Archaeology of Jesus' Nazareth

191 Pages·2023·5.513 MB·English

by  Ken Dark

ARCHAEOLOGY OF JESUS’
NAZARETH

A RCH A EOL OGY
OF J E SUS’
NA Z A R ET H
KEN DARK
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2022941521
ISBN 978–0–19–286539–7
DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780192865397.001.0001
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Preface: Purpose, Sources, and References
Nazareth— today a small city in the Galilee region of northern Israel— is
most famous, of course, for being where the Gospels say that Jesus Christ
grew up and lived in the early first century ad. It might be imagined that
this would have attracted many archaeologists to work in Nazareth. But, in
fact, Nazareth was largely neglected by archaeologists between the early
1970s and the start of my own work on its archaeology in 2004.
This book is written to explain what, after eighteen years of research,
I think we know, or can reasonably figure out, about early first- century
Nazareth and its immediate vicinity. Almost all of the information we have
about this subject, outside of the Gospels, is from archaeology, hence the
book’s title.
It is more specifically designed to answer the most frequent questions
about my work on Nazareth that I have been asked by people who aren’t
archaeologists. It is also intended to clear up some misunderstandings about
it, deriving mostly from media reports.
As such, although it contains new interpretations which may be of inter-
est to professional archaeologists, historians, and experts in biblical studies,
the primary purpose of this book is to explain, to readers other than archae-
ologists, research that has so far been published mainly in an academic man-
ner. Hopefully, this will lead to a new understanding of what archaeology
really shows us about early first- century Nazareth (‘Jesus’ Nazareth’).
For that reason, the present book brings together information from three
of my earlier academic publications. Chapter 2 is based on my 2020 book
Roman- period and Byzantine Nazareth and its Hinterland, and the remainder is
based on my book The Sisters of Nazareth Convent, published the following
year, and my 2016 Henry Myers Lecture to the Royal Anthropological
Institute, ‘Returning to the Caves of Mystery’. This was also published in
2020 in the academic archaeology journal Strata.
My two earlier books cover a much wider time span than the present
work. Here only evidence concerning the first century ad— or, although
vi Preface: Purpose, Sources, and References
later, evidence that is of significance to understanding first- century
Nazareth— is discussed. Anyone interested in Byzantine— that is, fifth- to
seventh- century ad— or later Nazareth and its immediately surrounding
landscape may consult those two books.
It is an indication of how little archaeological attention has been paid to
Nazareth since the fieldwork on which my two earlier books were based
that there are only five more recent publications, and five brief online
reports of Israel Antiquities Authority fieldwork— given in the References
section— relevant to this book.
Three of the publications establish that limestone vessels—l ike pottery
cups and other containers, but made out of stone—w ere manufactured for
longer in the Roman period than previously thought. These don’t affect the
arguments and interpretation in my earlier books or those given here.
The very interesting recent paper on the ‘Nazareth Inscription’ shows
that I and others were almost certainly right in supposing that it has nothing
to do with Nazareth. It is discussed at the appropriate point in Chapter 2.
David Fiensy’s book, written from the perspective of a biblical scholar, is
less directly relevant to Nazareth but includes a few examples drawn from
Nazareth’s archaeology (for example, the photo—F igure 4.7— on page 96).
It offers an interesting context into which to put the interpretations dis-
cussed in Chapter 6 here, and is worth reading for anyone seeking informa-
tion about the first- century Holy Land.
The References section includes full references to my three earlier publi-
cations and these more recent works. It also contains books which help to
put my own work in the context of other studies of Nazareth’s archaeology
and that of the region of Galilee (also called ‘the Galilee’) in which Nazareth
is situated.
Preface: Purpose, Sources, and References vii
Sea of
Galilee
Sepphoris
Nazareth
Beth Shean
n
a
e
n
a
r
er
dit
e
M
Jerusalem
0 50 km
Figure 0.1. Map of the Holy Land, with the principal places mentioned in this
book indicated. From The Sisters of Nazareth convent. A Roman-period, Byzantine and
Crusader site in central Nazareth, 1st ed., by Ken Dark, copyright 2021 by Imprint;
reproduced by permission of Taylor & Francis Group.
viii Preface: Purpose, Sources, and References
D
E A B
Casa NCova
0 50m 100m
Figure 0.2. The city centre of Nazareth, showing: A = Sisters of Nazareth convent;
B = Church of the Annunciation complex; C = Casa Nova hostel; D = Synagogue
Church; E = Anglican church. Drawn by Ifan Edwards for the Nazareth
Archaeological Project, based on the city of Nazareth map of the Israel National
Survey. From The Sisters of Nazareth convent. A Roman-p eriod, Byzantine and Crusader
site in central Nazareth, 1st ed., by Ken Dark, copyright 2021 by Imprint. Reproduced
by permission of Taylor & Francis Group.
Preface: Purpose, Sources, and References ix
N
Line of Arch
A
C
B
Crypto
0 10m
Figure 0.3. Convent plan and location of its ‘Cellar’. A = convent chapel;
B = convent museum; C = modern stairway to Cellar. Drawn by Ifan Edwards for
the Nazareth Archaeological Project. From The Sisters of Nazareth convent. A Roman-
period, Byzantine and Crusader site in central Nazareth, 1st ed., by Ken Dark, copyright
2021 by Imprint; reproduced by permission of Taylor & Francis Group.