Presented by Eric Cline, Professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and of Anthropology; Director of the GWU Capitol Archaeological Institute

The numerous publications produced by the Chicago excavators who dug at Megiddo from 192539 are still held in high regard – both used and debated by archaeologists working in the region today. However, these provide virtually no insight into the daily activities of the team members or the stories behind their discoveries, including what are still commonly called “Solomon’s Stables.” Fortunately, they also left behind more than three decades worth of letters, cablegrams, cards, and notes, as well as their diaries, that are now in the archives of the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures. There are also additional materials in the archives of the Israel Antiquities Authority and the Rockefeller Foundation, as well as other material that is in the hands of the team members’ descendants and other family members. Digging through these materials provides a glimpse behind the scenes, including intrigues, infighting, romance, and dogged perseverance over the years, situated against the backdrop of the Great Depression in the United States as well as the growing troubles and tensions in British Mandate Palestine between the two world wars. Based on the new book entitled Digging Up Armageddon by the speaker, some of the more interesting details will be shared in this lecture, including the fact that the excavations almost ended just one week after they began; that they paid rent for the excavated land to the wrong people for the first three years; that team members included a high school dropout and a possible spy for the Haganah; and that they were the first, or among the first, to use a Munsell color chart and balloon photography on an excavation in the Near East.

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