A Biography of William Foxwell Albright

William Foxwell Albright is world renowned and legendary American Biblical archaeologist as well as a Biblical scholar, pottery expert and linguist. He helped to bring to life the historic world and culture of the bestselling book of all-time, the Holy Bible. Because of the triumphs of archaeologist William F. Albright, we are able to grasp an understanding deeper of the conditions surrounding the events of scripture, particularly in the area of the dating method for these events. He once said, Discovery after discovery has established the accuracy of innumerable details, and has brought increased recognition of the value of the Bible as a source of history1. Albright spent his life pursuing these challenging tasks and methods, virtually unknown at his time, unveiling these ancient worlds. It is a great pleasure to be living in a generation where we have the privilege of reading the stories of the scripture and also are able to understand the historical settings of those stories. The Apostle John understood the significance of confirming Gods Word as he wrote, What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of life..These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete2. Dr. Randall Price agreed when he wrote, Tangible things can assist faith in its growth toward God. Archaeology brings forth the tangible remnants of history so that faith can have a reasonable context in which to develop3

W.F. Albright, The Archaeology of Palestine, rev. ed. (Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Pelican Books, 1960), 128.
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1 John 1,4 (New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update) Price, Randall. The Stones Cry Out. (Harvest House Publishers. Oregon, 1997). 28.

Not only did Albright accomplish the exciting task of bringing the Biblical world to life, he was the main leader or trendsetter in the methodology of archaeology for generations of students after him. So inspired are so many by the archaeological pioneering of Albright that Beaulieu said, But more than that, he shaped the thinking of so many, in and outside academia, that he may justifiably be hailed as one of the most significant American humanists of the twentieth century.4 Archaeologist, historian, and author, Neil A. Silberman, once wrote, For the many of us who got our first training and experience in Biblical Archaeology in the 1970s, William Foxwell Albright was not our teacher; he was something of a patron saint.5 William Foxwell Albright was born May 24, 1891 in Coquimbo, Chile. He was born to American Methodist missionaries Wilbur Finley and mother Zephine Viola Foxwell Albright serving in the Atacama Desert at the time. Albrights family was very frugal because of their poverty. William was the oldest of six children who were all home schooled until the entire family left the mission field and returned to their home state of Iowa in 1903. After general schooling, Albright attended the Upper Iowa University, receiving his BA in Classics and Mathematics while working on a farm during the summers6. Because of the poverty level of his family, Albright worked to support his own education through farming. After receiving his BA at Upper Iowa he principled, at a local high school, for a short time in South Dakota.

Paul-Alain Beaulieu, 2002. "W.F. ALBRIGHT & ASSYRIOLOGY." Near Eastern Archaeology 65, no. 1: 11. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed March 5, 2010). Neil A. Silberman,Visions of the Future: Albright in Jerusalem, 1919-1929. The Biblical Archaeologist, Vol. 56, No. 1, Celebrating and Examining W. F. Albright (Mar., 1993),. Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3210356 8. "William Albright." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (March 6, 2010). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3404707722.html
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During his younger years he was incredibly able to self-study, teaching himself several languages; among them the ancient language of Hebrew, which assisted his expertise as a Biblical scholar, and Akkadian another ancient tongue. Both of these ancient languages would assist in the exploratory future Albright would experience. Albright decided to attend John Hopkins University, located in Baltimore M.D., to further his education. He wrote an article titled, "The Amorite form of the Name Hammurabi and sent it to JHU. Professor Paul Haupt was the professor of Semitic languages7 at that time, read Albrights article and was impressed. Young Albright was awarded numerous scholarships to attend John Hopkins which he did, and received his PhD, in Semitic languages, in 1916. In the summer of 1921, William Albright married Dr. Ruth Norton in Jerusalem. William and Ruth parented four children together. Dr. Norton was also a student at John Hopkins University. Shortly thereafter from 1922-1923, Albright began his first excavation at Tell el-Fl (Gibeah). With a budget of one thousand dollars, Albright chose to excavate a smaller Tell unlike in the past. Form the many potsherds that were excavated there at Tell elFl, Albright had identified the sight as Gibeah of Saul as found in I Samuel 10:26, Saul also went to his house at Gibeah; and the valiant men whose hearts God had touched went with him. Also, the mention of this location, regarding King Saul, is found in I Samuel 11:4, Then the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and spoke these words in the hearing of the people, and all the people lifted up their voices and wept. Albright would return to Tell el-Fl to do further digging in 1934. Albright is well known for his expertise in ceramics. He is also remembered for developing a chronological sequence for ancient pottery in all Palestine. He accomplished this
Wikipedia contributors, "Paul Haupt," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Paul_Haupt&oldid=347912346 (accessed March 6, 2010).
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through his careful study of the strata during his excavations. In recognition of Albrights brilliance, Silberman wrote, He succeeded in defining a ceramic chronology that neatly, if circularly, paralleled the history of the site, which he identified with Gibeah of Saul.8 Hoppe adds, Though Albright's pottery typology and sequencing were refined by other archaeologists over the years, he provided a model of how pottery ought to be treated by excavators, how pottery ought to be described and drawn for publication, and how pottery can inform the interpretation of the site being excavated.9 If Albright had not accomplished enough in so little time, he next became director of the American Schools of Oriental Research in Jerusalem in 1922. He would continue as director until 1936. Next, Albright excavated a site called Tell Beit Mirsim in 1926 with a budget of $3000. And in the spring of 1926, with a budget of $3000, raised by Kyle lectures and by public subscription, a temporary camp was pitched in a nearby olive grove, workers were hired from the nearby village, and the digging began. The rest, as they say, is history.10 Tell Beit Mirsim was a smaller Tell than most archaeologists usually excavate however, he was able to expand his observations of chronological Palestinian pottery, in which would be a foundation for all future experts in the field. Albright determined that Tell Beit Mirsim was once the city of Debir, a Canaanite city, in the Bible. The book of Joshua speaks several times of this city, The border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and turned northward toward Gilgal which is opposite the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south of the valley; and the border

