The Israel Antiquities Authority began the year with a great announcement yesterday. Many tourists to the Western Wall may have seen a covered area on the western side of the Western Wall Plaza. Here the archaeologists uncovered a 7th century B.C. four-room house. In it there was a seal impression which they refer to as a docket (also called a bulla) showing two men and a Hebrew inscription bearing the words translated as “governor of the city.”
Dr. Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah, excavator of the site located in the northwestern part of the western Wall Plaza, on behalf of the IAA, believes that “the sealing had been attached to an important transport and served as some sort of logo, or as a tiny souvenir, which was sent on behalf of the governor of the city.”
Seventh century B.C. seal impression showing two men and bearing the inscription “governor of the city.” IAA photo by Clara Amit.
Prof. Tallay Ornan of the Hebrew University, and Prof. Benjamin Sass of Tel Aviv University, studied the sealing and describe it thus: “above a double line are two standing men, facing each other in a mirror-like manner. Their heads are depicted as large dots, lacking any details. The hands facing outward are dropped down, and the hands facing inward are raised Each of the figures is wearing a striped, knee-length garment. In the register beneath the double line is an inscription in ancient Hebrew: לשרער, with no spacing between the words and no definite article. It denotes לשר העיר, i.e., “belonging to the governor of the city.” Prof. Ornan and Prof. Sass add, that “the title ‘governor of the city’ is known from the Bible and from extra-biblical documents, referring to an official appointed by the king. Governors of Jerusalem are mentioned twice in the Bible: in 2 Kings [23:8], Joshua is the governor of the city in the days of Hezekiah, and in 2 Chronicles [34:8], Maaseiah is the governor of the city in the days of Josiah.
The original seal that made this impression may have belonged to one of these men, or to some other person not named in Scripture.
This discovery is another in a long list of those illustrating the historical setting and accuracy of the Bible.
Todd Bolen reported on this discovery, including a different photo of the seal impression, and several interesting links here.
HT: Joseph Lauer
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