The Bible Unearthed is far more than 'proof of concept'. It presents findings from an emerging scholarly consensus. The 'concept' that Stahrwe suggests it seeks to 'prove' is that systematic archaeology provides consistent information about the past. This concept is rejected by fundamentalists because they have invested so much moral capital in believing that the fictional tales in the Bible are literal history. Fundamentalists are outside the scholarly consensus and are ignored, except by their mass audience on television and in the pews, where they systematically deceive the gullible public with impunity and no accountability.Stahrwe wrote:P.O.C. [Proof of Concept] book or article that comes down the pick from some wanna be. If you have the answer to dating the shards, post it, explain it, or watch the video and put it into your own words. But I will tell you this, that you might as well search for Russell's teapot as determine the date and legitimacy of the shards. Even if you can date them, and say who made them, there are no conclusions which you can draw from thier presence except that they are there. It is a complete waste of time.
Pottery sherds are readily dated because the styles of manufacture vary consistently over time. In places like Israel there is rubbish from all the ages of human occupation just sitting on the ground, as well as buried beneath layers of later rubble. Statistical analysis of the material found on the ground over large areas provides important information about the location, date and type of human settlement. Looking around the region of Jerusalem, the clear evidence shows the region was backward and isolated at the time of King David, and only became an imperial center at the time of King Josiah, who made up the stories of David as self-serving efforts to legitimize and advance his political and religious goals. Fundamentalist illogic rejects this rigorous scientific finding because it discredits their wrong beliefs.