Table Of ContentBiblicAa rchaeolgst
A Publication of the American Schools of Oriental Research Volume 50 Number 1 March 1987
50th AnniversarySa lute
to the Founder of BA
L
-Ill
Biblical Archaeologist
P. O. BOXH .M., DUKES TATIOND, URHAM,N C 27706 (919)6 84-3075
Biblical Archaeologist (ISSN 0006-0895) is Editor Eric M. Meyers Advertising. Correspondence should be
published quarterly (March, June, Septem- Associate Editor Lawrence T Geraty addressed to the ASOR Publications Office,
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Stephen Goranson Timothy Lavallee
tions. There is a special annual rate of $16
John Huddlestun Lue Simopoulos Editorial Correspondence. Article pro-
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PERENNIAL LIBRARY
HARPER& ROW PUBLISHERS L
BiblicaA lr chaeo ogist
A Publication of the American Schools of Oriental Research Volume 50 Number 1 March 1987
An Interview with Mrs. Emily Wright 5
Eric M. Meyers and Carol L. Meyers
On the occasion of BA'sf iftieth anniversary,M rs. Wright
tells about the founding of the magazine and provides
insight into the other important achievements of her late
husband, G. Ernest Wright.A ccompanying the interview
are remembrances of Wrightb y AvrahamB iran,W illiam
"t G. Dever, and Dennis E. Groh.
i i Pi
G. E. Wright at the HarvardS emitic Museum 10
Carney E. S. Gavin
Pa5g~e Out of all the activities in a life of service, Wright's
success as curator of the Semitic Museum is probablyh is
least-acknowledgeda ccomplishment.
Archaeological Sourcesf or the History of Palestine
The Early Bronze Age: The Rise and Collapse of Urbanism 22
Suzanne Richard
The Early Bronze Age saw a 750-yearu rban age
encompassed by a preformativep eriod at the outset and
a period of regression towardt he end. How are we to
understandt hese two dramatic episodes of sociocultural
change?
i
i~(cid:127)
... The Paleo-HebrewL eviticus Scroll from Qumran 45
K. A. Mathews
This scroll is an important piece of evidence for under-
standing scribal practice and for reconstructing the
textual history of the Hebrew Bible.
Old Testament History and Archaeology 55
Max Miller
Nonwritten, artifactual evidence is silent by nature and
not particularly useful for dealing with specific historical
Page 22 facts. Yet the artifactual recordd oes occasionally speak
with a distinctive voice that biblical historians should be
Pg 55 preparedt o hear.
",
Introducingth e Authors 2
Fromt he Editor'sD esk 3
Page 55 Front cover: G. Ernest Wright and Prescott H. Williams looking over surface remains at Tell
er-Ras in 1964. Photograph from the collection of Edward F Campbell. Back cover: Wright and
Frank Moore Cross in 1956, standing with vehicle used for the Shechem expedition.
Photograph by George M. Gibson courtesy of McCormick Theological Seminary.
Biblical Archaeologist is published with the financial assistance of
the Endowment for Biblical Research, a nonsectarian foundation for
the study of the Bible and the history of the Christian Church.
BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGISTM ARCH 1987 1
%a ' :n r ?
5 ~ *; h
~?Ei~" From the Editor's Desk
S r
n this issue,t he firstn umbero f ourf iftiethv olume, years as a member of its editorial board, no one was more
the editors offer a special tribute to the founder of aware of these than Wright, or more able to adapt to them.
Biblical Archaeologist, the late and beloved G. He embraced the "new archaeology" with enthusiasm,
Ernest Wright, and to his still vigorous wife, Emily, and he carried on his biblical studies and theological
who for many years assisted him with the magazine. inquiry in the light of new methodological approaches.
