Papers by Craig W . Tyson
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2020
Near Eastern Archaeology, 2016
Religions
In the Iron Age II (ca. 1000–500 BCE), the region around Amman, Jordan, was home to a sociopoliti... more In the Iron Age II (ca. 1000–500 BCE), the region around Amman, Jordan, was home to a sociopolitical group known as the Ammonites (literally, “the sons of Ammon”). This paper investigates the religious traditions of the Ammonites through an analysis of the extant archaeological and textual sources. The analysis leads to the conclusion that the religious tradition of the Ammonites is a specimen of the broader religious tradition of the Iron Age II Levant. One distinguishing feature of Ammonite religion is the state god Milkom, whose name is probably an epithet for the god ʾEl, and who appears to be represented in a tradition of stone sculptures that have been found in the vicinity of Amman. The rest of the non-physical realm was understood to be inhabited by gods, goddesses, a variety of other non-human beings, and dead ancestors. Also visible in the extant evidence is a blending of local and foreign elements, especially those from Mesopotamia. Unique in this respect is the probable ...
Journal of Anthropological Research, 2014
Societies on the periphery of empires experience a spectrum of changes as a result of their inter... more Societies on the periphery of empires experience a spectrum of changes as a result of their interaction with or incorporation into empires. One discernible pattern is that of sociopolitical and economic intensification that becomes visible at roughly the same time as the onset of imperial rule. This paper investigates the role of the peripheral elite in such processes of intensification through a study of the Ammonites, a small, tribally organized society on the far edge of the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires (ca. 750–500 bce). As subjects of these empires, the local Ammonite elite were actively involved in the processes of intensification. In this sense they were imperial collaborators, taking advantage of their mediating position between these empires and the local context to improve their own status, wealth, and power.
The Ammonites : Elites, Empires, and Sociopolitical Change (1000–500 BCE), 2014
CONTENTS Acknowledgments Abbreviations List of Figures List of Tables Ch 1: INTRODUCTION Ch 2: TH... more CONTENTS Acknowledgments Abbreviations List of Figures List of Tables Ch 1: INTRODUCTION Ch 2: THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE AMMAN PLATEAU Ch 3: EPIGRAPHIC SOURCES FOR AMMONITE HISTORY Ch 4: BIBLICAL AND POSTBIBLICAL SOURCES FOR AMMONITE HISTORY Ch 5: NEO-ASSYRIAN AND NEO-BABYLONIAN IMPERIALISM Ch 6: THE ECONOMY OF THE AMMAN PLATEAU Ch 7: SOCIETAL CHANGE IN THE IRON AGE Ch 8: CONCLUSION APPENDICES Bibliography Index of References Index of Authors
Journal of Hebrew Scriptures, 2013
Scholars have long pointed to Josephus, Ant. 10.180–182 as evidence that Nebuchadnezzar campaigne... more Scholars have long pointed to Josephus, Ant. 10.180–182 as evidence that Nebuchadnezzar campaigned in the Levant in his twenty-third year (582 B.C.E.), but have not determined the viability of this passage as a historical source. Extant Greek sources do not provide the details visible in Josephus’ text and it is thus unlikely that they were his source. The details of the campaign are, however, available from Jeremiah or by inference from it. As such, the study argues that Ant. 10.180–182 is not an independent historical source of information for a campaign of Nebuchadnezzar in 582 B.C.E.
DH Deuteronomistic History ET Versification of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament according to Englis... more DH Deuteronomistic History ET Versification of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament according to English Translations. HALOT The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. L. Koehler, W. Baumgartner, and J. J. Stamm. Translated and edited under the supervision of M. E. J. Richardson. Study ed. 2 vols. Leiden, 2001. KAI Kanaanäische und aramäische Inschriften. H. Donner and W. Röllig. 2 nd ed. Wiesdbaden, 1966-1969. LCL Loeb Classical Library LXX Septuagint. The collective name for the Greek versions of the Old Testament. MT Masoretic Text. The traditional text of the Hebrew Bible as represented in BHS. OAN Oracles Against the Nations.
