We just published a new article on our work at Tell es-Safi/Gath, Israel that we would like to share with you. It was spearheaded by Shira Albaz.
2023 Shira Albaz,Haskel J. Greenfield, Tina L. Greenfield, Annie Brown, Itzick Shai,and Aren M. Maeir. Daily life and cultural appropriation in Early Bronze Age Canaan: Games and gaming in a domestic neighbourhood at Tell eṣ-Ṣâfi/Gath, Israel. Palestine Exploration Quarterly (London) 155 (1): 1-30.
a. https://doi.org/10.1080/00310328.2022.2069942.
b. https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/D39VP2GH4WUMIYEZ93DB/full?target=10.1080/00310328.2022.2069942
There are 50 free eprints. The link is now ready to use and is:
https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/D39VP2GH4WUMIYEZ93DB/full?target=10.1080/00310328.2022.2069942
Abstract: Discussions on daily life in Early Bronze Age society in the southern Levant often focus on subsistence or ritual phenomena, while aspects relating to entertainment and leisure are rarely discussed. This paper presents evidence for gaming behaviour, in the form of game boards and game pieces, that were recovered in the excavations of the Early Bronze Age (early to mid-3rd millennium bce) residential neighbourhood at Tell eṣ-Ṣâfi/Gath, Israel. All the objects discussed are considered to be part of games (playing pieces, casting pieces, and boards) based on their resemblance to game boards and pieces published from various Early Bronze sites in the southern Levant (e.g., Arad, Megiddo, and Bab edh-Dhra), serve as the backdrop for: 1) a perspective on the social and cultural relationships reflected in these games; 2) an examination of the origins of the ‘Senet/30 Houses’ game; and 3) the appropriation of foreign cultural facets in Early Bronze Age Canaan.
Haskel J. Greenfield 