A half-century ago a strong feeling had developed in Wright was an active editor who worked tirelessly to
ASOR that the archaeological discoveries made in the acquire the best articles, and he published all of the lead-
Middle East and their relevance to biblical studies needed ing figures of the day. Many of these articles are still
to be communicated to a public broader than that being studied and referred to. In addition, he contributed thirty-
reached by its prestigious Bulletin and Annuals. So it was six articles himself -not including his book reviews or
that Millar Burrows, then president of ASOR, appointed columns of 'Archaeological News and Views."
Wright "field secretary,"w ith the charge of seeing that the In his editing, as well as in his other work, he labored
organization's work was more widely published. diligently to bring biblical studies and archaeology into a
Wright was at that time a recent Ph.D. from Johns closer and closer dialogue. In the words of Philip J.K ing,
Hopkins, not yet thirty years old. Trained by W. E Albright, ASOR's immediate past president and historian: "Wright
he had a thorough understanding of archaeology, with was a versatile scholar who distinguished himself in both
field experience at Bethel, a part in preparing the publica- biblical theology and biblical archaeology. The conver-
tion of the Beth-shemesh project, and an established gence of these two disciplines was central to his concep-
mastery of the typological analysis of pottery (his disser- tion of biblical studies. Holding to his basic position that
tation, The Pottery of Palestine from the Earliest Times revelation comes through event, Wright understood bib-
to the End of the Early Bronze Age, was published by lical faith as rooted in history and saw it as archaeology's
ASOR in 1937). At the same time, his skill in biblical function to recover the historical foundation of the
studies was assured by a deep interest in theology. Added Judaeo-Christian tradition" (pages 106-07 in American
to these talents was an interest in, and a marked ability Archaeology in the Mideast [Philadelphia: American
for, communicating with a nonspecialist audience. He Schools of Oriental Research, 1983]).
was obviously a young scholar with great potential, but When in 1963 he turned over sole editorship of BA to
Burrow's choice of him for the position could be seen as Edward F Campbell, Jr., who had served with him as
prescient, because Wright would go on to become one of coeditor since 1959, the magazine was an established and
the giants of the field. One of his first enduring contribu- effective force in the field: a forum for communication
tions was the founding of a magazine he titled The between disciplines, as well as a means of bringing
Biblical Archaeologist in 1938. laypeople effectively into the field. Campbell and sub-
The magazine's beginning was modest. The four sequent past editors-H. Darrell Lance, who coedited
issues of the first volume covered only 32 pages. But it was with Campbell from 1972 through 1975, and David Noel
readable and eminently reliable. From the start, Wright Freedman, editor from 1976 through 1982-worked hard
set high standards and had quality assistance: Millar to assure BA would maintain this stature.
Burrows, Ephraim N. Speiser, and W. E. Albright, among In 1980 an ASOR task force, chaired by Campbell,
others, lent editorial support, and Mrs. Wright efficiently reviewed the organization's first eighty years and made
handled the challenging matters of copyediting, produc- recommendations for its future course. Two of these
tion, and fulfillment. pertain directly to ASOR publications in general and BA
And BA grew as its subject grew. Since its founding, in particular. One urges ASOR "to improve and accelerate
there have been enormous changes in scholarship. Dur- dissemination of the results of scholarly research," and
ing his twenty-five years as editor and subsequent twelve the other suggests that its trustees "develop and sustain
2 BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGIST/MARCH1 987
programs for communicating to the general public the magazine and in the legacy of ASOR. He continues to be
results and significance of researchw ithin ASOR'sf ields a central and vital force in biblical archaeology through
of interest, including influencing the educational system his students, dozens and dozens of them, including all
at all levels to expand attention to the roots of human the current senior officers of ASOR. He was not only a
heritage that lie in the ancient Near East."( See pages mentor but a dear friend to those of us who were privi-
265-66 of King's book for the complete set of recom- leged to study with him. Helping students to the outer
mendations.) These recommendations, which were limits of his physical strength, Wright demanded excel-
adoptedb y the trustees as guidelines, are strong affirma- lence. This he got, in addition to respect, love, and
tions of views often expoundedb y Wrighta s editor of BA admiration.T he field is everg ratefult o him- and to Mrs.
and later as president of ASOR. Wright, whose constant support of him as well as her
As BA enters its second half-century, we of the work on behalf of BA also inspire admiration. We salute
present editorial staff pledge ourselves to live up to the both of them, and wish Mrs.W righta nd her family all the
tradition of readability and reliability established by best in the years to come.
