May 2, 2017

Epiphanian Literature Beyond Greek: The Multilingual Textual Afterlives of Epiphanius

Armenian manuscript at Tübingen (Ma XIII 93) - ff. 283r begins Epiphanius’ On the Gems in Aaron’s Breastplate — Armenian manuscript at Tübingen (Ma XIII 93) - ff. 283r begins Epiphanius’ *On the Gems in Aaron’s Breastplate*

"These extra-Greek survivals of Epiphanian texts underscore the important place of, at a minimum, an awareness of these other languages and the activity of translators, and at best, facility in reading and understanding one or more of these languages. They remind us likewise of how far, linguistically speaking at least, the name and fame of Epiphanius had spread, and much the same might be found for many other writers included in the pages of CPG. "

May 1, 2017

Between Mesopotamia and Qumran: Cuneiform Literature and Jewish Aramaic Texts of the Second Temple Period

by Henryk Drawnel in Articles

Pallas Athena and Aegis surrounded by the moon's cycle. Vatican Museum.

Dr. Henryk Drawnel on cultural competition and critique between Mesopotamia and Qumran.

April 25, 2017

Pliny’s Prices: Signs of Economic Thought in the Early Empire

by David B. Hollander in Articles

"Mosaïque des échansons", du IIe siècle ap. J.-C., provenant de Dougga, au Musée national du Bardo (Tunisie) - Pascal Radigue (2001) - Wikimedia Commons

"Ultimately, while Pliny clearly had an eye for prices, the actual numbers he provides aren’t especially useful. His discussions of price formation, however, do give us considerable insight into the way the market functioned in Pliny’s time as well as into Pliny’s ‘economic thought’. In various places Pliny mentions the role of supply and demand, changes in fashion, lying salesmen and other forms of fraud, as well as labor costs."

April 24, 2017

The Inception and Idiom of the Apocalypse in the Qumran Aramaic Texts

by Andrew Perrin in Articles

"The New Jerusalem" number 80 from 'The Apocalypse of Angers', 1373-87 (tapestry) by Nicholas Bataille. Photograph by Kimon Berlin, CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0, via Wikimedia Commons — "The New Jerusalem" number 80 from 'The Apocalypse of Angers', 1373-87 (*tapestry*) by Nicholas Bataille. Photograph by Kimon Berlin, CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Dr. Andrew Perrin on the origins of the apocalypse in ancient Judaism.

April 17, 2017

Aramaic Tobit at Qumran

by Devorah Dimant in Articles

"Tobias' and Sara's Wedding Night" by Jan Havicksz Steen ca. 1626 – 1679 in Museum Bredius

Dr. Devorah Dimant on marriage, demons, burials, and halakhah in Tobit and Qumran.

April 12, 2017

Theorizing “the Ancient Economy”: Three Paradigms

by Thomas R. Blanton IV in Articles

Conrad Cichorius: "Die Reliefs der Traianssäule", Zweiter Tafelband: "Die Reliefs des Zweiten Dakischen Krieges", Tafeln 58-113, Verlag von Georg Reimer, Berlin 1900

"In the field of classical studies, the 2008 publication of The Cambridge Economic History of the Greco-Roman World has effectively ushered in a post-Finleyan era in the study of Greco-Roman economies by incorporating methods developed in the field of New Institutional Economics. In what follows, we examine representative samples of three emergent methodological trends: (1) the turn toward New Institutional Economics in studies of Greece and Rome; (2) Roland Boer’s model of the economy of ancient Israel; and (3) K. C. Hanson and Douglas Oakman’s social-scientific approach in New Testament studies."

April 10, 2017

The Aramaic Language of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Why it Matters and What Lies Ahead

by Daniel Machiela in Articles

Genesis Apocryphon Scroll (1QapGen) © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem

Dr. Daniel Machiela on the linguistic makeup Aramaic at Qumran and the Bible.

April 5, 2017

Dissertation Spotlight: Allan Georgia

by Allan Georgia in Articles

Vincent van Gogh - Wheatfield with Crows (1890) Wikimedia Commons

"Rarely does the evidence available in textual remains invite us to see the underlying, generative way that conflict and competition textured religious cultures in the late ancient world. This study is an attempt to read Jewish and Christian history in the 2nd-3rd centuries, CE by and seeing the points of overlap and confrontation that can be seen beyond the frame."

