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Press release
for The Great Debate
Prominent Archaeologists to Debate Historicity of the United Monarchy
5/2/03: For
Immediate Release
Esoteric
though it may sound, one of the most important issues in biblical
archeology today is the status of the United Monarchy in the 10th
century BCE.
Was this a time, as is generally
believed, when David consolidated the nation established by Saul,
Solomon built the great temple in Jerusalem, and the wealth of
this powerful kingdom dominated the economy of the region?
Or was it instead a period of emerging
statehood with the glorious years still to come -- not under David
and Solomon -- but under Omri and Ahab instead?
These opposing views will meet head-on
when two of most prominent archaeologists working in the field
today meet at UCLA on June 1 to discuss what has become the one
of the most controversial questions in biblical archaeology: Was
the United Monarchy an extensive and well-developed state during
the tenth century?
Professor Israel Finkelstein of
Tel Aviv University thinks not and, in support of his view, will
elaborate on his proposed 'low chronology', which places David
and Solomon in a time when Jerusalem and the surrounding area
were only beginning to emerge into statehood. Using evidence of
monumental architecture, population distribution, and pottery
typology, Finkelstein will seek to show that in the tenth century
the United Monarchy did not yet have the resources to administer
a fully developed state. Indeed, Finkelstein believes, it is Omri
and Ahab, the Israelite kings of the later Divided Monarchy, who
should be credited with building the monumental palaces at Megiddo
where Finkelstein has co-directed excavations over the past 10
years.
An alternative view based on the
so-called traditional chronology will be presented by Professor
Lawrence Stager of Harvard. Suggesting that there is evidence
for a an important community in Jerusalem in the tenth century,
and that the types of pottery on which Finkelstein bases his argument
may have been in use for a longer period of time than Finkelstein
believes, Stager will seek to show that there could have been
a centrally-administered state under David and Solomon, complete
with international trade and monumental architecture. Much of
the 'chronology' argument is based on so-called Philistine pottery,
which is greatly in evidence at the former Philistine site of
Ashkelon, where Stager has conducted excavations since 1985.
The discussion will center on the
following questions: Was there a David? Who was Solomon? What
can we know about the origins of the ancient Israelite state from
archaeology? How do the Bible and archaeology in the Middle East
intersect?
The debate will begin at 1 p.m.
in Moore Hall, Room 100 on the main UCLA campus. It is expected
to conclude at about 4:30 and will be followed by a wine and cheese
reception. Tickets at $15 each will be sold at the door. There
will be no advance ticket sales.
The
Great Debate is sponsored by three UCLA departments: the Dept.
of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, the Cotsen
Institute of Archaeology, and the Center
for Jewish Studies; and by the American Schools of Oriental
Research (ASOR) in Boston.
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