Let the Stones Speak

Epizode

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  #70: 2026 Ophel Excavation Begins in Jerusalem 22.07.2026 12min

  Less than 100 meters from the southern wall of the Temple Mount, the Ophel Excavation is currently underway in one of the most important locations in all Israel. The joint project by Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology seeks to uncover the monumental remains from the late Second Temple Period (2,000 years ago) and even earlier. On today’s episode of Let the Stones Speak host Brent Nagtegaal speaks on-site in Jerusalem with excavation co-director Prof. Uzi Leibner about what has been uncovered so far and what this season’s excavation could reveal.
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  #69: Has the Queen of Sheba Been Found? 29.06.2026 40min

  Host Brent Nagtegaal interviews Let the Stones Speak contributor Christopher Eames about his article in the May-June 2026 magazine, proposing the identity of this elusive queen on the scene some 3,000 years ago.
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  #68: Unearthing the Tabernacle Site at Shiloh: Interview With Dr. Abigail Van Huss 24.06.2026 22min

  On today’s program, Dr. Van Huss explains the three areas of excavation, including further indication that an emerging monumental structure may indeed be the biblical tabernacle.
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  #67: New Archaeological Evidence of King Hezekiah’s Religious Reform 29.05.2026 29min

  Brand-new archeological evidence he discovered at Tel ‘Eton in southern Israel supports the biblical case for King Hezekiah’s reform. On today’s program, host Brent Nagtegaal explains the new evidence in the context of the biblical narrative.
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  #66: Discovering the Seal Impressions of the Prophet Jeremiah’s Captors 22.05.2026 23min

  A personal retelling of the discovery of seal impressions discovered on Dr. Eilat Mazar’s excavations
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  #65: Melchizedek, David or Neither? What to Make of the Mysterious Rock-Cut Rooms in Ancient Jerusalem 28.04.2026 39min

  Since their unearthing in the 2010–2011 excavations of Eli Shukron and Ronny Reich, the City of David “rock-cut rooms” have generated significant interest and speculation. The unusual nature of the rooms, including apparently cultic installations, has led some to associate them with Melchizedek (known to some as “Temple Zero”), King David or even the work of a later biblical king.
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  #64: Bodies of Dozens of Infants From 2,500 Years Ago Discovered in Cistern at Tel Azekah 17.04.2026 35min

  While excavating Tel Azekah in the Judean lowlands in 2012, archaeologists discovered the remains of over five dozen young children. This is the first time a mass burial of children was ever discovered from the Persian Period in the land of Israel. Research about the discovery was published in the Palestine Exploration Quarterly on March 27. On today’s podcast, host Brent Nagtegaal analyzes the study and pushes back on some of the archaeologists’ claims in light of the Bible and known Judahite burial practices.
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  #63: New Research: Is the Hezekiah Tunnel Inscription Evidence of an Ancient Deadly Workplace Accident? 13.04.2026 47min

  Carved into a wall of bedrock, the Siloam Inscription is the longest piece of writing ever discovered in biblical Jerusalem. The question then arises: If it’s so important, why hide the inscription inside the darkened tunnel where almost no one could read it? Prof. Ariel Cohen, from the Department of Foreign Literatures and Linguistics at Ben Gurion University of the Negev, believes he may have the answer.
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  #62: Israeli Underwater Excavations Reveal Earliest Hoard of Iron Blooms From 600 B.C.E. 06.04.2026 24min

  The earliest evidence of a grouping of iron blooms has been discovered in a shipwreck off the Carmel coast. On today’s program, host Brent Nagtegaal interviews lead author Prof. Tsilla Eshel of the School of Archaeology and Maritime Cultures, University of Haifa, about the discovery.
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  #61: Top 10 Biblical Archaeology Finds of 2025 09.01.2026 1h 8min

  From ancient shipwrecks to an Egyptian fortress and New Kingdom Period tomb, as well as new research relating to two of Judah’s notably righteous kings—Hezekiah and Josiah—2025 brought us many new and exciting discoveries illustrating the biblical account.
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  #60: Revealed: A 2,700-Year-Old Depiction of Jerusalem and King Hezekiah (Exclusive Interview) 22.12.2025 34min

