Biblical Archaeology Review (BAR) is a publication that seeks to connect the academic study of archaeology to a broad general audience seeking to understand the world of the Bible and the Near and Middle East (Syro-Palestine and/or the Levant

Levant

The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...

). Covering both the Old

Old Testament

The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...

 and New Testament

New Testament

The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....

s, BAR presents the latest discoveries and controversies in archaeology. BAR's writers include leading scholars and researchers. BAR is published by the non-denominational Biblical Archaeology Society

Biblical Archaeology Society

The Biblical Archaeology Society is a non-denominational organization that supports and promotes biblical archaeology. It publishes Biblical Archaeology Review. Its past publications included Bible Review and Archaeology Odyssey . The Biblical Archaeology Society also publishes books about...

 and edited by the Society's founder Hershel Shanks

Hershel Shanks

Hershel Shanks is the founder of the Biblical Archaeology Society and the editor of the Biblical Archaeology Review and has written and edited numerous works on Biblical archaeology including the Dead Sea Scrolls....

. Biblical Archaeology Review is the largest paid-circulation magazine in the field of biblical archaeology, thanks to its reader-friendly approach. BAR publishes the views of a wide variety of archaeological viewpoints. For example, BAR has published such authors as Lawrence Stager

Lawrence Stager

Lawrence E. "Larry" Stager is Dorot Professor of the Archaeology of Israel in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University and is Director of the Harvard Semitic Museum...

, Kenneth Kitchen

Kenneth Kitchen

Kenneth Anderson Kitchen is Personal and Brunner Professor Emeritus of Egyptology and Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool, England...

, Alan Millard

Alan Millard

Alan Ralph Millard is Rankin Professor Emeritus of Hebrew and Ancient Semitic Languages, and Honorary Senior Fellow , at the School of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology in the University of Liverpool....

, William Dever

William G. Dever

William G. Dever is an American archaeologist, specialising in the history of Israel and the Near East in Biblical times. He was Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Arizona in Tucson from 1975 to 2002...

, Israel Finkelstein

Israel Finkelstein

Israel Finkelstein is an Israeli archaeologist and academic. He is currently the Jacob M. Alkow Professor of the Archaeology of Israel in the Bronze Age and Iron Ages at Tel Aviv University and is also the co-director of excavations at Megiddo in northern Israel...

, and Bryant G. Wood

Bryant G. Wood

Bryant G. Wood is a Young Earth creationist and biblical archaeologist and Research Director of the inerrantist Associates for Biblical Research. He is known for his 1990 proposed redating of the destruction of Jericho to accord with the biblical chronology of c. 1400 BC. The proposal was later ...

.

The story of the so-called "James Ossuary

James Ossuary

The James Ossuary is a 2,000-year old chalk box that was used for containing the bones of the dead. The Aramaic inscription: Ya'akov bar-Yosef akhui diYeshua is cut into one side of the box...

" was first published in the pages of Biblical Archaeology Review; it was discussed by founding editor Hershel Shanks

Hershel Shanks

Hershel Shanks is the founder of the Biblical Archaeology Society and the editor of the Biblical Archaeology Review and has written and edited numerous works on Biblical archaeology including the Dead Sea Scrolls....

 and Ben Witherington III

Ben Witherington III

Ben Witherington III is an American evangelical Biblical scholar, and professor of New Testament Studies.Witherington is Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky.-Education:...

 in "The Brother of Jesus: The Dramatic Story & Significance of the First Archaeological Link to Jesus & His Family" (2003).

Other journals published by the Society have included Bible Review

Bible Review

Bible Review was a publication that sought to connect the academic study of the Bible to a broad general audience. Covering both the Old and New Testaments, Bible Review presented critical and historical interpretations of biblical texts, and “reader-friendly Biblical scholarship” from 1985 to...

(1985–2005), merged into Biblical Archaeology Review after 2005, and Archaeology Odyssey (1998–2006).

Issues

The contents listed below are intended as a general reference and are not exhaustive.

