2 6 4 PALESTINIAN ARCHAEOLOGY 



Of the Christian period is a new form of fortress found by Prof. Petrie at Scenas 

 Mandras, south of Helwan, probably due to the Gothic mercenaries settled there. 

 The great Coptic monastery of St. Jeremias at Sakkara with both paintings and 

 sculptures has been now completely cleared and published by Mr. Quibell, 1 and gives 

 an excellent idea of an unaltered early monastery. : (W. M. FLINDERS PETRIE.) 



Prof. Macalister's complete report on his work at Gezer (see E. B. xi, 915, " Gezer ") 

 appeared in 1912 (London, 3 vols. 4), giving an admirable account of the excavations. 

 He distinguishes (i) a pre-Semitic period, (2-5) 4 Semitic periods, (6-n) the Persian 

 and subsequent periods down to the present day. The various methods of burial used 

 in Palestine (including that of the Philistines) during all the early periods, are well 

 represented. But the most remarkable discovery is that of the "High Place " or sanc- 

 tuary. Its site was originally in the middle of the town, and was chosen not because it 

 was already sacred (as so often in the East) but apparently because it was free from the 

 contamination of graves, and also because of its proximity to the caves which were used 

 for religious purposes. Its most striking feature is a row of (at one time ten) upright 

 monoliths, arranged in a slight curve at irregular intervals along the middle of the site, 

 having on one side a double cave, and curious eup-shaped indentations on the sur- 

 rounding rock. The cult of the upright stone was, however, not the earliest form of 

 worship at Gezer. It seems to have been introduced by the Semites about 2000 or 

 2 500 B.C. From the fact that there is no sort of uniformity in the size of the stones, Prof. 

 Macalister conjectures that the High Place was not built at one time on one plan, but 

 was formed gradually by the additions made by successive " Kings." The rites prac- 

 tised there appear to have been much as described in Isaiah Ivii. 5-K They clearly in- 

 cluded human sacrifice, especially the sacrifice of the first-born, as shown by the large 

 number of newly born infants buried in jars within the sacred area. Foundation sacri- 

 fice was also customary in all the Semitic periods. In some cases the victims were adults 

 but more commonly they were infants, or very young children, who were buried (also in 

 jars) under the corners of houses. Among the very large number of articles of daily 

 use, only two cuneiform tablets were found. 



The best account of the German excavations at Jericho (Er-riha), begun on January 

 2, 1008 (see E. B. xv, 325, " Jericho "), is that of S. A. Cook in the P. E. F. Quarterly 

 Statement, 1910, p. 54. See also the Mittheil.d. Deutsch. Orient-Gesellschaft, 1908, No. 39. 



In August 1909 a private association began excavations oh Mt. Ophel. A prelimi- 

 nary report of the work was published, under the title of Underground Jerusalem . . hi... 

 by H. V. (London, 1911), and also in French. It is understood that the initials represent 

 H. Vincent, the well-known archaeologist of the Ecole Biblique et Archeologique at 

 Jerusalem, whose name is a sufficient guarantee for the value of the account. The 

 names of the persons responsible for the undertaking are, however, not revealed, and an 

 unusual secrecy has been observed about it, giving rise to a number of strange rumours. 

 It seems that the explorers were chiefly interested in the subterranean passages, of which 

 they cleared several, including the Siloam tunnel. Some early pottery was found in the 

 course of these operations, but no inscriptions. Ultimately trouble arose with the na- 

 tives and local authorities, and the work was stopped, but there seems to be some inten- 

 tion of resuming it. Undoubtedly there is still much to be done. 



After the close of the work at Gezer, the Palestine Exploration Fund Committee 

 decided to excavate 'Ain Shams, believed to be the site of the ancient Beth Shemesh. 

 The actual digging began on April 6, 1911 under Dr. Duncan Mackenzie. A preliminary 

 account of the results was given in the Fund's Quarterly Statement, 1912, p. 125, and more 

 fully in the Annual for 1911, p. 41. Dr. Mackenzie distinguishes 3 strata: (i) that of 

 the indigenous population, in contact with Canaanitcs. Towards the end of this period 

 the influence of Egypt (especially under the iSth Dynasty) and of the Aegean begins tc 

 .appear. Then (about 1200 B.C.) when the Cretan civilisation broke up, the trade routes 



1 Quibell in Excavations at Saqqara. 