April 3, 2017

The Choice of Aramaic and Hebrew: Ideological Considerations

by Jonathan Ben-Dov in Articles

Persepolis tablets with Aramaic. The Oriental Institute, University of Chicago — Persepolis tablets with Aramaic. The Oriental Institute, University of Chicago

Dr. Jonathan Ben-Dov on the ideology of language choice in ancient Judaism

March 27, 2017

Entreaty and Emotion, Theory and Texts: Studies in Second Temple Jewish Prayers

by Andrew Krause in Articles

Andrew Krause’s review on emotion and theory in ancient Jewish prayer texts.

March 22, 2017

Dissertation Spotlight | Nathalie LaCoste

by Nathalie LaCoste in Articles

The River Nile. Michael Gwyther-Jones, 2008.

"Water was not simply part of the background of Jewish experiences in Egypt; rather, it was central to their lives as they developed new perspectives towards the land."

March 20, 2017

The Evolution and Experience of Repentance at Qumran

by Carmen Palmer in Articles

Dr. Carmen Palmer reviews Jason Mark on repentance and religious experience at Qumran.

March 13, 2017

Sociolinguistics and the Hodayot (Thanksgiving Hymns)

by Michael Johnson in Articles

Michael Johnson reviews Hasselbalch’s sociolinguistic approach to the the Hodayot.

March 8, 2017

Unexpected Influences | Beth Berkowitz and Ishay Rosen-Zvi

by Ancient Jew Review in Articles

Beth Berkowitz and Ishay Rosen-Zvi share a book that was an "unexpected influence" upon their academic work.

March 6, 2017

War, Violence, and Peace in the Dead Sea Scrolls

by Mike DeVries in Articles

The War Scroll By Matson Photo Service - American Colony Jerusalem (Library of Congress)

Mike DeVries on the Abegg Festshcrift: war, peace, and violence in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

March 1, 2017

Why Do We Do This? : A Response to Recent Works on Epiphanius

by Lewis Ayres in Articles

Ancient Salamis, Cyrpus Source: Wikimedia Commons

"Is there something fundamentally flawed or unhelpful about that intellectual judgment? By turning attention toward these other factors, are our authors actually seeking to problematize the style of intellectual history that does intrinsically judge who is the deeper, the more imaginative, the more coherent thinker?"

February 27, 2017

The Growth of Texts at Qumran: A Forum

by Ancient Jew Review in Articles

AJR and @TWUDSSI’s first forum celebrating the 70th anniversary of the discovery of the Qumran scrolls with pieces by Reinhard Kratz, Drew Longacre, Menachem Kister, Charlotte Hempel.

February 27, 2017

The Community Rule Manuscript Tradition from Qumran and the Growth of Ancient Jewish Texts

by Charlotte Hempel in Articles

Community Scroll Photo © Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by David Harris

Dr. Charlotte Hempel on tracing the complex textual evolution of 1QS. Celebrating #DSSat70 with @twudssi.

February 22, 2017

Combating Heresy: Attending to Violence in Epiphanius' Panarion

by Rebecca Lyman in Articles

Benozzo Bozzoli, Fall of Simon Magus — Benozzo Bozzoli, *Fall of Simon Magus*

"These violent images of the punishment and execution of dehumanized and embodied cognitive errors are the signs of a religious movement marked by dissent and disorder. Epiphanius, therefore, gives us a shameless and corporeal fantasy of exactly what is not happening in 370s after Julian and under the policies of Valens: the defeat and mastery of all error, whether idolatry or heresy. The contemporary proliferation of spiritual violence called forth the shameless exorcist, who fused disputation with death. "

February 20, 2017

The Multiple Faces and Phases of Texts at Qumran: Growth, Expansion, and Rewriting in Community Documents

by Menahem Kister in Articles

The Damascus Document, in the Library of Congress.

Dr. Menahem Kister on the phases and faces of Qumran sectarian writings.