This study concentrates on Philistine decorated pottery, its production centres and trade patterns. These issues are examined by both archaeological and archaeometric approaches. Over recent years, a considerable amount of data has been accumulated on Philistine sites, especially from the excavations at Tel Miqne-Ekron, and the new excavations at Ashkelon and Tell es-Safi. Thus, although a vast literature already exists on the Philistines, their material culture and related issues, there has been very little study that systematically combines all this data.

English summary: The Philistines were immigrants from the Aegean region and Cyprus arriving at the southern coast of Palestine/Israel during the 12th century BCE. They created a distinct material culture in this region during the Iron Age (ca. 1.200-600 BCE). This book presents and discusses the corpus of iconographic representations of the Philistine culture. The assemblage studied includes objects in various media: decoration on pottery, figurative pottery, figurines, ivory carving, glyptics and other items. The figurative style and symbolism represented in the culture of the Philistines reflects both their bonds with their Aegean homeland and the ongoing process of interactions with the local host cultures in the southern Levant. Iconography thus provides an important set of evidence for understanding social, ethnic, religious and ideological aspects of the Philistine society and its neighbours in the East Mediterranean. German description: Die Philister waren Migranten aus der Agais und Zypern, die sich wahrend des 12. Jahrhunderts v.Chr. an der Sudkuste Palastinas/Israels ansiedelten. Wahrend der Eisenzeit (ca. 1200-600 v.Chr.) entwickelten sie eine distinguierte Kultur. David Ben-Shlomo prasentiert und diskutiert den Bestand der ikonographischen Darstellungen der Philisterkultur. Die Untersuchung schliesst verschiedenartige Objekte ein, u.a. Tonmalereien, Statuen, Eisenschnitzereien, Glyptik. Der figurliche Stil und der Symbolismus spiegelt sowohl die Ruckbindung der Philisterkultur an die agaische Heimat als auch den laufenden Prozess der Interaktion mit den lokalen Gastkulturen in der sudlichen Levante eindrucklich wider. Die Ikonographie liefert so ein bedeutendes Zeugnis, das die sozialen, ethnischen, religiosen und ideologischen Aspekte der Philister und ihrer Nachbarn im ostlichen Mittelmeerraum besser zu verstehen hilft.

This well-illustrated volume presents the evidence from Stratum Pre-IC of the end of the 8th century, from Strata IC and IB of the 7th century, when Ekron achieved the zenith of its physical growth and prosperity, and from Stratum IA, the final Iron Age IIC phase of the early 6th century BCE. It offers a detailed discussion of the Iron Age IIC occupational history; a comprehensive analysis of the ceramic assemblages; a quantitative analysis of the pottery from the main Stratum IB buildings; and studies on vessel capacity, ceramic, lithic, ivory, and metal objects, jewelry, scarabs, faunal remains, and fish bones. Published under the auspices of the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East, this volume concludes the publication of the results of the nine seasons of excavation conducted in Field IV Lower between 1985 and 1995, directed by Trude Dothan and Seymour Gitin and sponsored by the W. F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Companion volumes published in 2016: —Field IV Lower—The Elite Zone, Part 1: The Iron Age I Early Philistine City by Trude Dothan, Yosef Garfinkel and Seymour Gitin; —Part 3A: The Iron Age I and IIC Early and Late Philistine Cities Database (see links tab); —Part 3B: The Iron Age I and IIC Early and Late Philistine Cities Plans and Sections The final reports on the two large Iron Age I and IIC Philistines cities in Field IV Lower offer a comprehensive view of the history of Ekron from its initial establishment and development in the Iron Age I until its destruction in the late Iron Age II. The searchable database and print version of the sections and plans provide a unique opportunity for readers to access and evaluate the excavators’ observations and conclusions.

Tel Miqne-Ekron Field IV Lower—The Elite Zone, The Iron Age I and IIC, The Early and Late Philistine Cities, Parts 9/1-9/3B present the evidence of two large Philistines cites, one in Iron I, the period of its initial development, and the other in Iron IIC, its final stage when it achieved its zenith of physical growth and prosperity. They also offer a unique opportunity to check and evaluate the excavators' observations and conclusions based on their comprehensive database. Published under the auspices of the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East, they comprise the final reports of the nine seasons of excavations during the years 1985-1995, directed by Trude Dothan and Seymour Gitin and sponsored by the W. F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research and the Hebrew University. Volume 9/1, The Iron Age I Early Philistine City covers Strata VII-IV, the 12th-early 10th centuries BCE. It includes a detailed discussion of the occupational history of the period with a comprehensive analysis of the ceramic assemblages and a selection of ceramic, lithic, clay, and metal objects with detailed discussions of jewelry, scarabs and ivory objects, as well as the faunal evidence. Volume 9/2, The Iron Age IIC Late Philistine City, which presents the evidence from Stratum I of the 7th and early 6th century BCE, is in press. Volume 9/3B The Iron Age I and IIC Late and Early Philistine Cities Plans and Sections includes every plan and section of each excavated Area in Field IV Lower.

This is the first monograph dedicated to the site of Socoh in the Judean Shephelah. Our research was initiated in 2010 as an intensive survey by the Institute of Archaeology, Southern Adventist University, and the Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The study incorporates historical sources that are listed and analyzed, including the Bible, ancient Near Eastern, Byzantine, and Medieval records. A history of the research conducted over the past 190 years by explorers, geographers, and archaeologists is compiled, before providing the full report on the results of an intensive site survey conducted at Socoh in 2010. Finally, specialized studies of the finds and a report of recent salvage excavations of burial caves, looted by antiquity robbers nearby, give a state-of-the-art presentation of the latest information known about this important biblical site in southern Judah.