Art, History and the Historiography of Judaism in Roman Antiquity

Product Description Art, History, and the Historiography of Judaism in Roman Antiquity explores the complex interplay between visual culture, texts, and their interpretations, arguing for an open-ended and self-aware approach to understanding Jewish culture from the first century CE through the rise of Islam. The essays assembled here range from the "thick description" of Josephus's portrayal of Bezalel son of Uri as a Roman architect through the inscriptions of the Dura Europos synagogue, Jewish reflections on Caligula in color, the polychromy of the Jerusalem temple, new-old approaches to the zodiac, and to the Christian destruction of ancient synagogues. Taken together, these essays suggest a humane approach to the history of the Jews in an age of deep and long-lasting transitions--both in antiquity, and in our own time. Review "[...] Fine's book is an important contribution to the ongoing conversation on multiple symbolic systems in late antique Judaism and their possible meanings, a conversation that shows no signs of ending any time soon." - Alexei M. Sivertsev, DePaul University, in: IMAGES, 8 (2015) "This brilliant collection of twelve fascinating essays is beautifully adorned with over 64 carefully chosen illustrations revealing a highly developed aesthetic sense. [...] There is a balanced, judicious care in his tight scholarly writing that takes the reader back into the past not as a dry artifact to learn "about," but "from" as it relates to the reader's lived reality. [...] Recommended for all libraries." - David B Levy, Touro College, in: Association of Jewish Libraries Reviews, 4:2 (2014) From the Back Cover "Art, History and the Historiography of Judaism in the Greco-Roman World" explores the complex interplay between visual culture, texts and their interpretations, arguing for an open-ended and self-aware approach to understanding Jewish culture from the first century CE through the rise of Islam. The essays assembled here range from the "thick description" of Josephus' Bezalel son of Uri as a Roman architect through the inscriptions of the Dura Europos synagogue, Jewish reflections on Caligula in color, the polychromy of ancient Jewish artifacts and new-old approaches to the zodiac and to the Christian destruction of ancient Jewish artifacts. Taken together, they suggest a humane approach to the history of the Jews in an age of deep and long lasting transitions-- both in antiquity, and in our own time. About the Author Steven Fine is professor of Jewish history at Yeshiva University. He is director of the Arch of Titus Digital Restoration Project and of the Yeshiva University Center for Israel Studies. Fine’s Art and Judaism in the Greco-Roman World: Toward a New Jewish Archaeology received the Association for Jewish Studies’ Jordan Schnitzer Book Award in 2009.