Confessions of a Cultural Idiot

Tanit bulla from Kedesh

The lecture, given to the Toronto branch of the Archaeological Institute of America, was entitled, “In Search of the Last of the Phoenicians,” which conveys some idea of Dr. Sharon Herbert’s wry sense of humour and her cheerful attitude toward her work. Because of course the “last” Phoenicians are still alive today, in Lebanon, and the lecture title was only a play on a famous book title.

But the Phoenicians as we think of them — the descendants of the biblical Canaanites; seafarers and traders whose alphabet became the basis of almost all modern western alphabets and probably some north African — did seem to drop out of both the literary and archaeological record after the conquests of Alexander the Great. There’s a rather large gap, to put it mildly, between the 4th century BCE and the present day, between the Phoenicians of old and their modern descendants.

But that’s where University of Michigan archaeologist Sharon Herbert’s cheerful attitude comes in, because her digs in northern Israel have been astoundingly successful, rewriting a little history, and finding more traces of the Phoenicians on top of that.

It was when she and others were excavating at Tel Anafa, discovering a Hellenic complex beneath the ruins of Roman sheds, that Herbert realized there were elements to the building and its decoration that didn’t quite ring true to a Hellenic style. For one thing, they found pottery bearing the stamp of a Phoenician craftsman. And they unearthed a large public bath with stuccoed walls and a mosaic floor, and realized it was in a Punic style. That’s Punic, as in — Phoenician. And the closest parallel to such a place that had previously been found was in a suburb of ancient Carthage — the Phoenician colony.

What Herbert surmised was that this had been the home of a Phoenician family living in the Greek milieu of the day, yet also maintaining their historical ethnic identity and heritage. But she and her team could get a clearer picture by moving across the valley to Tel Kedesh (one of several ancient places that bore that name), a site they knew for sure had once been under the influence of the Phoenicians. If they found similar buildings or artifacts there, they would know they’d found at least some people retaining their ancient identity even as late as the 2nd century BCE.

And so it transpired. Further digs at this larger site found not only the Phoenicians, but Persians as well. Later history had been aware of one Persian administrative centre when the empire had controlled this part of the world, but that had been farther south. Now Herbert’s team found what is currently known as the PHAB — Persian Hellenic Administrative Building — the site of the northern Persian administrative centre, its walls providing the foundations for those of the later Hellenic edifice. The archaeologists discovered a room where documents had formerly been stored, leaving behind more than 2000 bullae, that is, impressions taken from official seals.

Even more significantly, many of those seals were carved with an “Aphrodite” that more closely resembled the Phoenician goddess Ashtarte-Tanit than any Greek goddess. And these seals bore an inscription meaning, “He who is over the land.” Which meant that the Governor at this administrative centre identified himself in some way with the power of the Phoenicians. They still had that much of an identity.

It only stands to reason, says Herbert. As she puts it, “The Greeks didn’t do genocide,” so the Phoenicians simply remained in their ancient land, gradually becoming assimilated into the overlying culture, yet retaining some memory of who they had always been.

We in the audience followed raptly as Herbert described her own history of archaeological discovery, in both words and slides. And for just a little while, the immaterial shades of the ancient Phoenicians took on more substance as their lives once again intersected the flow of living time.

The paradox, of course, is that after Descartes horrified the church by splitting mind from body, the church now relies on Descartes’ work in its frantic attempts to stop their reunion. And thus the French philosopher triggered the “faith versus reason” debate that continues to this day, while providing both sides in the battle with their principle weapons.

Russell Shorto chronicles a fascinating history of modern thought in his Descartes’ Bones: A Skeletal History of the Conflict Between Faith and Reason. Taking the fate of the philosopher’s remains as a skeleton (sorry) upon which to hang his narrative, Shorto follows the growing debate that resulted from a simple declaration: “I think, therefore I am,” or in Latin, “Cogito, ergo sum.“

It’s almost impossible, now, to grasp just how revolutionary Descartes’ work was. But Shorto does a thorough job of trying to describe the massive shift in thinking between the Before and After. In fact, as Descartes’ bones were continually dug up and moved from place to place over the years, the process of evaluating their authenticity mirrored the latest developments of thought that this shift created.

