Material, Method and Meaning

This festschrift honors Ilan Sharon, Professor of Biblical Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and for many years co-director of the Tel Dor Archaeological Project. The collection is organized into four parts that trace the main directions of his research.

The opening part gathers essays on method and theory in archaeology. Its contributions address fieldwork practice, the analysis of finds, and the interpretive questions that arise from them, including what archaeologists can know and how they can justify their conclusions.

The second part focuses on Tel Dor, the site most closely associated with Sharon. Its studies cover material from the Late Bronze Age through the Middle Ages, with most concentrated on the first millennium BCE, when Dor was a central site for understanding the cultural development of the Levantine coast and its contacts across the Eastern Mediterranean.

The third part examines the links between the coastal region of southern Phoenicia, including Dor, and the inland areas of the Levant. The final part turns to the archaeology and history of the Iron Age Levant more broadly.