New Distributed Titles Fall 2009 - Oxbow Books

Historical Biblical Archaeology and the Future
The New Pragmatism
edited by Thomas E Levy
This volume reflects the major changes happening today in the historical archaeology
of the Holy Land. Whereas traditional Biblical archaeology was a highly descriptive
and subjective discipline, Historical Biblical Archaeology and the Future represents
a fundamental paradigm shift brought about by the application of objective
science-based dating methods, Geographic Information Systems, anthropological
models, and an array of computer-based and digital technology tools. This volume
can serve as a model for how researchers in other regions of the world can investigate
the relationship between ancient texts and the archaeological record. Using
their own research projects, the scholars contributing to this volume show how their work can be used to build a foundation
for future research in Biblical archaeology, Ancient Jewish history and Biblical Studies.
352p, 60 illus, Equinox Publishing, November 2009. Paperback, 9781845532581, $39.95; hardback, 9781845532574, $130.00(s)
The Emergence of Israel
in Ancient Palestine
Historical and Anthropological
Perspectives
by Emanuel Pfoh
Taking advantage of critical methodology and
the use of anthropological insights and ethnographic
data from the modern Middle East, this
study aims at providing new understandings
on the emergence of Israel in ancient Palestine
and the socio-political dynamics at work in
the Levant during antiquity. The book begins
with a discussion of matters of historiography
and history-writing. Chapter 2 evaluates the
methodology used by biblical scholars. Chapter
3 deals with the archaeological remains usually
held as clear evidence of Israelite statehood.
Chapter 4 continues with the discussion on how
anthropological models should be employed for
history-writing. The final chapter attempts to
provide an historical explanation regarding the
emergence of Israel in ancient Palestine without
relying on the Bible but only on archaeology,
epigraphy and anthropological insights.
192p, hardback, 9781845535292, $95.00,
Equinox Publishing, September 2009,
Copenhagen International Seminar.
the ancient near east
The Madaba
Plains Project
Forty Years of Archaeological Research in Jordan’s Past
edited by Douglas R Clark, Larry G Herr, Øystein S LaBianca
and Randall W Younker
The Madaba Plains Project is one of the longest-lived, continuously running archaeological
excavation projects in the Middle East. The project directors, wishing
to celebrate this major scientific and historical milestone, have produced
this anniversary volume, which highlights the value of ongoing collaborative
research across the region of central Jordan, attempting to explain life and survival
from the Bronze ages through the Islamic and early modern periods and
features the latest results from ongoing research within the context of ancient Near Eastern archaeological research.
288p, 91 b/w illus, hardback, 9781845535148, $100.00, Equinox Publishing, November 2009.
Early Bronze Age Goods Exchange
in the Southern Levant
A Marxist Perspective
by Ianir Milevski
This volume provides an overview of all the commodities of the Early Bronze
Age of the Southern Levant for which we know their sources and distribution.
But this is not just a survey or a simple list of finds. Included are methodological
discussions of several topics which make original contributions regarding the
interpretation of production centers and the way the goods arrived to the distribution
points. The volume emphasizes the internal economic developments in
the early history of the Southern Levant that can be studied using archaeological
sources in the framework of modern theories of human development.
320p, 54 figs & maps, hardback, 9781845533786, $115.00, Equinox Publishing, December 2009,
Approaches to Anthropological Archaeology.
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