Wright.W e note that archaeologya s "handmaiden"o f the
historian and biblical scholar has come of age of late, and
a new dialogue has begun. Not everyonew ill be able, like
Wrighta nd a few others, to master both archaeology and
Near Eastern/biblicals tudies, but BA will continue to be
a forum for communication between the two disciplines. Eric M. Meyers
G. ErnestW rightl ives on not only in the pages of this Editor
the Authors
Introducing
EricM . Meyers,E ditoro f Biblical Archaeologist, is a 1962 Currently, she is Co-directoro f the Joint SepphorisP roj-
honors graduate of Dartmouth College. He received his ect and serves as Vice President of the W. E Albright
M.A. from Brandeis University in 1964 in Near Eastern Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem. A
and Judaics tudies and earned his Ph.D. with distinction frequentc ontributort o learnedj ournalsa nd a member of
from HarvardU niversity in 1969 in Near Eastern lan- the editorial board of Biblical Archaeologist, she has
guages and literatures. He first studied with G. Ernest collaborated with Eric Meyers on many publications,
Wright at the Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem in including their recent Anchor Bible volume on Haggai
1964-65, where he also worked with FrankC ross. It was and Zechariah 1-8.
at Wright'si nvitation that he joined the first Tel Gezer
excavation team in 1964, and he was part of the Gezer Carney E. S. Gavin is a Bostonian priest who has served
staff until 1969, when he conducted ASOR'sf irst survey the HarvardS emitic Museum as Curators ince 1975 and
of ancient synagogues, an effort that included excava- as Associate Director since 1981. Trained at Boston's
tions at Khirbet Shemac, Meiron, Gush Halav, and Latin School, Boston College, Jesus College at Oxford,
Nabratein in the Upper Galilee. and the German universities in classical languages and
history, FatherG avin began excavatingi n the Middle East
Carol L. Meyers, Associate Professor of Religion and at cAraq el-Emir (Jordan)i n 1962. Subsequent excava-
Associate Directoro f Women'sS tudiesa t Duke University, tions and surveys have been complemented by his exten-
received her A.B. with honors in biblical history at sive joint research with most of the region's museums,
Wellesley College. While an undergraduatea t Wellesley, national libraries, and departments of antiquities. His
she met G. ErnestW right,w ho helped her secure a place 1965 dissertationa t the University of Innsbrucka nalyzed
with the excavations at Ashdod. She then attended his the origins of church architecture, and his 1973 disserta-
archaeology seminar at Harvarda nd was his field assis- tion at HarvardU niversity explored the glyptic art of
tant duringt he first season of the Harvard-HebrewU nion Syria-Palestine. From his position with the Semitic
College excavations at Gezer. She holds an M.A. and Museum, he has launched numerous rescue missions to
Ph.D. from Brandeis University and has excavated for find, organize, copy,u se and share endangeredd ocumen-
twenty-five years at sites in Israel and North America. tation important for the history of the Middle East.
BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGIST/MARCH1 987 3
~---iii
:::::
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a
1-10
Ciaro(cid:127)l L. Mcvers
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**\ ::
~r,p s~~al `S*
,?
84-_?~~~
R:
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E. S.
Carn(cid:127)
_Gavin
Suzanne Richard, who received her Ph.D. in Near Eastern
archaeology from The Johns Hopkins University in 1978,
Suzanne Richar d (cid:127) (cid:127) < !! is Assistant Professor at Drew University. Since 1981 she
:.: has been directing excavations at the Early Bronze Age
site of Khirbet Iskander in Jordan and has published a
number of articles on these excavations. She has also
published on the topic of sociocultural change at the end
of the Early Bronze Age, a specialization that grew out of
her dissertation.
