FASCINATING DISCOVERIES From The Ancient World Biblical Archaelogy

FASCINATING DISCOV ERIES FROM
THE BIBLICAL WORLD
Eben Scheffler
FASCINATING DISCOVERIES
FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD
To our students
FASCINATING DISCOVERIES
FROM
THE BIBLICAL WORLD
Eben Scheffler
with contributions by
Willem Boshoff
Coenie Scheepers
Peet van Dyk
Chris le Roux
B ib lia Publishers
Pretoria
2000
Order from:
Biblia Publishers
P 0 Box 36595
Menlo Park
0102
ISBN 0-620-25240-5
Copyright 2000 by
E H Scheffler
First edition, first impression 2000
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form
without written permission from the publisher.
CONTENTS
FOREWORD 7
1 DAILY LIFE: WORK AN D PLAY 9

Pottery for various uses 10
The storehouses of Megiddo and Beersheba 15
The pool, tunnel and inscription o f Siloam 19
The silver hoard o f Dor (by Willem Boshoff) 24
An ivory game board from Megiddo 28
2 ART FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD 31

The Beni Hasan mural 32
An ivory knife handle from Megiddo 34
The Black Obelisk 36
The Lachish reliefs - history in stone
(by Coenie Scheepers) 42
The mosaics o f Sepphoris 46
3 ARCHITECTURE FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD 50

The Giza pyramids and sphinx 51
Solom on’s temple in Jerusalem 56
M egiddo’s six-chambered gate 59
Herod’s northern palace-villa at Masada 62
The splendour of Petra 68
4 WRITINGS FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD 75

The Rosetta stone and the decoding o f hieroglyphics 76
The stele o f Hammurabi 79
The Israel Stele 82
The Moabite Stone 86
The Annals o f Sennacherib (Taylor Prism) 90
5 THE PEOPLE’S RELIGION 93
Ancient Israel’s own creation myth
(by Peet van Dyk) 94
Beersheba’s homed altar 98
God’s wife? The inscriptions from Kuntillet 'Ajrud
(by Willem Boshoff) 100
Living according to the Community Rule 107
‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians’
(by Chris le Roux) 112
6 ON DEATH A N D DYING 116

Thutankamen’s tomb 117
The mummy o f Ramses II 121
Dog burials in Ashkelon 126
Crucifixion - the most horrible death 129
The tombs o f Jesus 134
BIBLIOGRAPHY 138
THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL PERIODS 141
MAPS 142
FOREWORD
In the past two centuries numerous archaeological discoveries were made

in the countries that were in a direct or indirect way linked to the people
o f whom we read in the Bible. These discoveries have fascinated people
who are interested in the heritage o f the modem world, whether they are
religiously inclined or not. In the present volume a selection was made of
some o f the most interesting o f such finds. In view of all the information
available, it stands to reason that the selection cannot claim to be repre
sentative of all uncovered artefacts. It is merely intended to provide the
reader with a glimpse into the wide range of material available.
What follow s is an introduction to the selected discoveries. Much
detail has been avoided, but an attempt has been made to give the
reader enough information to interpret and appreciate the discoveries
in a meaningful way. In order to facilitate this interpretation process,
the finds are not merely discussed at random, but in the context of
specific chapters in the book. The range o f these chapters is meant to
cover all the dimensions o f life (daily life, art, architecture, writings,
religion and death) and every archaeological discovery made can be
related to at least one o f these dimensions.
It is important to note that in many cases the assigning o f a dis
covery to a specific category or chapter is entirely a matter o f focus.
Many discoveries could just as w ell have been discussed under other
chapters. The Black Obelisk, for example, which is discussed here as
a work o f art, also constitutes an ancient writing; the inscription of
Siloam testifies to daily life but also constitutes a writing; the pyra
mids are monuments o f architecture but touch on the themes o f death
and religion; the Community Rule is a writing that testifies to the liv
ing together o f a religious community, et cetera.
It is important to note that the discoveries discussed are not only
from the land o f Israel as the main stage o f the biblical narrative. The
term ‘biblical world’ is interpreted in a very wide sense of the word, and
includes countries of the ancient Near East which were Israel’s neigh
bours. These neighbours (especially Egypt, Babylonia, Assyria and
Persia) played a significant role in the history of ancient Israel during the
Old Testament period. The discussion of the discoveries from this wider
7
panorama (apart from being fascinating in their own right) serves as a
relief against which the life o f the ancient Israelites may be under
stood. Moreover, with the emergence o f Christianity the stage o f the
biblical narrative widened to include countries like Syria, Asia Minor,
Greece and Italy. A study o f the finds from this wider context serves
to illustrate the uniqueness o f the ancient Israelites, Judeans and early
Christians amongst their neighbours, but also the similarities which
they shared with them and their existence as being integrated with the
ancient world.
A special word o f thanks to four o f my colleagues (Willem
Boshoff, Coenie Scheepers, Peet van Dyk and Chris le Roux) who
made valuable contributions to this volume on discoveries of which
they possess expert knowledge.
A special word o f thanks and appreciation to Andreas Dierks and
Coenie Scheepers who scrutinised the text and whose input not only
increased the quality of the text, but also its content. My wife
Maretha and my sons, Ewald Friedrich and Otto Carl showed special
interest in the discoveries and I thank them for their love, patience
and care.
It is hoped that our students at Unisa and all other interested per
sons will benefit from this publication by being fascinated by the
finds introduced in this volume.
Ebert Scheffler
Pretoria
December 1999.
8
Chapter one
DAILY LIFE: WORK AND PLAY
History books usually record the story o f nations at large or the lives
of famous people. This seems to be logical, for why should one
record matters that are o f no significance to possible readers? A l
though the Bible is primarily not a history book, certain sections (e g
the books o f Joshua-2 Kings and the books o f Chronicles) purport to
be historical. As such these books indeed deal with the fortunes o f the
people o f Israel and its leaders.
However, a new perspective on history has developed in recent
scholarship. According to this perspective not only the lives o f upper-
class people are important, but also those o f ordinary men and women
about whom nothing special was written down in ancient times. What
did they do for a living and how did they spend their days?
Since the way o f life o f ordinary people in ancient times was not
recorded by their contemporaries, the task to tell their tale proves to
be extremely difficult. One way to go about it is to read between the
lines o f traditional historical works. Many insights can indeed be
gained in this way. However, archaeological excavation has become
the most important tool in the researcher’s endeavour to understand
the life o f common people. This is because archaeological artefacts
are discovered at random at various sites, independent of whether
they were inhabited by rich or poor people, somebodies or nobodies.
These artefacts often provide information about the life o f people not
recorded in official historical writings.
In this first chapter w e w ill discuss a selection o f artefacts
reflecting the life o f ordinary people o f the biblical world. H ow
did they survive in a world that was pre-industrial, in other words,
where present-day technology was not at p eop le’s disposal to pro
duce on a large scale the means needed for living? Since daily life
does not merely consists o f work and the struggle for survival, but
also o f recreation, a discovery w hich reflects aspects o f leisure
w ill also be discussed.
9
10 Chapter one
Pottery for various uses

Pottery is certainly the most important relic which the archaeologist
encounters in excavation work. It usually lies buried in the rubble of
destroyed cities or places of occupation. Often only pieces are found,
but they are all precious to the excavator as they serve as yardstick to
date other objects from same layer. However, archaeologists are some
times lucky to come across various intact objects such as bowls, jugs,
jars, lamps and the like. These generally reveal a lot about the daily life
of the biblical people and their struggle for survival.
Because vessels o f copper and bronze were expensive, the population
at large had to make use o f clay pottery. The clay was prepared by being
trodden underfoot. This process serves as a metaphor in Isaiah 41:25
where it is mentioned that (God) ‘shall trample on mlers as on mortar, as
the potter treads clay’.
Initially pots were made only by hand, but later the potter’s wheel
came into use. The latter consisted of two flat wooden wheels connected
by an axle which went through the lower (larger) wheel. The latter was
turned first by hand and later by foot, which made the upper (smaller)
wheel to spin. Soft clay was put on the upper wheel and shaped into a
cone-like form. Using the thumb, it was then shaped into ajar or whatever
vessel while the wheel turned. It was baked in a kiln or oven to be hard
ened. In Jeremiah 18:1-4 this process is employed as a metaphor to indi
cate Israel’s position before God: ‘Behold, like clay in the potter’s hand,
so are you in my hand... ‘ (cf further Ps 2:9; Jr 19:11; Rm 9:20-21 and
Prov 26:23 where pottery functions as a different metaphor).
Various utensils for daily use have been found dating from Chal-
colithic times. They were simple forms (mostly bowls). During the
Early Bronze Age (3000-1750 BCE) and Middle Bronze A ge (1750-
1550 BCE) the pottery became more sophisticated and often also
functioned as works of art (besides the daily uses).
In what follows, twelve basic pottery types will be briefly introduced.
They represent typical genres, not all possible types. It should be remembered
that the potter (when he or she had mastered the art of pottery making) could
have been creative and could produce any object which the clay allowed
them to (see examples below). The twelve types discussed were all popular
during the prime of the Israelites in Palestine (about 1000 BCE to 587 BCE).
Daily life: work and play 11
(1) The bowl was one o f the most common

vessels used in a household o f ancient times. It
was a round, fairly shallow container, wide open
at the top, which measured about 20-30 cm in
diameter. It was used to hold liquids, fruit and salt. Food was also
served in bowls since plates were not commonly used. In Exodus
12:22 a bowl (Hebrew = saph) was used to contain the blood into
which the Israelites had to dip a bunch o f hyssop before touching the
lintel and two doorposts (cf Jdg 6:38; 2 Ki 2:20; Prov 19:24; 26:15).
(2) A krater originally referred in Greek
to a bowl in which wine was mixed with
water and from which the cups were filled.
It is larger and deeper than an ordinary bowl,
and was also used for the mixing o f other
liquids and food. In Song of Songs 7:2 the
krater ( ‘aggan in Hebrew) functions as a
metaphor in the description o f the beauty
and joy o f the female body (cf Amos 6:6).
(3) The cooking pot was larger than a
krater and made o f special clay strength
ened with grinded limestone to withstand
the heat of fire. Any food, but mainly
meat, was cooked in it. 1 Samuel 2:14
refers to the priestly practice of thrusting
a three-pronged fork into the ‘pan, kettle,
cauldron or pot’, taking whatever the
fork brought up. Various terms are used
here, indicating the use of a wide range o f cooking pots or vessels. The
most common Hebrew term was sir (e g the ‘fleshpots o f Egypt’ in Ex
16:3; cf also the metaphorical use in Jr 1:13).
(4) A chalice (also goblet) was a cup
(approximately 10 cm in diameter) used for
drinking as well as offerings. It had a base and
stem but was without handles. In Jeremiah 35:5
reference is made to the drinking-cups (Hebrew
= gabia) which the prophet set before the
Rechabites but which the latter refused to drink
12 Chapter one
(cf Is 51:17, 22). In Genesis 44:2, 12 and 16 reference is also made

to the gabia o f the Pharaoh which was put into Benjamin’s bag, but
there it is explicitly stated as being a silver cup. W hile it is highly
likely that the cups used by Jesus and his disciples during their last
meal before the crucifixion were chalices made of clay (because they
were poor, c f Mk 14:23), the chalices used in the eucharist of
Christianity (1 Cor 11:25) were soon made o f gold or silver.
(5) A jug (measuring about 15-20 cm in
diameter) was a container with a narrow mouth
and usually one handle. It was used for holding
or pouring liquids, but could also be used for
storing small quantities of food (e g grain, salt
and honey), and even valuables like jewels and
money (see below on the silver hoard of Dor). A
further use was for the mixing and storing of oil.
‘Jugs of oil’ (Hebrew = pak) were used to
anoint Saul (1 Sm 10:1) and Jehu (2 Ki 9:1,3; cf
also 1 Ki 14:3; 2 Ki 4:2; Jr 19:1,10).
(6) A juglet was a smaller version o f a jug and
mainly used for containing liquids. Its smaller size
made it possible to pour liquids from larger jugs (if
they had large enough mouths) or storage jars (cf
photo o f juglet in spouted jar). Juglets were also
often used for the storing of small quantities of valu
able items such as perfume, oil, jewels or money.
(7) A ja r (or ‘storage jar’) was about 40
cm high and 20-30 cm wide with at least
two handles. It had a wide or narrow
mouth. A rounded bottom prevented the
liquid from spilling when carried. A jar
(Hebrew = kad) was an important ceramic
vessel of ancient times and had a broad
functional use. It was used by women (e g
Gn 24:14-18) to carry (on their shoulders)
water over large distances from water
sources. Wine, oil, honey, meal and grain
were stored in jars (cf 1 Ki 17:12-16; 1 Ki
18:33-34; Ec 12:6 and Job 32:19).
(8) The spouted ja r belongs to the same genre

as ajar. The spout obviously facilitated the pouring
of large quantities of liquids directly from the jar.
As the photo with the juglet in the spout suggests,
the juglet was used if specific or measured quanti
ties were needed. One cannot deduce from the bib
lical references to jars (see above) whether some of
the jars referred to in the Bible had spouts or not.
(9) A pithos (Greek, pi pithoi) was a
large jar (50-60 cm in diameter). It was
used to store food and liquids in large
quantities. Its use in public storehouses
was therefore very common. The
Hebrew word for a pithos (often translat
ed as ( ‘wineskin’) is nebal (cf 1 Sm 1:24;
10:3; 25:18; 2 Sm 16:1; Jr 13:12; Job
38:37; Lm 4:2; Is 30:14). In Isaiah 30:13-
14 the iniquity o f the people is compared
to the irrevocable ‘ruthless smashing’ of
a nebal or pithos. Isaiah 30:14 also refers
to the secondary uses of potsherds: ‘to
take fire from the hearth, or to dip up
water from the cistern’. The pithos was
so big, that even if it broke, there was a
function for its pieces. Job scraped his
sores with potsherds (Job 2:8) and an
ostracon was a potsherd written upon.
(10) A pilgrims flask was a flat jug with two
handles and a narrow mouth which could be
corked up. It appears to have originated in the Late
Bronze Period and was probably indigenous to
Palestine. Filled with water, wine or oil, it was car
ried under the ropes, close to the body o f its owner.
When David fled before Saul he probably took a
pilgrims flask (Hebrew = sappahat) filled with
water which was by Saul’s head (1 Sm 26:11,16).
14 Chapter one
(11) A pyxis (from the Greek, pi = pixides )

was a small, pear-shaped cylindrical box or
container with two handles (measuring about
10 x 10 cm), which could be closed by a lid.
Often decorated, it was o f Mycenaean origin
(a Late Bronze A ge culture o f the Greek
islands) and was imitated by the Canaanites
and Israelites in the Iron Age. It was used for
the storage o f ointment, medicine or small
valuable objects.
(12) The Hebrew word ner (Greek =
lunchnos) is usually translated as lamp, but
it should be kept in mind that the lamps of
ancient times differed gready from present-
day lamps. It was a small saucer-like
ceramic vessel (about 10 cm in diameter)
with a spout. The light or flame (shining
from the spout) was made by burning a
wick saturated with olive oil in the saucer.
(cf Ex 27:20; Lv 24:2; Mt 25:1-13). Lamps were used to provide light in
houses (e g 2 Ki 4:10; Prov 31:18) or temples (1 Sm 3:3; 1 Ki 7:39). In
Matthew 5:15 a lamp is used metaphorically by Jesus: the light o f the lamp
(set on a stand instead of under a bushel) extinguishing the darkness,
resembles the effect of the good works o f his followers in an evil world.
(13) Potters were free to produce, as the need demanded (besides
household utensils), other vessels o f clay, for instance incense burners
used in the cult, images of gods or goddesses or a little broadroom-house
of clay (a toy or decorative vessel) found at Arad (cf photos below).
The storehouses of Megiddo and Beersheba

Megiddo was a city in the north o f Israel (35 km south-east o f Haifa
and 20 km south-west o f Nazareth). On the tel’s north-eastern and
south-western sections two large com plexes o f buildings were dis
covered. Each complex consisted o f a series o f attached units (17 in
total at Megiddo). Each o f these units (measuring about 11 x 22 m)
was subdivided by two rows o f pillars into three long rooms with a
passage way in the middle. A raised roof contained windows on each
side which provided illumination and fresh air. In some o f the passage
ways scooped-out stone blocks were found which scholars identified
as a manger for horses.
Remains of Megiddo’s pillared buildings. Note the ‘mangers’ between the pillars.
1 Kings 9:15 refers to the building works o f Solomon at Megiddo

and a few verses further (1 Ki 9:19) reference is made to the ‘store-
cities that Solomon had, and the cities for his chariots, and the cities
fo r his horsemen’. When the above mentioned pillared buildings were
discovered they were dated to level 1VB o f Megiddo (980-920 BCE).
16 Chapter one
Since Solomon’s reign is thought to fall within this period, scholars

made the seemingly obvious conclusion that the pillared buildings
were Solom on’s stables. Similar discoveries were made at other cities
(Tell el-Hesi, Tell Qasile, Tell Abu Huwam , Hazor and Beersheba),
also initially thought by some scholars to be horse stables.
Plans o f the pillared buildings o f six cities: (A) Tell el-Hesi (B) Tell Qasile (C)
Tell Abu Huwam (D) Megiddo (E) Hazor and (F) Beersheba.
Today most scholars agree that these buildings were not in fact
built by Solomon in the 10th century BCE, but probably belonged to
the time o f King Omri or Ahab (9th century, stratum IVA). They
therefore cannot be regarded as Solom on’s horse stables. Scholars
also gave some thought on the consequences if these buildings had
indeed been used as horse stables. If all these buildings would have
been occupied by horses, the dung and urine of the horses would have
polluted the relative small area o f the city to such an extent that
humans would have found the situation unbearable.
New theories were consequently developed on the function o f these
buildings. One suggestion is that they could have been military barracks,
but this is unlikely since no kitchen was found in them. The long shape of
the buildings also suggest that they were not used for residential purposes.
Remains of the three pillared buildings at Beersheba
The excavation in the 1970’s o f three similar pillared buildings

(although a bit smaller than Megiddo’s) at Tel-Beersheba in the south o f
the country threw more light on the subject. Beersheba’s pillared build
ings (dating to the 9th or 8th century BCE) were opposite the city
18 Chapter one
square, adjacent to the city-gate. Hundreds o f household vessels in

the side halls o f the three buildings (storage jars, cooking pots, bowls,
kraters, lamps, grinding stones and knives) suggest that the building
complex served as storehouses (cf again 1 Ki 9:19 and also 2 Chr
32:28 where mention is made o f Hezekiah’s storehouses). The goods
were probably stored in the side halls and the centre aisle was used
for transportation, as is suggested by the fodder troughs for transport-
donkeys (not mangers for horses!) which were found at some pillars.
In ancient times small farmers in Israel were not able to pay their
taxes in hard cash, but had to comply by paying with farm produce.
These farmers often lived around the cities in which the storehouses
were located. The storehouses were in all likelihood used to collect
and store the goods and to distribute them as found necessary.
Reconstruction o f one of Beersheba's storehouses. The side halls had a

pebbled floor and were on a lower level than the passage in the middle.
The pool, tunnel and inscription of Siloam

The pool o f Siloam in the city o f David in Jerusalem and the tunnel
leading to it has been known for centuries. Women did their washing
there and even today boys like to play in it. Until 1837, when Edward
Robinson (the famous traveller and discoverer o f Palestine) properly
investigated the tunnel, it was thought that the tunnel provided the
Gihon spring (at the tunnel’s northern end) with water.
Map o f the City o f David indicating the Gihon spring, Siloam (or Hezekiah’s)
tunnel and the Siloam pool.
20 Chapter one
The Gihon spring at the start of tunnel (left) and the Siloam pool (right).
Robinson, however, found that the opposite was true. His party
walked through the tunnel (at times they had to crawl because o f the
slime that had gathered on the floor) and found that it followed an S-
shaped course, measuring approximately 513 m in stead o f the esti
mated 325 m (which is its direct distance, as the crow flies). The
longer distance can possibly be attributed to the fact that the diggers
followed some existing cracks in the rock. The tunnel is between 58
to 65 cm wide and mostly over 1,45 m high.
In 1880 a boy playing in the Siloam pool went about 10 m into
the southern end o f the tunnel, and against the southern wall, about
1,5 m above the floor he found an inscription at the bottom o f a
prepared surface against the wall. The inscription is about 38 cm
high and 72 cm wide and consists o f six lines o f Hebrew text. It
was chiselled out o f the w all by the Turks, who then occupied
Palestine, and is today kept in the M useum for the Ancient Orient
in Istanbul. The text o f the inscription and som e biblical texts have
been interpreted to throw much light on the tunnel and the reasons
for its existence. This represents a rare case in archaeology where
an archaeological discovery is com plem ented by written texts illu
minating it (cf also the Lachish reliefs, chapter three below).
THE SILOAM INSCRIPTION

...the breaking through. This is the story of the breaking through... While the
(workers were swinging their) pick-axes, each towards his fellow-worker,
and while there were yet three cubits to be pierced through, (there was
heard) the voice of a man calling his fellow-worker, for there was a split in
the rock on the right (and on the left). And on the day when they broke
through, the workers struck, each in the direction of his fellow-worker, axe
against axe. Then the water flowed from the Spring to the pool for twelve
hundred cubits, and the height above the heads of the workers was one
hundred cubits.
Photo of the Siloam inscription.
T-rtil
Facsimile of the text of the Siloam inscription in ancient Hebrew.

