Category Archives: Archaeology

Iron Age stele speaks of soul apart from body

Posted on November 19, 2008 | Leave a comment

The New York Times reports here on the discovery of an interesting stele at Sam’al/ Zincirli (ZIN-jeer-lee), an ancient site in southeastern Turkey.

In a mountainous kingdom in what is now southeastern Turkey, there lived in the eighth century B.C. a royal official, Kuttamuwa, who oversaw the completion of an inscribed stone monument, or stele, to be erected upon his death. The words instructed mourners to commemorate his life and afterlife with feasts “for my soul that is in this stele.”
…..
“Normally, in the Semitic cultures, the soul of a person, their vital essence, adheres to the bones of the deceased,” said David Schloen, an archaeologist at the university’s Oriental Institute and director of the excavations. “But here we have a culture that believed the soul is not in the corpse but has been transferred to the mortuary stone.”

A translation of the inscription by Dennis Pardee, a professor of Near Eastern languages and civilization at Chicago, reads in part: “I, Kuttamuwa, servant of [the king] Panamuwa, am the one who oversaw the production of this stele for myself while still living. I placed it in an eternal chamber [?] and established a feast at this chamber: a bull for [the god] Hadad, a ram for [the god] Shamash and a ram for my soul that is in this stele.”

Here is a photograph of the stele provided by the University of Chicago.

Stele from Zincirli in which the king says that his soul is in this stone. Photo: University of Chicago.

A well known monuments discovered at Zincirli in 1888 depicts the Assyrian king Esarhaddon holding ropes leading to Tirhakah, king of Egypt and Ethiopia [Cush], and Ba’alu of Tyre. Tirhakah is the kneeling figure with negroid features befriended King Hezekiah of Judah against the Assyrians (2 Kings 19:9). The photo below shows the two captives on the lower portion of the stele. It is now displayed in the Pergamum Museum in Berlin.

Esarhaddon stele showing Tirhakah and the king of Tyre. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Archaeologist thinks he has located Shaaraim

Posted on November 18, 2008 | 1 comment

To most folks this probably evokes a yawn. To me it is exciting. We have reported earlier here and here about the excavation at Khirbet Qeiyafa, a site overlooking the Elah Valley. The San Francisco Chronicle, in an article by Matthew Kalman, reports that Prof. Garfinkel will announce today that he has found the site of the biblical city of Shaaraim (this is the way popular English versions transliterate the Hebrew word).

For 3,000 years, the 12-foot high walls of an ancient city have been clearly visible on a hill towering above the Valley of Elah where the Bible says David slew Goliath.

But no one has ever linked the ruins to the city mentioned in the First Book of Samuel’s famous account of the legendary duel and the victory of the Israelites – until now. On Tuesday, Hebrew University archaeology Professor Yosef Garfinkel will present compelling evidence to scholars at Harvard University that he has found the 10th century biblical city of Sha’arayim, Hebrew for “Two Gates.” Garfinkel, who made his startling discovery at the beginning of this month, will also discuss his findings at the American Schools of Oriental Research conference hosted by Boston University on Thursday.

Garfinkel believes the city provides evidence that King David ruled a kingdom from his capital of Jerusalem. Some modern scholars have questioned the biblical account of David’s kingdom and even whether he existed. Although it is not clear how the Sha’arayim relates to David, Garfinkel says finding a Judean city along the ancient highway to Jerusalem that appears to have been a fortress on the western border with the Philistines indicates a kingdom with a developed political and military organization that was powerful enough to include a major fortified city.

The Bible makes reference to Shaaraim in the following verses:

Joshua 15:36 – a town of Judah.
1 Samuel 17:52 -After David’s defeat of Goliath, “the wounded Philistines fell on the way from Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron” (ESV).
1 Chronicles 4:31 – belonged to the descendants of Simeon until the reign of David.

This photograph of the ostracon is found at the Qeiyafa Ostracon Chronicle web page. Only 10 of 50 words on the shard have yet been read.

Qeiyafa Ostracon. Photo by G. Laro.

Check the Elah Fortress web page for a nice high res. promotional video. The video claims that the Bedouin who tend their sheep in the area call the ruin Khirbet Daoud (Ruin of David).

