Season 10: S02 WO4 | Summary — "The final week of excavations..."
- Bethsaida-Julias Staff
- 1 hour ago
- 4 min read
As we moved into the final week of excavations, the pace picked up. You don’t want to run out time and leave that unearthed stratum or artifact for next year. Right on time, the temperatures soared. But we marshalled on through the heat and fatigue determined to make the most of our efforts.
Below I will give what I think are some of the more important advances that have been made this summer in our aim to understand more fully Bethsaida-Julias in the Roman period (1-3 centuries CE). Thankfully, all the squares (D, F, G) reached the Roman level.
And as usual, the evidence from the past varied from square to square in both quality and quantity. You have no control over whether there will be Herodian lamp, a stone vessel, a hoard of coins, or perhaps only fragmented pieces of pottery where you dig. In some ways, archaeology is an exercise of chance. Or in Motti Aviam's version: Archaeology is full of surprises. Nevertheless, what we try to take into account is the accumulation of collected evidence from all the squares that paints a portrait of the historical profile of the ancient site. That picture is becoming clearer with each season.
In the half square of Area H, we sought to answer the question of whether the Ottoman period Syrian owner of Beit Habek had built his stables and granary on earlier Roman structures, using their stones as a foundation – as he did in another location on the remains of an ancient synagogue. What we found, surprisingly, was that the foundation of the wall to the stable in Area H is floating (i.e., no substantial foundation beneath the walls). We are a bit surprised that the wall did not collapse or crack in time. Although not a particularly happy end, in this instance, a negative answer still gives us an answer.
After the first week, we finished our work in Area H and moved to Area F. These two squares are intended to expand upon the large Roman period structure of unknown purpose that was uncovered to the west last summer. What we found were a multitude of levels and phases of constructions – with house walls and a taboon. Hopefully in October we can continue to dig down in this area to reach the level attained by the Russian team last summer. I’m still looking for a few good volunteers to assist!
Area D expanded upon what in the last few seasons has produced the richest finds. In the two weeks that our friends from Hong Kong and Israeli volunteers worked in this area, they continued to find Roman period walls, a basalt mortar (grinding stone), coins, and a fascinating half Doric capital that likely decorated a public building. We will resume work here in October. There is more in this area to uncover and there may be additional hints of earlier Hellenistic settlement.
The most remarkable area this summer was Area G, which we opened last October. Most of the Lipscomb University students were assigned here and what wonderful treasures they discovered. We have had taboons in other squares but not preserved in such great condition as the one in Area G, together with an attached ceramic vent. Several hordes of coins were uncovered – a substantial part of the total of over 150 coins found this summer. These coins assist us in dating various strata and defining the history and development of the site. A discus lamp and three intact Herodian lamps – the latter of which were only made in Jerusalem pre-70 CE - are good indications of the first century Jewish presence at Bethsaida-Julias.
Indeed, in all the squares we found pieces of chalk stoneware, one of the definitive markers for a Jewish presence. As I have shared previously, it seems that even after Herod Philip transformed this Jewish fishing village from Bethsaida to a Roman-period polis called Julias, it retained its dominant Jewish character. The scores of fishing weights discovered in all the squares mean that the fishing industry remained a staple of the city’s economy.
I will quickly add that one should not jump to the conclusion that these were impoverished fishermen - as NT scholarship so often depicts them. At Bethsaida-Julias we have uncovered evidence of frescoed walls and beautiful glassware. Motti Aviam’s excavations at Yodfat with its frescoed residence already began to challenge scholarship's assumptions regarding the north. The results of this excavation will continue to challenge the oft-repeated mistaken notion in scholarship that that Galilee and the north were a backwater of poor, illiterate peasants.
The evidence of the Gospels is that Jesus and those who heard him were anything but illiterate, and the archaeological evidence indicates that the towns and villages where he travelled were thriving, even under Roman occupation.
If any of this interests you, consider joining us this autumn – when the temperatures will be a bit cooler as we continue our efforts to uncover the last, lost city of the Gospels: Bethsaida-Julias.
— R. Steven Notley, Academic Director