22 Chapter one
Various biblical texts relate to the pool and tunnel of Siloam.

The text o f 2 Kings 20:20 praises ‘the deeds ofHezekiah and all his
m ight’ and mentions ‘how he made the pool and the conduit and
brought water into the c ity ’. According to 2 Chronicles 32:2 (which
after the exile rewrites Israel’s history) ‘Hezekiah saw that
Sennacherib (the king o f Assyria) had come and intended to fight
against Jerusalem (and) planned with his officers and his mighty
men to stop the water o f the springs that were outside the city. ’
According to Jesus Sirach 48:17 (a deutero-canonical book written
about 180 BCE), ‘Hezekiah fortified his city, and brought in water
into the midst o f them: he dug the sheer rock with iron, and built up
wells fo r w aters’.
Inside the Siloam tunnel (also known as Hezekiah's tunnel)

On the basis o f the biblical text the digging of the Siloam,tunnel

is usually attributed to king Hezekiah who ruled in Jerusalem from
715-687 BCE. Apparently he dug it to ensure that the water o f the
Gihon spring at the northern end o f the tunnel (situated outside the
city walls) could be covered in the case o f a possible Assyrian threat.
At that stage the water ran in another conduit (called the Siloam chan
nel) to an older pool outside the city. Hezekiah made a new pool with
in the city walls and had to dig the tunnel to feed it with water.
One problem remains. Hezekiah’s name is not mentioned on the
Siloam inscription, which is rather exceptional because inscriptions usu
ally serve the function to praise the ‘mighty deeds of kings’. This has
led some scholars to conclude that the tunnel was not built by Hezekiah,
but much later in Hasmonean times (2nd century BCE) and that it was
credited to Hezekiah by the biblical writers (who wrote their texts very
late). Although this is based on much speculation, it has drawn the atten
tion anew to the fact that Hezekiah’s name does not appear in the
inscription and warns the interpreter of archaeological data to beware of
relating archaeological information too superficially with biblical texts.
If one reads the Siloam inscription as it stands, it emerges that there
is another explanation for the fact that the inscription does not praise
Hezekiah for building the tunnel, even though he might in fact have
been the master-mind behind the whole project. It also illustrates vivid
ly that the biblical text was written from an elitist or ‘official’ per
spective and not from that o f common people. The inscription, on the
other hand, was written from the perspective o f the people who actual
ly did the work and celebrates their achievement o f making the ends of
the tunnel meet. It was probably put up in the tunnel by themselves
(perhaps initiated by the engineer who oversaw the project). As such an
inscription to the honour o f workers was not the rule, they hid it by
placing it within the tunnel itself, out o f sight o f the king who probably
would not have approved o f it. The politics o f Hezekiah was not first
of all in their minds, but their hard work and engineering achievement.
In order to survive one needs water, and to get water in such a dry
country as Palestine put challenging demands on the people o f ancient
times who did not have the technology of today. The tunnel of Siloam
is a witness to the actual workers who contributed by their skill and
hard work to the survival o f all, whether they were rich or poor.
24 Chapter one
The silver hoard of Dor

Buying and selling has been apart o f daily human activity since times
immemorial. It seems most probable that the earliest known towns
did not develop for the sake o f safety, but as commercial centres.
Both in Jericho, occupied since the 9th millennium BCE, and in £atal
Hiiyiik in Anatolia, where a full fledged city developed as from 6500
BCE, commerce seems to have been at the order o f the day.
Initially bartering was the way in which trading took place. Later
on certain weights o f metal were used to trade products and only
much later the use o f coins with specific values came into use. At Tel
Dor in Israel a clay jug containing quite a large silver hoard was
found in 1996. The stratum dates back to the end o f the 11th century
BCE. It predates the era o f coins by several hundred years.
Excavating the jug with the silver hoard north,of Tel Dor’s southern port.
Tel Dor is the site of an ancient harbour town on the Mediterranean

Coast, about 32 km south o f Haifa. The town was situated in Israel, but
through the ages it was occupied or conquered by every great political
power which played a role in the ancient Near East. The earliest settle
ment at Dor took place at around 2000 BCE, when an early group
o f Canaanites founded a town there. During Iron A ge I (1200-1000

BCE) one o f the Sea Peoples, the Sikil, occupied the city for approx
imately a century (from 1150-1050 BCE). The best known of the Sea
Peoples were the Philistines who settled further south along the
Mediterranean coast. The Sikil were replaced first by Phoenicians and
later by the Israelite kingdom. Initially part of the united kingdom of
David and Solomon, Dor was situated in the Northern Kingdom after
the schism. Israelite hegemony lasted from 1000 BCE until 734 BCE,
when large parts o f Israelite territory were occupied by the Assyrians.
The foremost seafaring people o f the Iron Age were the Phoe
nicians. They were descendants o f the Canaanites. Due to demographic
changes in Israel and Aram (Syria), they were restricted to the coastal
regions between the Libanon Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea.
There they founded cities such as Sidon, Tyre, Byblos, Berytus and
Sarepta. Both Sidon and Tyre are well known from Biblical narratives.
King Hiram o f Tyre helped Solomon in his temple and palace building
endeavours (cf 1 Ki 5). King Ahab o f Israel was married to Jezebel, the
daughter o f Ethbaal, the king o f Sidon (1 Ki 16:31). The well-known
prophet Elijah is reported to have stayed for a while in the Phoenician
town o f Sarepta (biblical Zarephath - 1 Ki 17:8-24).
The Phoenicians did not call themselves by this name, they nor
mally referred to themselves in terms o f their city states. They were
Tyrians or Sidonians and their commercial and cultural influence
extended far and wide around the Mediterranean Sea.
At Dor the Phoenicians made up the most persistent element of the
population. They were responsible for the operation of the town as
Israel’s major harbour. They were shipowners, sailors and merchants.
They also manufactured much of the merchandise they exported. Their
products included wood, jewellery and purple dye, as well as dyed mate
rial and garments. In ancient Dor the southern part of the town was occu
pied by the merchants. Their buildings were workshops and warehouses.
It was in the remains o f one o f these warehouses that an exception
al find of 8,5 kilograms o f silver was made during the summer o f 1996.
The pieces o f silver were in an undecorated clay jug buried under the
floor o f the ancient storeroom. The silver treasure had lain untouched for
almost 3000 years, as it dates back to the late 11th or the early 10th cen
tury BCE, which was approximately the end of the period of the Judges
in biblical terms.
26 Chapter one
The clay jug had once been the money box o f a very rich resident of
Phoenician Dor. It may be that the person anticipated a crisis in the town,
and that the jar was hidden to safeguard it against possible robbers or tri
umphant soldiers. But the owner never returned to retrieve the treasure.
When the jug was lifted, the archaeologists immediately realised
the immensity o f its contents. However, the contents could not be
removed and an old crack in the side of the vessel needed to be
widened to gain access. The contents were amazing! There were a few
cloth bags filled with pieces o f silver, a total of 8,5 kilograms o f silver.
One o f the last photos o f the jug in situ (left), and after its opening (right).
The silver hoard had been divided into 17 units o f approximately

the same weight. Each weight unit had been placed into a linen bag.
Each o f these money bags had an interesting history o f its own.
Pieces o f the linen material survived and it was possible to analyse
the textile. The bags were all of a different weave and density. It is
quite possible that the linen had been woven in Dor itself, because the
texture suggests that it was woven on a standard warp-weighted
loom. These looms were common in the period and during excava
tions numerous clay loom weights were found.
Each bag was sealed with a lump o f clay, called a bulla. The bullae
were often impressed with a stamp seal, as was the case with this hoard.
All the bullae had the same impressions with a geometric design of
interlocking scrolls and spirals. The sealing o f all the bags with the
same seal suggests that the entire hoard was one person’s property. The
seal itself can be dated back to the Middle Bronze Age (ca 1750 BCE),
which was about 700 years earlier than its use on the bullae. Probably
found by chance, the owner kept it due to its beauty, its symbolic sig
nificance or its practical shape and interesting engraving. The seal itself
was not found, but the seal impressions tell us the whole story.
In previous instances where similar silver hoards were found, they
mostly consisted o f pieces o f broken jewellery. The Dor find was dif
ferent. Only a small portion of the silver consisted of broken jew
ellery. The larger part was made up o f small, flat tokens cast in the
shape o f small coins and other pieces o f cut silver.
Polished and cleaned pieces of Tel Dor’s silver h o a rd .
Laboratory analyses showed that the silver contains a gold content of

11 percent. During the 11th and 10th centuries BCE silver with a similar
gold content was mined at Rio Tinto in Spain. It cannot definitely be stat
ed that the silver originated in Rio Tinto’s mines, but an independent
study concluded that there were indeed relationships between the
Phoenicians and the Iberians at the end o f the 2nd millennium BCE.
The hoard teaches us a lot about Dor’s Phoenician history, the means
of payment in daily trade and the ‘banking system’ o f 3000 years ago.
28 Chapter one
An ivory game board from Megiddo

Toys or games for children are not explicitly mentioned in the Old
Testament, although some archaeological artefacts may be interpreted as
representing toys, such as clay images of animals and birds. However,
these artefacts could also have had another (e g cultic) function. The
recreation of the Israelites seems to have been mainly limited to (reli
gious) feasts when people ate, sang and danced together (cf the apoc
ryphal book o f Jesus Sirach 32:5-6 which cherished ‘a concert o f music
at a banquet’ and ‘tuneful music with good wine’; cf also Lk 7:32).
With the Israelites’ Canaanite and Egyptian neighbours the situation
was different. In April 1937 archaeologists discovered a remarkable col
lection o f 382 ivories in one of the cellar rooms o f the Canaanite palace
of Megiddo, dating to the Late Bronze Age IIB (about 1150 BCE).
Although the Israelites at this stage had already settled in the land,
Megiddo was still in Canaanite hands. The ivories must have belonged
to the rich Canaanite prince who lived in the palace and ruled the city.
Many ivory pieces used in games, such as game hoards and dices,
made up part o f the collection. One of these was an Egyptian game board
measuring 27 cm in length. It had 58 holes in which ivory pins were pro
bably used. The pins themselves were not found amongst the collection,
but another Egyptian game board from Thebes (nicknamed ‘hounds and
jackals’ by archaeologists, cf photo below) suggests that pins (decorated
with animal heads) were used. The Megiddo board had a centre inlaid
with gold and blue paste. Every fifth hole was surrounded by an inlaid
with a medallion o f gold filled with leaves of blue paste.
Since the rules of the game are still unknown to us, it was nicknamed
‘the game of the 58 holes’. However, one can, in view o f dices that were
found, surmise that the game was played by advancing the pins after the
throw o f the dice (like present day ludo). Another similar game with flat
squares was called ‘the game of 20 squares’ in which cone-like ivory
pieces were used. Both these game boards had animal decorations. The
winning holes of ‘the game of 58 holes’ were flanked by two Hons look
ing away from the holes. Ibexes decorated ‘the game of 20 squares’.
It is unlikely that similar game boards made o f ivory were known to
Israelites, who apparently lived a much simpler life. The game boards
(and other ivories) are rather evidence o f the wealth and sophistication
o f the Canaanites at Megiddo before the arrival of the Israelites.
Daily life: work and play
The ‘game of 58 holes’ found amongst Megiddo's ivory treasure.

30 Chapter one
The Egyptian game board (‘hounds and jackals’) with animal-headed ivory pins.
The 'game of the 20 squares’ (left) and dices and cone-like game pieces (right).
Chapter two
ART FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD
Closely related to daily life are the various forms o f art created by
people from ancient times. These may vary from the humble drawing
o f a picture o f a sheep on a little stone used to count sheep, to the
colossal statues or monuments erected by or to the memory o f great
kings such as Ramses II who reigned from 1298-1235 BCE in Egypt.
Art forms part o f cultural activity. Before doing anything else, peo
ple must survive and most of their daily activities are devoted to their
struggle to feed and clothe themselves. However, in the process o f
creating objects needed for their daily living, people’s artistic skills
are challenged. In the process they create things not merely to use as
utensils, but also to satisfy another (aesthetic) dimension o f their
humanity.
In the examples that w ill be discussed below, one w ill see that the
above holds true for ancient people just as w ell as it does for people
o f today. Works o f art may have functioned on various levels. A pot
was primarily used for storing or cooking food. Soon artists started to
decorate these pots (or other ceramics) and later these pots would
only be displayed as objects o f art without necessarily serving a prac
tical function. The same holds true for mural paintings to the honour
o f kings or images created to be worshipped as gods. Again one sees
that artefacts can function on different levels in life and that their
assigning to a specific dimension o f life is merely a matter o f focus.
Various forms o f art w ill be discussed below. These include mural
panels or reliefs, an ivory, an obelisk and mosaics. Again w e do not
restrict ourselves to Palestine itself, but broaden our scope to the
larger biblical world. Examples of Egyptian (the Beni Hasan mural),
Canaanite (the Megiddo knife handle), Assyrian (the Black Obelisk
and Lachish reliefs) and Roman art (the Sepphoris mosaics) will be
discussed. These examples represent but a mere tiny selection o f the
large heritage exposed or discovered by archaeologists which has
survived from the biblical world.
31
32 Chapter two
The Beni Hasan mural

In the village o f Beni Hasan, about 240 km south o f Cairo, a wall
painting (2,4 m long and 0,5 m high) was discovered in the 19th cen
tury in the tomb o f the provincial governor Khnumhotep. It has a
hieroglyphic text in the top right comer introducing the mural (to be
read from right to left). The hieroglyphic texts reads The scribe of
royal documents, Neferhotep’ (referring to the Egyptian figure in
front with the docket in his hand), ‘The overseer o f hunters, Khety’
(the second Egytian wearing a white skirt), ‘The ruler of a foreign
land, Ibsha (or Abishar or Abisahai, referring to the leader o f the vis
iting group), The arrival, bringing eye-makeup (stibium), o f 37
Asiatics’ (a label referring to the scene as a whole).
The Beni Hasan mural divided into two sections, to be read from right to left.
The inscription on the docket of the scribe gives even more informa
tion. It reads: ‘Year 6, under the majesty o f the Horus, leader o f the two
lands, the king of Upper and Lower Egypt, Kha-kheper-Re (= Sen-Usert
II). List of the Asiatics whom the son o f the count (= provincial gover
nor), Khnumhotep, brought on account of stibium, Asiatics of Shut. List
thereof: thirty seven. ’ Following this inscription the scene may refer to
Asiatic traders selling eye-makeup (of which the Egyptians were very
Art from the biblical world 33
fond) on their visit to Egypt in about 1890 BCE. Since the location of Shut
in Asia is unknown, it is unclear from where the visitors originated.
Although the inscription mentions 37 Asiatics, the mural only depicts
eight men, four women and three children. Ibsha, the Asiatic leader, wears
a coloured dress and is accompanied by an ibex (cf colour photo in book’s
inside front cover). Behind him follows a man wearing only a coloured
skirt, accompanied by a gazelle. Then four men follow, carrying spears,
throwing sticks, a bow and a waterskin. Two o f these men wear coloured
dresses covering only one shoulder, whereas the other two wear white
garments. All the men in the picture (including those at the back) wear
leather sandals. Behind the group o f four a donkey follows, covered with
a blanket and carrying two children and a bellows. Behind the donkey is
a boy, wearing only a read skirt and carrying a spear. Four women, three
with bare shoulders, follow with dresses of different colours and low
boots. Like the men their hair is black and bound by a fillet, hanging down
their necks. On another donkey a throwing stick, a spear and a bellows are
tied. The last two men are bearded like the rest but wear nothing but
coloured skirts. The first carries a waterskin over his shoulder and plays a
lyre with a plectrum. The second carries a bow, a throwing stick and a
quiver. Five cranes conclude the scene, enhancing its aesthetic value.
Many scholars interpret this painting in terms o f the patriarchal nar
ratives which mention visits of Abraham (Gn 12) and Joseph (Gn 37-
50) to Egypt. Others confine their interpretation to the lifestyles of the
patriarchs (cf the clothing, beards etc o f the Asiatics in contrast to the
Egyptian figures). Another theory, suggested by the bellows, (cf Gn
4:19-22) is that we are here dealing with travelling metalworkers.
From 3000 BCE there had been political and economic contacts
between Asia and Egypt. In the period o f the Hyksos (17th and 16th cen
tury Asiatic mlers o f Egypt) these contacts increased. It continued
throughout the Israelite period. Apart from the patriarchal narratives,
Solomon’s marriage to the Pharaoh’s daughter (1 Ki 9:16), the campaigns
of Shishak (1 Ki 14:25-26) and Necho (2 Kg 23:35), the book of Song of
Songs and Proverbs 22:17-24:22 bear witness to Egyptian influence.
The Beni Hasan mural should not be over-inteipreted by linking it to a
single biblical event. It can be regarded as a realistic portrayal of how
Semitic people might have appeared to Egyptians, and is an expression of
the wide interaction between Egypt and Asia in the ancient world.
34 Chapter two
An ivory knife handle from Megiddo

In April 1937 archaeologists from to the University o f Chicago expe
dition to Megiddo discovered a treasure-trove in a cellar room
attached to a palace from stratum VILA, dating towards the end o f the
Late Bronze Age (1250-1150). Among the treasures (which also
included gold, alabaster and jewellery) 382 ivories were found. The
ivories represent various artistic styles and are a witness to the
sophistication o f the art o f the ancient Near East, representing
Canaanite, Egyptian, Greek and Hittite motifs (cf chapter one on the
game board of Megiddo).
Among these ivories there was a piece interpreted to be a knife
handle, about 25 cm long. Another viewpoint is that it was the side of
a game board, or a decoration o f furniture. Whatever the case might
have been, what intrigued archaeologists the most is what is depicted
on this piece o f ivory.
The Megiddo ivory (probably a knife handle) depicting a victory celebration.
Two scenes were carved on the ivory, complimenting one another.

M ost scholars interpret the sequence as the triumphal return o f a king
after a victorious expedition (first scene) and the subsequent celebration

o f the king (second scene). To arrive at this conclusion the scenes should
(as was the case with the Beni Hasan mural) be ‘read’ from right to left.
The first figure is that o f a soldier or armour-bearer (with a sickle-
sword in his hand) who walks behind a chariot. In the chariot the tri
umphant king stands wearing a coat o f mail (a type o f flexible armour
consisting o f rivetted metal rings or links) on his body and arms. The
chariot is drawn by a horse led by two bound, nude, circumcised cap
tives with their hair done up in two loops above their heads. Above
the horse floats a winged sun-disk and to the left o f it (probably for
decoration) is a plant. The whole procession is led by a soldier carry
ing a spear and a shield. Three plants follow, which, apart from dec
oration, probably serve to separate the two scenes.
The first figure in the second scene is a barefooted woman playing a
lyre with nine strings. Beneath the lyre is a bird, probably again as deco
ration. The next figure is the queen (note her crown) who presents the
king (clearly the same figure that drove the chariot in the first scene - note
his helmet) with a lotus blossom and a towel (the latter probably being
part o f her head-shawl). The king, drinking from a bowl, sits on a throne,
the side of which is carved as a sphinx. The king wears a long robe which
reaches to his bare feet resting upon a footstool. Beneath and immediate
ly behind the throne are two birds. Two men serve the king. Between them
is a large jar (or tureen) with a cover on which are the heads o f a gazelle
and a lion. All the men in the two scenes wear chin-beards without mus
taches. If one compares this with the Beni Hasan mural (cf above) one can
conclude that the king as well as the captives are of Asiatic origin.
Scholars have tried to identify the two circumcised men as Shoshu, a
semi-nomadic people who lived in the region o f Edom, who according to
an Egyptian text worshipped Yahweh (the god of Israel), and are therefore
in some circles regarded as the ancestors o f the Israelites. This, however,
cannot be proven. The royal throne has also been compared with the
throne o f Yahweh in Solomon’s temple (1 Ki 6:23-28; Ex 25:17-22).
Although such comparisons are interesting, one should beware o f
detecting direct links between the ivory and biblical texts. Generally
one can conclude that the ivory portrays the luxury o f Canaanite royal
courts which might have resembled that o f Solomon in Jerusalem (as
depicted in the Bible).
36 Chapter two
The Black Obelisk

In 1846 the fam ous archaeologist Austen Henry Layard made a
remarkable discovery at Nimrud (Celah or Kalhu o f ancient times)
north o f Assur next to the Tigris river. Just as the excavators had
becom e despondent and wanted to leave the excavation, a 2 m
long lim estone obelisk (a stone pillar having a square or rectan
gular cross section and sides tapering towards a pyramidal top)
was unearthed. It is today displayed in the British museum in
London.
Layard’s find became known (due to its colour) as the ‘Black
Obelisk’. Manufactured in honour o f king Shalmaneser III, who ruled
Assyria from 858-824 BCE, it is a skilful work o f art combining
sculpturing and cuneiform writing.
Each of the obelisk’s four sides have five sculptured reliefs. The
interpreter o f these reliefs should note that they are not to be read
from top to bottom, but around the four sides o f the monument (cf
below). Each row o f reliefs contains scenes o f tribute-bearing to the
king. Above the panels are captions written in cuneiform referring to
the contents of the depictions. At the top o f the obelisk the pyramidal
shape is formed by steps on which further text is inscribed, totalling
129 lines together with the text underneath the reliefs.
Sir Austen Henry Layard (1817-

1894), famous British archaeologist,
who discovered the Black Obelisk at
Nimnjd or ancient Celah (cf Gn 10:11-
12) which in the 9th century was the
capital of Assyria. He later also exca
vated at Nineveh where he found
Sennacherib’s palace containing the
Lachish reliefs (see the discussion of
the next discovery below).
The 2,02 m high Black Obelisk (left) and statue (1,03 m high) of Salmaneser
III (right). Both artefacts were discovered at Nimrud or ancient Celah.
38 Chapter two
On this and the following page the twenty panels o f the four sides of the Black
Obelisk should be viewed horizontally. They are described by captions above
the rows. The top row (numbered I) depicts Sua the Gilzanite kneeling before
Shalmaneser III. Four Assyrians stand behind Sua and then the captives follow.
One leads a horse, two bring camels and five carry tribute. Register II depicts
Jehu o f Israel kneeling before the Assyrian king. Behind Jehu four Assyrians
lead 13 Israelite porters. Row III depicts the tribute o f Musri, consisting entire
ly o f animals (two, camels, three horned animals, an elephant and four mon
keys), probably for Shalmaneser’s zoo. The fourth row (IV) shows the tribute
of Marduk-apal-usur o f Suhi. The first panel depicts two lions killing a stag
followed by 13 tribute-bearers. Row V depicts Karparunda o f Hattina’s trib
ute, carried by 17 men attended by two Assyrians on the 2nd panel.
40 Chapter two
From the perspective o f ancient Israelite history the second regis

ter or row o f reliefs is of particular importance. The first panel shows
king Jehu (who ruled the northern kingdom o f Israel from 842-814
BCE) or his emissary prostrating him self before the king with his
forehead to the ground, possibly being in the process o f kissing the
kings feet. Above Shalmaneser’s head is a winged symbol o f the
Assyrian god Assur (protecting and affirming him) and behind him
two subjects. Behind Jehu stand four Assyrians followed by 13
Israelite tribute-bearers. The superscription above the panel reads:
Tribute o f Jehu, son o f Omri. Silver, gold, a golden bowl, golden

beaker, golden goblets, pitchers o f gold, tin, staves fo r the hand
o f the king, [and] javelins, 1 [Shalmaneser] received from him.
The fact that in the Bible no mention is made o f Jehu paying trib
ute to Shalmaneser III and that he was not the son o f Omri has
intrigued scholars. As far as the first aspect is concerned the Bible
does not portray Jehu as being submissive, but rather as a harsh and
mighty king who killed Omri’s descendants to usurp the throne, and
wiped out all Baal worshippers (2 Ki 9:14-10:1-36).
The contrast between Jehu’s submissiveness according to the Black
Obelisk and the author o f the biblical text demonstrates the bias of
‘official histories’ o f politicians, even in ancient times. In all likelihood
the Black Obelisk o f Salmanasser HI exaggerated Jehu’s subservience
since there was no full-scale war between Assyria and Israel in the 9th
century BCE in which the Assyrians subjugated the Israelites. On the
other hand Jehu could indeed have paid tribute to Shalmanasser III, pla
cating him with the view to prevent war. This he would then not have
recorded in his own official chronicles in order not to minimise his
‘powerful image’ in the eyes o f his Israelites subjects.
Secondly, the fact that Jehu is labelled the ‘son of Omri’ in the inscrip
tion may have two possible explanations. Calling him such may be an
Assyrian way of referring to a successor of king Omri who for the
Assyrians had been Israel’s most famous king. (The Northern Kingdom
is often referred to as ‘the house o f Omri’.) The other, although less like
ly, possibility is that Jehu was indeed a descendant o f Omri through a
different family line. In ancient times the term ‘son’ did not always
refer to its literal meaning, but could also simply mean ‘descendant’.
Whatever the solutions to the above historical problems may be,
the Black Obelisk is a testimony to the grandeur o f the Assyrian
empire, if not in a political, then definitely in a cultural sense in terms
o f the artistic quality o f its sculptured reliefs. Monuments such as
these were not erected by the Israelites or Judeans to honour their
kings. This may be due to the prohibition o f Exodus 20:4, or to the
more likely fact that Israel was but a tiny kingdom in the context o f
the ancient Near East.
Part o f a panel of the Black Obelisk showing Jehu of Israel kneeling before
Shalmameser III. The caption above reads: Tribute of Jehu, son o f Omri'.
42 Chapter two
The Lachish reliefs - history in stone

Lachish was one of the most important cities of the biblical era in ancient
Israel. Situated about 42 km south-west o f Jerusalem, it is represented
today by a large mound named Tel Lachish. Lachish was already an
important city during the third millennium BCE, when it was heavily for
tified by a glacis (= a coated slope) and a fosse (= trench, moat), which
gave the site its present conspicuous shape. During the Late Bronze Age
it was a large Canaanite city state, and a few letters from Lachish were
found in the 14th century royal Egyptian archives at Tell el-Amarna.
Lachish played a major role in the story of the Israelite conquest of
Canaan, as related in Joshua 10. According to that version, the Israelites
destroyed the city and killed its inhabitants. Following the final destruc
tion of the Canaanite city, Lachish was abandoned for nearly 200 years,
untill the 10th century BCE.
During the first half o f the first millennium, the period of the kingdom
o f Judah, Lachish was once more fortified. During this time it was the most
important Judean city after Jerusalem. It played a special role in 701 BCE,
when Sennacherib, king of Assyria invaded Judah and conquered all the
fortified cities, except Jerusalem. His royal camp was situated near
Lachish, which he stormed and conquered (cf 2 Ki 18:13; 2 Chr 32:9). A
unique set of stone-reliefs portraying the conquest of Lachish in detail, was
erected by Sennacherib in his royal palace at Nineveh. These reliefs are
now exhibited in the British Museum in London. They clearly indicate that
the conquest of Lachish was of singular importance. In 586 BCE, Lachish
was again stormed and burnt, this time by Nebuchadnezzar, king of
Babylon, who proceeded to invade Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.
Of the eight scenes that can be identified on the Lachish reliefs, the
third one is o f particular importance for understanding the Assyrian siege
o f Lachish in 701 BCE. The focal point in this scene is the city gate under
heavy attack. To its left and right battering rams are depicted that were
pushed up close to the city walls along the even slope or ramp created for
them. The battering rams moved on spoked wheels. These battering rams
or siege machines were the most formidable weapon o f the period. The
siege machines were apparently constructed from pre-fabricated seg
ments held together by some kind of securing pins. This clearly indicates
that they were transported from Assyria in sections and reassembled on
the spot, prior to the assault on the city. The bodies of the siege
machines had turrets with windows on two sides. The rams, resembling
large spears, were suspended on ropes and extended in front o f the
machines. Men on the floors o f the machines would push the rams for
ward with great force against the city wall, and wait for them to swing
back before repeating the action. This process would be repeated sys
tematically against a carefully selected weak point in the wall until it
was eventually breached.
The third scene o f the Lachish reliefs: The storming o f Lachish.
These machines were apparently constructed of flammable materials,

such as wood and leather. The defenders o f the city therefore attempt to
44 Chapter two
set them on fire by a shower of firebrands thrown from above. As a

counter measure an Assyrian soldier can clearly be seen pouring water
over the front o f the machine and the shaft o f the battering ram with the
aid o f what looks like an enormous scoop or turret. In total seven bat
tering rams appear on the reliefs, the largest number of battering rams
shown in any Neo-Assyrian relief in an attack on a single city.
On this scene the weaponry of the inhabitants of Lachish is also well
illustrated. One needs to take into consideration that these impressions
were obviously created by Assyrian artists back home in Nineveh,
therefore one could expect their soldiers and weapons to have received
much more prominence in the scenes than the small group of Judean
soldiers on the wall above the gate. Nevertheless, we notice a horde of
firebrands and stones showering down on the Assyrians from the wall.
Reconstruction of Lachish (level IV-III) before it was conquered in 701 BCE.
W hile the battle is still on, six deportees are depicted as walking
through the doorway o f the bastion heading down the roadway (com
pare with reconstruction above). The two persons closest to the gate
are women with long dresses and shawls covering their heads. Over
their left shoulders they have bags presumably containing their
belongings. They appear to be holding jugs of water in their right
hands. Ahead o f them are two Judean men clad in short tunics with
belts, and in front of them again two women. These people follow the
line o f deportees shown on the fourth scene (see below) proceeding
towards Sennacherib who sits on his throne. W hile the battle is still
raging, the refugees are departing for exile after the surrender. Thus,
two separate scenes, each representing a different stage in the con

quest o f Lachish, are interwoven here to create a harmonious and
continuous pictorial narrative of the events.
At the bottom o f the siege ramp, (in scene EH) three prisoners, stripped
naked, are impaled on stakes. All appear to be men with their heads sag
ging forward, indicating that they are already dead. This depiction, like
the deportees leaving the city, should be viewed as part of the procession
moving towards Sennacherib seated on his throne. This cruel depiction
refers to events after the battle, when the captives and deportees were
forced to leave the city, rather than with the actual attack on the walls.
The fourth scene of the Lachish reliefs: Booty-bearers and deportees.

