Isaac was born the only child of Chayim and Leah Gold in Bet Shemesh, Israel, twenty miles west of Jerusalem. His mother was a trailblazing archeologist who led digs at Tel Arad and wrote the standard guidebook on ancient pottery. His father was a physicist working at the Weizmann Institute of Science. His grandfather, Physicist Solomon Gold, was one of the founding fathers of the Directorate of Defence Research and Development within the Israeli Military. Today, they oversee the advancement of military technology, including missile defence, cyber, and electro-optics. Solomon hosted Albert Einstein's first and only visit to Israel in 1928. Grandson Isaac followed in their hallowed footsteps by entering the scientific field of Geoarchaeology. Both father and grandfather graduated with advanced degrees in physics from the Imperial College of London. Isaac chose to stay closer to home, graduating with honours from Tel Aviv University.
Isaac was inquisitive as a child. Growing up in Jerusalem, he had access to a wealth of ancient site to survey. He accompanied his well-known mother on many of her digs, one of which was at Tel Azekah, the site of the battle between David and the Philistine giant Goliath. This dig hosted the first on-site childcare so that archeologist mothers could run the excavation activities. His mother practically lived there for three years, and Isaac fondly remembers them being three of the best years of his life.
Later on, he became a member of the Levant Time Travellers, a volunteer group of amateur archaeologists who were allowed to participate in closely monitored excavations. Levant refers to the historical geographic region that served as a land bridge where ancient civilizations such as the Canaanites, Israelites, Philistines, and Phoenicians lived. It was a fascinating time that became the basis for his future career.
After high school, Gold entered the Israeli military for his mandatory three-year stint, where he served under Aluf Mishne (Colonel) Noam Hirsch, Rachel Hirsch’s father. Hirsch and his men fought bravely in the Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states, led by Egypt and Syria. Most of the fighting occurred in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights.
Upon graduation from Tel Aviv University, he set out to make a name for himself as a geoarchaeologist. This is a discipline of archaeology that applies concepts, theories, and techniques from earth sciences, such as geology and geography, to archaeological research. At its core, geoarchaeology bridges the gap between the study of human history and the study of the Earth itself. While traditional archaeology focuses heavily on artifacts and cultural changes, geoarchaeology provides the environmental context in which those ancient humans lived.
Before teaching, Gold led expeditions into many fabled areas of Jewish history. He was the first to explore a group of caves near the Dead Sea, where ancient Greek fragments of the biblical books of Nahum and Zechariah were discovered. Another team he helped lead discovered what became known as the Lachish Forest Fortress. Researchers from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) discovered a fortified Hellenistic structure in the Lachish Forest, about 40 miles southwest of Jerusalem. Excavators unearthed thick stone walls, charred wooden beams, weapons, and coins. This was part of a Greek defensive line that the Hasmoneans ultimately destroyed, the ruling family of Judea during the 600-year Second Temple period between 516 BCE and 70 CE.
His most celebrated discovery, however, was the location of the “Battle of Elasa.” For over 2,000 years, historians relied on ancient texts such as the Book of Maccabees and Josephus's writings for descriptions of the revered Jewish uprising against the powerful Greek Seleucid Empire in what became known as the Great Maccabean Revolt (167-160 BCE). Their records, however, failed to identify the physical site of the final battle. Gold, along with a team of 30 archeologists and geoarchaeologists, uncovered physical evidence of this legendary clash in the Judean hills near the modern-day city of Ramallah. The Maccabean Revolt led to the birth of the Jewish holiday Hanukkah.
In later years, Gold left the outdoor world of archeology and entered the indoor world of academia at the Hebrew University as Professor Emeritus of Archaeology and Greek Studies. His old-fashioned Rolodex held the contact information from some of the world’s foremost experts. Although known as a meticulous researcher and impeccable documentarian, he was a bit of a slob in his personal life. Like Einstein, he let his white hair grow into an unruly shock, neglecting to comb it for days at a time. His clothes were always a little rumpled and ill-fitting. Also, like Einstein, he exhibited incredible focus when working, while neglecting to wear matching socks.
His office suffered too. From random empty food containers to stacks and stacks of papers and scholarly books, it was a challenge to find a place to sit down. Gold never seemed to notice. He was perfectly happy as the eccentric academic. His students loved him. He became known as the absent-minded professor. His decades of knowledge led many accomplished archaeologists to his door, often unannounced, for conversation and a cup of his Ethiopian tea. Quite often, he met with his students to discuss not just the topics they were studying in class, but ideas about the world in general.
Outside his life of archeology lay a mind interested in both poetry and philosophy. He was just as comfortable discussing the Iliad as he was Greek urns. He especially loved the poetry and artistry of William Blake. One of Blake’s most famous pieces, “The Ancient of Days,” hung on one wall next to a framed print of Blake’s “Songs of Innocence and of Experience.” He was quite capable of reciting passages from famed geoarchaeologist Howard Carter’s diary of discovering King Tutankhamun’s Tomb in the Valley of the Kings, then following it with a recitation of Blake’s poem The Tyger. He was indeed a man of many talents.