Plant World of the Bible

Book excerpt: The dream of paradise and the use of plants in story telling are as old as man. The Bible readers need only turn a few pages before meeting a description of paradise and a whole world of known and unknown plants such as: aloe, barley, bdellium, cedar, fig, frankincense, pomegranate, olive, vine and general terms like the lily of the fields. Not only Bible readers, but everyone interested in botany, archaeology, or vegetation history can find subjects of interest in the book, for references are made both to the rich use of plants in the Bible as well as to use of plants in the surrounding coeval cultures. PLANT WORLD OF THE BIBLE includes a comprehensive list of biblical plants, found in archaeological excavations in Israel and surrounding countries. For the first time it is now possible, for most of the biblical plants, to refer to archaeological finds, dated to the biblical period. "I find that Dr. Jensens work is not only accurate but it is also very interesting. This work should be accepted and enjoyed world wide. Dr Arnold L. Larsen, Director and Professor emeritus, Colorado State University, Ft. Collins, Colorado, USA. It is a great pleasure for me to recommend the book PLANT WORLD OF THE BIBLE authored by Hans Arne Jensen. This book is a careful description of all plants mentioned in the Bible. It provides a botanical description of each plant, a discussion of its identification, as well as its occurrences in the Bible. Furthermore, it contains valuable information on archaeological finds of the plants. It is well structured and with beautiful colour illustrations and black/white drawings. The book is a result of the authors thorough botanic knowledge and it is based on recent international scholarly and scientific literature within various fields such as biblical studies, archaeology, and cultural history. Thus, the book is the successful outcome of an interdisciplinary work. It is an important contribution to the study of the cultural history of the plants as well as the cultural background of the Bible. I have no doubt that this book will generate a widespread interest among Biblical readers as well as academics such as botanists, archaeologists, cultural history scholars and biblical scholars. Dr. Bodil Ejrns, Assoc. Professor of the Old Testament, Faculty of Theology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. PLANT WORLD OF THE BIBLE is a book of high quality, seriously written with knowledge not only from botany but also from archaeology and theologyThe illustrations deserves a special attention. The whole page plates are from about 100 years BC to about 300 years AC and are in that way uniquePLANT WORLD OF THE BIBLE is written in a language, which is possible to understand without special knowledge in botany or theology, it is possible to read for all .I highly recommend an English publication of the book. Dr. Erik Nymann Eriksen, Professor emeritus, Department of Horticulture, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. a masterpiece that joins the Sacred with Nature and which will delight not only the faithful but also those who have a passion for botany, archaeology and history. Professor Fabio Gorian, Corpo Forestale, Peri, Italia.