46 Chapter two
The mosaics of Sepphoris

The town of Sepphoris (capital of Galilee from the 1st to the 4th cen
turies CE) is situated high on a hill about 5 km north-east o f Nazareth.
It was a centre where Roman as well as Jewish culture flourished
together in harmony. The Mishna (= Jewish legal traditions) was encod
ed here by Rabbi Judah Hanasi. The Roman’s had a theatre here, cut out
in the rock o f the hill with an excellent view on the valleys of Galilee.
What scholars believe to be the Roman villa (a double-storeyed build
ing measuring 40 x 23 m) was uncovered by the excavation led by Ehud
Netzer and Carol and Eric Meyers in the 1980’s. In 1987 they made a
remarkable find. In the triclinium (= dining hall) of the villa’s northern
section a carpet-like mosaic (6 x 6 m) was found on the floor. In the cen
tre were three scenes, surrounded by 12 further ones. The 15 scenes were
framed by 22 medallions (= circular decorations) formed by intertwining
acanthus leaves and peopled with figures of naked hunters and animals.
Reconstruction o f the northern part o f the Roman villa at Sepphoris contain

ing the triclinium (dining hall) with the mosaic floor in the centre.
General view of the triclinium’s ‘mosaic carpet’, depicting the life o f Dionysos.
The 15 scenes (11 are intact) of the ‘carpet’ relate to the life of
Dionysos, the Greek god o f wine, fruitfulness and vegetation (= the
Roman Bacchus). Greek inscriptions identify the scenes which deal
(amongst others) with the bathing o f Dionysos at his birth, his raising
by the nymphs o f Mount Nysa, his triumphal return from India, his mar
riage to Ariadne, the treading of grapes in a winepress, a drinking con
test between Dionysos and Hercules and the drunkenness of Hercules.
The bathing o f Dionysos after his birth with Greek inscription

48 Chapter two
The drinking contest between Dionysos and Hercules (above) and the latter’s
drunkenness (below).
What archaeologists described as ‘the most exquisite feature o f the

m osaic’ was uncovered in one o f the medallions at the northern end
o f the ‘carpet’. It was the portrait o f a beautiful woman, crowned with
a wreath (nicknamed the ‘lovely lady from Galilee; see below and on
the front cover o f this book). A complementing portrait o f a woman
on the opposite (southern) end o f the carpet was unfortunately found
ruined.
The tiny stone tesserae (= small mosaic tiles) with their 23 shades
o f colours made it possible for the artist to create a mosaic o f superb
quality. This can especially be seen in the subtle variations between
the woman’s bright earrings, the rim on her garment, the sheen on her
lips and the slightly red flush o f her cheeks. To the left o f her slight
ly tilted face a naked cupid-like figure forms part o f the medallion.
Sepphoris is not mentioned in the Bible, although probably hinted
at by Jesus (who came from neighbouring Nazareth) in Matthew 5:14
( ‘a city on a hill cannot be hid’). How did Jesus judge the Hellenistic
spirit prevalent in Sepphoris? We know not.
The 'lovely lady from Galilee’ with the cupid-like naked figure to her left.
Chapter three
ARCHITECTURE
The remains o f buildings represents some o f the most important and

spectacular discoveries made by archaeologists. Whereas smaller
artefacts end up in museums or have an unsure original location,
architectural structures remain where they were found and can only
be visited on location.
Architectural structures arose from the needs o f life. These in
cluded the need for protection, water, security, worship and recre
ation. The architecture that survives from the biblical world often
amazes the present-day spectator. The structures are not merely con
fined to buildings such as houses, palaces and storage rooms, but
include temples, city gates, water systems, theatres and tombs such as
the pyramids.
The quality o f architecture may vary according to people’s intel
lectual level, their technological abilities, as w ell as their traditions
and culture. The Egyptians, for instance, had tombs that differed
largely from those o f ancient Israel. This certainly (amongst others)
can be accounted for by their belief system. However, their techno
logical capabilities also seem to outweigh that o f the Israelites.
Although Solom on’s temple (which has to date not been found) and
that o f Herod seem to have been impressive, the temples of Egypt
(e g Kamak) and Greece (e g the Parthenon) outclassed the Israelite
temples by far. Although many architectural structures reveal amaz
ing artistic features (cf the splendour o f Petra), one should not judge
these structures merely by there artistic features, since that was not
their only function.
Available building materials also had a bearing on the quality o f
architecture. Poor people used clay and field stones to built their
houses. Dressed stones (rough-hewn or large ashlar blocks) were
reserved for the more important buildings such as pyramids or tem
ples. Sometimes larger structures were completely cut out o f rock
(e g Petra and the theatre o f Sepphoris).
50
Architecture from the biblical world 51
The Giza pyramids and sphinx

A pyramid (from the Greek puramis, originally Egyptian) is a huge
masonry construction with a square base and four sloping triangular
sides. There are about 80 pyramids in Egypt along the western bank
o f the Nile, functioning as royal tombs in ancient times. They were
erected above a relatively small chamber containing the sarcophagus
(= a stone or marble coffin) o f the Egyptian king. The huge structures
were believed to be stairways which the king could climb to join the
sun god in the sky. They furthermore had to protect and preserve the
bodily remains so that the ka, or personification o f the life-force,
would not leave the body.
The so-called step pyramid of King Zoser at Sakkara (about 2650
BCE) being the oldest, pyramid building continued until about 1500
BCE. The three at Giza (just outside Cairo) are the most famous. They
were built by kings Khufu (Cheops), Khafre (Chephren) and Menkaure
(Mycerinus) of the Fourth Dynasty (2600-2480 BCE) for themselves.
Surrounding these three gigantic pyramids are smaller ones for their
wives. Various temples and a sphinx (a huge stone statue with a human
head and the body o f a lion) forms part of Giza’s pyramidal complex.
The three pyramids of Menkaure (66m high and 108 m wide), Khafre (136m
high and 210 m wide) and Khufu (146 m high and 222 m wide).
52 Chapter three
Pyramids in the vicinity of Cairo and Saqqara: (1) mud-brick pyramid, (2)
Redjedef, (3) Khufu, (4) Khafre, (5) Menkaure, (6) the sphinx, (7) Neferke, (8)
Khaba, (9) sun-temple o f Nyuserre, (10) sun-temple o f Userkar, (11) Sahure,
(12) Neferikare, (13) Nyuserre, (14) Neferefre, (15) Teti, (16) Userkaf, (17)
Zoser, (18) Unas, (19) Sekhemket, (20) Pepi I, (21) Merenre, (22) Djedkare
Isesi, (23) Abakaka-re, (24) Pepi II, (25) Khendjer, (26) South Pyramid.
Among the ancient Greeks the Great Pyramid of Khufu counted as one
o f the seven wonders of the ancient world. It is in fact the only one of
those ancient wonders still standing. The famous Egyptologist Flinders
Petrie spent two years from 1880-1882 at Giza measuring the pyramids,
and his results are still valid today. Khufu’s pyramid (the largest) was
some 146 m high and its baselines averaged 222 m (5,3 ha). It contained
about 2,7 million cubic meters o f stone. The chamber containing the sar
cophagus (hewn from red granite and well polished) measured 10,6 x 5,1
m with a height o f 5,7 m. The sarcophagus contained no mummy - it had
in all likelihood been removed by robbers thousands of years ago.
Who built the pyramids ? This question has raised wide speculation,
some theories holding that it was not humanly possible in ancient times
and that extra-terrestrial beings or factors had been involved.
According to Herodotus 100,000 builders worked on Khufu’s’ pyramid
for a period o f 20 years. This must have included the personnel han
dling the logistics, since it would have been impossible for more than
36,000 people working at the pyramid without hampering one another.
The Great Pyramid o f Khufu was indeed built according to mathe
matical and astronomical principles (e g the numerical value o f pi and
the distance between the earth and the sun). However, assertions that
the ‘periods o f the planets’ as well as ‘male and female periods’ could
be derived from the Pyramid’s measurements, are utter nonsense.
How were the pyramids built? Khufu’s pyramid presented the greatest
challenge, containing (apart from the limestone blocks o f 2,5 tons), also
about 70 granite blocks weighing 50 tons each. These blocks were dug at
a quarry near Aswan, about 800 km up the Nile River. To crack the gran
ite, fires were made that were then quickly cooled off. Wooden wedges
were driven between the cracks, which when soaked, would swell and
loosen the granite. With tools made o f dolerite (stone harder than granite)
and copper, the blocks were finished into 1 m cubes. Animals and humans
dragged them into barges transporting them down the Nile and a canal
leading to Giza. From there they were dragged up to the pyramid.
HERODOTUS ON THE BUILDING OF THE PYRAMIDS

Some were ordered to transport the stones from the quarries to the Nile - others
to transport them along the river with great rafts. Shifts of 100,000 men replaced
each other every three months, working uninterruptedly. It took ten years to build
the road along which the blocks of stone were moved, a work by no means infe
rior to that of the pyramid, made of ashlars decorated with figures and animals.
Ten years to build this road and the chambers dug out of the rock that serves as
a base for the pyramids... twenty years to build the Great Pyramid... cased in cut
stone, smoothed and perfectly joined.
This is how the pyramid was made: first, as a stepped structure with a series of
levels... then, as soon as the levels were finished, the remaining stones were raised
with machines built of small beams. The machines took the stones from the ground
to the first level, here they were loaded on other machines that were waiting and
raised to the second level and from this to the third, and so on for there were just as
many machines as there were levels to the stepped structure... The uppermost parts
of the pyramid were finished first and then the next and finally the lowest parts ....
54 Chapter three
Being stepped-stoned structures, pyramids were basically the

greatest aid in their own building. Lever machines, with oscillating
arms rotating around a pivotal support, were used to lift the blocks
from one level to the next. These type o f machines are well-known
from ancient Egypt and were (amongst others) employed to lift water
from the N ile above its banks. After the massive blocks were in place,
the steps were smoothed by fitting triangular blocks neatly on them.
The above explanation o f the building o f the pyramids may sound
simple. It was o f course much more complex, involving thousands of
people (including women and children) who had to give logistical
support. As it accords (although not in detail) with the Greek histori
an, Herodotus’ account o f the building operation (see box), modem
‘extra-terrestrial’ theories can at best be regarded as an expression of
awe and respect for these colossal structures. The credit for their con
struction should, however, be given to those humans really involved,
from the humblest o f workers to the designer and director o f works.
Cross-section of Khufu's pyramid: (1) incomplete burial chamber, (2) the

queen’s burial chamber, (3) the kings burial chamber with granite monument
above, (4) the grand gallery, (5 and 6) ventilation shafts, (7) ascending cor
ridor, (8) shaft, (9) descending corridor
In front o f the pyramid o f Khafre the sphinx towers about 20 m above

the desert. Its head and forepart are cut from solid rock. The paws and
body were built o f brick and measure 73 m in length. The mouth mea
sures at least 2,2 m, the nose 1,7 m and the ears 1,3 m. According to C
W Ceram, ‘in the whole history o f man’s art there is nothing more amaz
ing than this human countenance facing eternity - at the foot of the most
rational monuments of architecture ever created...’.
Because in Greek mythology the sphinx was female and propounded
riddles, early visitors did not realise that this sphinx was in fact male and
never posed riddles or issued oracles. What it represented is in itself a
riddle, but it was in all likelihood an image o f Khafre (entombed in the
pyramid behind it) who was believed to have become a god.
The sphinx was harmed by an iconoclastic sheik in the 14th century
CE, as well as harsh desert winds and sand covering the body. A tablet at
the paws of the sphinx addressed to Thutmosis IV even in the 15 th cen
tury BCE reports that the sphinx had been ‘sore oppressed by the sand of
the desert’. Responding to this, Thutmosis IV was probably the first to
remove the sand (about 1450 BCE). Repairs were made to the sphinx in
1925-1926, but today the problem o f erosion is present as ever before.
The great sphinx o f Giza with the pyramid o f Khafre in the background.
56 Chapter three
Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem

According to the Bible king Solomon (who ruled the united kingdom of
Israel from 965-928 BCE) was a prolific builder (cf 1 Ki 9:15). What first
comes to mind is his temple in Jerusalem, of which the construction
(together with the royal palace) is extensively described in 1 Kings 6-7.
However, despite various attempts by archaeologists to uncover
Solomon’s temple, no traces could thus far be found. This may be due to
the fact that Herod, who built his temple in the 1st century BCE, levelled
the temple mount to such an extent that any remains o f Solomon’s tem
ple (which probably stood where the Dome o f the Rock is today) were
totally covered. Furthermore, because o f Muslim occupation, archaeo
logical digging on the temple mount is today virtually impossible.
There are scholars alleging today that Solom on’s temple will never
be found, as he had never built one. According to this theory, Solomon
is either a fictitious or highly overrated figure in Israel’s history, and
the account of his building of the temple in Jerusalem was meant as a
boost o f Jewish national identity in the post-exilic (538 BCE onwards)
period, when the text o f 1 Kings was supposedly written.
Thus any description o f Solom on’s temple can only be based on
the biblical text o f 1 Kings 6-7. However, when the biblical descrip
tion is compared with excavated temples in especially Northern
Syria, interesting facts com e to light.
Reconstruction o f Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem. The side chambers (used

as storerooms) did not form part of the temple itself.
According to 1 Kings 6:2 Solom on’s ‘House for Yahweh’ was

30 m long, 10 m wide and 15 m high (if a cubit is roughly taken as
50 cm). One would enter it through a portico (Hebrew = ulam), which
was 10 m wide and extending 5 m from the temple proper. According
to 2 Kings 7:21 the portico had two pillars: The southern one was
called Jachin and the northern Boaz (the temple faced east-west).
Then followed the 20 m long Main Hall (hekal in Hebrew) which was
the temple proper. At the back o f the Main Hall, there was (built with
cedar planks) an inner sanctuary or Holy o f H olies {debir in Hebrew)
where the Ark o f the Covenant stood (1 Ki 2:16,19). It measured
10 m in length but was only 10 m high, leaving a space o f about 5 m
between its roof and that of the temple itself.
Architecturally, the Holy of Holies was thus merely a partition within
the Main Hall. Actually the temple consisted only o f one long room, the
hekal, with the Holy of Holies inside it and the portico extending from it.
Surface- and three-dimensional plan of Solomon's temple based on 1 Kings 6-7.
On the basis o f various excavated temples, archaeologists can now

conclude that the plan of Solomon’s temple (or at least the picture of it
which the biblical author had in mind) derived from the megaron type
58 Chapter three
found in Northern Syria. Having originated in Anatolia in the third mil

lennium BCE, the megaron was a house consisting of a single long
room with a portico. It functioned as such in Greece until 1200 BCE. In
the second millennium BCE, it was employed in temple architecture in
Northern Syria, where examples were uncovered in Ebla (with ante
chamber before the Main Hall), Tell Munbaqa (also with ante-chamber)
and Emar (with platform at the Holy of Holies). From there it was
imported into Canaan, with examples at Hazor (without the porch),
Shechem (with towers flanking the portico) and Megiddo (with towers).
The only Israelite temple unearthed thus far by archaeologists was a
broad-room temple within the citadel of Arad (10th to 8th century BCE).
Its plan was based on the broad-room houses that were popular amongst
the Israelites. When Solomon decided to build a ‘House for Yahweh’, he
did not look for indigenous types, but employed Phoenician craftsmen (cf
1 Ki 5) who based the plan of the Solomonic temple on that of their own
temples, which most probably also derived from Northern Syrian types.
The question may be asked: If the author o f 1 Kings 6-7 had mere
ly improvised as far Solom on’s temple is concerned in order to boost
post-exilic Jewish national identity (cf above), why did he not ‘imag
ined’ a more indigenous temple type like the one at Arad?
I
I
I
•
Entrance
Altar
Plans of temples to compare with Solomon’s; from Emar in Northern Syria

(left), and Arad in Southern Israel (right)).
Megiddo’s six-chambered gate

Through the ages o f its existence the ancient city o f Megiddo had
several gates, remains of which are still visible on the site today. The
city was fortified for the first time about 3000 BCE but the first
proper gate was built around 1900-1800 BCE. This gate had an re
shape and was for pedestrian use only. The best preserved gate is a
big four-chambered city gate (measuring 11 x 18 m) with three sets
o f piers built towards the end o f the Middle Bronze A ge (ca 1550
BCE, stratum X). It probably continued to be used by the Canaanites
throughout the Late Bronze Age (until ca 1150 BCE).
The gate that mostly occupied the attention o f archaeologists is the
so-called ‘Solom onic’ gate consisting o f four pairs o f piers and six
chambers. The front piers were built up to two impressive towers. The
gate also had an outer gate complex through which one had to pass to
reach the gate proper (see reconstruction on next page). The six cham
bers (used for stationing guards) emphasise the military importance of
Megiddo at the time when this gate was used. Initially excavators o f
the Chicago expedition to Megiddo in the 1930’s ascribed the gate to
the time o f Solomon in the 10th century. According to them the gate
was connected to a very strong ‘offset-inset’ wall (see reconstruction).
Yigael Yadin’s excavations in the 1960’s once more placed this
‘Solomonic’ gate into the spotlight. Yadin had previously excavated at
Hazor and had found there a similar gate to that o f Megiddo. A third one
had been excavated at Gezer by Macalister at the beginning o f the 20th
century. However, the difference was that the gates of Hazor and Gezer
(also dated to the 10th century BCE) were connected to a casemate wall
(= double fortification wall with rooms) and not to an ‘offset-inset’ one.
For Yadin it was strange that the Megiddo gate would have a different
wall type, especially in the light o f the biblical text o f 1 King 9:15 which
reads as follows: ‘And this is the account o f the forced labour which
Solomon levied to build the house o f the Lord and his own house and the
Millo and the wall of Jerusalem and Hazor and Megiddo and Gezer... ’
Prompted by the above text Yadin decided to excavate the gate area of
Megiddo again and was exhilarated by what he found. On 1 Kings 9:15 he
remarked: ‘In fact hardly ever in the history of archaeological digging has
such a short verse in the Bible helped so much in identifying and dating
actual remains found by the spade’.
60 Chapter three
Reconstruction o f the ‘Solomonic’ gate with outer gate and main gate
What excited Yadin were the remains of sections of a casemate wall

which he came across beneath the offset-inset one. This he dated to
Solomon’s time, whereas the offset-inset wall (previously wrongly
ascribed to Solomon) he regarded as being from the time o f Ahab, when
a four-chambered gate had been built on top o f the six-chambered one.
The results of Yadin’s work remained virtually undisputed for three
decades. However, today the final word seems not to be his. Many schol
ars now ask the question whether the gate (together with those of Hazor
and Gezer) should not be dated to the 9th century and be attributed to
Ahab. This view seems to be corroborated by excavations done at Tel
Jezreel where the directors o f the excavation allege to have found a six-
chambered gate. The implications are clear. Such a gate had its origins in
Ahab’s time, since we know that Jezreel was his city. A six-chambered
gate seems therefore not to be uniquely Solomonic. Solomon seems
to have erroneously received the honour for the building achieve

ments o f Ahab. The so-called ‘Solom onic stables’ or pillared build
ings (see chapter one) seems to present a similar case.
The six-chambered gate at Megiddo has proven to be one of the test
cases of archaeological interpretation. Although archaeology works with
material realities and strives to be a verifiable science, there seems to be
a lot of interpretation at stake. Many scholars still believe the six-cham
bered gate to be Solomonic. The Jezreel gate is then regarded to consist
only of four chambers, since archaeological remains at Jezreel are scanty
and not very clear. If the Jezreel gate indeed had six chambers the matter
could be interpreted as Ahab having imitated Solomon’s design. Others
(the so-called biblical ‘minimalists’) believe that David and Solomon did
not play such a prominent role in Israel’s history at all. No remains of
their building activities have for instance been found in Jerusalem.
According to this viewpoint the biblical authors seem to have painted an
idealistic picture of what they regarded as Israel’s ‘golden age’ under the
united monarchy o f David and Solomon.
Remains of three piers and two chambers o f Megiddo’s six-chambered gate.

62 Chapter three
Herod’s northern palace-villa at Masada

Masada (from the Aramaic hamesad = ‘fortress’) is a mountain iso
lated by steep cliffs from its immediate surroundings, about 25 km
south o f En-Gedi and 2 km west o f the Dead Sea. From the flat top
(in the form o f a rhomboid and measuring about 600 m x 300 m) one
has an excellent view of the Dead Sea about 400 m below to the east.
West o f Masada is the Judean wilderness.
Although the mountain was first fortified by the Maccabean king
Alexander Jannaeus (103-76 BCE), it became famous through the
activities o f King Herod the Great, the pro-Roman ruler o f Palestine
from 37-4 BCE. Herod was a suspicious person, and fearing internal
revolt (cf Mt 2:1-18) or usurpation o f his power by Cleopatra of
Egypt, he built a fortress on the summit o f Masada with massive for
tifications, palaces and storehouses. As we will see below, Herod also
used the mountain for recreation, probably in winter times when the
vicinity o f the Dead Sea still had a fairly hot climate. After his death
Herod was succeeded by his son Archelaus, but the Romans soon
took control of Masada and put a Roman garrison there.
View of the mountain of Masada, facing north

Lower terrace
Bath
Middle terrace
Hall
Semi-circular platform
Upper terrace
Great wall
Layout o f the fortress built on the summit of Masada.

