*Talmudic title for the *Maccabees. The Hasmoneans led the rebellion against the Selucid kings in the 2nd Century BCE. Under the leadership of Mattathias and his sons *Judah, Simon and Jonathan, an independent Jewish kingdom was established until the...

  Part of a series of articles on Jews and...

A series of important changes overtook the Jewish high priesthood in the early Seleucid period. Zadokites in the family line of Joshua the son of Jehozadak had passed the office along in hereditary fashion for about 350 years before Menelaus, a person with different...

Studies on the hasmonean Period. By Joshua Efron. Studies in Judaism in Late Antiquity, vol. 39. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1987. Pp. xvi. HFI 144, $72. This stimulating collection of essays is (with some updating, to be sure) two removes from the original...

A wall mentioned in the Bible's Book of Nehemiah and long sought by archaeologists apparently has been found, an Israeli archaeologist says.A team of archaeologists discovered the wall in Jerusalem's ancient City of David during a rescue attempt on a tower that was in danger...

A wall mentioned in the Bible's Book of Nehemiah and long sought by archaeologists apparently has been found, an Israeli archaeologist says.A team of archaeologists discovered the wall in Jerusalem's ancient City of David during a rescue attempt on a tower that was in danger...

The following is an essay on Hasmonean rule and it analyzes its evolution from a movement apparently rooted in the rejection of Hellenism to a rule which embodied many Hellenistic features.