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1960s–1980s, however, ranging from Paleolithic to Islamic, from north to south, and including the Israeli-occupied territories as well. In addition, the first systematic surveys were carried out in the latter regions, especially by younger archaeologists of the third generation, many of them from the Tel Aviv Institute of Archaeology carrying out the emphasis of their mentor, Aharoni, concerning regional archaeology. Particularly noteworthy were the intensive surveys of the Galilee (Z. Gal and Y. Frankel), of the Samaria region (A. Zertal and I. Finkelstein), the Judean highlands (A. Ofer), and the Sinai (E. Oren, Y. Beit-Arieh, and others). In Israel proper, surveys along the Mediterranean coast continued (R. Gophna and others), and there were very extensive surveys in the Negev (R. Cohen, M. Heimann, Y. Dagan, and others).
Classical archaeology was not neglected in the 1960s–1980s as there was a revival of interest in synagogues and Jewish settlements, with excavations by both local and foreign archaeologists. Other classical and later period sites included sites in the Golan Heights, Caesarea, Herodian, Jericho, and the Herodium, and several Byzantine sites in the Negev as well as early Christian monasteries and churches. Underwater and coastal archaeology also began in earnest, especially under the aegis of the Center for Maritime Studies of Haifa University. Finally, prehistoric sites were not overlooked; indeed research burgeoned.
In the 1990s, the Israeli school matured and several newer or intesified emphrases developed:
Despite its rapid growth in just under fifty years and its complex character, Israeli archaeology throughout has had a certain consistent, distinctive character. First, it has been deeply grounded in traditional ancient Near Eastern scholarship. Second, it has taken the Bible (i.e., the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament) seriously, yet unlike American (and some European) “biblical archaeology,” it has maintained a professional, specialized, and thoroughly secular character, utilizing the Bible, not as confessional literature, but largely as the foundation of national history and culture. Third, it has remained largely pragmatic, grounded in the realia, and has been preoccupied more with description and classification than with explanation and little concerned with anything but the most basic theory.
Fourth, Israeli architecture emphasized large-scale architectural exposure rather than