Before, one viewed the world through “received knowledge,” that is, assumptions about the world decreed by some authority. In Descartes’ time, that authority was the church, combining the biblical and Aristotelian world views. These assumptions weren’t justified by anything — they were simply there, and everything else was derived from them. For example, no one thought to ask whether angels actually existed; people devoted all their efforts instead to imagining the angelic hierarchies and angels’ divine substance.

Descartes changed all that, using doubt as a method and stripping away everything that was believed simply because “someone said so,” trying instead to find the absolutely certain, bedrock fact upon which we could build an edifice of reliable knowledge. He found it inside our own minds, where there was a “thinking thing.” If thinking was going on, something was there, doing the thinking. You couldn’t even deny the claim without thinking about it, and thereby proving it.

From that point, the floodgates opened. One’s own mind became the instrument of acquiring knowledge, the use of doubt and the requirement of proof becoming its method. From this seed grew countless new scientific enterprises, and even in religious and political circles, one’s individuality before God or the state became paramount.

But this use of doubt and this “thinking thing” became a problem, separating mind from body. Nobody could devise a way to meld the two again, or to explain how an immaterial mind could have any influence on a physical body. Except the materialists, who were quite prepared to identify the mind with the physical brain, so that nothing like a “soul” was required to explain anything about a human being.

And this was when the church found itself having to keep mind and body separate, to prevent the human soul from being done away with entirely, and to prevent itself from going out of business. Never having wanted the split in the first place, it recognized that healing it in this fashion would be even worse. So the religious establishment is still forced to use modern thinking and modern methods — all stemming from Descartes’ revolutionary work — to battle other results of the same work. It’s not a pleasant dilemma.

Shorto follows the historical debates with meticulous research, yet his narrative never becomes dull, nor the facts too heavy. He clearly explains how today’s “culture wars” constantly replay the battle that began in 1637 with the publication of Descartes’ Discourse on Method. Many philosophers have abandoned the idea that the mind/body problem can ever be solved, though Shorto believes that Descartes himself might have been close to finding an answer, by adding human love to the equation.

Unfortunately, the philosopher died before he could succeed, and so the “faith versus reason” battle continues raging. Russell Shorto has done a thorough and fascinating job of chronicling how it developed, as he followed the journey of Descartes’ bones through space and through history.

(For a bonus treat, check out Russell Shorto himself, in this Amazon.com video, discussing his book.)

Gold and diamonds - a secure investment

Gaelen Van Gorkom has an intriguing and time-tested investment idea, one that provides a better chance for security than most others we hear about these days — but this one happens to be wearable. And it sparkles a whole lot.

Mr. Van Gorkom makes his case on WroughtGold, his website on Etsy.com. Did you know that it has been a practice in Asia, for centuries, for artisans to handcraft 22 karat gold into jewellery that becomes a portable, secure investment? Those bangles and rings and necklaces favoured by so many Asian cultures aren’t always for decoration alone. And even in modern times, it’s a common historical occurrence that when the economy slides, gold not only holds its value but becomes even more valuable.

Investment gold has always been important, but maybe even more so now, with the world economy being so uncertain. In recent months, the precious metal has been hovering around US $1,000/ounce quite consistently.

Enter Gaelen Van Gorkom and his gold rings. He believes that even as you make an investment in gold, you can multiply your pleasure by crafting it into a one-of-a-kind piece of jewellery. Given as an engagement or wedding ring, this jewellery becomes priceless in several senses of the word, monetary and emotional.

Visiting the WroughtGold website, and going through the gallery of beautiful rings, one is struck most of all by the fine craftsmanship and the obvious care that has gone into creating each one. Indeed, Van Gorkom takes almost equal care in describing the materials and process involved in making these gold rings, so that the customer can be absolutely confident that the jewellery will be of the highest quality.

And Van Gorkom takes this confidence even further. He uses only Canadian diamonds, with serial numbers inscribed, that are government certified, registered, and completely traceable from the Etaki mine, through the cutters, through the craftsman, and finally to the customer. Security at all stages of the process is heavily stressed, right down to the delivery method at the very end. The gems are also appraised so that the buyer will know the replacement value in advance, for insurance purposes.

Van Gorkom is a master craftsman who takes great care of his customers, ready and willing to transform investment gold into a treasure of the heart, and to create or modify his designs to fit each person’s needs and desires. Why make your investment only in solid little blocks, when you can keep some of it with you at all times, holding it in your hand and being reminded of the financial security even as you flash that glitter?