Chicago & Albuquerque

[This post is from an archive; the original message was sent Sat 1/24/2004 11:46 AM. Visit www.lmlk.com/research/lmlk_zur.htm to see the Beth Zur handles & www.lmlk.com/research/lmlk_zur.htm to see the Albuquerque handles.]

I had a very productive week examining the Beth Zur handles in Chicago & obtaining permission to add my photos to the website. I also located a slew of rare publications at UChicago's library & consequently didn't have time to visit the Oriental Institute, but the professor who assisted me said their Israel section was closed for renovation anyway. No big surprises or discoveries from Beth Zur--all x2D; no x4x & no indication that any of the x2x were x2U. This harmonizes with the notion that Zur was established after Sennacherib's invasion contra to Vaughn et al. It was so exciting to see original correspondence between Sellers, Albright, & Israeli officials regarding the excavation along with their drawings in the original record book used in the field!

At Albuquerque I attended a pottery lecture/demo & had fun attempting to make a Type 484 handle! I have a better understanding now of the "pulling" technique, although I think "stroking" would have been a better term to use because if all you do is pull it, it'll form cracks & tear--hence the ribs. They say they're going to fire it in their kiln & send it to me so you can expect pictures of it in the future. The museum there is terrific! They have tons of excellent replicas mixed with some genuine artifacts including 10 unprovenanced handles that I'll be noting on the website sometime soon, & I'll eventually add photos too. Unfortunately none of them are rare or unique. Amihai Mazar was fabulous! He lectured for 3 hours on archaeological evidence during the Late Bronze Age to support Biblical records contra to Finkelstein & even took a jab at Ussishkin, which surprised me. Then he discussed evidence for Solomon's reign & focused on his recent work at Tel Rehov. All I can say about Amihai is that it's very easy to love him & it was an honor to meet him & thank him in person for all he's done for me.

The only additional corrections necessary to the 12-31-03 template based on my trip affect the S2DW whose left oval & left wing-tip need to be brought closer to the center by about 1mm.

G.M. Grena