By Gary Myers, NOBTS Communications We had a great work day today at all three areas -- 50 bags of material were pulled from the water system and the two above ground locations continued to carefully excavate. At this mid-point of the dig, everyone is equal parts excited, exhausted, and home sick. We still have much to do before we leave and many questions are left that we hope to answer ... in the coming week and in the next few years. For those of you who are not acquainted with the history of Gezer and the history of the site's archaeology, below is a portion of last year's report regarding the dig. Tel Gezer Water System Added evidence that an ancient water system at Tel Gezer in Israel could be the product of Middle Bronze Age Canaanites living between the time of Abraham and the Israelite conquest was uncovered by New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary’s archaeology team during a challenging dig season in the summer of 2015. The Bible provides one tantalizing possible parallel to the Gezer system in the accounts of King David. In 2 Samuel 5:6-9, David’s men utilized a “water shaft” to invade and conquer the fortress of Zion/Jerusalem. This rock-hewn system has been located in Jerusalem’s “City of David” … [Read more...]

By Gary D. Myers, NOBTS Communications The Tel Gezer Water System Expedition welcomed the second week of the 2016 today. It was a beautiful, somewhat cool day – another great day to dig. Due to our travels, lectures and other commitments (the need for sleep), we weren’t able to publish an update last Thursday or post a week one video update Dan Warner, co-director of the NOBTS Gezer dig. So, I will attempt to get you up to date with our progress and Sarah Simon has edited and posted the update. The Water System – Field A-B When Thursday came to an end, the team in the water system had cleared the width of the tunnel just below what we are calling the “bottom step.” For several years the south half of this area has been cleared. However, we left the northern half (actually a little more than half) as a staging area for the bag removal process. This year removing that mass of dirt, pottery, rocks and debris was a top priority. Since the area was sealed under the causeway of stones laid over the pool area by Macalister in the early 1900s, the material may be helpful in establishing the date of the system’s construction. Removing the material necessitated a reworking of the wooden ramp used as a track for pulling up the bags of … [Read more...]

By Gary D. Myers, NOBTS Communications Today we reached full operational capacity at all three of our excavation areas. We are actively excavating in the water system (Fields A and B), in the buildings near the gate (Field C), and at the Canaanite gate (Field D). Exciting things are happening at each of the locations. Though today ended on a high note, it started very slow. One of our drivers (this blogger) lost the keys to one of our vans. Quickly we figured out that the keys were lost while I was blogging in the lobby at Neve Shalom. The only problem is the lobby does not open until 7 a.m. So instead of leaving at 6 a.m., one group did not get to leave until after 7 a.m. The slow start was accentuated by rain, of all things. I have spent many days in Israel and can remember a light rain only a few times. Three or four times there were significant showers. Between rain showers, the teams took starting measurements at the above ground fields and completed the water system sandbagging of the water system before lunch. After our lunch break, each area was able to begin excavating. The water system team removed 19 bags of material. The water system and the two other fields generated enough pottery for us to start our daily task … [Read more...]

By Gary D Myers, NOBTS communications Setup days are always tough. It’s hot, dirty and we are all a bit out of physical shape when the excavation begins. We round up the tools and equipment, set up camp, raise shade cloth, make an unreasonable amount of sandbags, and a thousand other tasks. It takes lots of time and it is some of the hardest work we do during the excavation. Day two at the Tel Gezer Water System Exploration brought much cooler temperatures and more setup at all of our major work areas. In the water system (Fields A and B), the team repaired and installed the wooden stairs which allow access to the tunnel. Others began the long process of placing sandbags over the ancient steps – 85 steps total, each requiring two to four sandbags. Once setup is complete, the team will begin clearing out the NW quadrant of the pool (Area A). Removing this will expose the full width of the pool area at its shallowest point. Just as the team began laying the sandbags, we encountered the first real problem of the season. The switch used to control the winch shorted out and, for a time, we were unable lower additional sandbags into the tunnel. This minor setback was repaired within two to two and a half hours, but the lost time … [Read more...]