Creation and Chaos collects seventeen papers from the 2011 annual meeting of the Midwest branches... more Creation and Chaos collects seventeen papers from the 2011 annual meeting of the Midwest branches of the Society of Biblical Literature and the American Schools of Oriental Research. The book grapples with the legacy of Hermann Gunkel’s Schöpfung und Chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit, especially the way it has bound together discussions of chaos, theomachy, and cosmogony in the Bible and the ancient Near East
Biblical Studies
The Ammonites (literally, “sons of Ammon”) were a tribal group with a core territory in and aroun... more The Ammonites (literally, “sons of Ammon”) were a tribal group with a core territory in and around the modern city of Amman, Jordan. This core area could also be referred to as Ammon; the name of the modern city is also derived from this designation. Though they are known best for their role as kin and enemy to Israel in the Bible, archaeological work has revealed much about the indigenous cultural traditions of the region. The earliest possible evidence naming the Ammonites is from the 9th century bce, but there is little doubt that they inhabited the region before that, though how much before that is difficult to say. Regardless of their date of origin, it is helpful to chart their appearance on the stage of history in the Iron Age II by including some chronological depth. Beginning with the Late Bronze Age (c. 1550–1150 bce), the region around Amman was sparsely settled with a few fortified towns and evidence for participation in international trade. New Kingdom Egypt appears to ...
ZDPV, 2019
Basalt volute capital fragment from the 2008 season at Khirbat al-Balu'a
Herrmann, V.R. and C.W. Tyson. 2018. "Introduction: The Construction of the Imperial Periphery in Neo-Assyrian Studies,” in Imperial Peripheries in the Neo-Assyrian Period. Edited by C.W. Tyson and V.R. Herrmann. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, pp. 3–40., 2018
Religions, 2019
In the Iron Age II (ca. 1000–500 BCE), the region around Amman, Jordan, was home to a sociopoliti... more In the Iron Age II (ca. 1000–500 BCE), the region around Amman, Jordan, was home to a sociopolitical group known as the Ammonites (literally, “the sons of Ammon”). This paper investigates the religious traditions of the Ammonites through an analysis of the extant archaeological and textual sources. The analysis leads to the conclusion that the religious tradition of the Ammonites is a specimen of the broader religious tradition of the Iron Age II Levant. One distinguishing feature of Ammonite religion is the state god Milkom, whose name is probably an epithet for the god ʾEl, and who appears to be represented in a tradition of stone sculptures that have been found in the vicinity of Amman. The rest of the non‐physical realm was understood to be inhabited by gods, goddesses, a variety of other non‐human beings, and dead ancestors. Also visible in the extant evidence is a blending of local and foreign elements, especially those from Mesopotamia. Unique in this respect is the probable temple to the moon‐god at Rujm al‐Kursi, which most likely reflects a local tradition of lunar worship influenced by the iconography of the Mesopotamian moon‐god Sîn.
Zeitschrift Fur Die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, 2010
... 14 4QSama has [v]tvch a hiphil from tvc, »to incite, mislead, allure, instigate« (BDB, 694; H... more ... 14 4QSama has [v]tvch a hiphil from tvc, »to incite, mislead, allure, instigate« (BDB, 694; HALOT, 749) instead of the MT rych, a hiphil of rvc ... 2 Samuel, 79; Fokkelman, NAPS III, 161; Kleven, snr, 195204; J. Mauchline, 1 and 2 Samuel, NCB, 1971, 217218; Poirier, David, 28). ...
Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology, 2014
Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, 2000
... 14 4QSama has [v]tvch a hiphil from tvc, »to incite, mislead, allure, instigate« (BDB, 694; H... more ... 14 4QSama has [v]tvch a hiphil from tvc, »to incite, mislead, allure, instigate« (BDB, 694; HALOT, 749) instead of the MT rych, a hiphil of rvc ... 2 Samuel, 79; Fokkelman, NAPS III, 161; Kleven, snr, 195204; J. Mauchline, 1 and 2 Samuel, NCB, 1971, 217218; Poirier, David, 28). ...
