will be on leave for a few days to attend to my father-in-law's 80th birthday celebration in sitiawan. so the blog may be quiet for a few days. but here is one piece of sad news:
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German Archaeologist Volkmar Fritz Dies at the Age of 69
Prof. Dr. Volkmar Fritz died on August 21, 2007 at the age of 69 in
Bad Schwartau, Germany, after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.
He is survived by his devoted wife, Anke, and four children.
Volkmar came to Israel in 1964 after having completed his theological
studies in Tübingen, Berlin, Heidelberg, Bonn and Marburg, where he
earned his Ph.D. in 1968. Interested in researching the Land of the
Bible and the material culture of ancient Israel, he studied Biblical
Archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His archaeological
supervisor was Prof.Yohanan Aharoni, and under his direction, Volkmar
served as an Area Supervisor in the excavations at Arad in the Negev
from 1965-1967. The results of that excavation became the central part
of his Habilitation, which he earned from the University of Mainz in
1973, where he joined the faculty and was responsible for teaching Old
Testament Studies. He was also instrumental in building and expanding
the university's library, making it one of the best in Europe in the
field of Biblical Archaeology. Later, he was appointed as full
professor in Old Testament at the University of Giessen.
Volkmar was committed in his research to applying archaeological data
to the German tradition of biblical analysis, and as a result he made
a significant contribution not only to combining the two disciplines,
but also to creating a greater understanding between German and
Israeli archaeologists. He was the first German scholar after the
Second World War to obtain a license to conduct an excavation in
Israel. Together with his Israeli colleague, the late Prof. Aharon
Kempinski, he directed the excavations at Tel Masos in the Negev from
1972-1975, which made a major contribution to our understanding of the
early history of ancient Israel. Subsequently, he directed the
excavations of Tell el-Oreme/Tel Kinrot on the northwestern shore of
the Sea of Galilee from 1982-1985 and conducted two small digs at
Feinan in Jordan in 1990. During his tenure as Director of the German
Protestant Institute of Archaeology on the Mount of Olives in
Jerusalem from 1994-1999, he returned to his dig at Tel Kinrot. These
excavations demonstrated that the site was one of the largest towns in
ancient Israel in the Iron Age I, and provided important evidence for
the Neo-Assyrian conquest of northern Israel in 733 BCE.
In 2003, he returned to Tel Kinrot for a visit, but he was already
greatly weakened by the Parkinson's disease that had begun a few years
previously. Although he was unable to excavate again himself, he was
happy in the knowledge that the work he had begun would go on in the
hands of his former students from Switzerland, Germany and Finland,
who are now responsible for the Kinneret Regional Project.
While Volkmar published a myriad of articles on various aspects of the
archaeology of ancient Israel, a major focus of his research was on
the architecture of public buildings, temples, palaces and domestic
housing. Two of his most important publications dealt with these
subjects: The City in Ancient Israel and An Introduction to Biblical
Archaeology, both of which appeared in German and in English. To his
credit, nearly all of his excavations have been fully published – like
his reports on Kinneret: Ergebnisse der Ausgrabungen auf dem Tell
el-Oreme am See Gennesaret, 1982-1985 and Ergebnisse der Ausgrabungen
auf der Hirbet el-Msas (Tel Mašoš) 1972-1975 (co-authored with Prof.
Kempinski). In addition, his last excavations, which were only begun
10 years ago, will be published in the near future. He was not only a
productive archaeologist, but also wrote important commentaries on the
Old Testament, like Das erste Buch der Könige.
Volkmar's warmth, kindness and fine sense of humor greatly endeared
him to all his friends. He gave generously of his knowledge and
experience and took great pleasure in the successes of his students.
He left an indelible mark on the field of Biblical Archaeology, and
will be sorely missed by his colleagues and students.
This is sad news indeed. May he rest in peace.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
German Archaeologist Volkmar Fritz Dies at the Age of 69
Prof. Dr. Volkmar Fritz died on August 21, 2007 at the age of 69 in
Bad Schwartau, Germany, after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.
He is survived by his devoted wife, Anke, and four children.
Volkmar came to Israel in 1964 after having completed his theological
studies in Tübingen, Berlin, Heidelberg, Bonn and Marburg, where he
earned his Ph.D. in 1968. Interested in researching the Land of the
Bible and the material culture of ancient Israel, he studied Biblical
Archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His archaeological
supervisor was Prof.Yohanan Aharoni, and under his direction, Volkmar
served as an Area Supervisor in the excavations at Arad in the Negev
from 1965-1967. The results of that excavation became the central part
of his Habilitation, which he earned from the University of Mainz in
1973, where he joined the faculty and was responsible for teaching Old
Testament Studies. He was also instrumental in building and expanding
the university's library, making it one of the best in Europe in the
field of Biblical Archaeology. Later, he was appointed as full
professor in Old Testament at the University of Giessen.
Volkmar was committed in his research to applying archaeological data
to the German tradition of biblical analysis, and as a result he made
a significant contribution not only to combining the two disciplines,
but also to creating a greater understanding between German and
Israeli archaeologists. He was the first German scholar after the
Second World War to obtain a license to conduct an excavation in
Israel. Together with his Israeli colleague, the late Prof. Aharon
Kempinski, he directed the excavations at Tel Masos in the Negev from
1972-1975, which made a major contribution to our understanding of the
early history of ancient Israel. Subsequently, he directed the
excavations of Tell el-Oreme/Tel Kinrot on the northwestern shore of
the Sea of Galilee from 1982-1985 and conducted two small digs at
Feinan in Jordan in 1990. During his tenure as Director of the German
Protestant Institute of Archaeology on the Mount of Olives in
Jerusalem from 1994-1999, he returned to his dig at Tel Kinrot. These
excavations demonstrated that the site was one of the largest towns in
ancient Israel in the Iron Age I, and provided important evidence for
the Neo-Assyrian conquest of northern Israel in 733 BCE.
In 2003, he returned to Tel Kinrot for a visit, but he was already
greatly weakened by the Parkinson's disease that had begun a few years
previously. Although he was unable to excavate again himself, he was
happy in the knowledge that the work he had begun would go on in the
hands of his former students from Switzerland, Germany and Finland,
who are now responsible for the Kinneret Regional Project.
While Volkmar published a myriad of articles on various aspects of the
archaeology of ancient Israel, a major focus of his research was on
the architecture of public buildings, temples, palaces and domestic
housing. Two of his most important publications dealt with these
subjects: The City in Ancient Israel and An Introduction to Biblical
Archaeology, both of which appeared in German and in English. To his
credit, nearly all of his excavations have been fully published – like
his reports on Kinneret: Ergebnisse der Ausgrabungen auf dem Tell
el-Oreme am See Gennesaret, 1982-1985 and Ergebnisse der Ausgrabungen
auf der Hirbet el-Msas (Tel Mašoš) 1972-1975 (co-authored with Prof.
Kempinski). In addition, his last excavations, which were only begun
10 years ago, will be published in the near future. He was not only a
productive archaeologist, but also wrote important commentaries on the
Old Testament, like Das erste Buch der Könige.
Volkmar's warmth, kindness and fine sense of humor greatly endeared
him to all his friends. He gave generously of his knowledge and
experience and took great pleasure in the successes of his students.
He left an indelible mark on the field of Biblical Archaeology, and
will be sorely missed by his colleagues and students.
This is sad news indeed. May he rest in peace.
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