Claire Epstein
| Claire Epstein | |
|---|---|
| Born |
September 18, 1911 London |
| Died |
August 18, 2000 (aged 88) Kibbutz Ginossar |
| Nationality | Israel |
| Fields | Archaeology |
| Institutions | Israel Antiquities Authority |
| Alma mater | University College, London |
| Thesis | Palestinian Bichrome Ware |
| Doctoral advisor | Kathleen Kenyon |
| Known for | discovery of the Chalcolithic period in the Golan |
| Notable awards | Israel Prize, Percy Schimmel Award |
Claire Epstein (September 18, 1911 - August 18, 2000) was an Israeli archaeologist. She is noted for her discovery and work on the Chalcolithic Culture in Golan and was a noted member of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Biography
Epstein was born in London into an upper-class family.[1] Her mother was active in saving Jews from the Nazis.[1] Epstein was involved with Zionist circles at a young age and learned Hebrew early on.[2] Epstein attended King Alfred School and then studied Italian at the University College, London.[1] In 1932, she received her bachelor's degree.[1] Epstein immigrated to British Mandate Palestine in 1937, living in Tel-Aviv. She translated Hebrew for the 1937 Peel Commission.[3] In 1942, she joined the British Army Women's Unit and later became the first woman Sergeant Major from the yishuv.[4]
After two years in the army, she joined the new Kibbutz En Gev, near the Sea of Galilee.[2] Epstein first began to work in archaeology when she helped a team of archaeologists excavating Tel Hazor in 1952.[1] Also in 1952, she adopted a boy whose parents had been killed in pograms in Iraq.[1] In 1955, she moved to another kibbutz, Ginossar, on the other side of the Sea of Galilee.[2] Epstein later went back to University College, London to work on her Ph.D. in archaeology, focusing on bichrome pottery from Palestine and working with Kathleen Kenyon.[2] She received her Ph.D in 1962.
After the Six Day War, in 1967, Epstein, working with Shemaryahu Gutman, was the leader of the archaeological emergency survey in the Golan area.[1] During her survey, she discovered large dolmen fields and also a late prehistoric Chalcolithic Culture in Golan.[2] Epstein became a full-time archaeologist, working for the Department of Antiquities, which later became the Israel Antiquities Authority.[3] In order to get to her archaeological sites, she often hitchhiked, because she did not have a driver's license and many of her assistants were local Druze villagers.[2]
In 1985, Epstein received the Percy Schimmel Award from the Israel Museum for her work in archaeology.[1] In 1995, she received the Israel Prize for her work.[1] Epstein continued to work on the Chalcolithic sites in the Goaln region, which she "almost single-handedly discovered, excavated, and reported" on.[5] In 1998, published her monograph, The Chalcolithic Culture of the Golan in the Israel Antiquities Authority Report.[2] Her monograph describes the unique features of the Golan site which include "house-chains" which are broad-houses linked together in long lines.[5] She was awarded the Irene Levy-Sala award for her monograph.[2] Her attention to the Golan area helped preserve many of the area's archaeological sites.[5] Epstein's analysis of the stratigraphy of Megiddo's sacred areas was also an important part of her body of work.[2] She also helped identify the remains of a 2,000-year-old boat found at the bottom of the Sea of Galilee.[6]
In 2000, she was in Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem from complications which developed after a fall.[2] She died not long after in her home in Kibbuz Ginossar.[4]
Publications
- Epstein, Claire (1997). Palestinian Bichrome Ware (Ancient Near East). Brill Academic Pub. ISBN 9789004004719.
- Epstein, Claire (1998). The Chalcolithic Culture of the Golan. Israel Antiquities Authority. ISBN 9789654060325.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Hess, Orna. "Claire Epstein". Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Braun, Elliot (2000). "Obituares - Claire Epstein (1911-2000)". Bulletin of the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society 18: 111–115. Retrieved 2 August 2015. (subscription required (help)).
- 1 2 "Claire Epstein". Jewish Virtual Library. American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
- 1 2 Stein, Ken; Walter, Rich (18 August 2000). "Archaeologist Claire Epstein Passes Away at Her Home in Kibbutz Ginossar". Center for Israel Education. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
- 1 2 3 Levy, Thomas E. (May 2001). "The Chalcolithic Culture of the Golan (Book Review)". Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research (322): 82. Retrieved 2 August 2015. (subscription required (help)).
- ↑ "Israelis Find Ancient Boat in Sea of Galilee". Schenectady Gazette. 11 February 1986. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
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