Yosef Garfinkel

Yosef Garfinkel is Yigael Yadin Professor of Archaeology of the Land of Israel at the Institute of Archaeology, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. For many years his research focused on the early (Neolithic and Chalcolithic) village communities of the Near East. He conducted large scale excavations in the Jordan Valley, at Sha'ar Hagolan and Tel Tsaf, and published extensively on the art, cult, and dance of this era. Since 2007 his field work has shifted to the Iron Age and the emergence of the Kingdom of Judah, and he has directed excavations at Khirbet Qeiyafa, Tel Lachish, and Khirbet el-Rai. His studies on prehistoric dance opened new horizons for understanding the early history of this neglected topic.