Bedouin shepherd in the Elah brook in the area below Khirbet Qeiyafa, Elah Fortress, or Khirbet Daoud. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

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Posted in Archaeology, Bible Study, Israel, Old Testament

Tagged David and Goliath, Elah Fortress, Khirbet Qeiyafa

Gold earring from Roman-Byzantine period

Posted on November 14, 2008 | 3 comments

We noted earlier here about the discovery in Jerusalem of what is thought to be a palace belonging to the first century Queen of Adiabene. Archaeologists working for the Israel Antiquities Authority have found a single earring. The IAA press release describes the earring this way:

The earring, which is made of a coiled gold hoop, has a large inlaid pearl in its center. Connected to the hoop are two identical gold pendants, each of which is adorned with one emerald and pearl. The emerald is held by a kind of gold cap that connects it to the main hoop by means of a small hoop that is also fashioned from gold. Another pearl that is relatively smaller than the one inlaid in the upper hoop is attached to the other side of the emerald. The pearl is fastened to the emerald by means of a gold finding, which passes through a tiny hole that was drilled in it.

The earring was discovered in the ruins of a building dating from the Byzantine period (fourth-fifth centuries A.D.). The excavators say that this jewelry could have been produced sometime between the first century B.C. and the fourth century A.D.

The earring and a model displaying it. IAA Photos.

I suspect we will see this design in stores soon.

Jesus spoke a parable that illustrates the value of a pearl.

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it. (Matthew 13:45-46 NASB)

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Posted in Archaeology, Culture, Israel, New Testament

Tagged jewelry

Alexandria Troas # 3

Posted on November 11, 2008 | 1 comment

For # 1 scroll down to November 7, or click here. For # 2 scroll down to November 10, or click here.

Recent excavations by the University of Münster have uncovered a portion of the Roman road at Troas. A member of the staff said, “We like to think that this is the road traveled by the apostle Paul when he entered the city.” Perhaps this photo helps illustrate the statement in Acts 16:8 which says “they came down to Troas.” The Aegean Sea is visible in the distance.

Recently excavated Roman road at Troas. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins 2006.

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Posted in Archaeology, Bible Study, New Testament, Travel, Turkey

Tagged Apostle Paul

Khirbet Qeifaya (Elah Fortress) summary

Posted on November 3, 2008 | 1 comment

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem has posted a nice summary of the information about what they are calling the Elah Fortress at Khirbet Qeifaya here.

The article title is “Earliest Known Hebrew Text in Proto-Canaanite Script Discovered.” Every indication from this release is that the site is considered as a Judeah fortress. Here are three paragraphs from the release.

How do we know this is a Judean fortress?
The early Hebrew ostracon, Judean pottery similar to that found at other Israelite settlements, and the absence of pig bones among the animal bones found at the site all point to this fortress being a city of the Kingdom of Judea.

Elah Fortress proof of United Monarchy
The Elah Fortress archaeological site could prove the existence of the United Monarchy, which scholars often question ever existed. The artifacts found at the site thus far all indicate that there was most likely a strong king and central government in Jerusalem – earlier than any discovered until now – rather than a number of small villages scattered throughout Judea. This would verify descriptions and narratives found in Samuel and Chronicles.

Over 100 jar handles bear distinct impressions which may indicate a link to royal vessels. Such a large quantity of this feature found in one small locale is unprecedented.

Archaeo-politics run deep in Israel! I suggest you read the entire article.

HT: Joseph I. Lauer

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Posted in Archaeology, Israel, Old Testament

Assyria in Boston

Posted on November 3, 2008 | Leave a comment

The British Museum probably has the best collection of Assyrian artifacts in the world. The Louvre has a good collection, too. Currently 250 artifacts from the British Museum are on exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The exhibition runs through January 4. This exhibition was likely timed to coincide with the meetings of the Society of Biblical Literature and the American Schools of Oriental Research in mid-November.

Even if you can’t make it to Boston you might find the web page of interest. Check mfa.org.

The Assyrian Empire ruled the ancient near east from the battle of Qarqar (853 B.C.) till the battle of Carchemish (605 B.C.) when they were defeated by the Babylonians. Nineveh had fallen seven years earlier. This was the time of the Divided Kingdom period in Israelite history, and Assyria had contact with a numerous biblical kings. Ahab, for example, fought against the Assyrians at Qarqar.

One of the famous Assyrian kings was Sargon II. He is mentioned only once in the Bible.

In the year that the commander came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him and he fought against Ashdod and captured it. (Isaiah 20:1)

For many years there was no known reference to Sargon II in the Assyrian records. Yet, the prophet Isaiah, writing at the time of the Assyrian captivity of the northern kingdom of Israel, mentions Sargon at Ashdod.

