Chieftains Of The Highland Clans: A History Of Israel In The Twelfth And Eleventh Centuries B.C.

by Robert D. Miller II

An illuminating social history of ancient Israel, Chieftains of the Highland Clans offers an unusually thorough and original reconstruction of Israelite society prior to the rise of the monarchy around 1000 B.C. Using the latest archaeological research and anthropological theories, Robert Miller presents an intriguing picture of what life was like in early Israel. Ethnographic evidence from diverse cultures suggests the "complex chiefdom" model as the most appropriate for the archaeology of twelfth- and eleventh-century highland Palestine. This model details the economic and political realities of prestate societies with ascribed rank and hierarchical political control. As he applies and fine-tunes the complex chiefdom model, Miller illustrates areas of potential correspondence and contradiction between his reconstruction and the biblical text. Students of archaeology, Palestine, and the Hebrew Bible will not want to miss Miller's fresh and fascinating conclusions about the sociopolitical nature of early Israel.

208 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2005

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Professor Miller uses current anthropological modeling (the "Complex Chiefdom Model") and up to date archaeological research to try and paint a portrait of what life in the central hill country of the Land of Israel must have been like in the pre-monarchy period. Well, it's good as far as it goes, and I do feel that I learned something here. Basically, early Israelite society was agricultural, village-based and organized into a small hierarchy of "chiefdoms" and "sub-chiefdoms." Normally, I would have called them tribes and clans, but apparently you're not allowed to do that anymore. He compares his findings with the Biblical sources to see how they compare, and thus we have a overview of the "Era of the Judges." Except you're not allowed to call it that either. Ah, well. It is readily apparent that this book is a buffed-up PhD thesis, and it reads accordingly. There is enough post-structural jargon to shake a stick at. However, it is short, so your suffering is brief. I would recommend this book to students of the history and archaeology of Iron Age I Eretz Israel. Just don't expect a ripping good read.

[Jean-michel Pigeon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Livre intéressant portant sur l'histoire correspondant à la période des juges.