Daniel Schwartz, born in Syracuse, New York, USA, in 1952. Ph.D. from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Professor of Jewish History at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Fellow (1 February 2008 – 30 June 2008)
READING THE FIRST CENTURY: ON READING JOSEPHUS AND STUDYING JEWISH HISTORY OF THE FIRST CENTURY
My work on Josephus’ Books 18-20 of Jewish Antiquities, which are the main source for Jewish history of the first century CE, progressed on two main fronts. Firstly, I made good progress on my English translation and commentary on it for a Brill series: I completed a first draft of the translation and the commentary is growing. Secondly, I virtually completed a book entitled “Reading the First Century: On Reading Josephus and Studying Jewish History of the First Century” — a systematic discussion of the problems and considerations involved in moving from Josephus’ narratives to the reconstruction of what really happened in that crucial century. These projects impacted upon each other in various ways, and also engendered two articles on Josephan issues – one on his reception in modern Israel, the other on a detail concerning Herod’s genealogy and Josephus’ kinship terminology – that were conceived and completed during my stay at NIAS.