Classics Commons^™

Khallat Abu ḤAlaḥ: The Ceramic Assemblage, Neer Lect Ben Ami

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

This report details the ceramic assemblage recovered from excavations at Khallat Abu Ḥalaḥ. The pottery spans from the first to the tenth centuries CE, with the majority dating to the Late Roman and Byzantine periods. The assemblage includes various vessel types, mostly from unstratified contexts. The pottery indicates strong commercial ties with other Southern Levantine coastal and inland sites. The variety of finds suggests the site was a domestic structure, possibly a farmstead, within the economic sphere of Byzantine Caesarea.

The Perry-Campbell Collection: An Analysis Of Byzantine And Roman Coins, Samuel A. Skokan

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

The Anthropology Collections of the Nebraska State Museum are home of the Gladys G. Perry Campbell and Iain Colin Gordon Campbell (I. C. G. Campbell) coin collection, which consists of an estimated 4,000 coins that date between the 1^st century BC to the 15th century AD. The collection consists of bronze coins (91%+) and billon (alloy) coins that represent low-denomination currency of the Roman and Byzantine Empires. There are approximately 3,200 Byzantine and 750 Roman coins. This study focused solely on the Byzantine coins of the Collection, to document their chronological range and research value. The collection can support …

Between Sde Boker And Mitzpe Ramon: Passing Bays, Highway 40, A-10140/2025, Nofar Lary

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In September 2025, a trial excavation was conducted on Highway 40 (Permit No. A-10140; map ref. 174894-9185/518274-31301; Fig. 1), within preparation for the construction of passing bays. The excavation, conducted on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Netivei Israel, was directed by N. Lary, with the assistance of T. Sapir (photography, field director), Y. Alamor (administration), A. Montagu (GPS, plans, and model), D. Varga (pottery), D. Degen-Eisenberg (consultant), S. Talis, G. Seriy, I. Radashkovsky, and A. Fraiberg (Southern District), along with laborers under contractual employment.

Tiberias: Glass Finds And Production Debris, Yael Gorin-Rosen

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

Around 300 glass fragments, along with glass industry waste, were found in the Tiberias excavation. About half were diagnostic and represented several periods: Early Roman, Late Roman to early Byzantine, Byzantine to late Byzantine and Early Islamic. Nine vessels and a stirring rod are illustrated and discussed, while others are mentioned in the text. The glass artifacts discovered during the excavation correspond to well-known types from Tiberias and its surrounding areas, as well as from a broader distribution. Most were likely produced locally, as evidenced by workshop debris found in this and other excavations in Tiberias, and supported by written …

The Mosaic Programs Of The Basilica Of San Vitale And The Great Palace Of Constantinople: A Unique Reinvention Of Roman Pasts, Justine Spencer

University Honors Theses

The Church of San Vitale and the Great Palace of Constantinople offer remarkable examples of artistic productions in early Byzantine mosaics. Bridging from the same Roman past they reinvented a classical medium with their unique interpretations of earlier traditions. They exemplify the diversity of Byzantine artistic productions that could coexist within the same medium and era. The mosaics of the Great Palace were part of a secular governmental public space and found deep in the heart of the Eastern Roman Empire. The mosaics of the Church of San Vitale were made for the domain of the newly reconsecrated Orthodox church …

An Early Byzantine Ecclesiastical Complex At Ashdod-Yam: Correlating Geophysical Prospection With Excavated Remains, Yaniv Darvasi, Alexander Fantalkin, Paul Brindza, Amotz Agnon

Physics Faculty Publications

In this study we show the successful deployment of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) together with Electrical Resistivity Surveys (ERS) in guiding the archeological excavations at Ashdod-Yam (southern coast of Israel). This approach enabled the precise identification of excavation targets relating to an Early Byzantine ecclesiastical complex located in a residential neighborhood of the modern city of Ashdod. Applied over the course of five years, the combined use of GPR and ERS, interspersed with phases of archeological excavation, not only facilitated an efficient exploration but also ensured the preservation of valuable historical structures. The geophysical data, corroborated by drone images of …

Secular Architecture: Domestic, Carolyn S. Snively

Ancient Greek and Roman Studies Faculty Publications

The geographic focus of this discussion of Byzantine domestic architecture, from the late fourth to fifteenth centuries, will be on the Balkans and Asia Minor. Although more dwellings exist than any other type of structure within a settlement or outside it, emphasis has often been on large public buildings or the peristyle house rather than the range of housing units and their multifunctional nature. Those who study domestic architecture tend to look at palaces and other grand and richly decorated structures; only recently has attention been paid to lower-class and rural dwellings.