64 Chapter three
In 66 CE, with the outbreak of the Jewish war, the mountain was cap
tured by the Zealots under Menachem Ben-Yehuda. When the war ended
in 70 CE, Masada remained the last stronghold of the Zealots who in 73
CE finally committed mass suicide to prevent being captured by the
Tenth Roman Legion. The Romans re-occupied it only for a brief period,
as did Byzantine monks in the 5th century, after which it lay exposed to
the elements for centuries. In 1838 the famous explorer and discoverer of
Palestine, Edward Robinson viewed its northern cliff through a telescope
from En-Gedi and suggested that the buildings there were Herod’s
palace. Major excavations were carried out at Masada by Yigael Yadin
between 1963-1965. Today Masada is a popular tourist attraction.
There are two palaces at Masada. The western one was used main
ly for administrative purposes. However, it is the palace-villa built on
three terraces against the northern cliff which surely is one of king
Herod’s most remarkable architectural achievements.
The upper terrace, built on the highest point on the mountain, was
separated from the rest of the mountain by a great wall. On the edge stood
two concentric walls which supported a balcony of two rows of columns.
The southern or inner side contained the living quarters which consisted
of four rooms (two east and two west) with an open court in the middle.
The walls were decorated with floral designs and the floor was paved
with black-and-white mosaic. A roof supported by Ionic columns (dis
covered in the debris) covered the inner side o f the court. The entrance
to the terrace (and palace as a whole) led through a complex gate system
(for safety reasons) through the southern great wall on its eastern side.
Initially there was a bath-house on the upper terrace, but it went out of
use. The fact that the four living rooms on this terrace were the only
rooms in the palace, indicates that the palace was solely meant for
Herod’s (and possibly his family’s) private use.
The middle terrace (about 20 m beneath the upper one) today shows
the remains of two clearly concentric (the outer one 15 m and the inner
10 m) circular walls at the edge o f the natural outcrop which was levelled.
Remains of capitals and column drums were found between the two walls.
The building that stood here was probably a kind o f tholos (a round
domed structure supported by columns). Two walls were built to decrease
the pressure on the outer wall. The section south of the tholos (towards the
cliff) consisted of a staircase in the west, a large hall in the west and a
roofed space in the centre.
The three terraces o f the Northern Palace with the Dead Sea to the east.
The staircase, connecting the upper and lower terraces, built

around a pillar, was invisible from the outside (as reported by
Josephus), satisfying Herod’s need for privacy and his suspicious
nature. Painted walls, which even convinced Josephus that they were
marbled, decorated the eastern hall. The roofed middle section was
open to the north. The ornamental style (characteristic o f late
Hellenistic buildings) served the sole purpose o f this terrace: enter
tainment, relaxation and enjoyment.
66 Chapter three
In order to build the lower terrace (15 m below the middle one) sup
porting walls had to be constructed at the edge o f the cliff. Columns
with Corinthian capitals (formed by two half columns plastered and
painted gold) formed a square porch. The inner row of half columns
stood on high decorated pedestals. Half columns also protruded from
the southern wall with decorations in between. It is unlikely that the
porch was roofed.
The Northern Palace's most pleasant spots: the middle and lower terraces.
East o f the porch stairs led to a bathhouse (where Yadin made a

remarkable discovery, see box), complete with cold room (frigidarium),
warm room ( tepidarium) and hot room (caldarium) built above a heating
chamber (hypocaust). The floor was paved with white mosaic.
It is clear that the lower terrace was also built solely for relaxation
and pleasure, which seems to be the purpose o f the palace as a whole.
Herod did not shy away from building his recreational palace on this
difficult spot, as this was the only place on Masada sheltered from the
sun and the south wind. The northern breezes made the spot cool and
pleasant, with magnificent view s to the north and over the Dead Sea.
YADIN ON ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE ZEALOTS’ LAST STAND

W h e n , h o w ever, w e c a m e to c le a r th e form id ab le pile of debris w hich c o v e red th e
c h a m b e rs of th e sm all b ath -h o u se, w e w e re a rrested by a find w hich it is difficult to
con sider in arch aeo log ical term s, for such a n e x p e rie n c e is not norm al in a rc h a e
ological excavation s. E v e n th e v e te ra n s a n d th e m o re cynical a m o n g us stood
fro zen , g azin g in a w e a t w h a t h ad b e e n uncovered; for a s w e g a z e d , w e relived
th e final an d m ost tragic m o m e n ts o f th e d ra m a of M a s a d a . U p o n th e step s lead
ing to th e co ld -w a te r pool a n d on th e ground n e a rb y w e re th e rem ain s of th ree
skeletons. O n e w a s th a t o f a m a n of a b o u t tw en ty - p erh a p s o n e o f th e c o m m a n
ders a t M a s a d a . N e x t to it w e fou nd h un dred s o f silvered scales of a rm o u r, scores
of arrow s, frag m en ts of a p rayer shaw l (talith), a n d also a n o stracon (an inscribed
p otsherd) with H e b re w letters. N o t fa r off, also o n th e steps, w a s th e skeleton of a
y ou ng w o m a n , with h e r scalp p re served intact b e c a u s e o f th e e x tre m e d ryness of
th e a tm o s p h e re . H e r d a rk hair, beautifully plaited, looked a s if it h a d just b e e n fresh
ly coiffeured. N e x t to it th e p laster w a s stained with w h a t looked like blood. B y h er
side w e re d elicately fashioned lady's sand als, styled in th e traditional p attern o f th e
period. T h e third skeleton w a s that of a child. T h e re could b e no doubt that w h a t
o u r e y e s b eh eld w e re th e rem ain s o f s o m e of th e d efe n d e rs o f M a s a d a . In describ
ing th e last m o m e n ts J o sep h u s writes:
A n d h e w h o w a s th e la s t o f all, to o k a v ie w o f all th e o th e r b o d ie s lest

p e r c h a n c e s o m e o r o th e r a m o n g s o m a n y th a t w e r e s la in , sh o u ld
w a n t his a s s is ta n c e to b e q u ite d is p a tc h e d ; a n d w h e n h e p e rc e iv e d
th a t th e y w e r e all s la in , h e s e t fire to th e p a la c e , a n d w ith th e fo rc e of
his h a n d ra n his s w o rd e n tire ly th ro u g h h im s e lf, a n d fell d o w n d e a d
n e a r to his o w n re la tio n s .
C o u ld it b e th a t w e h a d d is c o v e r e d th e b o n e s o f th a t v e r y fig h te r a n d o f his
kith ? T h is , o f c o u rs e , w e c a n n e v e r k n o w fo r c e rta in .
- Y ig a e l Y a d in in: Masada - Herod's fortress and the Zealots last stand.

68 Chapter three
The splendour of Petra

Ancient Petra (from the Greek, meaning ‘rock’; Hebrew = Sela) is only
indirectly referred to in the Bible (cf 2 Ki 14:7; 2 Chr 25:12; Is 42:11; Jr
49:16; Ob 3; 2 Cor 11:32). Situated about 80 km south of the Dead Sea
in Edom o f ancient times (present day Jordan), it was the capital o f the
Nabatean kingdom form 350 BCE until 106 CE. It lies in a valley (Wadi
Musa) surrounded by mountain ridges and deep river gorges of red
sandstone. Into the steep walls of the ridges the Nabateans cut monu
mental tombs and temples. Nature and human culture (specifically
architecture) combine here in such a sublime way that it is not an exag
geration to conclude that Petra is one of the most beautiful places in the
Near East, if not the world. It was made a world heritage site in 1985
and is today part of a 1000 square km conservation area.
At its prime Petra was a way station for caravan traders who
passed here on their way to Syria, Gaza, Arabia and Egypt, enabling
the Nabateans (originally a nomadic Arab people) to develop a
wealthy kingdom. It was conquered and settled by the Romans in 106
CE, but experienced a setback in 363 CE when it was struck by an
earthquake. In Byzantine times Christians settled here and used some
o f its monuments as churches. In the 7th century CE the city was
abandoned and most o f its buildings were covered with sand.
Although bedouins in all likelihood had lived here through the cen
turies, it was ‘rediscovered’ (from a western perspective) only inl812
by Johann Burckhardt, a Swiss scholar, who travelled here disguised as
a Muslim pilgrim. Excavations took place in various areas of the site,
but scholars allege that three quarters o f its buildings remain unearthed.
On the visitor’s way from the flourishing town o f Wadi Musa (about
400,000 tourists visit Petra per annum) the Obelisk tomb, with its four
pyramidal structures carved out of the rock, is but a foretaste of what lies
ahead (see map). The entrance to the city is through a 1 km long deep nar
row cutting in the rock, called the Siq. It suddenly enters an open space
where the facade of Al-Khazneh (or Khaznet Far’un = ‘the treasure o f the
Pharaoh’) towers from the opposite wall. Many regard this as Petra’s most
important monument (see below). A footpath to the left leads to the High
Place of Sacrifice, which resembles the high places of Old Testament
times. Following the Siq one passes a theatre on the left (with about 3000
seats), cut from the rock by the Nabateans and expanded by the Romans.
Relief map of Petra indicating the most important monuments.
Although 30,000 people lived in Petra during its prime, the struc
tures remaining are mostly monumental tombs cut from the soft sand
stone. They were probably meant for kings or very rich and important
business people. The Palace, Corinthian, Silk and Urn tombs to the
north o f the wadi are prominent examples o f these. Inside the tomb
chambers the contrasting colours o f the cut sandstone against the wall
and roof resemble works o f art in itself.
Passing the theatre, the wadi widens into an open space. The
Nabateans built a colonnaded street in a westerly direction leading to
the Triple Arched Gate (not on the map) with three piers, which
formed the entrance to the city proper. Nabatean and Roman styles
are blended here, as can be observed from its columns.
70 Chapter three
A breathtaking sight at Petra: the Siq leading to the Khaznet Far’un

View on the theatre from a hewn cave on the opposite side of the wadi.
After entering the Arched Gate, one reaches a temenos (= walled

area of a holy precinct) with the main temple, Qasr al Bint, to the south.
This temple is one o f a few still standing constructions o f Petra. With
its courtyard, temple proper and holy of holies it remarkably resembles
the Israelite and Syrian temples o f earlier centuries. North o f the street
are the Winged Lions Temple and a Byzantine church where detailed
mosaics (depicting animals) were uncovered. At this junction there is a
restaurant and museum. The latter contains a fine collection o f the
unique Nabatean pottery and various other artefacts uncovered during
local excavations. If one follows Wadi al Deir, one ascends steeply
(steps were built) to the top o f the ridge where Al Deir (or Ed Deir =
‘the monastery’) is situated. The latter also ranks as one o f Petra’s out
standing monuments. From the top o f the ridge, about 100 m from Ed
Deir, breathtaking views o f the Arabah valley await the visitor.
72 Chapter three
The Khaznet Far'un.

The above-mentioned monuments are but a small selection of what can

be observed and experienced at Petra. However, the two architectural mas
terpieces of Kaznet Far’un and Ed Deir demand our closer attention.
The Kaznet Faru’n or ‘treasure of the Pharaoh’ derives its name
from a local tradition that an Egyptian Pharaoh stored his treasure in
the urn on top of the monument. Unfortunately this legend caused peo
ple to fire shots at the urn in the hope that it would break and release
the ‘treasure’. The legend is but an expression o f the mystery of the
monument, as its function is still in dispute.
The lower storey (forming a temple portico) has six Corinthian columns
o f which two are completely freestanding. One of the latter was broken
and had to be restored. The four outside columns and the pediment (= the
low-pitched triangular gable) which they support, protrude somewhat
from the facade, giving an impression of depth. Apart from the entrance to
the main hall, the portico also has two entrances leading to lateral halls.
Between the outside columns, pairs o f griffins (winged monsters with an
eagle-like head and body of a lion) flank a vase with plant tendrils.
Above the pediment is a cornice (horizontal moulding) which
finishes the lower story. The base wall above the cornice (attic) serves
as a base for the upper storey, also chiselled in Corinthian style. In the
centre is a tholos, or round domed structure, enclosed by six columns,
meant to be a building (maybe a tomb) in itself. On top o f the dome is
a Corinthian capital, surmounted by an urn (a large bulbous vessel with
a foot). Flanking the tholos are two pavilions with four columns each,
covered by half pediments. Between all the columns of the upper com
plex are remains of reliefs representing mysterious female figures.
According to most scholars the Khazneh is a tomb, probably built by
King Aretas IV (ruled 9 BCE-40 CE) for himself. Others hold that this
two-storied facade, which clearly betrays influence o f Greek and
Roman architecture, is a temple. For what purpose the Nabateans used
the complex w e do not know. However, the facade bears witness to
their wealth, developed culture and artistry.
The facade called Ed-Deir (= ‘the monastery’) is a considerable
distance from the Kaznet Far’un but resembles it to a large extent.
However, it is much larger, measuring 50 m wide and 45 m high.
Situated in an open space on the ridge o f the mountain overlooking
the Arabah valley, it is reachable only by foot.
74 Chapter one
The lower story o f Ed-Deir has half columns attached to the rock,
three on each side of the entrance. At the comers are two square pil
lars. Involving a column and a pillar, impressions o f two pavilions at
the comers are created which contain niches topped with flat arches.
Nabatean capitals crown all the columns and pillars. An architrave
(horizontal beam spanning the pillars) and a pediment or triangular
gable decorate the top o f the entrance. An architrave furthermore
divides the lower and upper story, which likewise has six columns
and two pillars. In the middle is also a tholos (see above) flanked by
two seemingly freestanding pavilions with broken pediments. The
tholos is crowned by an um on a Nabatean capital. There are undec
orated niches between the columns o f the pavilions and tholos.
The function o f Ed-Deir is also in dispute. Many scholars believe
it to be a Nabatean temple, but others allege it to be an unfinished
tomb with a triclinium (hall o f gathering) built for one o f the later
Nabatean kings (Malichus II or Rabbell II) who ruled in the 1st cen
tury CE. Scratched crosses against the inside walls o f the chamber
suggest that it was used in the Byzantine period as a church.
The huge facade o f Ed-Deir (‘the monastery’).

Chapter four
WRITINGS
Through their writings the people o f the biblical world demonstrated

that they were not merely concerned with survival or the expression
o f their creative spirit through art and architecture. They also demon
strated their intellectual capabilities by means o f their writings.
Although most people lived mainly in an oral culture, which implies
that communication generally took place by word o f mouth, people
o f the higher classes (e g rulers, officials and religious leaders) mas
tered the art o f writing.
Various types o f material were used to write upon. Stone (e g black
basalt) was often used for steles or monuments upon which certain
messages (e g victory songs in honour o f a king) were engraved.
Sometimes these engravings were on existing rocks (e g Behistun).
Clay tablets or prisms (cf below) were also manufactured to write
upon. Whereas steles remained in one place and due to their weight
(and purpose) could not be moved, clay tablets were much smaller
and could be carried from one place to another. They therefore could
function as letters. With the development o f pottery and the discov
ery of ink, potsherds were used to write upon (= ostraca). Papyrus
(manufactured from the papyrus plant) was used too, but it perished
easily. Leather scrolls produced from the skin of animals became
popular from about the 2nd century BCE onwards. Even metal was
used (e g the copper scroll from Qumran).
Various types o f script were employed. In Egypt hieroglyphics
were used which is a form o f writing through pictures. They
decorated many buildings and tomb walls and for centuries were en
shrouded in mystery. Cuneiform writing was widespread in ancient
Mesopotamia. At about 1000 BCE the Phoenicians developed the
alphabet, which is the mother o f all western writing systems.
In this chapter a mere selection from ancient writings, reflecting
some different materials and purposes o f writing, w ill be discussed.
75
76 Chapterfour
The Rosetta Stone and the decoding of hieroglyphics

In 1799 Napoleon took 175 scientists with him on his Egyptian cam
paign to survey Egypt geographically. These men recorded numerous
detail and brought artefacts back to Paris. Among these was a stone
found by an unknown soldier working with Napoleon’s engineers
near the town o f Rashid (Rosetta) on the western branch of the N ile
running through the Delta to the sea.
The Rosetta stone with it’s inscription in hieroglyphics, demotic and Greek.
Writings from the biblical world 77
Sketches and plaster casts o f the stone were made by the French
for study, but the stone itself the English took as booty, and is today
exhibited in the British museum.
The stone (from black basalt) is about 1,1 m high, 1 m wide and 28
cm thick. It contains an inscription in three languages engraved on the
stone. The top part had 14 lines of the then unknown hieroglyphics (a
form of writing in which pictures or symbols are used to represent objects,
concepts or sounds). The middle part consisted of 32 lines o f the cursive
demotic Egyptian script (a more simplified script than the hieroglyphs)
and the third (bottom part) was written in Greek (55 lines). The Greek text
was not difficult to read. No one was able to decipher the hieroglyphics,
despite the fact that it was also clearly to be seen on numerous Egyptian
monuments, temples, and in large royal tomb chambers all over Egypt.
The text o f the stone deals with a tribute by the priesthood o f
Memphis (near present day Cairo) to Ptolemeus V, king o f Egypt and
can be dated to the year 196 BCE. However, this information is in the
academic world overshadowed by the significance this stone had in
the deciphering o f the hieroglyphics, a script perceived to be totally
foreign to the western and Semitic world, because it was thought that
the pictures could only represent words and not letters.
It was soon surmised that the stone contained the same text in three
translations. The challenge to decode the hieroglyphics clearly pre
sented itself.
The person who succeeded in
this task was Jean-Francois Cham-
pollion (1790-1832), a brilliant
scholar who from an early age had
been versed in Latin, Greek and
Hebrew. From his childhood he
had a passion to decipher the
hieroglyphics. Initially Champol-
lion thought (like all others) that
the hieroglyphic pictures had a
symbolic function (unknown to
him) and that only in the case o f
foreign names it could function as Jean-Francois Champollion
78 Chapter four
letters. The Rosetta stone helped him to realise that a hieroglyphic sign
could represent sounds (letters) as well as words. He started with the
royal names in cartouches in the text (e g Ramses, Ptolemeus,
Cleopatra and Berenice) which he knew from Greek, as they would
sound the same, in whatever the language they were written.
Champollion assigned alphabetic values to the signs and drew up a list
of signs of known values which he could apply to other royal names.
By deduction he worked out the values o f new signs and their phonetic
value. In September 1822 he could read the hieroglyphs and was soon
able to read other hieroglyphic inscriptions as well. In 1924 he pub
lished his work on the deciphering o f hieroglyphs, A precise system of
the hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt (= title of English translation).
The achievement o f Champollion had far reaching consequences.
All o f a sudden the many inscriptions against temple walls (e g
Kamak in Thebes, near present-day Luxor) could be read. This pro
vided much and valuable information on ancient Egyptian history.
It would be quite easy for anybody to write in hieroglyphic script
when equivalent hieroglyphic signs for our alphabet are learned (see
below). However, there are at least 700 hieroglyphic signs which do
not only represent letters, but also words. If one would master 26
hieroglyphic signs, one could use the system, but one would still not
be able to read hieroglyphic texts written on Egyptian monuments at
will. For that the experts are still needed.
C ~n D IE jF n G
■» I « *1
vulture
JS w lim its ,
_bajTd J
l
'\gea^ J
! M l
vip er 1fStood
a r Jor
iiw l*
K TT !M
\ O A
Fw bosket
A C
119"
m .
1 Otiil
n y
C fS o
VKOtfflP
f
f stool'
Q a S iX X
A 9 \
Sm m tum
aa
“t #“ j w
.___________ _
bosket
A selection of hieroglyphic signs corresponding to our alphabet

which makes writing in hieroglyphic possible for any one.
<toor feoJfc
The stele of Hammurabi

The stele of Hammurabi (today displayed in the Louvre museum in Paris)
was discovered in the winter of 1901-1902 by French archaeologists
(under the leadership o f V Scheil) in the Elamite city of Susa (situated in
Persia). It was found amongst various steles, brought as booty (after a raid
on Babylon) to Susa about 1100 BCE. The stele itself is much older and
is attributed to the Babylonian king, Hammurabi, who ruled from 1728 to
1686 BCE as the sixth king of the Old Babylonian Dynasty.
The stele is o f diorite rock and 2,25 m high. It consists o f two parts,
namely a base (1,6 m) with a bas-relief (measuring about 65 cm) on
top. The bas-relief depicts the Babylonian sun-god o f justice,
Shamash (in Hebrew shemesh also means sun), commissioning
Hammurabi to write the law. The sun-god sits on a throne and is
clothed in a long flounced garment with his right arm and shoulder
bare. His feet rest on a platform with three steps. On his head he
wears a mitre with four pairs o f horns. He has a long beard and his
hair is done in a chignon. Rays o f flames rise up from his shoulders.
With his right hand he extends a ring and rod to Hammurabi. The lat
ter is also bearded and wears a long garment (partly folded over the
left arm), a necklace and a helmet-like headdress. His right hand is
raised to his lips as an expression of humble supplication.
The base is made up o f many lines o f cuneiform text in the Akkadian
language. The text has a prologue and epilogue in semi-poetic style
framing its 282 laws. Elamites chiselled out some o f the text. This can
be restored using other versions o f the law code on clay tablets.
Hammurabi probably promulgated these laws at the beginning of
his career. The prologue describes him as a reformer who established
justice with the purpose o f ameliorating the position o f the weak.
Since his kingdom was composed o f former independent states, it
stands to reason that he made use o f various sources and traditions in
an effort to establish a universal law. To a large extent these laws
remained the ideal of a reformer, because as contemporary legal doc
uments suggest, they were never applied in practice.
Hammurabi’s code is an example of case law or ‘law of retaliation’
(Latin = lex talionis), which means that it prescribes what should be done
to make amends in cases when people are disadvantaged. The laws are
often compared with that o f the Pentateuch, especially Exodus 21-23.
80 Chapter four
CODE OF HAMMURABI PENTATEUCH

8. If a citizen h as stolen a n ox, a Exodus 22:1-2-. If a m a n s te a ls a n o x
sh eep , a n ass, a pig or a boat, if it is o r a s h e e p , a n d kills it o r s e ll§ it, h e
the property of the tem ple o r the s h a ll p a y fiv e o x e n fo r a o x , a n d fo u r
crown, h e shall give thirty-fold, but if it s h e e p fo r a s h e e p . H e s h a ll m a k e
is the property o f a vassal, h e shall re s titu tio n ; if h e h a s n o th in g , th e n h e
restore ten-foid, w h e re a s if th e thief s h a ll b e s o ld fo r his th e ft.
has nothing to give, h e shall die.
1 9 6 . If a c itiz e n h a s d e s tro y e d th e Exodus 21:22-25: W h e n m e n s triv e

e y e o f o n e o f c itiz e n s ta tu s , th e y to g e th e r, a n d h u rt a w o m a n w ith
s h a ll d e s tro y h is e y e . c h ild , s o th a t t h e r e is a m is c a rr ia g e ,
1 9 7 . If h e h a s b ro k e n th e b o n e o f a n d y e t n o h a r m fo llo w s , t h e o n e
a n o th e r, th e y shall b re a k his b o n e. w h o h u rt h e r s h a ll b e fin e d , a c c o r d
2 0 0 . If a c itiz e n h a s k n o c k e d o u t in g a s t h e w o m e n ’s h u s b a n d s h a ll
th e to o th o f o n e o f e q u a l s ta tu s , la y u p o n h im ; a n d h e s h a ll p a y a s
th e y s h a ll k n o c k o u t h is to o th . t h e ju d g e s d e te r m in e . If a n y h a rm
209. If a c itizen has struck th e fo llo w s , th e n y o u s h a ll g iv e life fo r
d a u g h te r o f a citizen , a n d s h e m is life, eye fo r e y e , to o th fo r to o th ,
c a rries , h e shall p a y te n s h e k e ls of h a n d fo r h a n d , b u rn fo r b u rn , w o u n d
silver fo r h e r m is c a rria g e . fo r w o u n d , s tr ip e fo r s trip e .
2 1 0 . If th e w o m e n dies a s a result,
th e y shall put his d au g h ter to d eath.
Hammurabi’s code is divided into paragraphs which are numbered

for easy reference. Especially a comparison of paragraphs 8, 196,
197, 200, 209 and 210 with Exodus 22:1-2 and 21:22-25 (see text)
illustrate the resemblances between Hammurabi’s code and that o f
the Pentateuch, but also the differences. Scholars have asserted that
the Pentateuchal law is more humane, since a thief need not pay for
his life if he has no money (Hammurabi, no 8), but w ill be sold as a
slave (Ex 22:1-20). In the case o f a miscarriage, the Pentateuch fur
thermore does not demand the death o f the offender’s daughter.
One can not assume that the Pentateuch (which dates later than
Hammurabi’s code) borrowed from the Babylonian laws.
Furthermore the Pentateuch does not only contain casuistic laws, but
also apodictic ones (stating what should be done without punish
ments mentioned, e g the ten commandments). The resemblances
between the law systems should rather be viewed in the light o f the
common human condition underlying both the Babylonian and
Hebrew cultures, as w ell as the larger Near Eastern background
which they share. Some o f the laws may have a common tradition.
82 Chapter four
The Israel Stele

The Israel stele (also called the Memeptah stele) was discovered in
ancient Thebes (modem Luxor) by the famous archaeologist and
Egytologist, Flinders Petrie, in the mortuary chamber o f Pharaoh
Memeptah. The latter ruled during the 19th dynasty o f Egypt’s New
Kingdom from about 1224-1214 BCE. The stele originally belonged
to the mortuary chamber o f Amenophis III, but Memeptah brought it
to his own chamber when he constructed it. On the back of the stele
traces are still visible o f the relief showing Amenophis pffering to
Amon-Re and the inscription which describes the splendour o f his
building projects. The stele is 3,18 m high, 1,63 m wide and 31 cm
thick and is today displayed in the Cairo museum.
The relief at the top consists of two symmetrical scenes. Amon-Re,
the god of Kamak (the temple in Thebes), stands under a winged sun-
disk and in both scenes presents a victory sickle and royal sceptre to
Memeptah (who wears a ceremonial costume). In the scene to the right
the god Khonsu (or Homs) stands behind the king and the scene on the
left depicts the goddess Mut. They also present the king with a staff,
probably symbolising millions o f years o f prosperity. One finds the same
scene repeated on the walls of temples in Thebes. Its function is to place
the king under the protection and blessing o f the triad o f Theban deities.
The figures on the stele are painted yellow and their jewellery blue.
The inscription below consists o f 28 lines and is a hymn to the honour
o f Memeptah. It praises him for his military victories, especially over the
Libyans whom he defeated, thereby putting Memphis (close to present
day Cairo) at peace. In the last strophe o f the text (often quoted because
o f the appearance of the name Israel) the defeat of the people o f the ‘Nine
Bow s’ (Egypt’s traditional enemies) is exclaimed. The following transla
tion (see below) is from the last three strophes of the inscription.
o
I l *
i t i I M O
Section of the Israel stele where the name ‘Israel’ appears with facsimile below.
The Israel or Memeptah Stele.

