Dan Barag (; 13 September 1935 – 20 November 2009) was an Israeli archeologist and educator who served as a professor at the Archeological department of the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

. He is known for his work in the field of ancient glass history and leading the research team that excavated the ancient synagogue in

Ein Gedi Ein Gedi (, ), also spelled En Gedi, meaning "Spring (hydrology), spring of the goat, kid", is an oasis, an Archaeological site, archeological site and a nature reserve in Israel, located west of the Dead Sea, near Masada and the Qumran Caves. ...

Biography

Dan Barag was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1935 during his parents journey from

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. He was raised in the city of

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

and moved to

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

in 1956 in order to study Archaeology at the

. He completed his Phd. in 1971 under the guidance of Prof.

Nahman Avigad Nahman Avigad (; September 25, 1905 – January 28, 1992), born in Zawalow, Galicia (then Austria-Hungary, now Zavaliv, Ukraine), was an Israeli archaeologist. Biography Avigad studied architecture in what is now the town of Brno, Czech Rep ...

and Prof. Donald Harden. His studies in the field of ancient glass vessels in the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine. The definition ...

was followed by numerous articles on the subject that brought him worldwide acknowledgement.

Archaeological career

In 1970 Dan Barag joined the archaeological department of the Hebrew University, in 1973 he became a senior lecturer, 1978 an associate professor and in 1985 a professor. He continued teaching at the university until his retirement in 2003. In 1970 he led the excavation that discovered the ancient synagogue of

En-Gedi Ein Gedi (, ), also spelled En Gedi, meaning " spring of the kid", is an oasis, an archeological site and a nature reserve in Israel, located west of the Dead Sea, near Masada and the Qumran Caves. Ein Gedi, a kibbutz, was established nearby ...

. He was a specialist in the field of

Numismatics Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...

. For 30 years he served as President of the Israeli Numismatics Society and head editor of its journal. He took part in notable excavations such as:

Tell Qasile Tell Qasile is an archaeological site near the Yarkon River in Tel Aviv, Israel. Over 3,000 years old, the site contains the remains of a port city founded by the Philistines in the 12th century BC. Prior to 1948, it was on the village lands of ...

, Hanita,

Nahariya Nahariya () is the northernmost coastal city in Israel. As of , the city had a population of . The city was founded in 1935 by Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi Germany. Etymology Nahariya takes its name from the stream of Ga'aton River, Ga'aton (riv ...

and Beth She‘arim. In addition Barag had several rolls in the

Israel Exploration Journal The ''Israel Exploration Journal'' is a biannual academic journal which has been published by the Israel Exploration Society since 1950. It primarily covers research in archaeology, but also history and geography relating to Israel and the surrou ...

, from associate editor to editor and then up to his death he was part of the Editorial Advisory Board.

References

1935 births {{Israel-academic-bio-stub 20th-century Israeli archaeologists Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni 21st-century Israeli archaeologists Academic staff of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem 2009 deaths