Public lecture by Oded Lipschits, co-sponsored by the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society and the Departments of TRS and Classics, King's.

Judah under the Assyrian Empire: New Insights from Archaeology

In 701 BCE, the Assyrian King Sennacherib led a destructive military campaign against the Kingdom of Judah. Jerusalem, its capital, was not destroyed. For this reason, the archaeology of Jerusalem and its surroundings has no "chronological anchor" that can distinguish between the days of Ahaz and Hezekiah (late 8th century BCE) and the days of King Manasseh (first half of the 7th century BCE). New excavations, new finds, and new tools recently developed in archaeological research now make it possible to illuminate the "archaeology of the days of Manasseh" and learn about the history of Jerusalem during this long and important period of Judah's subjugation to Assyrian imperial rule.

Safra Lecture Theatre, King’s Building. 6 pm.

Wine and nibbles will be served in the Terrace cafe afterwards.

Professor Oded Lipschits is head of the MA Programme in Ancient Israel Studies and the International MA Program for the History and Archaeology of the Holy Land, based within the department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures, Tel Aviv University. He also serves as Director of the Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University. From 2004-2010 he served as director of the Ramat Rahel Archaeological Project and currently directs the Lautenschlaeger Excavations at Asekah and the Excavation in the temple of Tel Moza. He is the Laureate of the prestigious EMET Prize in the field of Archaeology for the current year.

The Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society (AIAS) is a non-political cultural charity. Its aim is to promote and support the archaeology of Israel and the wider Near East, through lectures, student grants, special events and its internationally-recognised journal, Strata.