Archaeological Excavations In the Middle East
Presented by:
Richard J. Karam, J.D.

So why all the excitement about digging up the past? Well, if the archæological dig is in the Middle East or Egypt, it is BIG, because since civilization on this earth began in the Middle East and Egypt, a dig in the right spot may uncover the earliest evidence of ancient civilization, maybe 5000 years old, or more. A dig even in the wrong spot, could easily uncover artifacts 1000 years old or so, and that's not bad for a dry hole. To archaeologists, the Middle East is a treasure trove of incredible potential the proportions of which are not seen any where else in the world. Overlapping this phenomena is the fact that the Bible also has its geographic setting in the area, and some of the earliest time-line events come to us from the Bible. To the world's 3 billion Christians, Moslems and Jews, the Middle East is of primary importance, both historically and religiously. Consequently, it is no wonder that the sciences of Biblical Archaeology and Syro-Palestinian Archaeology are fast developing parallel fields of science.

In the Holy Land today, countless digs have been commissioned in the quest of reconstructing biblical as well as social history. There are at least 30 major digs ongoing in Israel at this time, several in Lebanon and several in Syria. Many of the workers are volunteers from American universities who register for the privilege of working at one of the major sites. Many of those workers are well versed in the early Semitic languages of Syriac, Aramaic, Phoenician and Hebrew. What is happening today on a major scale is the reconstruction of the entire history of the area, including the early history of the Syrian and Lebanese people, and their predecessors, the Canaanites.

A dig presently receiving a lot of coverage in the syndicated press is the excavation at Hazor, an ancient Canaanite city about 9 miles north of the sea of Galilee. This city was first settled in the 27th century B.C. and became a major center for commerce in tin, silver, gold, and precious stones because it was located along a central trade route between Egypt and Babylon.

The excavations so far have unearthed a wealth of information about life in the Canaanite period which lasted from the 18th to 13th Century B.C., but the finds thus far are considered to be the tip of the iceberg. The Hebrew University professor who heads the excavation, Amnon Ben-Tor, said that the artifacts discovered to date (3000 year- old multiplication tables, etc.) point to the existence of two royal archives at the site located in the yet to be excavated palace rooms. Ben-Tor states that "the tablets discovered so far are in my opinion the most important of all documents found in this country". If Ben-Tor is correct about uncovering royal archives in the palace rooms sometime next year, it could indeed be the find of the century.