K. A. Mathews is a Professor of Old Testament and
Semitics at Criswell College. He received his Ph.D. from
The University of Michigan in the Department of Near
Eastern Studies. In collaboration with David Noel Freed-
man and Richard S. Hanson he published The Paleo-
;i~~iii ... Hebrew Leviticus Scroll (Winona Lake, IN: American
Schools of Oriental Research, 1985). During his graduate
years he assisted in the editing and production of Biblical
Archeologist and the Bulletin of the American Schools of
Oriental Research.
K. A. Mathews
Max Miller is Director of Graduate Studies in Religion at
Emory University, where he has been teaching since
1967. He directed an archaeological survey of the region
of ancient Moab and has excavated at Tel Zeror, et-Tell, Tel
r B cArad, Beer-sheba and Buseirah. Strongly interested in
the relationship of archaeology to biblical history, Dr.
Miller has published widely in that area. His other
publications include The Old Testament and the His-
torian (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1976) and, coedited
with John Hayes, Israelite and Judean History (Philadel-
I
..: ... , ... (cid:127)..(cid:127) . . ... .. ,(cid:127) ... .... phia: Westminster Press, 1977). His most recent volume,
coauthored with John Hayes, is A History of Ancient
Israel and Judah (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1986).
Max Miller
4 BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST MARCH 1987
An Interview with
Mrs. Emi 1 ly r
right
by EricM . Meyersa nd CarolL . Meyers
Wright( farr ight)
walking with three
students in Lincoln
Parkn ear the McCor-
mick Theological
Seminary about 1944.
Courtesyo f the
Seminary
04--
*:
.ncsi~, P~ lij"~
~
4? '4
My wife, Carol, and I met with Mrs. Emily Wright on those matters most relevant to the celebration of BA's
May 23, 1986, at her home in Lexington, Massachusetts. fiftieth birthday. By publishing this interview, we not
The purpose of our visit was to reminisce with her only give homage to the magazine's first editor, but we
about her late husband, G. Ernest Wright, and the also recognize its first production manager, subscription
founding, fifty years ago, of Biblical Archaeologist. Mrs. fulfillment officer, assistant editor, typist, archivist,
Wright, in robust health, spoke animatedly about the and layout artist: Emily Wright. Thank you, Mrs. Wright,
magazine and its humble origins, about her years with for all you have done all these years.
her husband, and about the trials and tribulations of a
couple who were totally committed to getting out the
results of new research in Near Eastern archaeology, Meyers: With the magazine now entering its fiftieth
especially as it illuminated the Bible, to a public that year, perhaps we could begin by asking you how BA was
founded.
had few opportunities to hear about such material.
What follows is a partial transcript of that wonder- Mrs. Wright: It was founded in Dr. Millar Burrows' office
ful conversation. I have edited it so that it includes at Yale Divinity School. Dr. Burrows was at that time
BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST/MARCH 1987 5
president of the American Schools and Ernest was the
so-called field secretary,w hich meant he had to go out
and find money- fund-raisinga nd public relations and
BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGIST that kind of thing.
The RockefellerF oundation,I think, had given a
matching grant, and ASOR was supposed to double the
The AmTeh9r icPzFrnoe sbpScrc,t uhco a.or,,l syN ,e ,o' wf HO1ar9iv3een8nt ,a Cl onFneS' earch No. mtwoon -ewyh-fiocrh eIv aesrsyu droe lyloaur r ienc tehivee 1d9, A30SsO wRas h nadot t oea rsayi.s Oe ne
Vol._(cid:127) of the clear lacks was that there was nothing available
from the American Schools to speak to the lay public. It
was all technical stuff. So Ernest got the idea that there
should be a publication for young people -he was
thinking particularly of Bible teachers, Sundays chool
teachers, ministers, that kind of layperson.I don'tk now
how, but he wrangled a special little budget for it-very
little, looking at the first number.
