This comprehensive book marks a clear departure from previous archaeological summaries of the Holy Land. Taking an anthropological and socioeconomic perspective, many of the leading archaeologists who work in Israel and Jordan today present timely and concise summaries of the archaeology of the region.

Chronologically organized, each chapter outlines the major cultural transitions, that occurred in a given archaeological period. In explaining the processes that were responsible for culture change, the authors review the most recent research concerning settlement patterns, innovations and technology, religion and ideology, and social organization.

The material culture of every period of human history in the Holy Land is explored from the earliest prehistoric hominids, through the Biblical and historical periods, up to the twentieth century.

Each chapter is accompanied by maps showing settlement patterns and plates, highlighting the major artifacts that archaeologists use to identify the material culture of the period.

In addition, windows at the end of chapters focus on issues such as Megiddo and its excavators, 1852-1967; a case study of settlement archaeology; the upper Paleolithic sites of Gebel Lagana; craft specialization in the Chalcolithic period; death in Canaan: mortuary behavior as a reflection of society and ideology; when did the Late Bronze Age begin?; Masada; the Meaning of the Dome of the Rock; stages in the process of spatial change in Palestine, 1800-1914.