Dothan Trude. The Philistines and their Material Culture

Israel Exploration Society, 1982. — 325 p.The present volume is a revised, expanded, and upto-
date translation of the author's Hebrew work, The
Philistines and Their Material Culture (Bialik Institute
and Israel Exploration Society, Jerusalem, 1967). Since
1967, much has been added to our knowledge by excavation
and publication in Palestine and in the other
countries connected with the origin and cultural background
of the Philistines. We have endeavored to take
this new material into consideration, benefiting by the
new light it sheds on old problems to strengthen or
modify our previous conclusions. The development of
archaeological research and techniques, the numerous
stratigraphical excavations of Early Iron Age sites in
Palestine, and the striking finds from tombs, all enable
us to set our stratigraphical, chronological, typological,
and comparative study on a firmer basis than was
possible before.
Our emphasis is on the initial stages of Philistine
culture when its distinctive character, not yet assimilated
into other cultures, still reflected its origins. We
concentrate on aspects of material culture that are unequivocally
related to the Philistines, using the word
Philistine as a collective term to include all related
groups of Sea Peoples who settled in Canaan.
Invaluable discoveries are being made in Israel at the
present time, both in the cities of Philistia proper and
in the outlying areas far removed from the main
sphere of Philistine culture. At the same time, archaeological
and epigraphical-historical research connected
with Philistine culture is steadily advancing in
neighboring Middle Eastern and Aegean countries,
and this research will undoubtedly add to our present
knowledge of the historical and archaeological background
of the Philistines.
The Bible, Egyptian records, and archaeological
finds are the three main sources for our knowledge of
Philistine origins, cultural background, and history.
This study deals primarily with the archaeological evidence
of the material culture of the Philistines, and
attempts to place it within the chronological and cultural
framework of the eastern Mediterranean, against
the background, known from textual sources, of the
transitional period between the Late Bronze and Early
Iron ages. The archaeological evidence, which comes
mainly from the rich finds in Palestine, may also help
to elucidate the origins, wanderings, and cultural affinities
of the Philistines. A study of their material culture
is a necessary complement to information gained
from historical and textual sources. Biblical and literary
sources, both epigraphical and descriptive, are
used here as background to archaeology. Stratigraphical
finds are the basis for a relative and absolute
chronology.