Finding the Ark of the Covenant – described in Biblical lore as a gold-covered wooden chest containing the two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments handed from God to Moses – has long inspired treasure hunters and historians alike. It is believed to have disappeared around 587 BC when Jerusalem was destroyed by invading Babylonians. Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University claim to... 

The Philistine people—who gave their name to the land called Palestine—and who were the ancient Jews’ greatest enemy, as recorded in the bible—were of European origin, groundbreaking DNA studies have shown. The Philistines were believed to have arrived in Palestine—now called Israel—in the 12th century BC as part of the Indo-European settlement of the Near Middle East. They soon became...