Societies on the periphery of empires experience a spectrum of changes as a result of their inter... more Societies on the periphery of empires experience a spectrum of changes as a result of their interaction with or incorporation into empires. One discernible pattern is that of sociopolitical and economic intensifi cation that becomes visible at roughly the same time as the onset of imperial rule. This paper investigates the role of the peripheral elite in such processes of intensifi cation through a study of the Ammonites, a small, tribally organized society on the far edge of the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires (ca. 750–500 ). As subjects of these empires, the local Ammonite elite were actively involved in the processes of intensifi cation. In this sense they were imperial collaborators, taking advantage of their mediating position between these empires and the local context to improve their own status, wealth, and power.
Books by Craig W . Tyson
Tyson, Craig W. and Virginia R. Herrmann, eds. 2018. Imperial Peripheries in the Neo-Assyrian Period. Boulder: University Press of Colorado., 2018
Though the Neo-Assyrian Empire has largely been conceived of as the main actor in relations betwe... more Though the Neo-Assyrian Empire has largely been conceived of as the main actor in relations between its core and periphery, recent work on the empire’s peripheries has encouraged archaeologists and historians to consider dynamic models of interaction between Assyria and the polities surrounding it. Imperial Peripheries in the Neo-Assyrian Period focuses on the variability of imperial strategies and local responses to Assyrian power across time and space.
An international team of archaeologists and historians draws upon both new and existing evidence from excavations, surveys, texts, and material culture to highlight the strategies that the Neo-Assyrian Empire applied to manage its diverse and widespread empire as well as the mixed reception of those strategies by subjects close to and far from the center. Case studies from around the ancient Near East illustrate a remarkable variety of responses to Assyrian aggression, economic policies, and cultural influences. As a whole, the volume demonstrates both the destructive and constructive roles of empire, including unintended effects of imperialism on socioeconomic and cultural change.
Imperial Peripheries in the Neo-Assyrian Period aligns with the recent movement in imperial studies to replace global, top-down materialist models with theories of contingency, local agency, and bottom-up processes. Such approaches bring to the foreground the reality that the development and lifecycles of empires in general, and the Neo-Assyrian Empire in particular, cannot be completely explained by the activities of the core.
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Papers by Craig W . Tyson
Books by Craig W . Tyson
An international team of archaeologists and historians draws upon both new and existing evidence from excavations, surveys, texts, and material culture to highlight the strategies that the Neo-Assyrian Empire applied to manage its diverse and widespread empire as well as the mixed reception of those strategies by subjects close to and far from the center. Case studies from around the ancient Near East illustrate a remarkable variety of responses to Assyrian aggression, economic policies, and cultural influences. As a whole, the volume demonstrates both the destructive and constructive roles of empire, including unintended effects of imperialism on socioeconomic and cultural change.
Imperial Peripheries in the Neo-Assyrian Period aligns with the recent movement in imperial studies to replace global, top-down materialist models with theories of contingency, local agency, and bottom-up processes. Such approaches bring to the foreground the reality that the development and lifecycles of empires in general, and the Neo-Assyrian Empire in particular, cannot be completely explained by the activities of the core.
An international team of archaeologists and historians draws upon both new and existing evidence from excavations, surveys, texts, and material culture to highlight the strategies that the Neo-Assyrian Empire applied to manage its diverse and widespread empire as well as the mixed reception of those strategies by subjects close to and far from the center. Case studies from around the ancient Near East illustrate a remarkable variety of responses to Assyrian aggression, economic policies, and cultural influences. As a whole, the volume demonstrates both the destructive and constructive roles of empire, including unintended effects of imperialism on socioeconomic and cultural change.
Imperial Peripheries in the Neo-Assyrian Period aligns with the recent movement in imperial studies to replace global, top-down materialist models with theories of contingency, local agency, and bottom-up processes. Such approaches bring to the foreground the reality that the development and lifecycles of empires in general, and the Neo-Assyrian Empire in particular, cannot be completely explained by the activities of the core.