Silberman, Albright in Jerusalem, pp.12

Hoppe, Leslie J. 2008. "Pottery and Archaeology." Bible Today 46, no. 2: 117-122. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed March 8, 2010). 120. Silberman, Neil A.. Visions of the Future: Albright in Jerusalem, 1919-1929. The Biblical Archaeologist, Vol. 56, No. 1, Celebrating and Examining W. F. Albright (Mar., 1993),. Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3210356 14.
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continued to the waters of En-shemesh and it ended at En-rogel.11 He would excavate this same Tell throughout four seasons between 1926 and 1932. When Albright was finished with the excavation of this Tell Beit Mirsim he published his findings in the Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research. In 1929, Albright became professor of Semitic Languages at his alma mater, Johns Hopkins University. He would continue teaching there until his retirement in 1958. In 1931, Albright began, in cooperation with others, the excavation of the Biblical city of Beth-Zur. He was able to date the artifacts again by examining the ancient pottery in the strata of the Tell. Albright wrote, As we shall see, our ceramic chronology was confirmed and made more precise by the aid of nearly seventy stamped jar-handles of all periods, and 279 coins.12 While excavating in Beth-Zur Albright found about a dozen LMLK seals, which he was very involved in studying from 1925 through 1960. In 1934, Albright excavated the Biblical city of Bethel. Again due to his chronology expertise he was able to archeologically support a closer date for Israels conquest through excavated artifacts, In any case, we can say pretty definitely that the Conquest began after the Amarna Age, but probably before the revival of Egyptian power under Sethos I (cir. 1317 B. C.).13 In 1946, the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the caves of Qumran. The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls confirms the accuracy of the Old Testament. The Scrolls have provided us
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Jos 15:7

O. R. Sellers and W. F. Albright The First Campaign of Excavation at Beth-zur, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 43 (Oct., 1931), Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research 4. W. F. Albright, Observations on the Bethel Report, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 57 (Feb., 1935), Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research, 30.
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with the oldest known copies of the Old Testament; as early as 300 B.C. Before these findings, the earliest copy of the Old Testament was only about 100 A.D. W.F. Albright was one of the first scholars to examine them for their authenticity. Freedman and Levy expound, With the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947- 1948, Albright was the first scholar to authoritatively assess them as the most momentous discovery in modern times pertaining to the Bible.14 Albright was also a talented and productive writer who authored several books and many hundreds of scholarly articles throughout his lifetime. From 1931 to 1968, he was the editor for the American Schools of Oriental Research's Bulletin. In 1949, he author the book The Archaeology of Palestine: From the Stone Age to Christianity, he revised this book in 1960. In 1963, he wrote The Biblical Period from Abraham to Ezra and then in 1968 he penned, Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan: An Historical Analysis of Two Contrasting Faiths. He was also the editor for the Anchor Bible. He edited the volumes on the books of Jeremiah, Matthew, and Revelation. Throughout his life, Albright had been granted many honorary doctorates, medals, and awards for his achievement. In 1970, The American Schools of Oriental Research, the school in which he was director for many years, was renamed the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research, in honor of William Foxwell Albright for his contribution to the field of archaeology. Albright passed away a year later on September 19, 1971, in Baltimore, Maryland; he was 80 years old. The success of W.F. Albright cannot be weighed and limited by his own archaeological success but it must also be taken into account the educational influence he had on those who

David Noel Freedman; Thomas Levy. Biographical Memoirs: V. 91. William Foxwell Albright 1891 1971. A Biographical Memoir (The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C. February, 2009) 16.

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were his students and those who studied his work, not to mention the impact he had on those who study and understand the Bible deeper because of his accomplishments. His fortitude and genius in developing a common universal pottery dating technique has supported the Biblical accounts of the Old Testament Patriarchs with their proper age. Even thought his method is still being used even today, since it has been heavily challenged by liberal archaeological skeptics and cynics.