The palace of Sargon was discovered by Emile Botta at Khorsabad in 1843. This was the period of “momumental” discoveries in archaeology. The photo below shows the top half of Sargon (on the left) receiving his minister. I think you will have to go to London to see this one.

Sargon II receives his minister. From the palace in Khorsabad. British Museum. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Khirbet Qeifaya Inscription

Posted on November 1, 2008 | Leave a comment

Khirbet Qeifaya is a fortified site overlooking the Valley of Elah where the great battle between Israel and the Philistines (David and Goliath) took place. A broken shard of pottery bearing an inscription was discovered during the excavation this year. There have been a lot of teasers going around about what the inscription may say.

The best summarized updates on this inscription that I have seen are the ones posted by Todd Bolen at Bible Places Blog. I suggest you go there and scroll back to these postings during the last days of October. If you would like to go to the specific posts, here are the links:

Be aware that many newspaper articles about archaeological discoveries are often exaggerated. There are NO specifics about David and Goliath. We don’t even have a translation of the inscription at this point. And, by the way, Noah’s ark has not been found, either!

A Judean seal in Assyrian style

Posted on October 31, 2008 | 1 comment

There is so much archaeological work going on in Jerusalem today that we are not surprised about the announcement of another seal discovery.

An excavation at the Western Wall plaza has uncovered a seal in a building belonging to the seventh century B.C. This is the time when Manasseh, Amon, and Josiah ruled over the House of David in Jerusalem (2 Kings 20:21 – 2 Kings 21).

The seal is made of black stone and shows the image of an archer shooting a bow and arrow. The name in ancient Hebrew script reads LHGB (meaning for Hagab). Perhaps the most interesting thing about the seal is that it is decorated in Assyrian style. Here is what the Israel Antiquities Authority press release says about it.

The seal was sent for expert evaluation to Professor Benjamin Sass of the Tel Aviv University and Dr. Tali Ornan of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. According to them the image of the archer was influenced by Assyrian wall reliefs in which archers are portrayed shooting bows and arrows – such as those that are known from the Lachish relief. The image of the archer appears in profile: he is standing in a firing position with his right foot in front of his left. His face is portrayed schematically but his body, his dress and especially the muscles of his arms and legs stand out prominently. He is barefoot. His attire includes a headband and a skirt that is wrapped around his hips. A quiver hangs from his back and its straps are drawn tightly across his exposed chest. He is holding a bow and arrow in his hands. His right hand is extended forward holding the bow while his left is pulled back grasping the arrow. The seal is quite unique since this is the first time that a private seal has been discovered that bears a Hebrew name and is decorated in the Assyrian style. The seal attests to the strong Assyrian influence that existed in Jerusalem in the seventh century BCE. It is usually assumed that the owner of private seals were individuals who held government positions. We can suggest that the owner of the seal – Hagab, who chose to portray himself as a Hebrew archer depicted in the Assyrian style – served in a senior military role in Judah.

The name Hagab is found among the list of Judean exiles who returned from Babylon to Jerusalem and Judah in 536 B.C. (Ezra. 2:46). The text says that his sons returned. We have no way of knowing whether there is any connection between the Hagab named in the Bible and the one named on the seal. The actual size of the seal is .04 inches by .55 inches.

Seal of Hagab in Assyrian style.Photo: Clara Amit, IAA.

The photo below is one I made in the British Museum of the reliefs showing the siege of Lachish by the Assyrian King Sennacherib. It shows Assyrian archers behind shields with bows drawn and arrows ready to fly. This gives you an opportunity to see how the image on the seal compares with known images of Assyrian archers.

Assyrian archers at Lachish. British Museum. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

David used the figure of the archers metaphorically to describe the wicked.

For, behold, the wicked bend the bow, They make ready their arrow upon the string To shoot in darkness at the upright in heart. (Psalm 11:2)

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Posted in Archaeology, Bible Study, Israel, Old Testament

Tagged Assyrians, Seals

Copper smelting in 10th century B.C. Edom

Posted on October 28, 2008 | 5 comments

Several sources are reporting the discovery of copper smelting operations in Jordan dating to the 10th century B.C. This is the time of Solomon. The discovery was made at a site called Khirbat en-Nahas about 30 mile south of the Dead Sea on the eastern side of the Arabah. The photo below is by Thomas Levy, UC San Diego.

Industrial copper slag mound at Khirbat en-Nahas. Photo Thomas Levy.

