Ancient Canaan and Israel: New Perspectives (Understanding Ancient Civilizations) by

Jonathan

M.

Golden

(PDF)

Description

Ancient Canaan and Israel takes readers beyond the scriptural portrayals of the region and into the everyday lives of Canaanites and Israelites. It draws on recently discovered archaeological evidence and fresh interpretations of biblical and extrabiblical texts to show how archaeologists and other researchers reconstruct the many facets of these civilizations―political, geographic, social, economic, religious, technological, and aesthetic.For experienced scholars or enthusiastic newcomers, it is an enlightening portrayal of the people and the land of Canaan and Israel, which traces many well-known spiritual and cultural traditions back to their ancient roots. It is also an objective introduction to a number of much-debated topics, such as the fate of the Canaanite cultures, the origins of the Israelites, and the historical accuracy of the Bible.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: Review “Golden presents a balanced, nonjudgmental synopsis of scholarly opinion on the culture, faith, and fate of biblical Israel . . . In sum, a well-crafted primer to the life and time of ancient Israel.” ― American Reference Books Annual About the Author Jonathan M. Golden is adjunct professor of anthropology at Drew University, Madison, NJ.

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Jonathan Golden’s textbook summarizes the human geography (not history) of the ancient civilizations of Canaan, Philistia, and Israel/Judah. After introducing the region’s landscape and history of archeological ‘discovery’, the author presents a broad outline of the Levant’s cultural rise and fall which he then fills in, in successive chapters, not chronologically or by culture but by sub-discipline – economics, social organization, politics, religion, and material culture – each chapter resetting the clock to the Chalcolithic period and proceeding through Bronze and Iron Age developments. The effect is one of layering, of retelling the same story from different points-of-view. A five-page sidebar on the difficulty of distinguishing ethnicity in Canaan/Israel, another on the historicity of Israel’s King David, and the final chapter’s consideration of ‘biblical archeology’ introduce some of the challenges and controversies in the study of ancient Israel.Not unexpectedly given the nature of the archeological data, ancient Israel does emerges as the lead character with Egypt, Philistia, and Phoencia playing supporting roles. The author references the biblical story where relevant but has no apparent theological agenda. Major figures on all sides of related academic debates are referenced. There are few detailed footnotes to enable follow-up or confirmation, but each chapter concludes with resources for further study. The book also includes a 75-page briefly-annotated bibliography.Despite its grade-school textbook cover (which I was embarrassed to take out in public), the book is geared to lay adult readers. The prose is clear and matter-of-fact, and the book’s illustrations – many of them personal photos, hand-drawn images of artifacts (why?), and five crude maps, credited to the author – are in black and white and of incidental value at best. The book suffers grievously for lack of an adequate map. It also lacks any discussion of the Hebrew language, this despite a lengthy section on the Canaanite invention of the alphabet. I also discovered a handful of errors and mistaken biblical references a copy editor should have checked and corrected.Overall I found the work a helpful supplement to books on the history and archeology of the region, though I wondered if the material might have been organized differently to better effect.

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