This chapter is presented from the perspective of a professional archaeologist who specializes in Greek archaeology, intercultural contact and exchange, and the ethics of cultural heritage. His chapter investigates the mandates for discard and “design for demise” of space objects in the wider context of cultural phenomena from all cultures. The…[Read more]

The site of Morgantina, located on a ridge in the rolling landscape of east-central Sicily about 60 km from the Ionian Sea coast, has been the locus of continuous archaeological investigation
since 1955 (fig. 1).1 The ridge controlled the western end of the fertile Plain of Catania and stands above the source of the Gornalunga River. Farther…[Read more]

Research has been carried out since 2002 on domestic material of the 5th century BC from the site of Morgantina, located in the hills of east-central Sicily. Two settlements have been uncovered at Morgantina: one on the Cittadella hill, reportedly destroyed in 459 BC (according to Diodorus), and the other on the adjoining Serra Orlando ridge,…[Read more]

This paper evaluates the recent upsurge of interest in the scribal processes underlying the composition of Hittite ritual text and the implications of this evidence for understanding the compositional history of biblical rituals.

A brief report on my dissertation research.

A brief report on my dissertation research.

Syllabus for my course Jewish and Christian Scriptures at Augustana College. Most students who take the course are non-majors, and they take it to fulfill their “Christian Traditions” requirement. I focus on reading primary sources (both biblical and extra-canonical), supplementing with Bible Odyssey materials and pre-recorded online lectures.

Argues that, reversing the trope of subjects visiting the magnificent, the Elohistic history has Yahweh interested in the simplest, flimsiest altars only, which he will visit when and where he is invited to do so. The implication rules out temple-altars and temples for their royal sponsorship.

Argues that, reversing the trope of subjects visiting the magnificent, the Elohistic history has Yahweh interested in the simplest, flimsiest altars only, which he will visit when and where he is invited to do so. The implication rules out temple-altars and temples for their royal sponsorship.

Analyzes Isaiah 40–48 as a single literary work through levels of speakers (frame and subordinate) with implications for its construction of divine potency and communication.

In this study the authors analyse archaeological materials belonging to two Coțofeni
settlements in Rotbav, Brașov County, at La Pârâuț and Unghiul Gardului. Structures of habitat and
material culture in these two settlements are discussed, with an emphasis on pottery. The material is
studied in terms of typology and decoration, the auth…[Read more]

Encyclopedia entry on the concept of the “Neolithic Package”.

A short history of work at Göbekli Tepe and an overview of the UNESCO Worls Heritage List nomination process.

Hoard finds appear throughout the European Bronze Age with distinct chronological and chorological peaks. While there is some consensus on seeing hoards as an expression of cultic behaviour, especially the large ‘scrap metal’ hoards still provoke interpretations as raw material collected for recycling. With socketed axes whose sockets were int…[Read more]

Although their early evolution is largely obscure, socketed axes are among the most numerous artefacts of
the Southeastern European Late Bronze Age. They seem to appear all at once in a horizon of hoards conventionally
parallelized with the Central European Bz D phase. Some researchers have tried to explain this sudden occurrence as
the result…[Read more]

An extensive preliminary report on Göbekli Tepe´s Enclosure H – in German.

This article analyzes the primary terms for purity in Biblical Hebrew, Ugaritic, Sumerian, Akkadian and Hittite. Building on insights from cognitive linguistics and embodiment theory, this study develops the premise that semantic structure – even of seemingly abstract concepts– is grounded in real-world bodily experience. An examination of pur…[Read more]

This article challenges the common tendency in modern research to treat impurity
as a religious phenomenon divorced from mundane concerns. Employing the
cross-cultural psychological notion of “contagion,” this investigation examines
the usage of terms for pollution and purity in Hittite and Akkadian as they relate
to distinct domains of hum…[Read more]

In this study, I apply embodiment theory as a framework for reconstructing the origins of the Israelite notion of pollution (ṭum’ah). Despite the fact that the Hebrew Bible describes a diverse array of sources of pollution – including bodily conditions, moral offenses and foreign cult practices, most modern studies attempt to find a single organ…[Read more]