A tale of two baraitot: The western galilee borders of the rabbis in archaeology and texts

The purported border of Jewish settlement in the Western Galilee is identified in two separate tannaitic texts, each referring to the Akko–Akhziv road. One text cites this road as the western border of Jewish settlement, while the other cites the same road as the eastern border. The border of Jewish settlement is also described in another rabbinic text, also discovered in the Rehov synagogue excavations. This text is inconsistent with the texts referring to the Akko–Akhziv road. Archaeologists give priority to the Rehov inscription and dismiss the contradictory texts as a scribal error. Talmudic scholars validate the authenticity of the apparently contradictory texts using critical textual analysis, but leave the apparent contradictions unresolved. This article uses archaeological evidence in conjunction with a critical review of the texts to resolve the apparent contradiction, proving that the rabbinic texts authenticated by Talmudic scholars are consistent with the Rehov inscription.