Goose Keeping, Elite Emulation and Egyptianized Feasting at Late Bronze Lachish

The paper examines an assemblage of goose (Anser sp.) bones found in Late Bronze levels at Lachish and discusses its historical and cultural context. The appearance of an Egyptian trait-the keeping and consumption of waterfowl-is not surprising at Lachish, where a vast amount of Aegyptiaca was unearthed. The assemblage is interpreted not according to the common assumption regarding an Egyptian presence at Lachish but rather as attesting to the local elite that was influenced by the long-term Egyptian hegemony over Canaan. Based on contemporaneous comparanda, the author argues that this local elite adopted the Egyptian trait of goose keeping and adapted it to its own needs of communal feasting-and thus presented themselves as Egyptian.