Written by an international and interdisciplinary team of distinguished scholars, The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Daily Life in Roman Palestine is an indispensable reference compendium on the day-to-day lives of Jews in the land of Israel in Roman times. Ranging from subjects such as clothing and domestic architecture to food and meals, labour and trade, and leisure time activities, the volume covers all the major themes in an encompassing yet easily accessible way. Individual chapters introduce the reader to the current state of research on particular aspects of ancient Jewish everyday life - research which has been greatly enriched by critical methodological approaches to rabbinic texts, and by the growing interest of archaeologists in investigating the lives of ordinary people. Detailed bibliographies inspire further engagement by enabling readers to pursue their own lines of enquiry.
The Handbook will prove to be an invaluable reference work and tool for all students and scholars of ancient Judaism, rabbinic literature, Roman provincial history and culture, and of ancient Christianity.
I. Methodological Issues 1: Catherine Hezser: Correlating Literary, Epigraphic, and Archaeological Sources 2: Catherine Hezser: The Graeco-Roman Context of Jewish Daily Life in Roman Palestine 3: Tal Ilan: Gender Issues and Daily Life II. Life in a Roman Province 4: Rudolf Haensch: The Roman Provincial Administration 5: Jill Harries: Courts and the Judicial System 6: David Goodblatt: Population Structure and Jewish Identity 7: Willem Smelik: The Languages of Roman Palestine III. City and Countryside 8: Benjamin Isaac: Infrastructure 9: Dianne van de Zande and Jürgen Zangenberg: Urbanization 10: Ann Killebrew: Village and Countryside 11: Catherine Hezser: Travel and Mobility IV. Labour and Trade 12: Alexei Sivertsev: The Household Economy 13: Zeev Safrai: Agriculture and Farming 14: Uzi Leibner: Arts and Crafts, Manufacture and Production 15: Jack Pastor: Trade, Commerce, and Consumption 16: Gildas Hamel: Poverty and Charity V. Family Life 17: Jonathan Schofer: The Different Life-Stages: From Childhood to Old Age 18: Michael Satlow: Marriage and Divorce 19: Dafna Shlezinger-Katsman: Clothing 20: Tziona Grossmark: Jewellery: The Literary Evidence 21: Katharina Galor: Jewellery: The Archaeological Evidence 22: David Kraemer: Food, Eating, and Meals 23: Katharina Galor: Domestic Architecture 24: Steven Fine: Death, Burial, and Afterlife VI. Education and Literacy 25: Catherine Hezser: Private and Public Education 26: Carol Bakhos: Orality and Writing VII. Religion and Magic 27: Günter Stemberger: The Impact of Paganism and Christianity 28: Lee I. Levine: The Synagogue 29: Stefan Reif: Prayer and Liturgy 30: Lutz Doering: Sabbath and Festivals 31: Giuseppe Veltri: Magic and Healing VIII. Entertainment and Leisure Time Activities 32: Yaron Z. Eliav: Bathhouses as Places of Social and Cultural Interaction 33: Zeev Weiss: Theatres, Hippodromes, Amphitheatres and Performances 34: Joshua Schwartz: Play and Games
Reviews for The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Daily Life in Roman Palestine
The volume documents the various aspects of vibrant Jewish life in Roman Palestine up to the Islamic conquest... The essays of this volume allow for interesting comparisons with patristic literature and archaeological evidence on a number of issues. * Christoph Stenschke (University of South Africa) * Each chapter engages with many works and has its own bibliography. * Journal of Religious & Theological Information *
