From Nomadism to Monarchy?

Using current theoretical frameworks and taking into account new excavation data and methodologies from the natural sciences, the seventeen essays in this volume examine the archaeology of the Southern Levant during the early Iron Age and the ways in which the period may be reflected in biblical accounts. The variety of methodologies employed and the historical narratives presented within these contributions illuminate the multifaceted nature of contemporary research on this formative period.

Building upon Finkelstein and Na’aman’s seminal study, this work provides an essential update. It will be welcomed by ancient historians, scholars of early Israel and the early Iron Age Southern Levant, and biblical scholars. In addition to the editors, the contributors to this volume are Eran Arie, Erez Ben-Yosef, Cynthia Edenburg, Israel Finkelstein, Yuval Gadot, Assaf Kleiman, Gunnar Lehmann, Defna Langgut, Aren M. Maeir, Nadav Na’aman, Thomas Römer, Lidar Sapir-Hen, Katja Soennecken, Dieter Vieweger, Ido Wachtel, and Naama Yahalom-Mack.

Ido Koch is Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at Tel Aviv University. He is the author of Colonial Encounters in Southwest Canaan During the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age.

Oded Lipschits is Professor of Jewish History in the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near East Studies at Tel Aviv University. He was named Laureate of the EMET Prize in the field of Archaeology in 2022.

Omer Sergi is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near East Studies at Tel Aviv University. He is coeditor of Saul, Benjamin, and the Emergence of Monarchy in Israel: Biblical and Archaeological Perspectives.

Contributors

Preface

Introduction Ido Koch, Oded Lipschits and Omer Sergi

1. Paleo-environment of the Southern Levant during the Bronze and Iron Ages: The Pollen Evidence Dafna Langgut and Israel Finkelstein

2. Animal Subsistence Economy during the Late Bronze-Iron I: Continuity vs. Change Lidar Sapir-Hen

3. From Production Autonomy to Centralization: The Iron I to Iron IIA Transition from a Metallurgical Perspective Naama Yahalom-Mack

4. The Northern Coastal Plain during the Early Iron Age (Iron I – Early Iron IIA) Gunnar Lehmann

5. Sixty Years after Aharoni: Iron Age Settlements in the Upper Galilee Ido Wachtel

6. Beyond Hazor: Urban Durability, Political Instability and Collective Memory in the Northern Jordan Valley at the Turn of the Second Millennium BCE Assaf Kleiman

7. Canaanites in a Changing World: The Jezreel Valley during the Iron Age I Eran Arie

8. Transitions between the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age II: The Character of the Iron I Settlement at Tall Zirāʿa in Northern Jordan Dieter Vieweger and Katja Soennecken

9. Iron I Settlements in the Highlands of Samaria and the Creation of Group Identities with an Emphasis on Mount Ebal Yuval Gadot

10. The Formation of the Israelite Monarchies in Archaeology, History and Historiography Omer Sergi

11. Like Frogs out of a Pond: Identity Formation in Early Iron Age Philistia and Beyond Aren M. Maeir

12. Collapse and Regeneration in Late Second Millennium Southwest Canaan Ido Koch

13. A False Contrast? On the Possibility of an Early Iron Age Nomadic Monarchy in the Arabah (Early Edom) and Its Implications for the Study of Ancient Israel Erez Ben-Yosef

14. The Book of Josiah or the Book of Joshua? Excavating the Literary History of the Conquest Story Cynthia Edenburg

15. The Origin, Function and Disappearance of the Ark of the Covenant according to the Hebrew Bible Thomas Römer

16. The Scope of the Pre-Deuteronomistic Saul – David Story Cycle Nadav Na’aman

17. The Rise of Ancient Israel: The View from 2021 Israel Finkelstein

Index of Geographic Names

Index of Subjects

Index of Modern Authors

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