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This paper presents evidence for feasting in the late Iron Age I Philistine culture from a circumscribed locale in Area A at the site of Tell es-Safi/Gath. The remains are characterized by architectural features, installations and rubbish dumps containing a rich array of animal bones, symbolic objects, and a series of unique installations all dating to the tenth and eleventh centuries B.C.E. These activities are informed by parallels from Mycenaean Late Bronze Age feasting events, though at Tell es-Safi/Gath they may have served a different purpose, specifically, the maintenance and promotion of Philistine cultural identity through the adoption of behaviors and symbols from the Aegean past by portions of the Philistine population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reexamines the fish motif within the Philistine ceramic repertoire and draws upon parallel elements from within the Aegean basin, Cyprus, and coastal Anatolia in order to arrive at a better understanding of the inspiration for the fish motif on Philistine pottery. It is argued that the iconography of the Philistine fish motif derives mainly from the Aegean region, including mainland Greece, Crete, the Cyclades and the Dodecanese. As such, the fish motif can be added to a long list of Philistine cultural features that derive directly from the post-palatial Aegean world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]