Date: 05.23.10

May 23-28, 2010

Museum Founder Batya Borowski will be honored at the 18^th Anniversary Gala on May 27^th. This evening tops a full week of exciting tours and activities. See Israel as you have never seen it before. Join the Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem for six days of exciting archaeological tours in Israel, led by experts at each site. The exclusive tours include meals, deluxe bus transportation and much more.A special lecture dedicated to the late Elie Borowski, co-founder of the Museum will be presented by Sir John Boardman, from the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. Boardman is the world's leading expert on Classical Art.

Registration now open. Reserve your place as space is limited.

Tour with us as we explore Ancient Roads and Crossroads

Sunday, May 23

Caesarea, the flourishing Mediterranean port will be the focus of our first tour. A major gateway to the land of Israel in ancient times, settlement at what became Caesarea began in the third century BCE during the Hellenistic period as a small Phoenician port city known as Straton’s Tower.

In 90 BCE, the Hasmonean King Alexander Jannaeus conquered the city to expand the borders of his kingdom and develop its shipping industry. The population of Straton’s Tower remained Jewish until the Roman conquest in 63 BCE, when they granted the city its freedom. King Herod the Great transformed the city beginning in 22 BCE with the construction of its sophisticated port, warehouses, markets, great streets, bathhouses, temples and magnificent public buildings, naming it Caesarea.

We will tour the main sights and see the new Travel through Time multi-media presentation on Caesarea’s history.  

The tour will be led by Sara Arenson, a Maritime Historian and a consultant on the site.  
 

Monday – Tuesday, May 24 – 25, Two-Day Tour

Beit Shean and Tiberias

The region of Beith Shean has been a strategic crossroads linking the Mediterranean coast with Transjordan, and the southern part of Israel with the Syro-Mespotamian world for millennia. We will visit the National Park of Beith Shean and witness four thousand years of history, making it one of the most important archaeological sites in Israel. We will join the virtual tour, “The Nights of Shean”, a cutting edge audio-visual presentation portraying the vibrant life, architecture and characters of Ancient Beith Shean. From there we will explore more of the fascinating sites of the surrounding Beit Shean valley.

The second anchor of our two-day tour is the city of ancient Tiberias that has been populated from the early Roman period. The recently dedicated National Archaeology Park combines archaeology and conservation, enabling visitors to appreciate the Byzantine wall, the roman southern gate, the main road (Cardo) of the city, the theatre, basilica and much more.

Archaeologists and Conservators of the IAA will lead us on our Northern Tour.

Wednesday, May 26

An exciting new discovery, the site of Khirbet Qeiyafa, has revealed a fortified city in Judah from the time of King David. It’s Location on the hills that border the Elah Valley, a strategic location in the main road to Jerusalem, and the unique phenomena of two gates that were uncovered at the site, provide a clear indication of the site's identity as biblical Sha`arayim, a place name that means "two gates" in Hebrew.

The tour will be led by the excavation director, archaeologist, Prof. Yosef Garfinkel of the Hebrew Univ.

Wednesday evening lecture in the Museum at 19:30

Program to be announced

Thursday, May 27

Crusader Jerusalem will be explored from the panoramic views from Jerusalem City Hall. We will trace the tremendous changes Jerusalem went through under crusaders occupation and look at key sites in the city including the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Jaffa gate and more. The tour will be led by Dr. Michael Ehrlich, Bar-Ilan Univ., expert on Historical Geography of the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and will include descriptive texts of the city during that period.

Thursday evening, May 27 – 18th Anniversary Gala Dinner honoring Museum Founder, Batya Borowski. Guest speaker, Sir John Boardman, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.

Friday, May 28

Tour the Hills of Jerusalem – their history and the archaeological remains that reveal Jerusalem's pivotal place in time. Details to be announced.

**All programs subject to change. Advance reservations required.

For prices and reservation 02-5611066 | dep.dir@blmj.org