84 Chapter four
G r e a t re jo ic in g h a s ris e n in E g y p t
ju b ila tio n h a s is s u e d fro m th e to w n s o f T o -m e r i (= E g y p t)
t h e y re c o u n t th e v ic to rie s
w h ic h M e r n e p ta h w ro u g h t in T e h e n u (= L ib y a )
h o w b e lo v e d h e is, th e v ic to rio u s ru le r
h o w e x a lte d is th e kin g a m o n g th e g o d s
h o w fo r tu n a te h e is, th e m a s te r o f c o m m a n d
O n e m a y w a lk fre e ly o n th e ro a d
w ith o u t a n y f e a r in th e h e a r ts o f m e n
fo r tr e s s e s a r e left to t h e m s e lv e s
w e lls a r e o p e n , a c c e s s ib le to m e s s e n g e rs
th e ra m p a r ts o f th e e n c irc lin g w a ll a r e s e c u r e in th e s u n lig h t
until th e ir w a tc h m e n a w a k e
th e M e d ja y (= d e s e r t p o lic e ) a r e s tr e tc h e d o u t in s le e p
th e T ju k te n (= d e s e r t s o ld ie rs ) h u n t in t h e fie ld s a s th e y w is h
T h e p rin c e s lie p ro s tra te b e g g in g fo r p ie c e

n o t o n e lifts h is h e a d a m o n g th e N in e B o w s
d e s tru c tio n fo r T e h e n u (= L ib y a ); H a tti (= H ittite k in g d o m ) is p a c ifie d
C a n a a n is p lu n d e re d w ith e v e r y evil
A s h k e lo n is t a k e n , G e z e r is c a p tu re d
Y a n o a m (= T e ll e n - N a 'm e h ) is m a d e n o n -e x is te n t
Is ra e l (= th e Is r a e lite s ) lie s d e s o la te , its s e e d is n o m o re
H u rru (= la n d o f th e H o rite s ) h a s b e c o m e a w id o w o f T o - m e r i (= E g y p t)
a ll th e la n d s in th e ir e n tire ty a r e a t p e a c e
all th e n o m a d s h a v e b e e n c u rb e d b y king M e r e n p ta h
The appearance of the name ‘Israel’ in the 27th line of the text is unique
in two ways. Firstly, it is the sole occurrence of the name in ancient
Egyptian sources and secondly it is the first time in history that the name
Israel appears in an extra-biblical document. It would appear again about
400 years later in Assyrian and Moabite inscriptions. Since a note in the
inscription ascribes it to the 5th year of the king’s reign (about 1219), the
conclusion can be drawn that Merneptah was not the Pharaoh of the exo
dus (as was initially thought), but rather his father Ramses II. This is cor
roborated by the fact that the word ‘Israel’ should actually be translated as
‘Israelites’ since the determinative used in the hieroglyphics indicates
people and not a land. The stele refers to a situation when the Israelites
were already in Palestine, but had not yet occupied it as a whole.
As such the Israel stele presents the starting point for any writing of
Israel’s history. The fact that the hymn states that Israel’s ‘seed is no
more’, should be viewed in fight o f the exaggeration that belongs to the
nature of this ‘praise song’. In actual fact Merneptah was not such a
successful militarist and only ruled for ten years. Yet not too many
conclusions should be drawn from the mentioning here o f Israel as a
not yet fully settled people. The determinative before the word could
have been erroneously used due to the known carelessness of
Egyptian scribes, as is also attested elsewhere on this stele. Israel’s
later history should furthermore not be read into this early period.
Facsimile of the Israel Stele with the hieroglyphics clearly visible.

86 Chapter four
The Moabite Stone

The Moabite Stone (also called the Mesha Stone) is an inscribed
black basalt slab (1 m high and 60 cm wide), discovered in 1868 by
the missionary F A Klein at Diban in Jordan. It was later broken into
pieces by Arab bedouins (hoping to get more money for it), but for
tunately only after an impression had been made. In 1873 it was taken
to the Louvre museum in Paris where it is still being displayed.
The inscription inscribed on the stone is written in the Moabite language
which very much resembles the Hebrew of the Old Testament. On the basis
of its content it can be dated between 840-820 BCE. The text is written in
the name of Mesha, the king of the Moabites, and describes his successful
campaign against the Israelites during the reign of Ahab or possibly his son
Jehoram. The inscription has a direct bearing on the Old Testament text of
2 Kings 3:14-27, which mentions the fact that the Moabites had to pay trib
ute to the northern kingdom o f Israel and that Mesha came into revolt.
According to the Moabite stone this revolt was successful. The text of
2 Kings 3, however, describes how Jehoram went into coalition with
Jehoshaphat of Judah and the king of Edom to attack Mesha. When in peril
they consulted the prophet Elisha and in the end were able to slaughter the
Moabites. The biblical text, however, ends on a strange note (2 Ki 3:27). It
indeed reports of a withdrawal o f the Israelites, which may be historically
correct. Whereas the text of Mesha claims victory as a reason for the with
drawal, 2 Kings 3:27 reports that the Israelites actually conquered the
Moabites but withdrew when the Moabite king ‘took his eldest son who
was to reign in his stead, and offered himfor a burnt offering on the wall. ’
Child sacrifice was a taboo for the Israelites: ‘and their came a great wrath
upon Israel and they withdrew from him and returned to their own land’.
It is interesting to note that for long the authenticity of the Moabite
Stone was called into question. However, it is highly unlikely that a
forger would have been able to know the correct form o f letters in the 9th
century BCE. There are enough resemblances to assume that the Moabite
stone and the text o f 2 Kings 3 refer to the same historical events. The
fact that the texts differ as far as the result of the war is concerned can be
explained in terms of the propagandistic nature which usually holds true
for official political texts. One need only to be reminded o f the Gulf War
o f the 1990’s where both the USA and Iraq claimed victory.
The Moabite (or Mesha-) Stone.
88 Chapter four
MESHA’S WAR AGAINST ISRAEL

I a m M e s h a s o n o f C h e m o s h , k in g o f M o a b , t h e D ib o n ite - m y f a t h e r h a d
re ig n e d o v e r M o a b fo r th irty y e a r s , a n d I r e ig n e d a fte r m y f a t h e r - w h o
m a d e th is h ig h p la c e fo r C h e m o s h in Q a r h o h ...b e c a u s e h e s a v e d m e
fro m a ll t h e k in g s a n d c a u s e d m e t o t r iu m p h o v e r a l l m y a d v e r s a r ie s . A s
fo r O m r i, ( 5 ) k in g o f Is ra e l, h e h u m b le d M o a b m a n y y e a r s , fo r C h e m o s h
w a s a n g ry a t h is la n d . A n d h is s o n fo llo w e d h im a n d h e a ls o s a id , 'I w ill
h u m b le M o a b ’. In m y tim e h e s p o k e th u s , b u t I h a v e triu m p h e d o v e r h im
a n d o v e r h is h o u s e , w h ile Is ra e l h a d p e r is h e d fo r e v e r! O m r i h a d o c c u p ie d
t h e la n d o f M e d e b a , a n d Is ra e l h a d d w e lt t h e r e in h is tim e a n d h a lf th e
tim e o f h is s o n [A h a b ], fo u rty y e a rs ; b u t C h e m o s h d w e lt t h e r e in m y tim e .
A n d I b u ilt B a a l-m e o n , m a k in g a r e s e r v o ir in it, a n d I b u ilt ( 1 0 ) Q a r y a t e n .
N o w t h e m e n o f G a d h a d a lw a y s d w e lt in th e la n d o f A ta ro th , a n d th e king
o f Is ra e l h a d b u ilt A ta ro th fo r th e m ; b u t I fo u g h t a g a in s t th e to w n a n d to o k
it a n d s le w all t h e p e o p le o f th e to w n a s s a tia tio n fo r C h e m o s h a n d M o a b .
A n d I b ro u g h t b a c k fro m t h e r e A r e l [o r O rie l], its c h ie fta in , d ra g g in g h im
b e fo r e C h e m o s h in K e rio th , a n d I s e ttle d t h e r e m e n o f S h a r o n a n d m e n o f
M a h a r ith . A n d C h e m o s h s a id to m e , ‘G o a n d t a k e N e b o fro m Is ra e l!' (1 5 )
S o I w e n t b y n ig h t a n d fo u g h t a g a in s t it fro m th e b r e a k o f d a w n u ntil n o o n ,
ta k in g it a n d s la y in g a ll, s e v e n th o u s a n d m e n , b o y s , w o m e n , g irls a n d
m a id -s e r v a n ts , fo r I h a d d e v o te d th e n to d e s tru c tio n fo r A s h ta r -C h e m s h .
A n d I to o k fro m t h e r e th e ... o f Y a h w e h , d ra g g in g th e m b e fo r e C h e m o s h .
A n d t h e k in g o f Is ra e l h a d b u ilt J a h a z , a n d h e d w e lt t h e r e w h ile h e ... A n d
w a s fig h tin g a g a in s t m e , b u t C h e m o s h d r o v e h im o u t b e fo r e m e . A n d ( 2 0 )
I to o k fro m M o a b tw o h u n d r e d m e n , a ll firs t c la s s w a rr io r s , a n d s e t th e m
a g a in s t J a h a z a n d to o k it in o r d e r to a tta c h it to D ib o n .
It w a s I w h o b u ilt Q a r h o h , th e w a ll o f t h e fo r e s ts a n d t h e w a ll o f th e
c ita d e l; I a ls o b u ilt its g a te s a n d I b u ilt its t o w e r s a n d I b u ilt t h e k in g 's
h o u s e , a n d I m a d e b o th o f its re s e r v o irs fo r w a te r in s id e th e to w n . A n d
t h e r e w a s n o c is te rn in s id e t h e to w n a t Q a r h o h , s o I s a id to a ll th e p e o p le ,
‘L e t e a c h o f y o u m a k e ( 2 5 ) a c is te rn fo r h im s e lf in h is h o u s e !’ A n d I c u t
b e a m s fo r Q a r h o h w ith Is r a e lite c a p tiv e s . I b u ilt A r o e r, a n d I m a d e th e
h ig h w a y in th e A rn o n v a lle y ; I b u ilt B e th -b a m o th , fo r it had been
d e s tro y e d ; I b u ilt B e z e r - f o r it la y in ru in s - w ith fifty m e n o f D ib o n , fo r all
D ib o n is m y lo y a l d e p e n d e n c y .
A n d l re ig n e d [in p e a c e ] o v e r th e h u n d r e d to w n s w h ic h I h a d a d d e d to
t h e la n d . A n d I b u ilt ( 3 0 ) ... M e d e b a a n d B e th -d ib la th e n a n d B e t h - b a a l-
m e o n , a n d I s e t t h e r e th e ... o f t h e la n d . A n d a s fo r H a u r o n e n , t h e r e d w e lt
in i t ... A n d C h e m o s h s a id to m e , ‘G o d o w n , fig h t a g a in s t H a u r o n e n . A n d
I w e n t d o w n [a n d I fo u g h t a g a in s t t h e to w n a n d I to o k it], a n d C h e m o s h
d w e lt t h e r e in m y tim e .
tp ta
f:* o \u y ~ .< p ^ y ^ i^ y jt^ .c y y -)o ~ g z.y p « \

h W 7?W ?. 1 * -i_yfpd\
r.xw^°3 1 y g> .
■tW*"M i4XivyVF'l7*S i
•Lyty&fyjUf}dohf.* \yx
[/ y V / x - t f 1 ^-f <j®o x - f w .
i -f^TÎ w-w+*+3? 3— ^
1 : v ^ f ^w = u /0^ - x ^ VYIX-}»J
■f 11^ rt-âox^Mw^.o
y A - M W ?«
*.*w7 .wt-fy ia *7 a xw° ^ y ‘xyti- 1Y*..» i
^ */- mw v y t ’j ^ y y x V ■? ; !
//^•w7 /^ w^ W 3 3 3-9 * ‘t-^!^'1^'i - ; ’
a- wa& *■*>* + 9 - ^ ? y.** * \
*?»Y7 1 o t - t - xj W + ! 7 3 v A j
fW=L. ^ ^ x.^ /n .*" °> ty+ W 6yx?!i.xJr2M

I *wO5O*6yU
i f -r f - p ^ * V? 3A^ - f .yy
!•7?1 -fjA ^ ^ x w o ^-{-y-1°-| °.s* -^ 3 0 f i^ m wr .
. »i A T ^-V - x> ^ x
; <7-^1 v\*<ywyy3^<fy^pywp*u*^ • i * .
i A^0' ^ 7 af ^ v,r^ I T ^ - f 7 *
! •! 7 . x *P * ^ 4 * s-
i
yr
Facsimile o f the Moabite Stone

90 Chapter four
The Annals of Sennacherib (Taylor Prism)

The Taylor Prism was discovered in 1830 by the British emissary to
Bagdad, Colonel R Taylor, at Nebi Yunus (Nineveh). This six-sided
prism of baked clay (38,5 cm high) has since 1855 been displayed in
the British Museum. A similar prism (the so-called Chigaco Prism),
contains the same text and is preserved at the University o f Chicago.
The Taylor Prism containing the annals of Sennacherib.

Written in cuneiform, the prism can be dated to 691-689 BCE and is

one of many inscriptions reporting on the campaigns and victories of
Sennacherib, who ruled Assyria from 705-681 BCE. The annals are pro
paganda for the king, to keep the legacy o f his reign alive. The content
(written in the first person) can be typified as an arrogant report or praise
singing of the king’s bravery, his victories over his enemies (who are
belittled) and the tributes which the king succeeded in bringing home.
THE SIEGE OF JERUSALEM ACCORDING TO SENNACHERIB

In th e c o u rs e o f m y c a m p a ig n , I s u rro u n d e d , c a p tu re d a n d p lu n d e re d B e th -
D a g o n , J o p p a , B a n a ia b a r q a , A z u ru , citie s b e lo n g in g to S i d q a ... T h e officials,
n o b le s a n d p e o p le o f E k ro n th r e w P a d i, th e ir king, into iron fe tte rs a s h e w a s
loyal to th e tre a ty a n d o b lig a tio n s im p o s e d o n h im b y A s s y ria . H e g a v e h im
s e lf u p to H e z e k ia h , th e J e w , a s a n e n e m y ... In th e p lain o f E lte k e h ... w ith
th e h e lp o f A s s u r, m y lord, I c la s h e d a n d e ffe c te d th e ir d e f e a t ... I c a u s e d
P a d i, th e ir king, to c o m e o u t of J e ru s a le m a n d p u t h im on th e th ro n e a s lord
o v e r th e m , fixin g u p o n h im th e p a y m e n t o f trib u te to m y lordship,
B u t a s fo r H e z e k ia h , th e J e w , w h o did n o t b o w in s u b m is s io n to m y y o k e ,
I laid s ie g e to 4 6 o f his fortified citie s a n d in n u m e ra b le s m a lle r v illa g e s in th e ir
vicinity. I b e s ie g e d a n d c o n q u e re d th e m b y s ta m p in g d o w n e a rth -ra m p s a n d
th e n b y b ring ing up b atterin g ra m s , b y th e a tta c k o f fo o t so ld ie rs , b y b re a c h
e s , tun n ellin g a n d s a p p e r w o rk s . I d ro v e o u t 2 0 0 1 5 0 p e o p le , y o u n g a n d old,
m a le a n d fe m a le , c o u n tle s s h o rse s , m u le s , d o n k e y s , c a m e ls , la rg e a n d s m a ll
I c o n s id e re d a s b oo ty. He himself I made a prisoner In
ca ttle , w h ic h
Jerusalem, his royal city, like a bird in a cage. I p u t w a tc h -p o s ts strictly a ro u n d
th e city, in o rd e r to m o le s t th o s e le a v in g th e city g a te . H is to w n s , w h ic h I p lu n
d e re d , I c u t o ff fro m his land , a n d g a v e th e m to M itinti, king o f A s h d o d , P ad i,
king o f E k r o n , a n d S illibel, king of G a z a , th u s re d u c in g his c o u n try. M o re o v e r,
I in c re a s e d th e trib u te a n d th e k a fre -p re s e n ts d u e to m e a s his o ve rlo rd , in
ad d itio n to th e fo rm e r trib u te, to b e g iv e n a n n u a lly . A s fo r H e z e k ia h , th e aw fu l
s p le n d o u r o f m y lordship o v e rw h e lm e d h im , a n d th e irre g u la r a n d re g u la r
tro o p s w h ic h h e h a d b ro u g h t in to s tre n g th e n J e ru s a le m , his royal city, a n d
h a d o b ta in e d fo r his p ro te c tio n , to g e th e r w ith 3 0 ta le n ts of g o ld , 3 0 0 ta le n ts of
silver, p re c io u s s to n e s , a n tim o n y , la rg e b lo c k s o f re d s to n e , inlaid ivory c o u c h
e s , ivory a rm -c h a irs , e le p h a n t h id e , e le p h a n t tu s k s , e b o n y -w o o d , b o x -w o o d ,
all kind s o f v a lu a b le tre a s u re s , a s w e ll a s his d a u g h te rs , c o n c u b in e s , m a le
a n d fe m a le m u s ic ia n s h e s e n t m e la te r to N in e v e h , m y lordly city. H e s e n t a
p e rs o n a l m e s s e n g e r to d e liv e r th e trib u te a n d m a k e a slavish o b e is a n c e .
Of particular- interest are the sections of the text which reports on

Sennacheribs siege of Jerusalem (also reported in 2 Ki 18-19, Is 36-37
and 2 Chr 32). A comparison o f these texts demonstrates how official
92 Chapter four
reports of politicians are usually written from their own subjective per
spectives and how religion is employed to legitimise theirs actions.
After having subjected Merodoch-Baladan (or Marduk-apal-iddina II)
who ruled from 703 to 701 BCE) in Babylon, Sennacharib marched to the
west to suppress a revolt against him. From 2 Kings 20:12-13 which
reports on Hezekiah’s friendly reception of Merodoch-Baladan, one can
conclude that the king of Judah (who ruled from 727-698 BCE) was in the
centre of the revolt (cf 2 Ki 18:7). This is furthermore corroborated by
Sennacherib’s annals reporting that he restored Padi, the pro-Assyrian
king of Ekron, who had surrendered to Hezekiah (see text above).
Having subjected the Philistines (despite Egyptian aid) in the plain of
Eltekeh, Sennacherib concentrated on Hezekiah. The annals and 2 Kings
18:13-15 agree that Sennacherib warred against the fortified cities of
Judah and that Hezekiah offered tribute to ward off the capturing of
Jerusalem. Although the biblical text does not use those words, Hezekiah
was indeed like a ‘bird imprisoned in a cage’ (cf the supplications he
made to Yahweh for deliverance). Both texts also agree that Sennacherib
eventually withdrew without entering or attacking the city. However,
they differ on the reasons for Sennacherib’s withdrawal.
According to the annals inscribed on the clay prism, Hezekiah paid an
enormous tribute (the articles are extensively listed in the text) sent with a
personal messenger to Nineveh who made a ‘slavish obeisance’. The
booty was thus not captured after a conquest of the city. On the other hand
the biblical text reports that Sennacherib did not accept Hezekiah’s offer
of tribute and continued to intimidate the inhabitants of the city to reject
Hezekiah and surrender (2 Ki 18:17-25). With Isaiah the prophet
Hezekiah begged Yahweh for deliverance. According to 2 Kings 19:35-36
'that night the angel of Yahweh went forth, and slew hundred and eighty
five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in
the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. Then Sennacherib king
of Assyria departed, and went home and dwelt in Nineveh’.
According to the Greek historian Herodotus (ii.141) ‘a multitude of
field-mice by night devoured all the quivers and bowstrings of the enemy,
and all the straps by which they held their shields’ so that ‘the next morn
ing they commenced their flight, and great multitudes fell, as they had no
arms with which to defend themselves’. What actually happened we will
never know, but in Nineveh Sennacherib had to be satisfied with the com
memoration of the capture of Lachish (cf chapter three above).
Chapter five
THE PEOPLE’S RELIGION
We noted before that the people o f the biblical world expressed them
selves through their cultural activities which included crafts, art,
architecture and writings. They used all these means to express a fur
ther dimension o f their life, namely religion. Images, statues, altars
and temples were erected to facilitate the worship o f gods. Paintings
on walls o f tombs and temples were often also a means o f religious
expression. Religion was transmitted through oral traditions, which
due to its nature, tended to get lost through the ages. When the art o f
writing was mastered, religious thoughts were put into writing. Of
this the Bible is a prominent (although not the only) example.
In the previous chapter on the writings of the biblical world, we
learned that most o f these writings served a political or religious pur
pose or both. Because the art o f writing was mostly confined to the
upper- or educated classes o f society, the religion that found expres
sion in religious writings usually was o f an official nature. It thus can
not always be regarded as representative of the religion o f the people
at ground level.
One can explain this fact by considering the commandment that
one should not make and worship an image o f a god (Ex 20:4-5). The
command can be attributed to priestly circles in Jerusalem in their
zeal to protect the exclusive worship of Yahweh, the god of Israel.
However, the necessity o f proclaiming such a commandment testifies
to the practical worship o f godly images among the populace.
The artefacts to be discussed in this chapter were chosen not mere
ly to reflect a variety of religious views, but especially to illuminate
the religious practices o f ordinary people. Although religious officials
(such as priests) could make and enforce laws (e g by stoning), they
were for their physical and religious survival dependant on the loyal
ty of the common people. Religious speech (prophecy) was therefore
o f the utmost importance. Various archaeological discoveries reveal
the very religion the prophets (or first apostles such as Paul) were
against.
93
94 Chapter five
Ancient Israel’s own creation myth

Creation myths have been found almost in every part of the world. In the
ancient Near East archaeological excavations unearthed several comprehen
sive (although partly destroyed) creation texts from Israel’s neighbours. Of
these, the Babylonian creation myths (the atrachasis myth and enuma elish)
are the best known. Egypt did not produce such comprehensive creation
myths, but many stories allude to the creative activity of the Egyptian gods.
Coming from the same cultural milieu, it is therefore not surprising that
many similarities exist between the above-mentioned non-biblical
accounts of creation and those found in the Bible. Any overhasty compar
isons, or assumed direct dependence amongst them, should, however, be
critically evaluated. The many similarities between the creation myths of
the ancient Near East could also be explained in terms of a broadly shared
culture (and therefore a shared treasure of folklore).
Although allusions to creation myths are scattered throughout the
Old Testament (e g the books o f Psalms and Job), proper myths are
only found in Genesis l:l-2 :4 a and Genesis 2:4b-3:24. For the pur
pose o f this discussion we will concentrate solely on the creation
myth in Genesis 2-3, better known as the story of the Garden of Eden
and which (despite resemblances with the atrachasis myth) does not
have a clear ancient Near Eastern parallel.
Two o f the most important characteristics o f all myths are their
view o f time and space. Mythical time usually starts with creation and
ends with some kind of catastrophe (e g the deluge). This catastrophe
destroys mythical time and forms the bridge between mythical and
historical time (cf Gn 6-9 and 10:1). Myths are therefore always nar
ratives which are enacted at the very beginning o f time (i e primeval
time, before the current historical time in which we live).
Closely linked to this concept o f time, is the mythic view of space. The
mythic world is the historical-world-in-making. The universe is not yet
ready, and not divided into areas. In most myths the world starts from
chaos. In the story of the Garden of Eden this chaos is depicted as a desert:
a world without water, plants or humans (see Gn 2:4b-5). In the process
o f creation the chaos is ordered and the various parts (previously mixed
together) are differentiated from each other (cf for example the various
separations of light and darkness, waters above and waters below, and sea
The people's religion 95
and earth, as described in Genesis 1). The mythic era, therefore, has a
profoundly constitutive effect on the historical era which follow s it.
In mythical time one can often recognise current historical, social and
geographic phenomena emerging. One should therefore not be sur
prised, for example, to find recognisable geographical areas within
myths. Myths are not entirely fictional (or fabulous) like fairy tales,
where space cannot be identified with any known geographical area.
The fact that a myth is basically a symbolic genre, does not imply that
recognisable phenomena within myths, actually existed and can there
fore be discovered by archaeologists. In most cases, places like the
Garden o f Eden may have a recognisable locality (see below), but being
a ‘symbolic’ or mythical concept, probably never really existed. This is
also the case with other mythical phenomena such as Noah’s ark.
In Genesis 2-3 creation is depicted as the planting of a garden in
the middle o f a desert. Like any gardener God therefore first had to
ensure a reliable source o f irrigation. Four rivers or streams therefore
either came from the garden, or flow ed into the Garden (depending on
how one reads the original Hebrew text o f Gn 2:10-14). The Revised
Standard Version renders the text as follows:
A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided
and became four rivers. The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one
thatflows around the whole land ofHavilah, where there is gold; and
the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The
name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one which flows around
the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is Tigris,
which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
Of these the first river, the Pishon is totally unknown, but at least the
Euphrates and Tigris rivers can be identified. If the land of Cush is iden
tified as Ethiopia, the second cosmic river (Gihon) could be identified as
the Nile. However, this does not make geographical sense, because the
Nile is not in any way linked to the two other major rivers in Mesopotamia
(the Euphrates and Tigris - see the map). It is possible that in this context
the land of Cush may refer to a part of Arabia and that the other two rivers
therefore refer to streams which flowed into the Euphrates and Tigris. In
that case the intention o f Genesis 2:10 in all likelihood is to
96 Chapter five
describe rivers flowing into the garden to irrigate it, and not rivers
flowing out o f the garden (as the text is usually translated).
Map o f the ancient Near East showing the Tigris, Euphrates and Nile rivers.
It should further be stressed that ‘Eden’ is not a proper name, but a geo
graphical description, meaning ‘the east’. From a Palestine perspective ‘the
garden in Eden’, may therefore be another indication that the locality of the
mythical garden of Eden was perceived as being located east of
The people’s religion 97
Palestine, near the area where the Euphrates and Tigris rivers flow into
the Persian gulf. Due to the age o f the text (probably 9th century BCE)
and many things which are unclear, this reconstructed picture and local
ity of the Garden o f Eden is, however, by no means certain.
On the other hand it is interesting to note that the mythical navel of the
earth (i e the centre of the earth in the sense of where God ‘started’ his cre
ation) is often associated with mythical world rivers which flow from it. In
the stories o f different nations this navel of the earth is then located within
their own territory (to stress the importance of their own people and land).
In such a case there may sometimes be a notion that the exact courses of
current rivers might have changed during the cosmic catastrophe (i e the
deluge) after which the current earth had come about. This explains the cur
rent geographical anomalies in the description of the rivers in Genesis
4:1-14. The Garden of Eden should then be seen as the mythical or cosmic
source of some of the major rivers in the ancient Near East. From the
Israelite perspective it didn’t make sense to emphasise this aspect of the
creation myth, because the earth’s navel would then be outside the Israelite
territory. It is, however, interesting that many o f these mythical concepts of
the earth’s navel were applied to the temple mount (Zion) where God was
believed to have special presence since creation (cf Ps 46:4-5).
In view o f the above it is important to understand creation accounts
within their proper literary and cultural contexts. Making sense o f
their references to time and space enriches our understanding o f
them. In this process, archaeology and historical geography can help
a great deal, without going on wild goose chases after mythical phe
nomena and localities which never actually existed.
Applying the concept o f myth to the Biblical accounts of creation,
may be a source o f concern to many believers. The reason for this is the
mistaken popular definition o f a myth, as a belief or story which is
untrue, and therefore should not belong in the Bible. This mistaken
notion of a myth is not the definition used by biblical and literary schol
ars. Myths should rather be regarded as ‘symbolic’ stories, rather than
historical accounts. Such stories are therefore true on a different level
than historiography, and any attempt therefore to describe history as
more true than myth (or the reverse) is futile. In any case all biblical gen
res cannot (and should not) be described as unhistorieal or mythical.
98 Chapter five
Beersheba’s horned altar

