Queries & Comments

On the New Site Identifications for Sodom and Gomorrah

To the Editor:

I found your September/October 1980 issue most intriguing and would like to ask a few questions which I hope you will be able to answer regarding the story, “Have Sodom and Gomorrah Been Found?” BAR 06:05. Genesis 14:10 speaks of hbrt h\mr, which has been translated “bitumen pits.” Have any of these been found in the area of the ruins or in the Ghor?

When the surface of much of the southern end of the Dead Sea bed was exposed were aerial photos taken of the area which could be used for spotting ruins?

Have sufficient surveys been done to coherently state that there are only five Early Bronze cities in the area? Are there no remains of Middle Bronze or Late Bronze settlements in the Dead Sea area?