Strata: Dig Director Fictionalized

Tel Rehov, an excavation in the Beth Shean Valley south of the Sea of Galilee, is becoming known as the literary dig. Among its senior staff is John Camp, who writes under the name John Sanford; he is one of the world’s best-selling mystery writers (the titles of his novels always contain the word “Prey”). Now a long-time volunteer at the dig has also tried his hand as a novelist, albeit with less success.

Jim Lever’s novel, Ophrah’s Gate,¹ centers on an archaeological excavation named Tel Kefar, a barely concealed Tel Rehov. Many figures well known in the archaeological world are referred to by name in the novel, often given fictional dialog. Others are given barely falsified names. For example, Israel Antiquities Director Shuka Dorfman is Shmuel Dormann.

The real dig director of the Tel Rehov excavation is a prominent archaeologist from The Hebrew University, Amihai Mazar. In the novel, he is named Moshe Benjamin. When I telephoned Mazar, he answered the phone. “Moshe Benjamin?” I asked.