Bethlehem in the Bronze and Iron Ages in the light of recent discoveries by the Palestinian MOTA-DACH

The discovery of the necropolis of Khalet al-Jam’a, around 2.2 Km south-east of Bethlehem (Nigro et al. in this volume), provides new data on the Bronze and Iron Age town which controlled the main route connecting Jerusalem to Hebron, and the access to the wadiat crossing the southern Judean desert and leading to the coastal plain. Intermediate Bronze Age/Early Bronze IV, Middle Bronze shaft tombs, and at least two major Iron II burial caves (Tomb A7 and the Barmil’s Tomb) excavated by the Palestinian MOTA-DACH in an Iron Age cemetery allow to draw up a renewed picture of Bethlehem and its environs and give the opportunity to re-appraise its long history

Tell es-Sultan 2015. A pilot project for archaeology in Palestine

The eleventh season (April–June 2015) of the archaeological investigation and site protection as well as valorization of the site of Tell es-Sultan was carried out by the University of Rome “La Sapienza” (under the direction of the present writer) and the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities – Department of Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (directed by Jehad Yasine) with the aims to: (1) re-examine several of the historical archaeological highlights of this longstanding site and (2) make the site accessible and appealing to the public through restorations and a large set of illustrative and explanatory devices set up with the help of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Jericho Municipality, and to make the site an inclusive part of the Jericho Oasis Archaeological Park (JOAP: www.lasapienzatojericho.it/JOAP)