This volume provides an up-to-date overview of the archaeology of the Land of the Bible from the Neolithic period to Alexander’s conquest, covering the major cultural developments that shaped the ancient Near East and the wider history of human civilization. As the region in which many foundational cultures of the ancient world emerged and interacted, it is essential for understanding the development of social, economic, and political systems. It also forms the geographical and historical setting of much of the biblical narrative, making its archaeology indispensable for reconstructing the cultural and historical contexts of the Hebrew Bible. Because of the enduring interest in the Bible, the archaeology of this region continues to attract both scholars and a broad public.The volume traces key developments including the emergence of agriculture and permanent settlement, increasing social complexity, early urbanism, the rise of Canaanite culture, technological innovations, the Bronze–Iron Age transition, the formation of groups such as the Israelites, Philistines, Phoenicians, and Arameans, the development of Iron Age kingdoms, and their incorporation into the Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian empires. These developments intersect with the histories of Egypt and Mesopotamia as well as the traditions preserved in the Hebrew Bible and early Greek historiography.Existing syntheses are often outdated, incomplete, or shaped by ideological debates over the historicity of the Bible. Some fail to reflect the profound changes that have transformed the discipline in recent decades, including important archaeological discoveries, advances in scientific analysis, and new theoretical approaches. Long-established assumptions about ethnic identities and the relationship between archaeological remains and textual sources are now being fundamentally reassessed.This volume addresses these shortcomings by offering an accessible, balanced, and comprehensive introduction that incorporates current evidence, analytical methods, and interpretative debates. It presents the archaeology of the region as a modern, critical discipline rather than an exercise in “Biblical Archaeology,” while remaining valuable for students, scholars, and general readers interested in the archaeological background of the Bible, the ancient Near East, and the ancient world more broadly.
