Lecture to spotlight ancient unknowns of the Holy Land

Contact: Kay Fike Jones

An expert on the ancient Middle East will discuss life in the region around 3000 B.C. at a March 5 public program at Mississippi State University.

Eliot L. Braun also will review highlights of his fieldwork in Israel during a presentation titled "Unnamed and Virtually Forgotten: Little Know People of the Holy Land in Late Prehistory." An American, he is senior research archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority in Jerusalem.

The program begins at 3:30 p.m. in 201 Cobb Institute of Archaeology. A reception will follow.

Braun holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from the State University of New York at Buffalo and a master's in biblical archaeology from the Hebrew University Institute of Archaeology in Jerusalem. He completed a doctorate at the Tel Aviv University's Institute of Archaeology.

His career in field archaeology began as a volunteer in 1973 for excavations of Israel's Tell Gezer site, which were directed by Cobb Institute director Joe Seger. He has served in his current position since 1990.

In addition to the Cobb Institute, the MSU Anthropology Club, department of sociology, anthropology and social work and the College of Arts and Sciences are sponsoring Braun's visit.

For more information on the program, telephone (601) 325-3826.