June 2 Gezer Update

By Gary D. Myers

Thursday was low attendance day at the Gezer Water System …a lingering sickness continues to thin our ranks. Three were taken to a clinic nearby. Two other team members had meetings to attend. Only nine team members made it to the tel. Even with low numbers we made great progress – 85 bags of dirt and debris were removed and we moved another 6 feet deeper into the tunnel. That is 43 feet from our measuring point – well over 100 feet from the mouth of the water system. However, we still did not reach the cave at the end of the tunnel. Maybe tomorrow.

Special thanks to Jason and Luke

A team from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has been conducting archaeological surveys around the tel. Two of their team members – Jason and Luke – heard that our numbers were down and volunteered to help in the afternoon. They worked hard digging and bagging dirt and allowed our healthy team members get some much-needed rest. Thank you Jason and Luke! You guys are top notch.

A feast at Asi’s

We could not excavate the Gezer Water System without Asi (spelling?), the crane operator. He is a great worker and a great guy. Asi invited us all to his home for dinner June 2. It was quite a spread that Asi and his family (his wife and two daughters) shared with us. It was a great, festive evening. We were humbled by their hospitality and their generosity. As always, Asi and Tsvika kept us entertained with their humor. It was a great evening after such a hard day of digging.


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The Gezer Water System project is co-sponsored by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary under the direction of Tsvika Tsuk, chief archaeologist at INPA, and Dan Warner, co-director of the Center for Archaeological Research at NOBTS.