Beersheba is mentioned 33 times in the Bible (cf the popular expres
sion ‘from Dan to Beersheba’ in for example Jdg 20:10 and its fea
turing as a city o f the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in Gn
21:31-33; 26:23-33; 28:10). However, no traces have been found at
Tell es-Seba (Arabic for Tel-Beersheba) o f any human occupation
during the surmised time o f the patriarchs (18 th century BCE). This
suggests that the patriarchal narratives should not be read as history,
but rather as family legends which at a later stage in history served to
legitimise the cult which had existed there.
Evidence o f this cult was found in 1973 when the archaeologists under
the direction o f Yohanan Aharoni discovered several large stones (dressed
from limestone) built into the walls of one of the storehouses of stratum II
(8 th century BCE). Four of these stones were from the horns of an altar.
This led to the reconstruction of the altar (measuring 1,6 x 1,6 x 1,6 m.)
Since the possibility exists that there originally were more stones, the altar
could have measured 2,7 m in length (cf Ex 27:1; 1,6 m = 3 cubits). A
serpent was incised on one of the blocks. The serpent was a well-known
fertility symbol in the ancient Near East and also played a role in the cult
of ancient Israel (cf Nm 21:8-9; 2 Kg 18:4). In 1976 the excavators found
some other stones belonging to the altar in the glacis (plastered slope of
the mound) of stratum II. These stones were blackened, which suggests
that they had been the top stones on which sacrifices were burnt. A simi
lar altar was also excavated by Aharoni in the temple of Arad (not far from
Beersheba). The latter was built of mud and field stones.
The homed altar illustrates various biblical texts (cf Ex 27:2; 38:2;
29:12; Lev 9:9; 1 Ki 1:50; 2:28 and Am 3:14). The fact that the stones
were dressed is contrary to the instruction of Exodus 20:25 (cf also
Deut 27: 5-6; Jos 8:31) which states that ‘if you make me an altar of
stone, you shall not built it with hewn stones; fo r if you wield your
tool upon it you profane it’. This suggests (together with the serpent
on one o f the stones) that the cult practised at Beersheba was not in
fine with the ‘official’ cult as represented by the biblical tradition.
The fact that the stones were dismantled, re-used or scattered around,
strongly suggests that the cult at Beersheba had been destroyed in die late
8th century BCE. Aharoni linked this to the religious reform carried out
by king Hezekiah who reigned in Jerusalem from 715 to 687 BCE.

According to 2 Kings 18:3-4 Hezekiah ‘did. what was right in the eyes of
the Lord, according to all that David his father had done. He removed
the high places, and broke the pillars, and cut down the Asherah. And he
broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those
days the people of Israel burned incense to it; it was called Nehushtan’.
These reforms may be the reason why no conclusive evidence o f a tem
ple or bamah (= high place) that could have housed the altar was found
in Beersheba - it had probably been obliterated by Hezekiah.
The horned altar of Beersheba.
Hezekiah therefore seems to have been against the cult practised

among the common people in the country and strove for it to be cen
tralised in Jerusalem. Although the Bible sketches his reforms as
praiseworthy and religiously motivated, the political motive behind
his actions should not be overlooked. Centralisation o f the cult in
Jerusalem served the centralisation o f power.
100 Chapterfive
God’s wife? The inscriptions from Kuntillet Ajrud

In the ruins o f Kuntillet 'Ajrud, an ancient caravanserai, or wayside
inn, a collection of fascinating texts and drawings were found. Some of
the drawings and specifically two o f the texts led to a rare new under
standing o f popular religion in Israel during the 8th century BCE.
The texts speak o f Yahweh (the God o f Israel) ‘and his Asherah’.
The latter is known as a prominent goddess from the much older
Ugaritic literature from northern Syria. There she is depicted as the
consort or w ife o f El, the High God o f the Canaanite pantheon.
In the Bible the term asherah usually refers to a sacred pole set up
near the altar (Dt 16:21). However, Asherah is also known as a god
dess. She is sometimes mentioned in relation to Ba'al (2 Ki 23:4)
with priests dedicated to her service (1 Ki 18:19). However, all refer
ences indicate that she was part o f the Canaanite religion which was
so vehemently opposed by some Biblical authors.
Kuntillet 'Ajrud is situated in the northern regions o f the Sinai
Peninsula. The remains of an isolated complex o f buildings were
unearthed on a hill overlooking a broad, dry river bed. The Arab
name, Kuntillet 'Ajrud, means ‘Solitary hill o f w ells’. The place was
apparently used as a caravanserai, an unfurnished inn where caravans
could stay over. Due to certain finds in the com plex o f buildings, the
excavator initially suggested that it was a religious centre, a kind of
wayside shrine, where travellers would leave their offerings.
An important crossroad was situated close to the site. One path
leads from the north from Kadesh-Bamea to Elat and southern Sinai,
while the other route follow s the dry river bed o f Wadi Quraya from
east to west. The com plex o f wells situated close to the hill, was one
o f the few permanent water sources in this arid region.
The buildings o f Kuntillet 'Ajrud date back to the 8th century BCE,
during the period o f the divided kingdoms o f Israel and Judah. It is pos
sible to date the site so precisely because the site was inhabited for a
brief period only. The pottery which was found there attests to a date
around 800 BCE. Moreover, the types o f pottery show connection with
three regions: Judah, the southern coastal area of Palestine and north
ern Israel-Phoenicia. No pottery typical of the Negev was found. Thus
the pottery suggests that the small community o f Kuntillet 'Ajrud had
close connections with royal Judah and Israel.
The main building resembles a small fortress, but it is clear from

the architecture and many o f the finds, that its use was not military.
The walls were plastered and many o f the drawings and writings were
done on the plaster. There were also stone bowls and pottery vessels
with inscriptions on them, as well as drawings and writings in ink on
clay pots and large pithoi or storage vessels.
The attention o f archaeologists and historians o f Israelite religion
was attracted by the writings and drawings on the pithoi and plaster. It
was clear from the handwriting, style and superimposition o f writings
and drawings that many hands had been at work at Kuntillet 'Ajrud.
102 Chapter five
On one o f the pithoi (A) w e find a collage o f divergent drawings,

loose letters and a written benediction (see below).
Pithos A: Cow suckling her calf, Bes-like figures, lyre-player and inscription.
In the foreground a cow is suckling her calf, drawn with a fine pen
with a certain artistic beauty. In the centre are two Bes-like figures, with
a seated person (playing a lyre?) behind them. These sketches are crud
er than the cow and calf, and drawn in thick, black lines. The headdress
of the bigger Bes figure (= an ancient Egyptian dwarf god of music and
dancing) covers a part of a text written above the two figures.
The text was deciphered by the excavator to read as follows:
A[shy]o the K[ing] said:

tell x, y and z,
may you be blessed by Yahweh
o f Shomron [Samaria] and his Ashe rah.
On the other side o f this same pithos (see next page) are a few fur
ther remarkable drawings.
The other side of pithos A: scene of tree flanked by animals.
The central picture is that of a stylised tree with lotus flowers,

flanked by two ibexes, with the tree standing on the back o f a lion.
Above the tree and antelopes there are four animals: a horse (incom
plete), a bush pig and a lion with a small incomplete antelope behind
it.
On another pithos (B) several incomplete anim al drawings accom
pany a group o f five human figures (see next page). The human fig
ures seem to be in a procession with their hands raised as if in vener
ation or prayer.
104 Chapter five
The pictures (or iconography), in these three cases suggest a focus

on elements concerning fertility, often associated with goddesses: the
cow suckling her calf, the stylised tree, flanked by two ibexes and
standing on a lion, and the two Bes figures, where one is clearly depict
ed as female (with breasts, although it is a somewhat mixed figure).
All these depictions and references would not necessarily have been
taken to reflect any aspect o f Israel’s religion. Israel’s official religion,
as depicted in the Bible, excludes a consort or wife for Yahweh. That is
clear from the first commandment and from many other statements in
books such as Deuteronomy and other historical books.
The book Hosea refers to instances where Israelites confused Yahweh
with Ba'al (Hs 2:16-17), and they are reproached for their lack of knowl
edge (Hs 4:1). The finds o f Kuntillet 'Ajrud shed new light on the
polemics of Hosea. Hosea was polemising, not against foreigners or hea
thens, but against those who shared his faith in Yahweh as God of Israel.
But he lamented their disregard o f Yahweh’s overarching and total con
trol of nature and history. Hosea proclaimed Yahweh as the God of yes
terday and tomorrow, but above all, as the God who is relevant today.
The situation in which Hosea was preaching, is illuminated by the

Kuntillet 'Ajrud material. The material culture o f the site shows that
it was broadly speaking contemporary with Hosea, who was an 8th
century prophet in Israel. Moreover, it is interesting to note that the
excavator o f the site detected a close link between Israel, the
Northern Kingdom, and Kuntillet 'Ajrud.
This connection can be developed even further if the texts and
inscriptions o f Kuntillet 'Ajrud are taken into account. Three exam
ples w ill suffice. Firstly, there is the inscription on Pithos A, quoted
above. The second inscription, also from a pithos, reads as follows:
Amaryo said: Tell my lord, may you be well
and be blessed by Yahweh o f Teman and his Asherah.
May he bless and keep you and be with you.
Important elements of both these inscriptions are the geographical
designations (Yahweh of Shomron and of Teman) and the reference to
his Asherah. Some scholars reject the interpretation of these references
as referring to the goddess Asherah. The main reason is that a posses
sive pronoun (his) is never attached to a proper name (Asherah). That
would mean that Asherah must denote something else in this context.
Even if the argument is accepted that ‘his Asherah’ does not mean
‘his w ife Asherah’ it is clear that the female element is here brought
into the religious picture o f old Israel.
It is, however, easy to imagine that the difference between the cultic
symbol, a wooden pole at the altar, and the goddess represented by the
symbol, which is the goddess Asherah, could not be easily established.
When one would say: ‘Negotiations between Pretoria and Harare on
the problem o f illegal immigrants is on the brink of collapse’, nobody
would even think o f the two capitals. The reference is clearly to the two
governments, which are represented by the two cities. It is most likely
that anyone who wrote a benediction in the name of Yahweh of
Shomron and his Asherah, referred to Yahweh and his consort, Asherah.
Another inscription, which was found on wall plaster, is one which
illuminates the interchangeability o f the concepts El (God) and Ba'al.
The inscription appears to be part of an ancient poem describing the rev
elation o f God. It sounds like some o f the poems in the Bible, although
here God is mentioned together with Ba'al:
106 Chapter five
... and when El rose up ...

and hills melted and peaks were pounded...
bless Ba al in day of war ...
... the name o f EL in day o f w a r ...
It is clear that in this context there was no conscious distinction

between God and Ba'al. This seems to be reminiscent o f the situation
o f H osea’s polemics.
Not many recent archaeological finds have illuminated the popular reli
gion o f a period as dramatically as did Kuntillet 'Ajrud. The results of
these excavations have radically challenged our thinking about eighth
century Israelite religion. In the remains of Kuntillet 'Ajrud I believe we
have come across the material heritage of people who believed Yahweh
was attached to certain places like Shomron (Samaria) and Teman, who
thought of Yahweh as a God with a goddess as his consort, and who saw
El, Yahweh and Baal as names of one and the same God.
Another 8th century Hebrew inscription in the plaster of a wall of a tomb from
Khirbet el-Qdm (near Hebron), also referring to Yahweh and his Asherah.
Living according to the Community Rule

From 1947 to 1956 the now famous Dead Sea Scrolls were dis
covered in eleven caves in the vicinity o f Khirbet Qumran, about
1 km off the northern shores o f the Dead Sea (12 km south of
Jericho). These scrolls are unique as they date from about 100 BCE
to 68 CE and together with the Nag Hamadi library (discovered in
1942 at Nag Hamadi in Egypt) represent the largest collection of
manuscripts from the biblical world. The scrolls, made o f skin of
sheep or goats, contain manuscripts (or fragments) o f all the biblical
books, except Esther. Apocryphical or deutero-canonical and pseud-
epigraphical books are also represented, as w ell as biblical commen
taries containing Qumran’s unique pes/ier-method o f interpretation.
Furthermore, there were among the scrolls a literature unique and
closely linked to the community who lived in the com plex close to
the caves, the ruins o f which were excavated during the 1950’s.
Site of Khirbet Qumran at the northern shores o f the Dead Sea.
Various theories exist on who these people were and why they lived
here in the arid desert. Were they ordinary Jews, a unique ascetic Jewish
sect, early Christians, the community where John the Baptist came from,
108 Chapter five
Essenes, conservative anti-temple Jews, or merely scribes? One can only

understand the nuances of this debate when one has insight into the way
in which they lived. One o f the first scrolls discovered (the serek hayy-
achad or Rule o f the Community) provides us with some of this insight.
For the circumstances of the discovery we depend on the oral tradition
of the Arabs involved. The story began in the winter of 1947 when a
Bedouin shepherd of the Ta'amireh clan, Muhammad edh-Dhib, was look
ing for one of his goats which had gone astray. He inadvertently threw a
stone into a cave about 1,3 km to the north of the ruins, hoping that his goat
would appear. Instead he heard a thudding sound. He entered the cave and
discovered three jars with seven scrolls inside, wrapped in linen and in a
fairly good condition. These scrolls (amongst others found in the cave)
turned out to be the now famous Isaiah scroll, the Community Rule (orig
inally called the Manual of Discipline) and the Habbakuk-commentary
(abbreviated as lQJes, IQS, lQpeshHab respectively).
The Community Rule (or IQS, where 1 = Cave 1, Q = Qumran and S
= Serek hayyachad) describes the way of life o f the people who lived
here. The scroll (which lacks only a few words at the beginning, perhaps
eaten away by worms) consists of eleven columns. Closer references to
a specific wording o f the scrolls are usually made with reference to these
columns and the fines within the columns (e g 1QSIV3 or 1QS4:3 would
refer to third fine of the fourth column of the Community Rule.
The Community Rule’s content can be summarised as follows:
1: 1-6 Introduction
2:7-3:12 Rules for joining the community in terms of the covenant
3:13-4:26 The two spirits in the flesh (good and evil)
4:27-6:8 General community rules on humility, charity etc
6:9-24 Rules for meetings
6:25-8:19 Rule for judgment in the community (punishment code)
8:20-9:11 Rules for holiness and property
9:12-10:4 Rules for the conduct of the master
10:5-11:22 Concluding hymn
The Community Rule is not the only document that regulated the
fives of the about fifty people who lived at Qumran. The Messianic
Rule (lQ Sa), the War Scroll (1QM), the Temple Scroll (11QT) and
Some observances o f the law (compiled from six fragments from cave
4 and abbreviated MMT) also contain similar rules and practices.
r :y flw y0*t *1
V«» W'W’4 **j
lww»a tr^Vws ••<■**«zw I t; aîtU -JWMIH <n*«* t ? f *♦**«> ntf
■**¥>***»' <m*S*sfcv xrvvo w4«» w w w v m iiii^ ^ Atjoiw* <«*■■*AmjrKu^'ttu''"
teujft t t w « WMtflws r y t i ^ v i m W***?* \ j4? V»* i'An-»r'i‘imr»A >»wwitj. fwl*
v J ^ A d n ^ A * ***** »w?ainV f iw A q T * **A* wiuw. **'•«i nnw»*««»•■»» JS'"
'V W ^ W ’fMitVH'^ }*** W*^H****'***vW ,r^fm \'rhy^nJ****
<}<Aw»WKWijA^^r^^w HS****^ tyva
MM'4MMV ft* *A|* 'Kefew* MSrtt* (Vf *1^V^^SJPTAVurttTJiJiWJ
kviwW* (^x<f*V->V»^t^M3«■'K* ,'iv « '. ,/v . -y ■i -.j j ..- 7
V hrw. ^•■01
V-3^ V^4W*nv» -fM * Ijn'Wt^HW' WCTrt> «»r\wu^fT*3 ’.JW *'o^tv^'aiiV .’■syy
fcÂnfVfti_ Tfrn* V»A’«r»<>’W $ fcCJf<V «g W lV W(I« jtv-O iiK ^ ^m„l<wjwo ywjrgj^ W ^’*’
<W-itrU' tw*1 s»i> ya*\*#i{ t t H * H«.lr»-,w;l jilxrrirMvj u«Vf tW'W''
iv*un«V$V tv^ îlM******]-*-^ '+*JffrAV* * 3 >ur^ •!< ,v-7am- .7^ n \'j:
V o ity 'x «*tan -yi«<wijrMiyAfAK.*mW l.J„(«,M
e.fJ>r*« SW1’™
i4wpw* J 'W jg iy4i* t> iW « l in tn }r\HM«, ,JlUu>\ ff«owv ‘V.nro.sv.wW'
jN]n*«r*« ?w Vi®9» 4A** U«vw* •v », « w . ^ fv ■****■
l UVrWl , {&<t|!y4 V*y*V<VU‘>iiVl«m'W^Wl tv n r w r in T i« « :'s'.'" ' V*ô w * * 1 « "* ’
* « * fctsiirstt VhV l i w 4 ^f»Vn -w »nw wvs-rtjji ' W »»«Vi»' }>'»<•«Vw •,'i-»»«*’
WY«^f£» $H*»W YWKM ill Til 1*V33 W t i . I f f <fr- * t* w v f f * r
b t s i* * * £j{<yt* r i $*#» wwfes* wsb*^ S*M»Wi Ifmwwivi W " *wt.'w r
fV w tJ V# MrtiSf•‘WSWJ Jrv»t‘w \|tN t 1to n rtV lV ^ !•*«’J* o # ,A«i i j».v<e v>»«'Vio*V6 W “ •T-V i,‘ ,'p
V -MVA
jv * a w \iM ’1*i»J w JwAhA ■f. waN»cwuw\'wV^^'"'^^7^
Auirbp IttVHin Jv>**I JftbTfAri «;y^1iv>vw\vs* I'M m w ) w.•»« r«’ ■ wv',! -r^'w
m.-'WW i^Y «*ur>ilv ttfa V ^ v su w T*rJ«S
The Community Rule (or serek hayyachad) o f Qumran.
On the basis o f the excavations done at Qumran and the contents

o f the scrolls, scholars began to speak about the ‘monastery’ of
Qumran. Although much o f the community’s way o f life resembles
that of monastic living, one should keep in mind that a monastery is
a concept o f later (Catholic) Christianity. That the Qumran commu
nity had much in common with early Christianity is true but there are
also many differences. The following points may be mentioned.
(1) The Qumranites withdrew themselves to a specific locality,
namely the complex at Khirbet Qumran. Early Christans were found
everywhere and strove to practice their Christianity in all walks of
life (c fL k 3:10-14).
(2) Admission was strict and became only permanent after three years
110 Chapter five
o f probation. Christianity advocated universal membership which did

not depend on a legalistic lifestyle.
(3) Upon entrance one would put one’s property at the community’s
disposal, excluding trade with outsiders. Although one could own
goods, wealth was not accumulated and one would live soberly. This has
resemblances with the early Jerusalem church according to Acts 2, the
difference being that the renunciation of property among early Christian
was voluntary in view of alleviating poverty even amongst outsiders.
(4) No slavery was allowed within the community since all mem
bers were regarded as free men. Early Christians were not forbidden
to own slaves, although they had to be treated ‘as brothers in Christ’
(letter to Philemon)
(5) No beggars, deaf or blind people were allowed in the commu
nity. For early Christans on the other hand, acceptance o f the ‘under
dog’ and outcasts was part and parcel of the essence o f the Gospel.
(6) Although the Qumranites were mostly unmarried men, there
were some women at Qumran as can be deduced from excavated
graves and the Messianic Rule (lQ S a l:4 ). Although the apostle Paul
(1 Cor 7) and Matthews’ Gospel (ch 19) seem to have advocated
celibacy, marriage was not forbidden.
(7) The members o f the Qumran community had to take a ritual
bath before each meal. Apart form the texts, several cisterns found at
the complex testify to this. The ritual bath served the purpose o f both
physical cleansing (most o f them worked outside in the heat) and reli
gious purification. Early Christianity’s ritual bath was baptism which
only happened once to signify the remission o f sins.
(8) The daily meals at Qumran were communal meals with religious
overtones, expressing the solidarity o f the community. According to
Acts 4 the early Christians ‘broke bread from house to house’, a pre
cursor o f the Eucharist which was for them a remembrance of the death
of Jesus which they interpreted to be an atonement for their sins.
(9) White clothes were worn by the Qumranites because they sym
bolised purity. Early Christians had no prescriptions as far as clothes
were concerned. The letter o f James warns against excluding people
on the basis o f the clothes they wear.
(10) Oaths were forbidden at Qumran because truth was highly
esteemed. This reminds one o f Jesus admonition about oaths in the
sermon o f the mount.

