Lawrence "Larry" Stager, Dorot Professor of the
Archaeology of IsraelThe archaeology of Israel covers a period of over three millenniums of documented history. The ancient Land of Israel was a geographical bridge between the political and cultural centers of Mesopotamia and Egypt. Despite the importance of the country to three major religions, serious archaeological...
and head of the
Harvard Semitic MuseumThe Semitic Museum at Harvard University was founded in 1889, and moved into its present location at 6 Divinity Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1903....
in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and currently comprises ten separate academic units...
has overseen excavations under the Leon Levy Expedition to
AshkelonAshkelon or Ashqelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Bronze Age...
, the great Philistine port city, since 1985, as well as
CarthageCarthage refers both to an ancient city in present-day Tunisia, and a modern-day suburb of Tunis. The civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic or Carthaginian...
. Professor Stager teaches courses in
Syro-Palestinian archaeologySyro-Palestinian archaeology is a term used to refer to archaeological research conducted in the southern Levant. Palestinian archaeology is also commonly used in its stead, particularly when the area of inquiry centers on ancient Palestine...
and
Hebrew BibleThe Hebrew Bible is a term referring to the books of the Jewish Bible as originally written mostly in Biblical Hebrew with some Biblical Aramaic...
at
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and currently comprises ten separate academic units...
and is an active professional member of the
American Schools of Oriental ResearchThe American Schools of Oriental Research, founded in 1900, supports and encourages the study of the peoples and cultures of the Near East, from the earliest times to the present. It is apolitical and has no religious affiliation...
(ASOR).
Prior to teaching at Harvard, he was professor of Syro-Palestinian
archaeologyArchaeology or archeology is the science that studies human cultures through the recovery, documentation, analysis, and interpretation of material culture and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, biofacts, and landscapes...
at the
Oriental InstituteOriental Institute may refer to a number of institutes of Oriental studies:United States* Oriental Institute, Chicago, part of the University of ChicagoEngland* Oriental Institute, Oxford, part of the University of Oxford...
and the Department of
Near EastNear East today is an ambiguous term that covers different countries for archeologists and historians, on one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
ern Languages and Civilizations at the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
.
Lawrence "Larry" Stager, Dorot Professor of the
Archaeology of IsraelThe archaeology of Israel covers a period of over three millenniums of documented history. The ancient Land of Israel was a geographical bridge between the political and cultural centers of Mesopotamia and Egypt. Despite the importance of the country to three major religions, serious archaeological...
and head of the
Harvard Semitic MuseumThe Semitic Museum at Harvard University was founded in 1889, and moved into its present location at 6 Divinity Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1903....
in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and currently comprises ten separate academic units...
has overseen excavations under the Leon Levy Expedition to
AshkelonAshkelon or Ashqelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Bronze Age...
, the great Philistine port city, since 1985, as well as
CarthageCarthage refers both to an ancient city in present-day Tunisia, and a modern-day suburb of Tunis. The civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic or Carthaginian...
. Professor Stager teaches courses in
Syro-Palestinian archaeologySyro-Palestinian archaeology is a term used to refer to archaeological research conducted in the southern Levant. Palestinian archaeology is also commonly used in its stead, particularly when the area of inquiry centers on ancient Palestine...
and
Hebrew BibleThe Hebrew Bible is a term referring to the books of the Jewish Bible as originally written mostly in Biblical Hebrew with some Biblical Aramaic...
at
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and currently comprises ten separate academic units...
and is an active professional member of the
American Schools of Oriental ResearchThe American Schools of Oriental Research, founded in 1900, supports and encourages the study of the peoples and cultures of the Near East, from the earliest times to the present. It is apolitical and has no religious affiliation...
(ASOR).
Prior to teaching at Harvard, he was professor of Syro-Palestinian
archaeologyArchaeology or archeology is the science that studies human cultures through the recovery, documentation, analysis, and interpretation of material culture and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, biofacts, and landscapes...
at the
Oriental InstituteOriental Institute may refer to a number of institutes of Oriental studies:United States* Oriental Institute, Chicago, part of the University of ChicagoEngland* Oriental Institute, Oxford, part of the University of Oxford...
and the Department of
Near EastNear East today is an ambiguous term that covers different countries for archeologists and historians, on one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
ern Languages and Civilizations at the
University of ChicagoThe University of Chicago is a private, coeducational research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by oil magnate and benefactor John D...
. Stager has written several articles: one accessible piece for laymen being "The Fury of Babylon: Ashkelon and the Archaeology of Destruction," in the
Biblical Archaeology ReviewBiblical Archaeology Review is a publication that seeks to connect the academic study of archaeology to a broad general audience seeking to understand the world of the Bible and the Near and Middle East . Covering both the Old and New Testaments, BAR presents the latest discoveries and...
for January/February 1996.
In the debate on dating the "
United MonarchyThe united Kingdom of Israel was a kingdom in the Land of Israel according to the Bible, a period referred to by scholars as the United Monarchy.-Background:...
" of
DavidDavid was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Bible. He is depicted as a righteous king, although not without fault, as well as an acclaimed warrior, musician and poet .The biblical chronology sets his life c.1037–970 BCE, his reign over Judah c.1007–1000 BCE,...
and
SolomonSolomon is a figure described in the Hebrew Bible as a King of Israel and later in the Qur'an, where he is described as a Prophet. The biblical accounts identify Solomon as the son of David...
, where the question is whether David consolidated the nation established by
SaulSaul was the first king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible. He was anointed by the prophet Samuel and reigned from Gibeah...
, Solomon built the great temple in
JerusalemJerusalem is the capital of Israel and its largest city in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if disputed East Jerusalem is included...
, and the wealth of this powerful kingdom dominated the economy of the
LevantThe Levant describes, traditionally, the Eastern Mediterranean at large, but can be used as a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia formed by the lands bordering the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, roughly bounded on the north by the Taurus Mountains, on the south by...
in the 10th century BCE? Or was it instead a period of emerging statehood with the glorious years still to come-- not under David and Solomon-- but under
OmriOmri was king of Israel and father of Ahab. William F. Albright has dated his reign to 876 – 869 BC, while E. R. Thiele offers the dates of 888 BC to 880 BC for his rivalry with Tibni and 880 – 874 BC for his sole reign. He was "commander of the army" for Elah when Zimri slew Elah and...
and
AhabAhab was king of Israel and the son and successor of Omri . William F. Albright dated his reign to 869 – 850 BC, while E. R...
instead? Dr Stager is on the side of the traditional dating in this issue.
Dr Stager is the author, with
Philip KingPhilip J. King is an American theologist, historian, and academic.He graduated in 1945 from St. John Seminary College in Boston, and higher degrees in 1954 from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., in 1957 from Pontifical Biblical Institute and 1959 from Pontifical Lateran...
, of
Life in Biblical Israel.