Meyers:W hat you'res aying, then, is that because he
was involved in fund-raising,E rnest felt that some sort
Fig. 2. Cherub ofth e of publication was needed to explain the work of ASOR
Fig. h. is SCithne rub oaf od aaon- BBthIi broitao n Ti3g* 5, 8siurapapp aorrtiiinOg f ybt he and why it was valuable.
Rnaafpth. ael, from SiBtAAnTe EE THE jn.UBIIsL?t inwyi nbgofeyod,1 Mrs. Wright:B ut, of course, Ernest had in his own mind
think Of a cherub (See Fig that in time it would be more than just a help for the
llToGobvthw iirnm iaign ei eg c .oo oofafi. noTRtthn ohCt cdrtheaiaeo ordy Oni i .sn tstoio,,w on lsne d T -wv aaase ns sd s " ddt OJiiroaroef rsc mte TlRpytEhe hoersede nuce o aastnt i sescts bst aa uor (,nerl l srrc oeetfwa l o iadeak d ye. c papre ta flinfriso rat rorsat mg otu(cid:127)O. .rtt.tp yiucos tfnurobf)rm eefsteotrxiarhfo eyf e sbl .c ht1eh ) r anu t - inmewm Tjeodhuiear qtneua tela?sTs tkiho.in s tmheand ea froors me:W anhya lta sthe-oiunltdo -wthee c-anlilg thhte
"no one can tell what they were like
2THE BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST THE BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST 3 4 T BE bIBLICAL ARC!iAE,,LJG:IS
the directTiohne Boibf litchael Bocahredo loofg iEstd itorsis oef dtitheed Abmye Gric. aEnn Secsht ooWls riogfh tO, urinedne- r ocnon cae ivgeodld en as buenllt. hroned upon the golden cherubim or standing ty- ~ :: 'aatp. Ef.eor(cid:127) 's:w .tbl ekr.- ii.nnArgg d dor me. e tNahabsoa,ta weane .wpv.raine csenrs s, o tt : t*ee dsat feo-
UoPUstsejtaehcmuannclrogl ithiibewvhvpssrR eettsto riri eoinssdsneiiiotettteao h,fayrn ar Se pctrdiSb orhn Moeif,cc lwoeoeeiPcna acl molehbrlenyintoelrsstf. esn nr hi uss'ee5Basytbo t i0 vtuniomaT/vcrg unreoht p,reie iwaelieaam d ors.t e fupaa_de noSyrclnoolPtfeaiecffdi kn Ir rf o .l tlyc,o ua ye fltttnla e hhheiwtssvn eee tsii hots UtthherhoTTwor nsl eyfoa aaim vb vwbblWeleeee estiir nrrh liw.sp nnng eiFautaa s pdya. bcc ,noAlcll Aeeirodcsr nnlnh akrabetne drtedd hi wmwo g eefb ahapEq ewsstou. rtirasthedoAdcarhleofreoeti. geny ccerJSioo soCltoirrpyhduaafhaoe.eesn tStnvi mreeseys eedd nr,drn HToa .t -nhoo otepbwfw ak is-ii uitttaenIhhhmbf se ,-t nioadnlh3fbmto a9eusxae. t "ar sArn ih.seD,eTb d .yh , haHatJwt hdewehse rwauo osamsad ds ansStuAAet(r.iLg onrghHunehttitkgbPpeEa eroaasR rsuO ,al1 n3DIoVd:wfm'3 Sw h2e N)co(thn 9hl oAte iiw vsoB eaBrnaArenss. iC d Tgk .nAis-n4tee"Eirgd0nnko;A o ninNuNgIgg e AibE"hnrCu.I DtGo .Gbtr)Ho.,yada B nulidOMrb1lei 1ekRnea :im g3r n ck2goaW. r lfe(al.reC o odfFhvcm liaH.es pivteth.A4er" er otl bhdB6ra :.NtiCt1ogh ta4 h.ha b)tad,a nt -o OdaPtttttirh-hnraela.cedied l?eSave s esTe,nttfbtceira ho enjartusqNe.e rit t:on