, food, decoration, incense, and alcohol. Some plants even had psychoactive properties. In addition, researchers found that most of the plants were processed on-site at the temples and, furthermore, that this processing was meant to prepare cultic offerings rather than food products for storage and later consumption. This indicates that plant processing likely played an important role within the Philistine cult.

As the lead researcher, Suembikya Frumin, told the Times of Israel,  “The study revealed that the Philistine religion relied on the magic and power of nature, such as running water and seasonality, aspects that influence human health and life.”

This article was originally published in Bible History Daily on March 1, 2024.

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Eighth-century mosaic of the Tree of Life from Hisham’s Palace in Jericho. Tamar Hayardeni (Tamarah), CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A central feature in the Garden of Eden story, the Tree of Life is one of the Hebrew Bible’s more memorable symbols. But this biblical symbol connects to a much larger ancient tradition, one whose roots extend across the ancient Near East and are reflected in numerous ways throughout the Bible.

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In his article “Symbols of the Goddess,” in the Winter 2024 Issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, biblical scholar Christian Locatell examines one of these roots, looking at how a depiction of the Tree of Life recently excavated at the site of Tel Burna in the Shephelah may have been associated with the Canaanite goddess Asherah.

Tel Burna krater, with Tree of Life imagery. Courtesy Benjamin Yang, Tel Burna Archaeological Project.

The Tree of Life motif, however, dates back to at least the third millennium BCE and existed throughout the Near East. In each culture, the tree took on slightly different meanings, though it always represented life and abundance. Occasional references to the Tree of Life (or similar plants) are even found in Near Eastern literature, including the famous Epic of Gilgamesh, where the eponymous hero dives to the bottom of the sea to retrieve a plant that gives eternal life. Texts from the city of Eridu in southern Mesopotamia also reference the kishkanu tree that was thought to have life-giving powers. According to some scholars, the plant may have been thought to come from Dilmun (modern Kuwait), which many Mesopotamian peoples associated with the Garden of Paradise. Similarly, in Egyptian mythology, according to the Book of the Dead, various trees could grant eternal life to the deceased.

Carved rhyton depicting two ibexes eating from the Tree of Life (c.1000 BCE). Behrouz.rayini, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Tree of Life is frequently found in ancient Near Eastern art, frequently in an idealized or stylized form. Often portrayed as a date palm in Mesopotamia and the Levant and as a fig tree in Egypt, the tree conveyed the abundance and nourishment of the gods. In Mesopotamian and Levantine iconography, the tree is often accompanied by various motifs and images. One of the most common shows the tree flanked by two caprids, likely wild goats or ibex, although other images are found as well, including cherubs, humans, gods, flowers, and astral depictions. Indeed, the walls of Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem were likely meant to represent the Tree of Life and, by extension, the Garden of Eden: “He carved the walls of the house all around about with carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers” (1 Kings 6:29).

A nursing mother under an Egyptian sycamore fig tree. Maler der Grabkammer des Menna, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

In Mesopotamia, the Tree of Life was closely associated with the goddess Ishtar, and at times images of the tree and the goddess were interchangeable, with many hybrid depictions of goddess-trees in which branches sprung from the goddess. Such iconography is also found in the Levant, where the Tree of Life is often associated with Ishtar’s Canaanite counterpart, Asherah (as suggested by the recent discovery at Tel Burna). In addition to other attributes, both goddesses are connected to agricultural blessings and fertility. This branch of the Tree of Life tradition likely shows up again in the Hebrew Bible, connected to the frequently mentioned cultic object known as an asherah, which most scholars believe was a wooden object or pole that represented the goddess of the same name.

During the Iron Age (c. 1200–586 BCE), the Tree of Life came to be associated with male deities as well, especially the chief gods of the various Levantine kingdoms, including Yahweh (Israel and Judah), Chemosh (Moab), and Milkom (Ammon). As such, the tree took on additional political meanings alongside its traditional association with agricultural abundance.

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To learn more about the Tree of Life, and one particular example of this phenomenon excavated at the site of Tel Burna, be sure to read Christian Locatell’s article “Symbols of the Goddess,” in the Winter 2024 Issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.

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A 4,000-year-old temple on the island of Failaka in Kuwait. Courtesy The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Literature, Kuwait.

A joint Kuwaiti-Danish excavation has uncovered a 4,000-year-old temple on the island of Failaka in Kuwait. Belonging to the ancient kingdom of Dilmun, the temple is yet another archaeological find highlighting the importance of this kingdom and its role as an intermediary between Mesopotamia, Oman, and the Indus Valley.

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Worshiping in Ancient Dilmun

Measuring roughly 36 by 36 feet and found alongside a large administrative structure, the building is the second temple discovered on the small island. One wall of the temple had previously been identified through earlier excavations, but with the full temple uncovered, the excavators also discovered numerous stamps seals and pottery fragments that confirmed it belonged to the Dilmun civilization, which occupied much of the Persian Gulf from the late fourth to first millennium BCE.

Although further excavations are needed, the archaeologists hope the discoveries will shed new light on the region’s religious and cultural practices, as well as the ancient history of Kuwait. Stephen Larsen, head of the Danish delegation, emphasized that the temple’s layout holds clues about religious practices during the early Dilmun period, and features altars that would have had ritual and ceremonial significance. The presence of two temples and an administrative building also proves that the small island served as an important religious and administrative center for the kingdom of Dilmun in the early second millennium.

The kingdom of Dilmun held strategic control over the ocean trade routes that connected Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley. Dilmun, which encompassed modern Kuwait, eastern Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain, had much in common with Mesopotamia, its northern neighbor, and spoke a dialect of Akkadian, although it had its own unique pantheon. At times, Dilmun was also directly controlled by Mesopotamian kingdoms and empires.

Dilmun plays a significant role in a number of Mesopotamian myths. In flood myths, the region is the eternal home of Utnapishtim, the Mesopotamian Noah. And in some myths, it is even the location where the creation of the world took place.

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All-Access members, read more in the BAS Library

A BAR Special Report: Archaeology Thriving in Saudi Arabia

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