(11) N o animal sacrifices were offered by members o f the com
munity as they regarded themselves as sacrifices to God. Early
Christians also did not offer sacrifices because Christ’s death was
interpreted as the ultimate sacrifice.
(12) The master o f the Qumranite community was ‘The Teacher of
Righteousness’. He had to be followed and obeyed, but was not
regarded as the Messiah. Early Christians had to follow and obey
Jesus who was seen to be the Messiah who had already come and who
was also in some circles worshipped as God.
(13) The singing of praise songs was very popular at Qumran as is clear
from the discovery of a scroll containing such hymns (1QH = Hodayyot).
In the letter to the Colossians early Christians were also prompted to
encourage one another with the singing of hymns (Col 3:16).
(14) As far as the Bible is concerned, mention was made that the
Qumranites cherished other writings (mostly written in Hebrew or
Aramaic) than those contained in the Hebrew Bible today. The Bible
o f the early Christans was the Septuagint (= Greek translation o f the
Old Testament) which itself contained the deutero-canonical books. It
is interesting to note that the discoveries at Qumran made Hebrew
versions o f the deutero-canonical books (which until 1947 had been
only extant in Greek) available for the first time.
"(15) The Qumranites used the pesher -method o f exegesis by which
they interpreted the Old Testament as having a direct bearing on then-
own day. Although early Christian writers were not confined to the
pesher-mcthod, they used it occasionally. As a rule they interpreted
the Scriptures in terms o f their own context.
(16) The Qumranites were to practise love, humility and charity
amongst themselves, but people outside the community were regarded as
‘sons of darkness’ to be hated. Early Christianity held an opposite view.
The neighbour as well as the enemy should be loved (cf Lk 10:25-30).
A comparison of the life o f the Qumran community with early
Christianity throws both movements into sharper relief. Many more resem
blances and differences can be mentioned. The appearance of the scrolls (in
particular the Community Rule) have greatly advanced our knowledge of
the religious and cultural world in which early Christianity arose.
112 Chapter five
‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians’

It was during Paul’s third missionary journey that he visited Ephesus,
an important city on the west coast o f Asia Minor, or what is today
known as Turkey. This was a pilgrim centre which drew worshippers
to the magnificent temple o f the fertility goddess, Artemis. This city
was at times called ‘The first city o f A sia’ (Asia being a Roman
province situated on the west coast o f Asia Minor).
Austrian archaeologists have been excavating in Ephesus since 1895
and have discovered (and restored) structures such as the theatre, the har
bour street, the Celsus library, the market square and the houses o f the
affluent and leading families of Ephesus. Acts 19 gives one an idea of the
importance (economic, political and religious) of this ancient city.
According to Acts 19, Paul stayed in Ephesus for three years and dur
ing that time some of his converts surely abandoned their former wor
ship o f Artemis. This caused the business of the silversmiths and crafts
men, who made a living from religious souvenirs, to decline. The result
was that their livelihood was being threatened. Demetrius (some high
official of a silver smith guild or trade union in Ephesus), made a verbal
attack on Paul and a riot ensued. The crowd gathered in the theatre and
shouted for hours on end ‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!’
As far as the religious scene is concerned, pagan (non-Christian) cults
flourished not only in Ephesus but throughout the Mediterranean region
during the Hellenistic and Roman periods, as far as Asia Minor, Syria and
even Palestine. People were devoted to gods such as Jupiter, Minerva and
others of the Greco-Roman pantheon. Statues were raised in their honour
and temples were built where these deities were worshipped. Certain gods
had specific duties to fulfill towards those people who worshipped them.
Hermes, as an example, functioned as the protector of merchants,
travellers, orators, philosophers and the youth. In Ephesus archaeologists
found the mins of a temple dedicated to Isis and Serapis (two Egyptian
gods), and temples dedicated to emperors of Rome. This was the religious
scene in which we find Artemis, the goddess of the Ephesians.
We know Artemis of Ephesus today as the many breasted goddess
whose cult spread over the whole of Asia Minor. Her temple, called the
Artemision, is regarded as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world
(cf on the pyramids o f Giza in chapter three).
An image o f Artemis, the goddess of the Ephesians.
The Artemis cult, or religion, was definitely the largest cult in

Ephesus and is depicted on coins and inscriptions brought to light by
modem day archaeologists. The honour o f the goddess was closely
linked to the honour and importance o f the city o f Ephesus.
It is not easy to trace the origins o f the goddess Artemis. From ancient
documents it seems that it may have originated in Asia (a province of
Asia Minor). Artemis was originally known as Ephesia and was later
given the name Artemis by Greek settlers who started a new life in Asia.
Maybe the ancient goddess Ephesia reminded them o f their own god
dess back home, and so they named this indigenous goddess after their
own goddess, calling her Artemis. Together with the name some new
characteristics were added to Artemis, such as hunter goddess (protec
tor o f the hunt). Notwithstanding all these add-ons to this goddess her
original character remained, namely Mother Goddess o f Asia Minor.
114 Chapter five
She was the personification of life itself and provided the powers of nature
with life giving energy. Humans and animals existed by her grace. Artemis
fulfilled the needs of all living beings. Ultimately, Artemis of the Ephesians
was a protective goddess. She protected the mother giving birth to her baby,
the flowers from withering in the Mediterranean heat; she offered (through
her temple) asylum to those people who had nowhere else to go.
Artemis was worshipped in all of Asia Minor’s western regions.
Although we have no written evidence that she was worshipped in the
central and western parts o f Asia Minor, we know that she was so influ
ential in these parts that indigenous deities, such as Astarte, Melitta and
Cybelle, were merely variants of Artemis of Ephesus. It is therefore not
strange that the author of Acts (in Acts 19:27) acknowledges the fact that
Artemis was worshipped in the whole of Asia and the known world. The
intensity o f the acclamation of the crowd during the riot against Paul (read
Acts 19:28,34) confirms the deep rooted religious convictions regarding
the Artemis cult in Ephesus.
The goddess Artemis is depicted in a variety o f ways as a naked
female figure, sitting or standing. These depictions, however, always
represent the goddess’s relation to nature (humans and animals). She
is often depicted as a standing figure holding the horns o f two ante
lope, one on each side of her. What is today generally seen as the
Artemis figure is an upright figure dressed from neck to feet, together
with a peculiar head dress (see photo above).
The theme o f nature is clearly represented in both her dress and
head covering, both covered with animal motifs, o f which bees, ante
lope and bulls are most prominent. A very typical feature o f this fig
ure o f Artemis is the row o f ‘breasts’ or protruding egg like shapes on
the front o f the figure. We do not know exactly what this represents.
Som e scholars have even gone so far as to identify these protrusions
as representing the scrotums o f the bulls that have been slaughtered
in her honour. This may be a very intelligent guess considering the
context o f fertility in which the Artemis cult (and many other pagan
cults o f the time) operated. We can with a large degree o f certainty
connect these protrusions with the goddess’s Asiatic origin, namely
that o f Mother goddess, the origin and protector o f fertility. She was,
at the same time, the mother feeding all o f creation (see next page).
Artemis - the mother feeding all of creation.
The importance of this goddess (and her statue) for the people of
Ephesus becomes quiet clear from Acts 19:35 which states that her
image (statue) had fallen from the sky, in other words a gift from the
gods. This legend about the statue o f Artemis was alive and well among
the Ephesian people o f Paul’s day and added credibility to both the god
dess and her statue. Ancient documents clearly state that during festivals
in Ephesus held in honour of Artemis, her statue was carried through the
streets o f the city. It was from this veneration of Artemis and her statue
that Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen had developed an eco
nomically viable business in selling small gifts like depictions o f the
goddess and her temple. That Paul met with opposition is no wonder.
Chapter six
ON DEATH AND DYING
Every life com es to an end, whether it be the life o f a king, slave or

an animal. As such dying is as natural as living, but because one has
no verification of what happens after this life, death and dying
remains a mystery. As such death can also be regarded as the mother
o f religion, because it is in the face of death that human beings
usually cling to their gods (cf Ps 23:4).
Archaeology cannot provide us with any infonnation that will solve
the mystery o f death since its focus is specifically and literally limited
to the soil o f the earth. Yet, through the discovery o f tombs and mate
rials related to death and burials, archaeology can reveal much about
the way people regarded death and dying, the disdain or respect which
they entertained towards it, and how dead people were venerated.
Especially the tombs o f Egypt provided us with spectacular
archaeological discoveries. Strictly speaking the pyramids (discussed
in chapter three because o f its architecture) were also the tombs of
Pharaohs. In the Valley o f the Kings near Thebes (present-day Luxor)
many tombs o f Egyptian kings were found. These large tombs had
long passages with decorated walls leading to the tomb chamber.
Many valuable objects belonging to the kings (which through the
centuries were unfortunately robbed on a large scale) were also put in
their tombs to accompany them to the after-life. Through their tombs
the kings, who were regarded as being immortal, were venerated.
Mummification was also meant to preserve their bodies for eternity.
Ancient Israel’s tombs or graves were of a more humble nature.
Through the ages there were also different types. Family tombs were
important because the Israelites strongly believed that one should be
buried together with one’s ancestors (e g Gn 50:28-33). Sometimes the
bones preserved in ossuaries can give much information about how the
deceased died, as the discovered heel bones of a crucified man illustrates.
Furthermore tombs could become holy places, such as the contended
‘tomb’ of Jesus of which there is a ‘Catholic’ and a ‘Protestant’ one.
116
On death and dying 117
Tutankhamen’s tomb
In ancient Thebes, west o f the bank of the Nile, the Valley o f the Kings
lies between the desert hills. It was the burial place o f the New Kingdom
Pharaohs who ruled Egypt at the peak o f its military power (1539-1078
BCE). Here Howard Carter, British Egyptologist, made one o f the most
spectacular discoveries which could just as well not have occurred.
By 1922 all the tombs o f the Pharaohs had already been identified in
the Valley o f the Kings, except that o f Tutankhamen, the young Pharaoh
who had only ruled from 1361-1352 BCE and died at the age o f nineteen.
Carter was sponsored by amateur Egyptologist Lord Carnarvon, who
went to Cairo for health reasons, but ironically died there of Malaria in
1923. After a prolonged effort, just before he wanted to abandon the
search, Carter opened up the sealed tomb of Tutankhamen. The find was
exceptional, since the tombs of the other Pharaoh’s in the valley had all
been plundered by robbers, removing their invaluable treasures. They also
attempted to plunder Tutankhamen’s tomb, but was unsuccessful. It was
sealed anew, and being situated in an awkward position half in the way to
other tombs, it was covered with rubble and thus protected from robbers.
Although not as impressive as those of the more glorious Pharaohs, due
to its treasures it became the most famous. It gives an impression o f what
was lost to humanity when the other tombs were looted.
Carter himself described the first moments of his find: ‘At first I could
see nothing, the hot air escaping from the chamber causing the candle to
flicker. But as my eyes grew accustomed to the light, details of the room
within emerged slowly from the mist. Strange animals, statues, and gold -
everywhere the glint of gold.’ Over 2000 objects were found in the tomb.
Carter had to clear the 8 m corridor o f rubble before he reached the
antechamber which (amongst others) contained three golden funerary
couches decorated with animal figures. The annex contained ivory game
boards and boxes o f funerary figures, but was in a disordered State, as it
was left by ancient thieves. The burial chamber was guarded by two
statues, representing the Pharaoh’s ‘ka’ (his ‘double’ or life force’).
The burial chamber was the only room which walls were painted. Four
shrines, set inside the other like Chinese boxes, covered the sarcophagus
with its three inlaid coffins, bearing the king’s image. The innermost one,
o f solid gold, weighed over one ton. Within the final coffin, the face of
the mummy was protected with a beautiful beaten-gold mask.
118 Chapter six
Location of Tutenkhamen’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings: KV11 - Ramses

II, KV10 = Amenmesse, KV9 = Ramses VI, KV62 = Tutankhamen, KV55 =
Akhenaten, KV6 = Ramses IX, KV7 = Ramses II.
Cross-section of Tutankhamen’s tomb: (1) corridor, (2) antechamber, (3)

annex, (4) treasure chamber, (5) burial chamber.
From the burial chamber led another treasure room, guarded by the
statue of Anubis (jackal-god o f embalming and protector of the dead).
This room contained the ‘canopic naos’, the wooden shrine covered with
gold and containing the pharaoh’s canopic jars with his organs. It was
guarded by the goddesses Isis, Nephthys, Neith and Serket. This shrine
is sometimes compared with the tabernacle which the Israelites had on
their desert journey to Canaan (about a century later than Tutenkhamen).
The god Anubis in situ (left) and the king’s golden throne (right).
THE MUMMY MASK OF TUTANKHAMEN

The mummy mask is perhaps the most.famous of Tutankhamen’s treasures.
It is life-sized, measuring 54 x 39 cm, and weighs 11 kg. The headdress knot
ted back at the nape of the neck, is striped blue-green imitating lapis lazuli.
The brow is ornamented with a vulture head and the uraeus (sacred serpent)
in golden inlaid with semi-precious stones. The eyes are of obsidian and
quartz. The eye-lids and cosmetic lines are of inlaid blue glass. The divine
beard, plaited and turned up at the end, is made of coloured glass held in a
framework of gold (employing the cloisonne technique). The earlobes are
pierced for the wearing of earrings. The necklace collar consists of rows of
lapis lazuli, quartz, amazonite and coloured glass beads. It is attached at
each shoulder to a gold falcon’s head ornamented with obsidian.
120 Chapter six
The mummy mask o f Tutankhamen

The mummy of Ramses II

In our discussion o f the stele o f Memeptah (1236-1223 BCE) we saw
that he encountered ‘Israelites’ in Palestine whom he, according to
the stele, wiped from the earth (ch chapter four). Many scholars today
agree that Memeptah’s father, Ramses II must have been the Pharaoh
o f the exodus. His name is even reflected in the Old Testament tradi
tion (Ex 1:11), where mention is made o f the store-city o f ‘Raineses’.
Ramses II was indeed a prolific builder. During his reign of no less than
67 years (1304-1237 BCE), he built more temples and monuments than
any other pharaoh. Large statues and temples were erected in honour of
him (e g in Thebes, Sebua and Abu Simbel). He had numerous wives and
sired 195 children (according to tradition), many whom he outlived.
According to biblical tradition, the Pharoah and his soldiers drowned
in the Red Sea persecuting the Israelites. However, in Egyptian records,
we have no record o f this event. Although there were Asiatics that visit
ed Egypt from time to time (cf the discussion o f the Beni-Hasan mural in
chapter two), the stay of the Israelites in Egypt was, at least from the per
spective of Egyptian historians, a minor occurrence. We should also not
overlook the legendary traits in the biblical story o f the Exodus. Although
the event is deeply embedded in Israelite tradition and may refer to events
which a group of Hebrew slaves indeed experienced, the ‘official’ version
of the Exodus was written much later (during the Israelite monarchy at
the earliest) and reflected the needs and sentiments of the period in which
it was written. That the Pharaoh drowned in the Red Sea is therefore in
all likelihood an exaggeration of the later Israelite authors.
How this Pharaoh (due to his fame also called Ramses the Great)
came to his end we do not know. However, as is the case with many
Pharaohs, we have his mummy. At present it lies in state in the
Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The Egyptian practice of mummification,
which was done in accordance with certain religious beliefs, thus is the
cause of the fact that we today can have a glimpse of what the Pharaoh
looked like who oppressed the Israelites nearly 3300 years ago.
Like the pyramids, Egyptian mummies have caught the fascination
o f people all over the world. The question o f why and how the ancient
Egyptians succeeded in embalming their dead (which was not only
done to Pharaohs but also to ordinary people and even animals), no
one is able to answer absolutely.
122 Chapter six
The mummy of Ramses II before the removal o f its bandages (left) and
the mummy o f his father Setl I, just after opening (right).
Although Egypt is well-known for its preservation of bodies in the

form o f mummies, it is noteworthy that at its very earliest days, the dead
were cremated, after which the ashes were interred in mastabas. Mastabas
were vault-like mud-brick superstructures built above tombs (long shafts)
in ancient Egypt from which the pyramids developed. That mummifica
tion started simultaneously with the building o f the pyramids is under
standable since both were meant to facilitate the quest for immortality.
Unlike the ancient Israelites, the Egyptians had a very strong belief in
the afterlife. After escaping from the body at death, the soul was believed
to return to it again. The body therefore had to be prevented from falling
into dust, so that the soul could unite with it again. It was also important
that the soul should recognise the body, and to facilitate this anthropoid
coffins and mummy masks (e g that o f Tutankhamen above) which bear
the exact likeness of the king, were used in the burial process.
The Arabic word ‘mummy’ (from the Persian ‘mumiai ’) means ‘pitch’
or ‘asphalt’, presumably because mummies were coated with a layer of
black resin resembling pitch. The Greek author Herodotus’ (about 450
BCE) described the process o f mummification (see box), which is borne
out by modem study (as well as reliefs on the walls of tombs).
The process consisted of extracting the brain through the nose and
removing the abdominal organs (except the heart) through an incision
cut in the left flank of the body. The body was then placed in natron (a
compound o f sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate). It was
wrapped with many layers o f bandages with amulets and other precious
adornments. The internal organs were embalmed separately and put in
vessels known as Canopic jars (cf on Tutankhamen above). Much infor
mation (e g on diseases, genetic links and cranial reconstructions) can
today be gleaned from mummies through X-ray studies and autopsies.
In spite of the above information, the exact chemical formula or recipe
for mummification still eludes us. As soon as mummies are opened up
they start to deteriorate. K Lange, an Egyptologist, has observed that
‘... bodies have preserved so much of their original appearance that we'
must aver that we find many persons still living who look more decayed!’
Today scholars realise that the natural conditions played a much
greater role in mummification than what has been thought before. Just
as freezing produces mummification, the dry air o f the desert o f Egypt
did the same. In the 19th century, when mummies were in great demand,
many mummies were for sale, recently mummified by the desert.
124 Chapter six
The mummy o f Ramses II, Pharaoh o f the Exodus, after 3200 years.
HERODOTUS ON MUMMIFICATION
As much as possible from the brain is extracted through the nostrils with an
iron hook, and what the hook cannot reach is rinsed out with drugs; next the
flank is laid open with a flint knife and the whole contents of the abdomen
removed; the cavity is then thoroughly cleansed and washed out, first with
palm wine and again with infusion and pounded spices. After that it is filled
with pure bruised myrrh, cassia, and every other aromatic substance with the
exception of frankincense, and sewn up again, after which the body is placed
in natrum, covered entirely over, for seventy days - never longer. When this
period, which must not be exceeded, is over, the body is washed and then
wrapped from head to foot in linen cut into strips and smeared on the under
side with gum, which is commonly used by Egyptians instead of glue. In this
condition the body is given back to the family, who have a wooden case
made, shaped like the human figure, into which it is put. The case is then
sealed up, and stored in a sepulchral chamber, upright against a wall.
After mummification, the mummies fate was not finally sealed. Due
to the fact that precious adornments were put with the mummies in their
coffins, tomb robbers was a problem soon after the final entombment of
the kings. During the time o f Thutmose I (1525-1512 BCE) the practice
of pyramid building was abandoned and tombs for the Pharaohs were
cut into living rock in a secret place. Even this did not prevent tomb-
robbers from looting, and priests and officials started to remove the
mummies to what was thought to be more safe places. Mummies that
had been cut open and robbed, were again re-embalmed by priests,
something which could have become a continuous process.
An inscription on the bandages o f the mummy o f Ramses II reports
on the fate o f the king’s body. When his own tomb appeared to be
endangered, it was carried of to that o f his father, king Seti I. After fur
ther wanderings (to the tombs of princess Inhapi and king Amenotep I),
it was taken to a secret collective tomb in the cliff at Der-el-Bahri, near
present-day Luxor. There it was put amongst some forty other mum
mies, many of them great kings of Egypt like Seti I (1318-1304 BCE),
Amenhotep I (1546-1526 BCE) and Thutmose HI (1525-1512 BCE).
The desert cliff o f Der-el-Bahri contributed greatly to the preservation
of these mummies for nearly 3000 years. Here Ramses IPs mummy was
discovered on 5 July 1881 by Gaston Maspero, the then director o f the
Egyptian museum, and his assistant Emil Brugsch. Today it lies in the
Cairo museum, but has deteriorated greatly since its discovery.
126 Chapter six
Dog burials in Ashkelon

Ancient Ashkelon lies in the shape of a half bowl (size 54 ha) on the
Mediterranean coast in the south of Israel. It had been occupied since
about 3300 BCE by the Canaanites, and became a Philistine city in the
12th century BCE. The Philistines were exiled by king Nebuchadnezzar
o f Babylon in 604 BCE. When the Persians under Cyrus conquered the
Babylonians in 538 BCE, the Philistines did not return to Ashkelon and
disappeared from history. The city became Canaanite again, since the
Phoenicians occupied it and made it a flourishing commercial centre.
Within ancient Ashkelon at large, there are two smaller mounds next
to the coast. On the southern mound the excavators at Ashkelon made a
remarkable discovery. At a certain stage after a destruction of a large port
warehouse measuring about 30 x 20 m, the latter was not rebuilt, but lev
elled, and used for the burial of dogs. More than 800 dogs or remains of
dogs have been excavated thus far, making it (despite its short duration
o f about 50 years) the largest dog cemetery known in antiquity.
What struck the excavators immediately was that all the dogs were
buried with meticulous care, expressing a concern beyond that o f mere
companionship. Each dog was carefully placed on its side in a shallow
pit with its legs flexed and its tail tucked in around the hind legs. Fill from
the earlier warehouse was used to cover it. There were male and female
dogs, and 60-70 % were puppies, making for a normal mortality profile.
The dogs stood about 53 cm high and weighed 14 kg. They were similar
to the present-day Pariah D og (a Bedouin sheep dog), and could have
been used in the hunting o f hares, gazelles, and even lions, as depicted on
the so-called Alexander Sarcophagus from Sidon (4th century BCE).
Why were these dogs in Ashkelon? In an inscription the Persians
accused the Phoenicians o f Carthage of eating dogs, but there were no
butchery marks on the skeletons of the Ashkelon dogs. The dogs seem to
have died o f natural causes and the reverence with which they were
buried suggest that they were buried as corpses, not skeletons.
According to Lawrence Stager, excavator at Ashkelon, the reverend
way in which they were laid to rest suggest that these dogs were sacred.
That animals could function as gods is well-known amongst the
Egyptians, who also mummified them. However, neither were the
Ashkelon dogs mummified, nor were grave objects buried with them.
However, Stager’s suggestion is that they were used in a healing cult.
The remains o f a dog as it was buried in Ashkelon
Hunting scene on the Alexander Sarcophagus: Alexander the Great, the king
of Sidon and a dog (similar to the Ashkelon dogs) attacking a lion.
128 Chapter six
Probably because people observed dogs licking their wounds and

being healed, they started to believe that dogs have healing powers. To
support his theory, Stager refers to a limestone plaque that dates (as
Ashekelon’s cemetery) to about 450 BCE. It was found in 1869 in Kition
(Cypms), a great Phoenician port. The plaque contains a list o f temple
personnel associated with Astarte, the goddess o f fertility (cf on Artemis
in chapter five) and the god o f plague and healing, Reshep-Mukol (the
Phoenician counterpart o f Appollo). Amongst the temple personnel, dogs
(klbm) and puppies (grm) are also mentioned. This led Stager to conclude
that the dogs o f Kition (and Ashkelon), were used in a Phoenician heal
ing cult. It could be to such a cult that Deuteronomy 23:18 refers nega
tively (the wages o f a dog should not be brought into Yahweh’s house).
The existence o f such a cult of healing involving dogs is not uncom
mon in the ancient Near East. At Isin (near Nippur) 33 dog burials, simi
lar to those at Ashkelon, were excavated near a temple o f Gulu, the god
dess of healing. The emblem o f this goddess is a dog and her temple is
often referred to in cuneiform writing as ‘D og House’ (E-ur-gi-ra).
Although the above theory is a plausibility in view o f the available
archaeological evidence, it is by no means proven. No temple has thus
far been found which could be associated with the Ashekelon’s dogs. If
such a temple is found (which according to Stager is still a possibility),
much weight w ill be added to the ‘healing cult’ theory. Furthermore, the
cemetery lasted for a mere 50 years, which is unusual for religious insti
tutions. It should also be asked why the cemetery would have been
erected on this specific spot which was so crucial to the commercial
activities o f the Phoenicians, It is also a crucial question why there were
so many dogs, which are not absolutely needed by a healing cult.
Other possibilities should also be considered for solving the mystery of
Ashkelon’s dogs. A simple solution would be the existence o f a dog
breeding project on a large scale for commercial purposes. From the port
the dogs were probably exported, and could have been used for hunting
as w ell as healing cults, depending on the demand. The fact that the dog
cemetery existed only for a short period of time could be explained in
terms of the unsuccessfulness o f the project, also corroborated by the
many burials. That the dogs were respectfully buried don’t need a reli
gious explanation, but could be directly related to the attitude towards
dogs o f the person(s) responsible for the burials, since human fondness o f
dogs in ancient times is w ell attested (e g on a Greek inscription).
Crucifixion - the most horrible death

Apart from the Gospels’ account o f the crucifixion o f Jesus, we know
from many other written records that crucifixion was a Roman way of
punishment and execution, especially o f non-Roman criminals and polit
ical rebels. Despite the available information, it was only in 1968 that an
archaeological discovery which bears evidence o f crucifixion was made
by Vassilios Tzaferis in a Jewish cemetery north-east o f Jerusalem in an
area called G iv’at ha-Mivtar. The find consisted o f the heel bones pierced
by an 12-18 cm nail, belonging to a Jew from a relatively wealthy family
(they could afford ossuaries) who lived between 1-70 CE in Jerusalem.
The heel bones belonged to a young man o f 24-28 years. The nail
pinning the heels together was first driven through the right foot and
then through the left. From the way the two bones were joined
together, Tzaferis and a m edical anthropologist, N ico Haas, attempt
ed to reconstruct the awkward position in which the man (named
Yehohanan ben Hagakol on his ossuary) w as forced onto the cross.
Heel bones of Yehohanan ben-Hagakol pierced by a nail during crucifixion.