ayrdauhtAmwey btar,mer a yr aese Ha m!aa t nea nlasttstie) ndnh fta rod e tnoi aotsm-he fgafdoo soe r fee'ttr h aro stit eninh.trs, visreha dsn eoae tt iiffhudsberanot et hboEtrhihreimrdst s e hm ohofar rfomw ttia oii nmwolmoemiltwtaarn eeoees efr o n s f ef klc u oAcwihfneanadAoadarrhngptn nruearecrdidv drbeneotoeyiat il antmaall lshoitC.g s n a.eAp hgk iaraLnr eannhaiatgnsbhmEdrda tste d Bae b Ppytstchoh owaubwecftueoehstwoncrtha r utenuode.saoe rutn rmc rtg.nahhM1a rtohirnea el(nuitadaSild, sigt 1vceg hh chdalin e oni,t~ nnahnd c it gea 'iu.p id rhrr:e yooa.d, u.seoia n tf:te i ybhbs1 .e,te. -,e n
opened by the excavation of a small temple at Khirbet et-
hmyobrrei d comcrmeaotnu rtehsa,n anpya rtolyth er aniwminagl,e d wcer efaintudr e, one sow hmichu chi ss o mtuhcaht Totefa mnpntwluero, , vabnluoletil yts f,a ri n wfraaonsm aridPcmehtliryra a,b lea dsoourlnothceeadat isotnaw t iwth o f sttait.tehu ee sD ienatdae nrsdSe ecatii.mo na Tgehsi s
its identification with the cherub is certain: that is the of the favorite gods and goddesses. Fig. 3 is an altar of
AwSwysiinnrsyiggarle eidas s a nspdthh seipPn haxiwl neixsnto igrne aed nw din bgutiethl dle iswlg iroiitnfthfh ien wa withhinua gpmephadeun am rhs;a penah dihin nex a pdBr.ew avbhayiicllIoshn;n iaEi sg ybpuadtnto dm itinh- e cietitnhadecvo reau.a ntgsisho ent as T. wtfhoiseh h ic-bcghhOeo idnewtfd h teaehss es g, osfoadfumrdoneends ast nasdt h wisetsa rhoseem t hAeetGbt iamyrr fegeiegstakh ut iers e,Za sAe umsoa ef s roagimcnBoaddaend ta ielmt shSsee wcs h hoRooofmrol e'ms p gtarhreneas yieJen nxu. t-p- -
nant in art and religious symbolism. Another figure is the goddess of Good Luck, Tyche, shown onr,
rstiieotstnee nthta utniodneT(sroh lnye)i nGgot ohfd e oathf c ihkse iInrsrugda beeislis miega"nt aewtd(iao Is n oSofnatm enai.s 4th:wd4ree,os inilg en eatictllse.u)ud.s p tpraotreatdesT d h e" Hoceonb n wyc ehearpoce -hp - cmmtthlhPaaee r lblfseioeyffrctt i o itnnhogdefs f iedryneieaa nam grbso e fl o oocffkt hb eNhe lioaosfat w al.ty katrhrian eeg lA, ipnna Avhineaprsmdeicgt rea. inbspt ut ii3ol.tItn Vo : Fftihingidtts.eh lalst4a te msissmhup, oslae wl ls it nhd auarte r7 ci wneBapgo . trCak-.-
side by cherubim, which have been found at Byblus, Hamath, The religion practiced there was another of those pagar re-
and Megiddo all dating between 1200 and 800 B.C. Fig. 2 is ligions which confronted the early disciples of Jesus.
the first mentioned, showing King Hiram of Byblus (Period of G.E.W.
the Judges) seated upon his cherub throne. Pottery incense
altars found at Taanach and Megiddo are archaeological par- ANNOUNCEMENT
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Connect icut.