This is the ancient territory of Edom. Scholars have known for 30 or more years that there was metalworking there in the 7th century B.C. Researchers, led by Professor Thomas E. Levy of the Department of Anthropology at UC San Diego, and Mohammad Najjar of Jordan’s Friends of Archaeology, dug deeper into the site to find evidence of smelting from the 9th and 10th century.

Naysayers who seem frightened that some modern archaeological discovery might “confirm” the biblical record are already at work. Israel Finkelstein of Tel Aviv University is quoted as saying that the stories of the Old Testament “depict the concerns, theology and background of the time of the writers” which he says belong to the 5th century B.C. They cannot be accepted as factual according to Finkelstein.

From his study in Florida, Ferrell Jenkins said,

Instead of immediately linking a discovery such as this to a biblical character or event, would it not be better to think of the discovery in the terms of shedding light on the biblical record?

An Egyptian scarab from Tanis or the eastern delta and an amulet of the Egyptian goddess Mut caused Levy to suggest that these artifacts might be associated with the Egyptian pharaoh Sheshonq I. Pharaoh Sheshonq I is known as Shishak in the Bible. Here is a summary of the biblical references to Shishak.

Provided refuge to Jeroboam for a few years prior to the death of Solomon (1 Kings 11:40).
Invaded Israel (Canaan) in the fifth year of King Rehoboam (926 B.C.) and took away treasures from the temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings 14:25-26; 2 Chronicles 12:2-9).

Shishak left a record of his invasion of Canaan on the walls of the temple of Amum at Karnak (modern Luxor, Egypt). Here is a photo of the relief at Karnak showing Shishak holding lines to the 156 Canaanite cities he claims to have captured.

Pharaoh Shishak I of Egypt. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

The Bible says that Israel would be able to dig copper from the hills of the country to which they were going (Deuteronomy 8:9). See also Job 28:1-2.

We have known for some time that copper was smelted by the Egyptians at Timna, about 25 miles north of Eilat. Here is a photo showing a reconstruction of the process for copper smelting there in the 13-12th century B.C.

Model of copper smelting installation at Timna. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

More details about this discovery may be found at the following sites: UC San Diego News Center. At the Los Angeles Times there is a nice 12 minute video about the discovery narrated by Thomas Levy.

HT: Joseph I. Lauer

Update [later in the day]: Todd Bolen has added three great photos taken at Khirbat en-Nahas at his Bible Places Blog.

5 Comments

Posted in Archaeology, Bible Study, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Old Testament

Tagged ancient technology, copper

Byblos in Lebanon

Posted on October 13, 2008 | 2 comments

Byblos is located on the Mediterranean Sea about 25 miles north of Beirut, Lebanon.The ancient Phoenician city of Gebal (modern Arabic Jbeil) was called Byblos by the Greeks because they saw scrolls there made from imported papyrus sheets. The Greek word byblos is translated book in our English versions of the Bible. In fact, our word Bible is derived from the work byblos.

The Gebalites worked with the builders of Solomon and Hiram to fashion and prepare timber and stone to build the temple (1 Kings 5:17-18). The old men of Gebal are mentioned in the lamentation over Tyre.

The elders of Gebal and her skilled men were in you, caulking your seams; all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in you to barter for your wares. (Ezekiel 27:9 ESV)

Byblos is now designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The history of Byblos is revealed in the excavated ruins.

Canaanite or Phoenician ruins as early as 3000 B.C.
Egyptian ruins from about 1300 B.C. Rib Addi, king of Byblos wrote letters to Pharaoh Amenophis III to request reinforcements against his neighbors. These letters are part of the collection of letters found at Amarna.
Roman ruins from the time of Pompey, about 65 B.C.
Crusader ruins from the 12th century A.D.

My last visit to Byblos was in 2002. This is a photo I took of the Egyptian Temple of Obelisks which was dedicated to the Egyptian god Reshef.

The Temple of Obelisks at Byblos. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

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Posted in Archaeology, Bible Study, Books, Old Testament

Tagged Lebanon

Category Archives: Archaeology

Iron Age stele speaks of soul apart from body

Archaeologist thinks he has located Shaaraim

Gold earring from Roman-Byzantine period

Alexandria Troas # 3

Khirbet Qeifaya (Elah Fortress) summary

Assyria in Boston

Khirbet Qeifaya Inscription

A Judean seal in Assyrian style

Copper smelting in 10th century B.C. Edom

Byblos in Lebanon

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