Biblical Archaeology Review is the flagship publication of the Biblical Archaeology Society. For more than 40 years it has been making the world of archaeology in the lands of the Bible come alive for the interested layperson. Full of vivid images and articles written by leading scholars, this is a must read for anyone interested in the archaeology of the ancient Near East.
Recent excavations have shown that one of these “towers” described by Strabo is in fact the fortified peak Cypros on the south side of the Wadi Kelt less than a mile west of Alayik; further excavation will probably show that the other tower is the peak opposite Cypros on the north side of the Kelt (Nuseib Uweishira).
See “American ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ Dies,” BAR 02:01, for an obituary of Phillips.
In the most recent season of excavation, four additional ashlars which originally belonged to the altar were found on the slope of the glacis in front of the gate. That is, the altar stones were found directly below the building with the stairs, which, Yadin told me, suggests that they originally came from the building with the stairs.
Y. Aharoni, “Notes and News—Tel Beersheba,” Israel Exploration Journal, Vol. 24, p. 271. The building which is supposed to have replaced the temple was a large secular building which Aharoni calls the “basement house” because most of it was originally underground. According to Aharoni “Prior to the construction of the [basement house], the whole area was dug out and only then were the walls erected on bedrock.”
In the center of the room the main channel narrows as it continues toward the innermost part of the building. During this past excavating season, as a result of Yadin’s suggestion, this drainage system was re-explored. This reconfirmed that the narrow channel marked in previous plans led into the main larger channel; the latter starts near the stairs.