Issue	Date	Cover stories	Additional content
v23 #3	5/6 1997	Light on Zion Zion Zion is a place name often used as a synonym for Jerusalem. The word is first found in Samuel II, 5:7 dating to c.630-540 BCE...  - Where the Essenes Essenes The Essenes were a Jewish sect that flourished from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE which some scholars claim seceded from the Zadokite priests...  Lived in Jesus Jesus Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity... ' Time	Moses Shapira Moses Shapira Moses Wilhelm Shapira was a Jerusalem antiquities dealer and purveyor of fake Biblical artifacts. The shame brought about by accusations that he was involved in the forging of ancient biblical texts drove him to suicide in 1884...
v23 #4	7/8 1997	Face to Face But Not Eye to Eye - Biblical Minimalists Meet Their Challengers	Iron Age Iron Age The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...  Jerusalem, Megiddo Megiddo (place) Megiddo is a tell in modern Israel near Megiddo Kibbutz, known for its historical, geographical, and theological importance especially under its Greek name Armageddon. In ancient times Megiddo was an important city-state. Excavations have unearthed 26 layers of ruins, indicated a long period of...
v23 #5	9/10 1997	Lawrence of Arabia T. E. Lawrence Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Edward Lawrence, CB, DSO , known professionally as T. E. Lawrence, was a British Army officer renowned especially for his liaison role during the Arab Revolt against Ottoman Turkish rule of 1916–18...  as Archaeologist Archaeology Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
v23 #6	11/12 1997	Searching for Roman Ancient Rome Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....  Jerusalem	Mizpah Mizpah Mizpah or Miz'peh may refer to:* one of several places in ancient Israel:** Mizpah in Benjamin, a city near Jerusalem** Mizpah in Gilead , the place where Laban overtook Jacob on his return to Canaan... , royal rosette Rosette (decoration) A rosette is a small, circular device that is presented with a medal. The rosettes are primarily for situations where wearing the medal is deemed inappropriate. Rosettes are issued in nations such as France, Italy and Japan... s, Josephus Josephus Titus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of... , Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple, was the main temple in ancient Jerusalem, on the Temple Mount , before its destruction by Nebuchadnezzar II after the Siege of Jerusalem of 587 BCE....  receipt, Hadrian Hadrian Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
v24 #1	1/2 1998	Volunteer's View - The 1998 Dig Issue	Qumran Qumran Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia... , Banias Banias Banias is an archaeological site by the ancient city of Caesarea Philippi, located at the foot of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights...
v24 #2	3/4 1998	Illuminating Byzantine Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...  Jerusalem	Babatha Babatha Babatha was a Jewish woman who lived in the port town of Maoza in modern day Jordan at beginning of the 2nd century CE. In 1960, archeologist Yigael Yadin discovered a leather pouch containing her personal documents in what came to be known as the Cave of Letters, near the Dead Sea... , Dead Sea scrolls Dead Sea scrolls The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name... , David David David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...  & Solomon Solomon Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...  chronology
v24 #3	5/6 1998	Samaritan Samaritan The Samaritans are an ethnoreligious group of the Levant. Religiously, they are the adherents to Samaritanism, an Abrahamic religion closely related to Judaism...  or Jewish? You make the Call	Egypt Egypt Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world... ian Canaan Canaan Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan... , Dead Sea scrolls, Israelite exile History of ancient Israel and Judah Israel and Judah were related Iron Age kingdoms of ancient Palestine. The earliest known reference to the name Israel in archaeological records is in the Merneptah stele, an Egyptian record of c. 1209 BCE. By the 9th century BCE the Kingdom of Israel had emerged as an important local power before... , Seal of Ahaz Ahaz Ahaz was king of Judah, and the son and successor of Jotham. He is one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew....
v24 #4	7/8 1998	The Only Relic from Herod's Temple	David's Jerusalem, silver Silver Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...  from Dor Dor Tel Dor , is an archeological site located on Israel's Mediterranean coast, about 30 km south of Haifa. Lying on a small headland at the north side of a protected inlet, it is identified with D-jr of Egyptian sources, Biblical Dor, and with Dor/Dora of Greek and Roman sources...
v24 #5	9/10 1998	The Face of Canaan - Life and Death in Deir el-Balah Deir el-Balah Deir el-Balah or Dayr al-Balah is located in the central Gaza Strip and is the capital or muhfaza of the Deir el-Balah Governorate...	High place High place High Place, in the English version of the Old Testament, the literal translation of the Hebrew במה .This rendering is etymologically correct, as appears from the poetical use of the plural in such expressions as to ride, or stalk, or stand on the high places of the earth, the sea, the clouds, and... s, 1st century stone quarry Quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement... , Ekron Ekron The city of Ekron , was one of the five cities of the famed Philistine pentapolis, located in southwestern Canaan. Ekron lies 35 kilometers west of Jerusalem, and 18 kilometers north of ancient Gath, on the eastern edge of Israel's coastal plain.-History:...
v24 #6	11/12 1998	New Questions About Masada Masada Masada is the name for a site of ancient palaces and fortifications in the South District of Israel, on top of an isolated rock plateau, or horst, on the eastern edge of the Judean Desert, overlooking the Dead Sea. Masada is best known for the violence that occurred there in the first century CE...	Shroud of Turin Shroud of Turin The Shroud of Turin or Turin Shroud is a linen cloth bearing the image of a man who appears to have suffered physical trauma in a manner consistent with crucifixion. It is kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, northern Italy. The image on the shroud is...
v25 #1	1/2 1999	Dive In! The 1999 Dig Issue	Jerusalem's water system in David's time Warren's Shaft Warren's Shaft is an archaeological feature in Jerusalem discovered in 1867 by British engineer Sir Charles Warren . It runs from within the old city to a spot near the Gihon Spring, and after its 19th century discovery was thought to have been the centrepiece of the city's early water supply... , Egyptian David reference, Israelite Israelite According to the Bible the Israelites were a Hebrew-speaking people of the Ancient Near East who inhabited the Land of Canaan during the monarchic period .The word "Israelite" derives from the Biblical Hebrew ישראל...  life in Egypt
v25 #2	3/4 1999	Seal of an Assassin - Ammonite King Plotted Murder of Judah's Governor Gedaliah According to the Hebrew Bible, Gedaliah was appointed by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon as governor of Yehud province, which was formed after the defeat of the Kingdom of Judah and the destruction of Jerusalem, in a part of the territory that previously formed the kingdom. He was supported by a...	Hazor Hazor (archaeological site) Tel Hazor , also Hatzor, present day Tell el-Qedah, is a tell above the site of ancient Hazor, whose archaeological remains are the largest and richest known in modern Israel. Hazor was an ancient city located in the Upper Galilee, north of the Sea of Galilee, between Ramah and Kadesh, on the high... , Seal of Hezekiah Hezekiah Hezekiah was the son of Ahaz and the 14th king of Judah. Edwin Thiele has concluded that his reign was between c. 715 and 686 BC. He is also one of the most prominent kings of Judah mentioned in the Hebrew Bible....
v25 #3	5/6 1999	Who Destroyed Hazor?
v2x #x	5/6 2005	Was Noah's Ark a Sewn Boat?	Sennacherib Sennacherib Sennacherib |Sîn]] has replaced brothers for me"; Aramaic: ) was the son of Sargon II, whom he succeeded on the throne of Assyria .-Rise to power:...