The chances of excavation often dictate our knowledge …

Translation And Evolution: Byzantine Monastic Studies Since Ca. 1990, Hannah Ewing

Faculty Publications

While monks were integral parts of the long‐lasting Byzantine world, Byzantine monasticism and its study can be relatively obscure to nonspecialists, given the diversity of monastic forms practiced in the empire. This piece presents a brief primer on Byzantine monastic studies and evaluates key scholarship in this increasingly vigorous field. In particular, it assesses the major impact of critical editions and primary‐source translation projects since the 1990s and 2000s, including both archival materials and hagiography. Furthermore, it evaluates the current state of the field and outlines several opportunities and directions for further research.

The Rock-Cut Room On The Acropolis At Golemo Gradište, Konjuh: Date And Purpose, Carolyn S. Snively

Ancient Greek and Roman Studies Faculty Publications

The anonymous city at the site of Golemo Gradište at the village of Konjuh, R. Macedonia, belongs to the period of Late Antiquity; the evidence indicates that it was founded in the 5th century. The lower town on the northern terrace was reconstructed, probably during the second quarter of the 6th century, but the inhabitants abandoned it, for the most part, later in that century and fled for refuge to the acropolis, where a settlement continued to exist into the early 7th century. Earlier material, beginning with the Late Neolithic and continuing sporadically through Bronze Age to Hellenistic, has been …

The Little Metropolis: Religion, Politics, & Spolia, Paul Brazinski

Honors Theses

There have been numerous councils throughout the Catholic Church?s history. From the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE to Vatican II in 1962, only a few centuries have passed without any major church doctrinal change. Following hand in hand with changes in doctrine came the bifurcation of the Christian Church into the Roman CatholicChurch and the Orthodox Church. The first split came in 325 CE with Arianism. Arius of Alexandria and his followers did not agree with the Catholic Church?s viewpoint that the son, Jesus, should be on equal footing with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Constantine the …

Fiscalité Et Société En Égypte Byzantine, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

This large volume gathers a fraction of Jean Gascou's scholarly output, including only those papers concerned with the themes announced by its title.

Ha-Tayassim Road, Tel Aviv, A-3764/2002, A-4683/2003, Yoav Arbel

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In 2002 and 2003, excavations were conducted at a 5.5 dunams plot between Ha-Tayassim Road and Tslilei Hanina Street (Permit Nos. A-3764, A-4683; map ref. 182517-58/661650-81), under the direction of Giora Parnos. The site is located on a natural hill approximately 30 meters above sea level, on the third kurkar ridge of the central coastal plain. It is surrounded by fertile soil and lies near the main road connecting Jaffa and Jerusalem.

'Die Binnenwanderung’ In Byzantine Egypt, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

I first met John Oates in the fall semester 1966 at Yale. I was a second-year graduate student, he a junior faculty member just back from a year in England during which his projects included what was to become his famous article “A Rhodian Auction Sale of a Slave Girl” (JEA 55 [1969] 191–210). From the ancient history seminar that he conducted that semester came the ideas that would later be developed in the dissertation I wrote under Bradford Welles’ direction. Unless I am mistaken, and through no merit of my own, but sheer good fortune, I own the distinction …

Kefar Gevirol A-1714/1990, Eran Shavit

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In August 1990, a salvage excavation was conducted at Kefar Gevirol (map. ref. 1790/6445) under the direction of E. Shavit, following the discovery of architectural remains during construction activities. Several rooms belonging to a building dated to the Byzantine period were uncovered.

Evidence For The Byzantine Army In The Syene Papyri, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

For more than seventy-five years, the standard work on the Roman army in Byzantine Egypt has been Jean Maspero's Organisation militaire de l'Egypte byzantine. Maspero's book was published in 1912, when the contents of the Syene papyri were as yet imperfectly known. At that time, Maspero had available for study of the Syene papyri: one London facsimile; an edition and reduced facsimile of a second London piece; one fully edited Munich papyrus; Wenger's "preliminary report" (Vorbericht) and its Munich papyrus extracts; and some additional information about the London papyri through correspondence with their assigned editor, Harold Bell.

P.Laur. Iv 169: Fragmentary Constitution Of Constantine?, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The editor in introducing the text points out the interest of its consular dating (A.D. 326) and the difficulty of making much out of the first two lines. It appears that the fragment's third and fourth lines are being construed as the dating clause from an otherwise ordinary Arsinoite document (intro. with nn, to lines 3 and 4); but there are some oddities that suggest that this is not so, and, further, that there is more to the fragment than first meets the eye.

