Thompson Henry O. Biblical Archaeology. The World, the Mediterranean, the Bible

New York: Paragon House Publishers, 1987. — xxviii, 467 p. — ISBN: 0-913729-58-2.For archaeologists, the richest area for exploration has always been the Mediterranean lands, which truly were the cradle of western civilization. Here a former director of the American Center for Oriental Research rolls out a tapestry of Mediterranean archaeology, from the earliest Egyptian graverobbing families, through the famous 19th century founders of the science of archaeology, to the present, when high-tech methods are yielding new and fascinating information.
The author discusses the events and personalities in the Bible vis-a-vis the historical facts revealed about them through archaeological excavation. He describes day-to-day life among the Hebrews, Egyptians, and other ancient people—their clothing, household objects, homes, religious practices, and much more. Finally, he writes about the part played by modem archaeological methods in verifying the historical authenticity of the Bible.
Readers who think that archaeology may be fun to do but dull to read about will be enlightened in more ways than one by the magical mix of anecdote, fact, history, science, and tantalizing speculation in this book. All of it jumps off the page with as much or more interest than the news in our daily newspapers.Henry O. Thomson received his Ph.D. in archaeology and Old Testament from Drew University. From 1971-1973 he was the Director and Visiting Professor of the American Center for Oriental Research and directed both the Khirbet al-Hajjar and Tell Siran excavations. He is the author of Mekal: The God of Beth-Sha, Archaeology and Archaeologists, and numerous articles on the same subject.