The myth of the empty land

This book takes as its starting point the former common belief that the land of Judah was in ruins and uninhabited between 586 and 538 BCE. Archaeological excavations have demonstrated beyond doubt the continued existence of a considerable Israelite material culture during the exilic and postexilic periods. By combining archaeological, Biblical and Babylonian sources, it is argued that Judah constituted a small, but important wheel in the economic machinery of the Neo-Babylonian empire. Contains bibliography and indexes of subjects and texts referred to.