The Aphrodite Papyri And Village Life In Byzantine Egypt, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The nearly one thousand years during which Egypt was characterized by a Greek-speaking elite have by papyrologists and historians traditional;y been divided into three periods: the Ptolemaic, which marks its beginning with Alexander’s invasion in 332 B.C.; the Roman, which begins with Octavian’s reduction of Alexandria in 30 B.C.; and the Byzantine, which starts with Diocleatian’s accession in A.D. 284 and ends with the Arab invasion of A.D. 639. The Greek papyri recovered from ancient Egypt’s cemeteries and waste heaps, whether by supervised excavations or by the less formal ‘excavations’ of the sebakh-diggers, especially toward the end of the nineteenth …

Two Byzantine Papyri From The Michigan Collection, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Purchased in the Fayûm in 1925, this papyrus contains the top part of a petition addressed by one Philoxenus possibly (far from certainly) to the governor of the province of Arcadia; see line 3 note. Surviving are (in part) the address (lines 1-4); a short proem (lines 5-8), virtually complete; and the beginning of the narrative of events leading up to the petition (lines 8-13). On palaeographic grounds I should be inclined to assign this piece to the sixth century. The address is written in a large, grand, up right hand, which decreases in thickness by the beginning and apparently …

From The Archive Of Flavius Eulogius And His Descendants, James G. Keenan

Classical Studies: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The trends in Byzantine papyrological documentation and the archival origin of much of the papyrus evidence for Byzantine Egypt were at the XIth International Congress of Papyrology subjects of an instructive discussion by Professor R. Remondon. Evidence for late Byzantine Egypt to no small degree consists of extensive archives of private origin, chief among these being the archives of Dioscorus of Aphrodito and of the Apiones of Oxyrhynchus. Study of these archives, the identifying of individual pieces as belonging to archives, and the reconstructing of smaller archives from scattered pieces are necessary and profitable fields of scholarly endeavor in Byzantine …

Jerusalem, Nahal Raqafot (Bayit Ve-Gan Neighborhood) A-593/1975, Amos Kloner, Yosef Gat

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In December 1975 and early 1976, an excavation was conducted in Jerusalem at Naḥal Raqafot (Bayit ve-Gan neighborhood; map ref. 21829/62980), under the direction of A. Kloner and Y. Gat. The excavation was undertaken following the discovery of a cave during preparations for the construction of a college. The cave, which was damaged during the development works, comprised a single chamber.

Jerusalem, Giv’At Shapira A-551/1975, Renee Sivan

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In 1975, an excavation was conducted in the neighborhood of Giv’at Shapira in Jerusalem (map ref. 2229/6347). Three burial caves were exposed.

Ma’Alul A-399/1973, Gershon Edelstein

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In February 1973, a trial excavation was conducted in the area of the village of Ma’alul near Nahalal (map ref. 222/733), under the direction of G. Edelstein. A one-day inspection was carried out, following the discovery of a mosaic.

Beit She’An, West Of The Northern Cemetery, Pinchas Porat

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In 1970 or 1972, an excavation was conducted 300 m west of Beit She'an's northern cemetery (Unknown Permit number; map ref. unknown), following the discovery of a sarcophagus during earthworks. The excavation, on behalf of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, was directed by P. Porat.

Kafr Yasif A-305/1971, Vassilios Tzaferis

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In August 1971, an excavation was conducted at the village of Kafr Yasif in the Western Galilee under the direction of V. Tzaferis, with the assistance of F. Hasson. Within the courtyard of a private residence, a rock-cut burial cave was uncovered.

Be’Er Sheva A-201/1969, Dubi Yosef

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In April 1969, a salvage excavation was conducted in Be'er Sheva, near the power station east of the Dereh Eilat road (map ref. 1808/5719), following ground leveling work. The excavation, on behalf of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, was directed by D. Yosef.

Be’Er Sheva A-126/1967, Yael Israeli

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In February–March 1967, an excavation was conducted in the center of the city of Be'er Sheva (map ref. unknown), under the direction of Y. Israeli. Remains of a Byzantine church and tombs were uncovered.

Ha’Goshrim A-64/1965, Gideon Foerster

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In May 1965, a salvage excavation was conducted at Kibbutz Ha’Goshrim (map ref. unknown), following the discovery of four burial caves. The excavation, on behalf of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, was directed by G. Foerster, with the assistance of Sh. Moskowitz (surveying).

Qiryat Tiv‘On A-23/1964, Refael Givon

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In 1964, an excavation was conducted in Qiryat Tiv‘on (map ref. 2105/7353), following the discovery of a building during the laying of foundations for the Institute of Music at Oranim College. The excavation, on behalf of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, was directed by R. Givon. The building was identified as a granary. The building had a pear-like shape. No diagnostic finds were recovered.

Tiberias A-5/1963, Adam Druks

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In June–August 1963, an excavation was conducted in Tiberias (map ref. unknown), following the discovery of the remains of a basilica during the laying of the pipeline of the salty springs water. The excavation, on behalf of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, was directed by A. Druks, with the assistance of V. Tzafiris, Y. Sokolovsky, Sh. Kiriti (foreman) and M. Feist (surveying).

Rehovot A-13/1962, Asher Ovadia

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In August–September 1962, a trial excavation was conducted in Rehovot, on the grounds of the Weizmann Institute, following the discovery of pottery on the surface (map ref. unkown). The excavation, on behalf of the Department of Antiquities and Museums, was directed by A. Ovadia.