Two OD authors have just sent us details of their recent publications.  Dr Garth Gilmour (1976F), who is currently based in in Denmark sent us this message:

Dear Colleagues and Friends

I’m very happy to announce the publication of my book, Final Report of Excavations on the Hill of the Ophel by R.A.S. Macalister and J. Garrow Duncan 1923-1925 (PEF Annual XIX, 2024), which is now available. 

Final Report of Excavations on the Hill of the Ophel by R.A.S. Macalister and J. Garrow Duncan 1923–1925 contains the publication of the finds from this excavation a century ago that have been curated and stored in the archives of the Palestine Exploration Fund in London.  

This volume includes a history of the excavation and detailed descriptions and illustrations of finds ranging from the Chalcolithic through to the Ottoman periods. These include pottery, metal, bone and glass objects, seal impressions, figurines, clay tobacco pipes and other items, many of which have never been published be- fore. Among the more significant finds from the excavation, both the subject of special studies, are an incised pottery sherd with images of two deity figurines interpreted as representing Yahweh and Asherah, and two incense burners that contribute to our understanding of the trade in incense in the Near East in the second and first millennia BCE.  

This volume will be of interest to students and researchers of ancient near eastern archaeology, and particularly those engaged in research in the southern Levant. The report complements the publications of the many subsequent excavations in the same area of Jerusalem, a location that is still today the focus of much attention for historical, religious and political, not to mention archaeological, reasons.  

• CLICK HERE for a sample downloaded from the publisher’s website.
• Details on how to get a copy:  CLICK HERE

Greg Mills (1979,O), co-author most recently of The Art of War and Peace: Understanding Our Choices In a World at War (Penguin Random House), wrote an excellent article (23 July 2024) that was featured in the Daily Maverick.  He starts by saying:

The Western failure in Afghanistan, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the disappointment of both African and UN-led peacekeeping efforts in Democratic Republic of the Congo, seemingly endless wars in Sudan and across the Sahel, ratcheting tensions across the Taiwan Strait, the brutal war in Gaza – on both sides of Israel’s border – and the threat of a second northern front with Lebanon, the constant violence in the Red Sea…  

The list of security crises is growing at an exponential and apparently unstoppable rate. This helps to explain the clamour in many countries for a significant increase in defence allocation and, in some – the UK and South Africa, for instance – urgent defence reviews.

The battle between democracy and authoritarianism is a driver of insecurity. It appears that, for the moment, the authoritarians are winning, at least because they are less constrained in their techniques.

To read the full article CLICK HERE.

For more details about Dr Greg Mills and his book, CLICK HERE .