  Around 170 years ago, British archaeologist Sir Austin Henry Layard excavated much of Assyrian King Sennacherib’s palace in ancient Nineveh. In the royal throne room, there stood a stunning 3-meter-high carving of a majestic city that was utterly unique in all of Sennacherib’s reliefs. Atop the tallest tower in the city was one individual holding up a royal standard. Could this be a depiction of ancient Jerusalem and could the lone figure be Judah’s King Hezekiah, of whom Sennacherib boasted that he besieged as a “bird in a cage.”
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  #59: Revealing the Source of Royal Ivory from Biblical Times 26.11.2025 40min
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  #58: A 3,000-Year-Old Palace on Israel’s Northern Frontier 10.09.2025 41min

  Excavating the time of David and beyond at Abel Beth Maacah with Prof. Naama Yahalom-Mack
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  #57: Massive 2,800-Year-Old Dam Discovered In Ancient Jerusalem 29.08.2025 32min

  Excavators in the City of David have uncovered a massive dam built during the time of Jerusalem’s biblical kings. The dating of the reservoir to about 800 B.C.E., two hundred years after King David reigned, was determined following the publication of new carbon-14 results of the dam wall. On today’s program, Brent Nagtegaal reviews the discovery in light of biblical history.
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  #56: New Excavations: King Rehoboam’s Fortifications at Lachish 24.07.2025 30min

  The Bible records that King David’s grandson, King Rehoboam, fortified 15 cities in the kingdom of Judah almost 3,000 years ago. The biggest of these was Lachish, recognized as Judah’s second most important city after Jerusalem. Prof. Yosef Garfinkel of Hebrew University is currently excavating at Tel Lachish. Two days before the end of the excavation, Let the Stones Speak host Brent Nagtegaal sat down with Professor Garfinkel to view the massive city wall his team is unearthing.
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  #55: Touring Tel Shiloh With Dr. Scott Stripling 13.07.2025 25min

  Shiloh is famous as the location of the biblical tabernacle. Archaeological excavations have been taking place annually on the north side of the ancient tel. Excavation director Dr. Scott Stripling believes his team may have found remains from the tabernacle itself, as well as the city gate and sacrificial deposits. In this end-of-season interview, Dr. Stripling leads Let the Stones Speak host Christopher Eames through the three main areas of excavation at Tel Shiloh.
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  #54: Khirbet el-Maqatir: Evidence of Biblical Ai 02.07.2025 18min

  The biblical city of Ai was one of three cities that met a fiery demise when the Israelites conquered the Promised Land: “So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap …” (Joshua 8:28). Over the years, archaeologists have proposed a few sites as being biblical Ai. One such site is Khirbet al-Maqatir. Al-Maqatir was excavated by the Associates for Biblical Research for 14 seasons. This small site conforms with a number of key parameters for Joshua’s Ai. In today’s interview, which was recorded in May, Let the Stones Speak co-host Christopher Eames speaks with Abigail Van Huss, one of the site’s excavators, about the history of the site and its identification as Ai.
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  #53: Meet Jerusalem's Chief Archaeologist 24.06.2025 23min

  The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) safeguards the history of Israel. We’ve had the opportunity to work closely with the lAA on many projects over the years. Most recently, we’ve been working with Dr. Amit Re’em, the lAA director of Jerusalem district archaeology. Re’em is a man who has been “working, exploring, writing on ancient Jerusalem for more than 30 years.” In today’s interview, Let the Stones Speak co-host Christopher Eames interviews Re’em about his background in archaeology and his role at the Israel Antiquities Authority.
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  #52: Season Wrap-up: Excavating Jerusalem's Gatehouse 05.05.2025 16min

  After three weeks of excavation, our work at Jerusalem’s royal quarter has ended. We had a successful and productive season in an area of the Ophel that has not been touched since Dr. Eilat Mazar’s 2009-2010 excavations. In today’s episode, Let the Stones Speak co-host Christopher Eames interviews excavation director Prof. Yosef Garfinkel about his perspective on the season and the future of the site.
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  #51: The Egyptian Army at Megiddo: A New Archaeological Window Into King Josiah’s Last Stand 30.04.2025 36min

  Over a century of excavations at Tel Megiddo have finally unearthed a construction layer from the late seventh century B.C.E. and with it the largest assemblage of Egyptian pottery ever discovered in the southern Levant. This is at the precise time the Bible says King Josiah traveled to Megiddo to war against Egypt. On today’s program, host Brent Nagtegaal talks about the new discovery as well as the broader biblical context for King Josiah’s last stand at Megiddo.