6 BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGIST/MARCH1 987
conversations with various people. It was decided that who subscribed, and the first hundred, and so on.
it should be something about Bible, because archaeology
Meyers:W hat was the response to BA in those early
in the popular mind usually meant classical archae-
years?
ology or Egyptiana rchaeology.S o it was named The
Biblical Archaeologist. Mrs. Wright:I would say it was pretty good. There was
It was about that time that Nelson Glueck found nothing else like it. It was a real breakthrough.P eople
what he thought were Solomon'sM ines, and something who were interested in biblical criticism, biblical his-
else was found, so there was quite a spreadi n the New tory, history of the Middle East - any of that - thought
YorkT imes, and this gave us something to pick up and it was good.
put in a publication. Of course, once we were successfully under way,
One of the first articles was on the Good Shepherd. the next job was to get articles. That was almost harder.
We hunted through archaeology
ii-:i-:i-~i~:i :-ii- i':ii-i- Meyers:H ow did you go about it?
volumes to find the classic picture :::-:- --: ::::-::
~iiij iiiIii i
of the shepherd with his sheep. i::E---r-i i 'i-;-. _ :::.-- . :-.: :::_: :: 1.:. :?::-z-i _-::~ --1ii-- i:_~:' i:i:ii-i: : Mrs.W right:E rnestw ould write to
Gladys Walton,w ho was Millar ;:: :: -; scholars and ask for articles or sug-
;: ii
Burrows'Y ale secretary,h elped. A gest topics, and if someone gave a
lot of her time came to be devoted likely paper at the annual meeting
to ASOR. with the Society of Biblical Litera-
xii
ture, he would ask for it, or for an
Meyers:D r. Burrowsm ust have
adaptationo f it. It was difficult-
been very supportive of your
it is still difficult, I think-to get
activities.
scholarly people to write popular-
Mrs. Wright:O h yes! You know, ly. Some of the papers they would
he was a real New Englander;h e hand in were awful - dry as dust,
didn'td ouble overw ith enthusiasm unclear. Then I would try to edit
about anything. But it turned out them, or in some cases rewrite
that when you got to know him them. Of course, there were those
better he was really enthusiastic. who got absolutely livid at the idea
And you have to think of what of their sacred material being al-
things were like in the thirties. tered. And authors would have
Tight. Nothing like BA had ever trouble getting things in on time
been done and the main thing was and providingi llustrations.
to try to match the grant.
Meyers:T hings haven'tc hanged
What took a lot of time was
Wrighta nd Mrs. Emily Wrighta t a costume party in much!
getting him a mailing list. To the early 1950s. Courtesyo f the McCormick Theo- May we ask, what was Profes-
whom would we send sample logical Seminary.
sor Albright'sr eaction to BA?
copies?
Mrs.W right:O h, he was totally sup-
Meyers:D id you use the ASOR
portive.H e wrote some things him-
membership list to start with?
self. Fora man of his age and back-
Mrs. Wright:W e used the membership list and a list of ground,h e did amazingly well in writing popular things.
all the seminaries in the country. And we put together a
Meyers:H e was a magnificent writer.
list of people at various colleges. I discovered Ohio had
Did McCormick Seminary help the magazine in
more colleges at that time than any other state. So we
those early years?F ori nstance, did they provide an
just sent out sample copies to likely people.
office?
Meyers:Y ouw ere the first subscription fulfillment
Mrs. Wright:N o. That wasn't possible because the facul-
officer.
ty members themselves didn'th ave offices per se. The
Mrs. Wright:T hat's right. And I continued to be long faculty town houses were enormous, though, so each
after we left New Haven. I still kept track of the sub- faculty member had an office in his own home. What
scriptions and did the billing. All this from Chicago. he did there was up to him. You could say they were
supportive in that there were never any complaints that
Meyers:F rom McCormick?
