Technological Insights on Philistine Culture: Perspectives from Tell es-Safi/Gath

Abstract

More than a century of study of the Philistines has revealed abundant remains of their material culture. Concurrently, our understanding of the origins, developmental processes, and socio-political matrix of this fascinating culture has undergone major changes. Among other facets, Philistine technology has been discussed, but in our opinion, a broad view of its importance for understanding Philistine culture is still lacking. The more than twenty years of excavation at Tell es-Safi/Gath, one of the central sites in Iron Age Philistia, offer an opportunity to review a broad range of technology-related evidence from this site, and from this to suggest a current interpretation of Philistine technology within the broader picture of the Iron Age and the processes, mechanisms, interactions, and identity politics of this culture.

Ceramic studies and petrographic analysis in Levantine archaeology, the limitations of current approaches

“…Therefore, we will organize the research conducted into thematic and methodological groups. In addition to Goren and Porat, several recent authors have been notably prolific in this regard, and alongside the now traditional production of short reports, have used ceramic analysis to address significant cultural questions (Ben-Shlomo 2006;Boness et al 2015;Cohen-Weinberger and Goren 2004;Cohen-Weinberger et al 2017;Gilboa et al 2015;Iserlis 2009;Iserlis et al 2015;Maeir et al 2019;Waiman-Barak et al 2014). However, it is worth stating that despite great interest in petrography, the vast majority of research has been published by a relatively small number of scholars.…”