Bible Land Expeditions
provided by
TRINITY SOUTHWEST UNIVERSITY
and
THE MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGY & BIBLICAL HISTORY
Walk the Biblical World. See through Ancient Eyes. Touch the Face of History. Hear the Stones Cry Out.
BLEBLEBLEEXCAVATIONPROGRAMSBLEBLEBLEBLE
The Tall el-Hammam
Excavation Project
SEASON SIX
10 Dec 2010 - 20 Jan 2011
LOCATION:
southern Jordan Valley north of the Dead Sea
The Hashemite Kingdon of Jordan
SPONSORING INSTITUTION:
Trinity Southwest University
A JOINT SCIENTIFIC PROJECT WITH:
The Department of Antiquities, Jordan
DIRECTING FIELD ARCHAEOLOGIST:
Steven Collins, Ph.D.
God destroyed it.
History lost it.
We found it.
You'll dig it!
The College of Archaeology & Biblical History of Trinity Southwest University, in a joint scientific project with the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, presents one of the most exciting volunteer opportunities in the history of biblical archaeology: The Tall el-Hammam Excavation Project.
Five years of focused research into the location of the biblical Cities of the Plain by Dr. Steven Collins led to the discovery of a group of ancient sites that are by far the best candidates for Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim (Genesis 13-19). Dr. Collins and his team of scholars seem to have solved a mystery that has confused and confounded Bible scholars for centuries.
The key to locating the Cities of the Plain is an intricate analysis of the biblical text. The three main biblical criteria for the correct identification of these famous cities are: (1) geographical—the biblical text clearly indicates that they were located on the eastern edge of the Jordan Disk (Heb., kikkar), the well-watered circular plain of the southern Jordan Valley north of the Dead Sea; (2) chronological—they must date from the Middle Bronze Age, the correct timeframe for Abraham and Lot, with underlying strata from a previous era such as the Early Bronze Age (the cities are also mentioned in Genesis 10); and (3) stratigraphical—their Middle Bronze Age destruction must be followed by at least a few centuries of inoccupation (Moses found the area to be an uninhabited wasteland). The sites discovered by Dr. Collins meet all these criteria and more.
Measuring about 1000 meters from east to west, Tall el-Hammam is the largest of these Jordan Disk sites, and was, without doubt, the chief city in the group—likely the infamous Sodom itself. With clear indicators of Chalcolithic Period, Early Bronze Age, Intermediate Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age, and Iron Age 2 occupations (an occupational gap of at least five centuries after the MBA), the identification of Tall el-Hammam as Sodom is a highly reasonable hypothesis, reinforced by discoveries during the first five seasons of excavation.
Many scholars have treated the stories of Sodom and Gomorrah, even their very existence, as myth, legend, or pure fiction, bolstered by the fact that their actual locations had never been discovered (that’s why most Bible maps don’t even show them!). But this is all changing! TeHEP is truly history in the making.
And that’s where you enter the picture! You can become a 2010/11 TeHEP team member! The Tall el-Hammam Excavation Project (TeHEP) needs committed volunteer diggers to join with its professional staff in order to excavate this most-likely candidate for the city of Sodom. Indeed, TeHEP is one of the most important biblically-related excavations in history!
The dates for Season Six are 10 December 2010 through 20 January 2011. Because of our weekly dig schedule, we limit arrivals to Fridays (generally departing the USA on a Thursday, and arriving on a Friday). That way you'll go through the dig orientation on Saturday, then start to work on Sunday, the first day of the dig week. Fridays and Saturdays are days off, and are also our days for special field trips to great sites around Jordan.
Booking your dig experience at Tall el-Hammam is simple, and allows for budgeting on your part, since your costs are spread out. The first step is to make your $750 down payment to TeHEP. This covers many dig-related expenses and fees, and must be processed at least five months in advance (to allow adequate time for excavation security clearances). The second step is to arrange your own round-trip flight to Amman. This gives you flexibility in choosing an airline, and in finding the best price. We'll pick you up at the airport in Amman. The third step is making your hotel reservation though Sheresa in the TSU office, then simply paying your hotel bill when you check out at the end of your stay in Jordan. The TeHEP hotel price is only available to those who've already paid their down payment, and can only be booked through our office.
We’ll be staying at the fabulous Movenpick Dead Sea Resort and Spa, which makes it very nice when you come in from a good day of excavating! You’ll be a pampered digger!
These are the requirements for individuals who wish to participate:
1. Register and pay your down payment of $750 online at www.shop.tsu-edu.us.
Or you may contact Sheresa at TSU: 505-332-4253. We recomend that you purchase a travel insurance program through your credit card or other insurance source.
2. You must be in reasonably good physical condition. This is for your own protection. Working on an archaeological excavation can be physically demanding. While we always try to match dig responsibilities to the physical abilities of individuals, there is always considerable walking over rough terrain. Many of our staff and volunteers are well into their 60s, 70s, even 80s, so you don’t have to be "young" to enjoy the dig experience of a lifetime!
3. You must be a team player. People with their own agendas, or who are inclined to "do their own thing" to the exclusion of others, are usually more trouble than they’re worth to the Project. We need people who are courteous, helpful, thoughtful of others, and conscientious about being at the right place at the time with the right stuff.
4. You must carry your own travel and medical insurance. Many credit cards offer travel medical insurance plans that are comprehensive and inexpensive. Our hotel headquarters does have a resident physician for minor problems, but you must have your own insurance should a major problem arise.
5. 100% of cancellation fees are usually covered by travel isurance, provided the premium has been paid and reason for cancellation is insurable. Those who do not purchase travel insurance should be aware of the following cancellation penalties relative to the $750 down payment: from day of registration to 60 days prior to departure, a $250 non-refundable administration fee is the only charge. Thereafter, the following additional charges also apply: 59-45 days = $100; 44-31 days = 25% of total cost; 30-15 days = 50 % of total cost; 14 days to day of departure = 100% of total cost. Submit cancellation in writing. On or after day of departure, no refund for any service not used.
We hope to see you
at Tall el-Hammam
this coming season!
Pool at the our Movenpick Dead Sea Hotel Headquarters.
With daytime temperatures between 60 and 75 degrees F, the digging is delightful!
Part of the TeHEP dig team for the first half of the 2008 season.
A magnificent view from Mount Nebo taken during one of the TeHEP field trips. Tall el-Hammam lies just off the photo's right edge, about 8 miles NE of the Dead Sea.
A new trench is opened in Field D exposing important segments of the Iron Age city wall and the Middle Bronze Age earthen-mudbrick rampart undeaneath it.
View of a clay-lined storage bin in a Middle Bronze Age house excavated in Season Two.
Tall el-Hammam
is the excavation
opportunity of
a lifetime!
Excavating near the doorway of a monumental building in Field B.
One of many intact to nearly-intact vessels found at Tall el-Hammam; this piriform juglet dates to the Middle Bronze Age.
An Iron Age II krater from Field C.
Dr. Collins (center) directing work in Field A.
One of hundreds of ancient dolmens in the immediate vicinity of Tall el-Hammam. These monuments date to the Early Bronze Age.