he was not using all his time for the benefit of the
Mrs. Wright:Y es.I t was really a very simple, basic kind seminary; of course, they could see that what Ernest
of thing. We kept track of the numbers: the first fifty was doing was giving McCormick publicity, too, and a
BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGIST/MARCH1 987 7
name for ministering to laypeople, and so on. And his really can't say when he got the idea. I do know that he
colleagues in biblical studies were very helpful, many had definite plans to go back and dig there many years
contributing articles to BA. before he was able to do it. There was a little thing like
WorldW arI I that came and wrecked everybody'sp lans
Meyers:Y ou obviously played a central role in the maga-
to do anything. And I know when he made up his mind
zine for many years.
to go ahead and do it. The year before we spent hours
Mrs. Wright:I finally stopped doing the clerical work, and hours and hours with catalogues and price lists.
the billing and the mailing, in 1943. Beforet hat I did all
Meyers:F ore quipment?
the mailing! Everythingw as hand addressed,a nd I ad-
dressed everything, the magazines as well as the bills. I Mrs. Wright:Y es.T here was nothing over there. You had
know the year because I couldn't manage two babies to bring everything. And in those days there was very
and BA too. That doesn't mean I wasn't, literally, living little to make camping easier. I remember our counting
next door to it. up how big the staff would probablyb e so we could
determine the number of cots, blankets, sheets, pillow-
Meyers:B ut you continued to copyedit and that sort of
cases, and cooking utensils that would be needed, not
thing even after 1943?
to mention equipment to dig with and bags to purify
Mrs. Wright:O h yes. water with.
Meyers:M ight we change directions here and ask when Meyers:D id you ever go into the field with Ernest?
Ernest got the idea for the Shechem excavations?
Mrs. Wright:O nly the year that we lived over there.
Meyers:Y ou had a big family, of course.
:~::::: ; 71, Mrs. Wright:Y es,a nd I couldn't see leaving my children
to go anywhere. Besides, there was never enough money
to take everybody.T odayt here are grants available,
sometimes for a spouse or a daughtero r a son to go as
an assistant something-or-other.B ut if Ernest got a
grant to get himself somewhere it was a real achieve-
41 ment. And you know, heat really affects me. I wouldn't
have been any help. I remember going on one of those
field trips in 1965 to a dig that JeanP errotw as conduct-
ing. I scared everybodyt o death. Evat ook one look at
me - my blood pressure was rising, I was dizzy, I must
have looked terrible- and took me in the jeep as fast as
she could to some nearbyk ibbutz to cool me off and
give me lemonade. After that I don't think anyone ever
regrettedm y having not been on a dig.
Meyers:Y ou may not have been on the digs, but you
The area of the Bethel expedition that was under the charge of Wright
in 1934. Courtesy of the Harvard Semitic Museum (GEW 4.34). continued to be very involved with ASOR activities,
especially after Ernest became the president.
Mrs. Wright:I can't answer that accurately because I Mrs. Wright:I am always amazed at what young people
think he got the idea before I knew him, maybe when today don't know about their spouses. With Ernest,
he was a student and working on the Bethel dig. Ernest everything was discussed. Even before we were engaged.
went aroundu ntil he knew every possible tell in the The first article he wrote, before he got his doctorate,
area.W hether Albright might have said, "Now there is a was "The Troglodites of Gezer," and I lived through its
place that looks interesting and one should consider creation.
digging it,"o r whether it was Ernest'so wn idea, I don't Meyers: Where did you meet Ernest?
know. But I think he had had this dream of digging at
Shechem for a long time. He and FrankC ross, when Mrs. Wright: In Baltimore.
Frankw as a student, would talk about the great, forti- Meyers: Are you from Baltimore?
fied sites - the logic of their dating and geography,
where they would be, why they would be there, and Mrs. Wright: No. I'm the original girl from thirty-third
when they would have been strong. It goes back so far street-Brooklyn.
and was discussed in so many different contexts, that I Meyers: You have lost most of your accent.
8 BIBLICALA RCHAEOLOGIST/MARCH1 987
