‮אתא אגרתא ממערבא‬ ("An Epistle Came from the West"): Historical and Archaeological Evidence for the Ties between the Jewish Communities in the Land of Israel and Babylonia during the Talmudic Period

In this paper, the historical and archaeological evidence for connections between the Jewish communities in the Land of Israel and in Babylonia during the Talmudic/Byzantine period is examined in order to define the nature, the context, and the extent of these contacts. The analysis demonstrates that a wide range of connections did in fact exist, although they were limited by the great distance and the political boundaries that lay between the two regions. These connections did not relate solely to matters concerning the 'Batei Midrash' (yeshivot), as we might expect them to be portrayed by the Talmudic sources, but stemmed from a variety of issues. Further, they involved persons of varied social and economic classes.