130 Chapter six
CRUCIFIXION IN ANCIENT TIMES

T h e G re e k w ords u sed to re fe r to crucifixion a re stauros (= 'upright p ole') and stau-
rein (= to p ut up posts'). E sp ecially em p loyed b y th e R o m an s, crucifixion w a s prob
ab ly inven ted b y th e P ersian s and also practised b y th e A ssyrians, P h oenicians,
S eleu cid s a n d P tolem ies.
O n th e basis o f D eu tero n o m y 2 2 2 2 -2 3 (‘an im p aled bod y is a n affront to G od ',
crucifixion w a s a s h a m e for Je w s. T h e y w e re forbidden to p ractice it an d w h en it h ap
p en ed to th e m it w a s exp erien ced a s u tter hum iliation. S toning w a s th e Jew s’ usual
m etho d o f execu tio n . T h e s e Jew ish law s w e re tran sg ressed b y A lexan d er Jan n aeu s
w h o (prob ably d u e to R o m an influence) crucified 8 0 0 Jew ish rebels w h o revolted
a g ain st a cen su s in 7 C E .
T o w a rd s th e e n d o f th e firs t c e n tu ry B C E th e R o m a n s e m p lo y e d cru cifixio n
n o t s o m u ch to w a rd s R o m a n c itiz e n s , b u t to w a rd s fo re ig n s la v e s c o n v ic te d of
c rim e s , p o litic a l c a p tiv e s , re b e ls o r fu g itiv e s . T h is co u ld h a v e h a p p e n e d o n a
m a s s s c a le , a s in th e c a s e o f th e re v o lt le d b y S p a rta c u s in 71 B C E , w h e n th e
ro a d fro m C a p u a to R o m e w a s lin e d w ith 6 0 0 0 re b e ls on c ro s s e s . In 7 C E
Q u in tiliu s V a ru s c ru c ifie d 2 0 0 0 J e w is h re b e ls in J e ru s a le m a n d in th e Je w ish
w a r (a b o u t 7 0 C E ) 5 0 0 J e w s p e r d a y w e re cru c ifie d .
In tim es of w a r this could h ave h ap p en ed w ithout follow ing prescribed rules.
O th erw ise o nly R o m an procurators (such a s P ilate) could im p ose th e d eath p en alty
in foreig n regions, w ith b asic rules th a t n eed ed to b e follow ed.
U n d e r th e s u p e rv is io n o f th e camifex serarum th e c o n d e m n e d p ers o n to b e
c ru c ifie d w a s ta k e n o u t o f th e trib u n a l h a ll, s trip p e d , tie d to a co lu m n an d
s c o u rg e d w ith a s tic k o r a flagellum (= a kin d o f w h ip w ith a s h o rt h a n d le w ith
s e v e ra l lo n g , th ic k th o n g s w ith le a d o r b o n e tip s a t th e ir e n d s ). In th e in itial
p h a s e s o f c ru cifixio n th e c rim in a l o fte n o n ly h ad to w a lk (w ith th e tra n s v e rs e
b e a m (L a tin = 'furca' or ‘patibulum) tie d w ith ro p e s o n h is s h o u ld e rs ) b e tw e e n
o n -lo o k in g s p e c ta to rs in th e n e ig b o u rh o o d p ro c la im in g h is o ffe n c e . T h is h u m il
ia tio n w a s th e e s s e n c e o f th e p u n is h m e n t. S o m e tim e s th e p ers o n co u ld b e tie d
to a v e rtic a l b e a m , w ith o u t h av in g to c a n y th e h o rizo n ta l b e a m a ro u n d .
A s cru c ifix io n d e v e lo p e d in to fu ll-s c a le e x e c u tio n , th e c o n d e m n e d h ad to
c a n y th e h o rizo n ta l b e a m b e tw e e n ro w s o f s p e c ta to rs to th e c ru cifixio n s ite o u t
s id e th e c ity . T h e p ro ce s s io n w a s le a d b y a s o ld ie r c a rry in g th e titulus (in scrip
tio n o n w o o d to b e fa s te n e d to th e c ro s s ) s ta tin g th e v ic tim ’s n a m e a n d o ffe n s e .
O fte n th e tra n s v e rs e b e a m w a s m e re ly a tta c h e d to th e c ro s s a n d th e fe e t w e re
tie d w ith ro p e s , w ith o u t n a ils b ein g u se d . If n a ils w e re u se d th e v ictim w a s laid
o n th e g ro u n d a n d n a ils w e re d riv e n th ro u g h th e a rm s o r h a n d s . W ith th e
a tta c h m e n t o f th e c ro s s b e a m to th e u p rig h t, th e v ic tim w a s p la c e d o n a s e a t
(sedile) to s u p p o rt th e b o d y ’s w e ig h t. T h e fe e t w e re th e n d ire c tly n a ile d in to th e
v e rtic a l b e a m , u sin g a suppedaneum o r fo o t su p p o rt.
W itho ut th e sedile an d suppedaneum th e person w ould d ie w ithin a fe w hours
fro m m u scular sp asm s an d asp h yxia (= lack of oxygen in the blood d u e to restricted
respiration). T h e s e d evices th erefo re served th e prolonging o f th e infliction. D eath
w ou ld th e n only re le a s e th e victim a fte r abo ut th re e d ays, com ing abo ut through dif
ficulty in breath ing an d th e sto p p ag e of blood circulation (ra th e r than loss o f blood).
According to Tzaferis and Haas the nail was driven through a

wooden plaque, then through the heel bones and then into the vertical
beam o f the cross. What happened then facilitated the preservation o f this
witness to the crucifixion. The nail tip hit a knot in the beam and it curled.
It was so attached to the beam that it could not be pulled out normally,
and the legs had to be amputated for burial by chopping them off with an
axe, causing fractions in the rest o f Yehohanan’s legs as well. The
remains o f the heel bones and nail, the plaque and the beam o f the cross
were then buried together with the rest o f the bodily remains. The beam
and the plaque perished and the heel bones and nail were found (joined
together by the nail) in one o f the eight ossuaries o f the fam ily tomb.
Statistics about the fam ily tomb provided some further information.
Seventeen people were buried in the tomb, o f which five died before the
age o f seven, 12 before age 37 and only two passed the age o f 50.
Yehohanan was the only one crucified. His remains were found in an
ossuary bearing his name in chamber B o f the tomb (see diagram).
Tomb 1 at Giv'at ha-Mivtar with 13 burial niches (= loculi) where the bodies
were laid. After the deterioration was completed, the skeletal remains were
collected in ossuaries. Yehohanan’s ossuary was on the floor of Chamber B.
132 Chapter six
Yehohanan’s heel bones were attached on their inside surfaces by one

nail, which has the implication that his legs were together on the cross.
Since the nail was not fastened tightly to the cross, there must have been
a small seat (Latin = sedile) fastened to the vertical beam on which
Yehohanan sat to prevent the feet and arms from tearing loose and the
body thus collapsing from the cross. The sedile was not meant for alle
viating the victim s suffering, but to prolong and increase it. The seat
often had a protrusion which tormented the crucified’s buttocks. In order
to sit in this way, Yehohanan’s legs were sem i-flexed (cf drawing),
which according to Tzaferis is confirmed by the bone fractures o f both
legs which occurred during the amputation.
Reconstruction of Yehohanan’s crucifixion: the arms nailed through the arms

above the wrist; the heel bones nailed together to the vertical beam; the legs
bent and twisted sidewards and the sadile supporting his left buttock.
The arms could have been fastened to the cross bar with ropes. Since a
scratch was found on the radius (a bone o f the forearm) which Tzaferis
believes to be caused by the friction o f the nail being hammered,
Yohanan’s arms seem to have been pinned to the cross by nails driven
between the two bones o f the forearm (the radius and the ulna). The nails
were thus not driven through his hands, which is the way Jesus’ crucifix
ion is often depicted by artists through the centuries. If there were nails
through Jesus’ hands (as suggested in the Bible), his arms must have been
tied to the cross bar with ropes also, since the weight o f the body would
tom the palms o f the hands if they alone were pinned to the cross.
The fact that Yehohanan’s legs were amputated and heavily fractured,
seems to confirm the Jewish tradition regarding burial on the day of execu
tion (cf Jn 31:19). Romans normally left the crucified on the cross (even for
days) to die eventually of exhaustion and asphyxia. Jewish persons’ legs were
broken to hasten death in order to make the burial on the same day possible.
Tzaferis’s reconstruction seems to be warranted by much o f the archae
ological evidence, but is not without its problems. Scholars have chal
lenged the above reconstruction. According to them the scratch marks on
Yehohanan’s radius represent too scanty evidence to conclude that his
arms were nailed to the crossbeam. He could just as w ell have been tied
by ropes. It is also asserted that the nail through the heel bones was too
short (in fact it is asserted that the nail was only 12 cm long) to have
pierced through a plague and two heel bones and into the vertical beam.
The remains o f the left heel is very little and need not be the left heel at
all. Yehohanan’s heels thus could have straddled the vertical beam and
each individual heel could have been nailed separately to the vertical
beam. Another view is that the man was crucified upside down. In this
case there would have been two crossbeams and Yehohanan’s legs (joined
by the nail in the heals) were simply hooked over the extra crossbeam.
There seem to have been various possible ways in which a person
could be crucified in the first century CE, and even Yehohanan’s heel
bones with the nail pierced through them could be interpreted in various
ways. Whatever the method follow ed for the crucifixion o f Yehohanan
or Jesus, or the many other crucified persons o f the first century, schol
ars and lay people alike would concur with the Latin author Cicero who
typified crucifixion as ‘the m ost cruel and abominable penalty’
{crudelissimum taeterrimumque supplicum, Verr V 64, 165).
134 Chapter six
The tombs of Jesus

To visit the tombs o f deceased people in order to show them reverence is a
universal phenomenon. Not surprising therefore that visiting Jesus’ tomb
is usually on any itinerary o f Christians pilgrims to Jerusalem. However,
today two tombs contend to be the authentic burial place of Jesus.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is located in a densely built-up
area within the present w alls (built in the 15th century) o f the Old
City o f Jerusalem. We have record going back to the fourth century
that Jesus was buried here. It therefore dates back long before the
Protestant era, and today is com m only owned by the Roman Catholic,
Armenian, Greek Orthodox and Coptic Churches.
In the year 326 CE, Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor
(ruled 306-337 CE) decided to built a church in Jerusalem in honour o f
the resurrection. Contemporary Christians claim ed that the actual tomb
o f Jesus was underneath a temple built by Emperor Hadrian after the
Second Jewish Revolt (132-135 CE) for the goddess o f love, Venus.
A tomb was indeed exposed by Constantine’s workers who cut the
rock around the tomb away. A shrine was erected with a ring o f p il
lars and outer w all supporting a dome above it. A garden was layed
out next to the shrine and a large church was built. A rocky outcrop
in the vicinity was regarded as the site o f Calvary.
Through the centuries the burial com plex suffered severe damage
through enem y attacks, earthquakes and fires. In 1009 CE the M uslim
Caliph Hakim totally dem olished the rock containing the tomb. The
Church o f the H oly Sepulchre was repeatedly rebuilt on the same
spot, am ongst others by the Crusaders who captured Jerusalem from
the M oslem s. Today pilgrim s still form long queues to enter this tomb
in the church with its many styles and designs.
According to John 19:20, Jesus was crucified outside the city w alls
and Jew ish law did not allow for burials within the city. In order to
qualify for being Jesus’ tomb, the site o f the Church o f the H oly
Sepulchre must have been outside the city w alls as they were located
during the tim e o f Jesus. The present-day city w alls, built by the
Turkish Sultan Suleim an the M agnificent between 1537 and 1540
includes the H oly Sepulchre. The crucial question thus is where the
northern w all was 2000 years ago.
Excavations at the present-day Damascus gate in the 1960’s indicat

ed that in the first century CE Herod Agrippa I laid the foundation o f a
m assive new city wall which he never completed. At the time o f the cru
cifixion, the northern wall was therefore in all probability south o f the
present Damascus Gate, since the building o f a new w all usually implied
the expansion o f the city. The existing w all or border o f the city could
therefore have been south o f the Church o f the H oly Sepulchre. That
Josephus locates the w all near the Temple, adds to this probability.
Excavations were done near and within the Church. Quarries were
found containing pottery dating to the 7th and 1st century CE. In all like
lihood these quarries would have been outside the city hall. They are said
to have functioned as a garden in the 1st century, thus increasing the pos
sibility that Jesus’ tomb could indeed have been located there. The dis
covery o f a typical 1st century rock tomb leading directly from the Church
(called the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea) at least indicates that at a certain
stage this vicinity was indeed used as a cemetery. Although only an
inscription bearing the name of Joseph of Arimathea can prove the matter
finally, all the evidence available seems to support the claim o f the Church
of the Holy Sepulchre to contain Jesus’ original tomb. It should be empha
sised that the evidence is scanty and could also be interpreted otherwise.
Plan of the Old City o f Jerusalem, showing the Church o f the Holy Sepulchre.
136 Chapter six
Just north of the Damascus Gate and the Old City walls, lies a peace
ful garden which contains a burial cave known as the Garden Tomb.
Many Christians (m ostly Protestants) believe that Jesus was buried here.
Two places pretending to be Jesus’ burial place: the Church of the Holy
Sepulchre and the Garden Tomb.
First discovered in 1867 by a fanner who wanted to build a cistern,

the tomb was described twice by a German missionary, Conrad Schick,
who made no connection with the tomb o f Jesus. The latter suggestion
was first made by General Charles Gordon, who was famous for his
military role in the Crimean war, Egypt and China. He came to
Jerusalem in 1883 and was a person with an amateur interest in bibli
cal and archaeological matters. Inspired by the name Golgotha, which
is translated ‘Skull H ill’ in the Gospels (Mt 27:33; Mk 15:22; Lk
23:33), Gordon identified a rocky outcrop to the north o f the present-
day (Turkish) city wall as Golgotha. This outcrop has two caves, which
with som e imagination can be interpreted as a skull (the two caves rep
resenting the eye sockets). Gordon furthermore postulated a human
skeleton which covered the ancient city: the skull north o f the city
w alls, the pelvis at the Dom e o f the Rock (the location o f Solom on’s
tem ple), the legs on the City o f David and the feet at the pool o f
Siloam . Gordon in other words reckoned that the people o f Jesus’ day
also imagined this skeleton, and named the hill Golgotha (‘Skull H ill’).
To the w est o f this hill, the Garden Tomb had already been discovered,
and Gordon im m ediately designated it as the tomb o f Jesus.
However, there is no evidence for Gordon’s assertions, nor had he
investigated the hill (which he designated) at all. It was a quarry where
lim estone had probably been dug, long after the 1st century. Nor did
Gordon make any proper archaeological evaluation o f the Garden Tomb.
The Garden Tomb actually dates back to the Iron A ge (7th to 6th cen
tury BCE). Entering the tomb one finds oneself immediately in the north
ern burial chamber with a southern one next to it. This in itself indicates
that the tomb does not date from Jesus’ day, since during the Second
Temple Period the one chamber would have been behind the other (cf the
tomb at G iv’at ha-Mivtar above). Although one cannot see them today,
these chambers had burial benches with horse-shoe shaped headrests
typical o f the Iron Age. In Jesus’ time corpses were laid to rest in loculi
or burial niches, and not burial benches. In the inner chamber, where
Jesus is thought to have been buried, there had been three benches. In the
Byzantine period (4th century BCE) these benches were carved away to
form troughs, where burials were made according to the customs of the
day. The tomb was therefore only reused in the 4th century CE as is also
evident from crosses made against the walls. The flat ceiling is typical of
Iron A ge tombs, whereas original Byzantine tombs had vaulted ceilings.
Objects excavated (a clay animal and bed) in the tomb clearly resemble
objects from the Iron Age. Finally the tomb resembles Iron Age tombs
discovered in the nearby grounds o f the Ecole Biblique, a French institu
tion promoting the study o f the Bible. They form part o f the same tomb-
complex and were cut from the same escarpment.
The fact that what was initially known as ‘Gordon’s tomb’ became
the ‘Garden Tomb’ (note the pun!), can be explained in terms o f the pop
ularity o f General Gordon (earned on the battlefield and not with the
archaeological spade) and the need amongst Protestants to visit Jesus’
burial place as they imagined it from their reading of the Gospels: situ
ated in a serene Garden and not in a Church with gaudy colours where
black-robed priests vie for the rights to sell candles to pilgrims.
The dispute on the exact locality o f Jesus’ tomb is not unique to
Christianity, but rather typical o f it. A confrontation with the evidence
com pels Christians to reflect on what Christianity is really ab out...
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Allan, T (ed) 1986. Israel. Amsterdam: Time-Life Books.

Amiran, R 1969. Ancient pottery o f the Holy Land. Jerusalem: Masada Press.
Bahat, D 1986. Does the Holy Sepulchre Church mark the burial of Jesus?
Biblical Archaeology Review 12(3), 26-45.
Barkay, G 1986. The Garden Tomb: Was Jesus buried here?
Biblical Archaeology Review. 12(2) 40-57.
Baseman, B [s a]. Masada: Pictorial guide and souvenir. Phalphot Ltd.
Belt, D 1998. Petra: Ancient city of stone. National Geographic 194 (6). 116-133.
Ben-Tor, A 1992. The Archaeology of ancient Israel. London: Yale University press.
Bimson, J 1985. The New Bible Atlas. Mowbray: Protestant Book Centre.
Carpiceci, A C 1994. Art and history o f Egypt. Florence: Bonechi.
Casson, L 1966. Ancient Egypt. Amsterdam: Tim e-life Books.
Ceram, CW 1958. A picture history o f archaeology. London: Thames and Hudson
Clacherty, G & Ludlow, H 1995. Looking into the past: Grade 5. Longman:
Maskew Miller.
Coogan, M 1995. Ten great finds. Biblical Archaeology Review. 21 (3) 36-47
De Vaux, R 1973. Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls. London: Oxford
University Press.
Dever, W G 1990. Recent archaeological discoveries and biblical research.
Washington: University of Washington Press.
Finkelstein, I & Ussishkin, D 1994. Back to Megiddo. Biblical Archaeology
Review, 20 (1), 26-49.
Fritz, V 1994. An introduction to Biblical Archaeology. Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press.
Fritz, V 1987. Kleine Lexikon der Biblischen Archaologie. Konstanz: Christliche
Verlagsanstalt.
Fritz, V 1987. What can archaeology tell us about Solomon’s temple? Biblical
Archaeolgy Review. 13(4), 38-49.
Galling, K (Hrsg) 1977. Biblisches Reallexikon. Tubingen: J C B Mohr.
Gartner, O & Hassenpflug, W [s a] Baedeker’s, Israel: The complete illustrated
Israel travel guide. New York: Jarrod and Sons Ltd.
Geva, H 1993. Jerusalem. The New Encyclopedia o f Archaeological
Excavations in the Holy Land. 2, 698-716.
Gilbertson, M T 1959. The way it was in Bible times. Minneapolis: Augsburg.
Haddad, D & El-Haris, M 1993. Petra: A guide to the rose-red city. Amman: S.N.
138
Heaton, E W [s a], Het dagelijks leven in de tijd van het Oude Testament. Baam:
Bosch & Keuning.
The Israel Museum, Jerusalem 1997. New Antiquities: Recent discoveries from
archaeological excavations in Israel. Jerusalem: The Israel Museum.
Kempinski, A 1986. Megiddo; A city-state and royal centre in North Israel.
Miinchen: C H Beck.
Kempinski, A & Reich, R (eds) 1992. The architecture o f ancient Israel.
Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society.
Kenyon, K 1970. Archaeology in the Holy Land. London: Benn.
Le Roux, C 1994. Die klippe roep dit uit: Argeologie en die Nuwe testament.
Pretoria: C B Powell-Bybelsentrum, Unisa.
Mazar, A 1990. Archaeology o f the land o f the Bible, 10,000-586 BCE. New York:
Doubleday.
Millard, A 1985. Treasures from Bible times. Oxford: Lion Publishing.
Millard, A 1990. Discoveries from the time o f Jesus. Oxford: Lion Publishing.
Moorey, R 199. A century o f Biblical Archaeology. Cambridge: Lutterworth Press.
Moorey, R 1981. Excavation in Palestine. Guildford, Surrey: Lutterworth
Negev, A. Petra. The New Encyclopedia o f Archaeological Excavations in the
Holy Ixind. 4, 1181-1193.
Netzer, E & Weiss, Z 1994. Zippori. Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society.
Pritchard, J B 1954. The ancient Near East in pictures relating to the Old
Testament. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Pritchard, J B (ed) 1969. Ancient near Eastern Texts relating tot he Old Testament.
Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Pritchard, J B (ed) 1987. The Times Atlas o f the Bible. London: Times Books Limited.
Rienecker, F & Maier, G 1994. lexikon zur Bibel. Wuppertal: Brockhaus Verlag.
Rogerson, J & Davies P R 1996. Was the Siloam tunnel built by Hezekiah?
Biblical Archaeologist. 59(3), 138-149.
Saleh, M & Sourouzian, H 1987. Official catalogue: The Egyptian Museum Cairo.
Mainz: Philipp von Zabem.
Scheepers, C & Scheffler, E 2000. From Dan to Beersheba: An archaeological
tour through ancient Israel. Biblia Publishers.
Schneider, T 1995. Did Jehu kill his own family? Biblical Archaeology Review.
21(1), 26-33.
Schoors, A 1986. Berseba - De opgraving van een bijbelse stad. Kampen: Kok.
Shalmon, M P & Dever, W G 1973. Biblical Archaeology. Jerusalem: Keter
Publishing House.
Shanks, H (ed) 1988. Mosaic masterpiece dazzles Sepphoris volunteers. Biblical
Archaeology Review. 14(1), 30-33.
139
Shanks, H 1998. The Mystery and Meaning o f the Dead Sea Scrolls. New York:
Random House.
Shiloh, Y 1981. Megiddo. The New Encyclopedia o f Archaeological
Stager, L E 1991. Why were hundreds of dogs buried at Ashkelon? Biblical
Archaeology Review 17(3), 26-42.
Stegemann, H 1998. The Library o f Qumran. New York: Eerdmans.
Stem, E (ed) 1993. The New Encyclopedia o f Archaeological Excavations in the
Holy Land. (4 Vols.) Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society.
Stern, E 1998. Buried Treasure: The silver hoard from Dor. Biblical
Archaeological Review. 24(4), 46-51.
Thomas, D W 1958. Documents from Old testament Times. New York: Harper
& Row.
Tzaferis, V 1985. Crucifition - the archaeological evidence. Biblical
Archaeology Review. 11(1), 44-53.
Vermes, G 1997. The complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English. London: Penguin
Books Ltd.
Ussishkin, D 1993. Lachish. The New Encyclopedia o f Archaeological
Ussishkin, D 1982. The conquest o f Lachish by Sennacherib. Tel Aviv: Institute
of archaeology of Tel Aviv university.
Weeks, K R 1998. Valley of the Kings. National Geographic. 194(3), 4-33.
Weippert, H 1988. Palastina in Vorhellenistischer Zeit. Miinchen: C H Beck.
Weiss, Z 1993. Sepphoris. The New Encyclopedia o f Archaeological
Excavations in the Holy Land. 4, 1324-1328
Wright, G E 1962. Biblical Archaeology. London: Duckworth.
Yadin, Y 1973. Masada: Herod’s fortress and the Zealots’ last stand. London:
Cardinal.
Yadin, Y 1980. New light on Solomon’s Megiddo. Biblical Archaeologist.
23(2), 62-68.
140
THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL PERIODS
Bronze Age (Canaanite Period)
Early Bronze Age IA-B 3300-3000 BCE

Early Bronze Age n 3000-2700
Early Bronze Age III 2700-2200
Middle Bronze Age I
(EB IV-Intermediate Bronze) 2200-2000
Middle Bronze Age IIA 2000-1750
Middle Bronze Age IIB 1750-1550
Late Bronze Age I 1550-1400
Late Bronze Age IIA 1400-1300
Late Bronze Age IIB 1300-1200
Iron Age ( Israelite Period)
Iron Age IA 1200-1150

Iron Age IB 1150-1000
Iron Age IIA 1000-900
Iron Age IIB 900-700
Iron Age IIC 700-586
Babylonian and Persian Periods 586-332
Hellenistic Period
Early Hellenistic period 332-167

Late Hellenistic period 167-37
Roman and Byzantine Periods
Early Roman period 37 BCE-132 CE

Herodian period 37 BCE-79 CE
Late Roman period 132-324
Byzantine period 324-638
Harly Arab to Ottoman Periods 638-1917 CE
141
The biblical world: countries around the Mediterranean
142
The biblical world: Mesopotamia
143
Sidon
D am ascus •
S Y R IA
G e ra s a
JerichcK AM MON
• N ebo
• D ib o n
MOAB
The biblical world: Palestine
144
FASCINATING DISCOVERIES FROM
THE BIBLICAL WORLD
In the past two centuries; numerous archaeological discoveries have been
made in countries linked to the people of whom we read in the Bible. A
selection of the most fascinating of these are discussed in this volume.
About the author

I 'ben Sehefiler teaches Old Testament and Biblical
Archaeology at the Univ ersity of South Africa. He
has a special interest in the politics, culture, religion
and literature of the peoples of the biblical world
and the ancient Near bast.
19 7 8 0 6 2 0 2 5 2 4 0 9 >

FASCINATING DISCOVERIES From The Ancient World Biblical Archaelogy

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

FASCINATING DISCOVERIES From The Ancient World Biblical Archaelogy

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

FASCINATING DISCOV ERIES FROM

THE BIBLICAL WORLD

THE BIBLICAL WORLD

First edition, first impression 2000

1 DAILY LIFE: WORK AN D PLAY 9

2 ART FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD 31

3 ARCHITECTURE FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD 50

4 WRITINGS FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD 75

6 ON DEATH A N D DYING 116

In the past two centuries numerous archaeological discoveries were made

DAILY LIFE: WORK AND PLAY

Pottery for various uses

(1) The bowl was one o f the most common

(cf Is 51:17, 22). In Genesis 44:2, 12 and 16 reference is also made

(8) The spouted ja r belongs to the same genre

(11) A pyxis (from the Greek, pi = pixides )

The storehouses of Megiddo and Beersheba

1 Kings 9:15 refers to the building works o f Solomon at Megiddo

Since Solomon’s reign is thought to fall within this period, scholars

Remains of the three pillared buildings at Beersheba

The excavation in the 1970’s o f three similar pillared buildings

square, adjacent to the city-gate. Hundreds o f household vessels in

Reconstruction o f one of Beersheba's storehouses. The side halls had a

The pool, tunnel and inscription of Siloam

THE SILOAM INSCRIPTION

Photo of the Siloam inscription.

Facsimile of the text of the Siloam inscription in ancient Hebrew.

Various biblical texts relate to the pool and tunnel of Siloam.

Inside the Siloam tunnel (also known as Hezekiah's tunnel)

On the basis o f the biblical text the digging of the Siloam,tunnel

The silver hoard of Dor

Tel Dor is the site of an ancient harbour town on the Mediterranean

o f Canaanites founded a town there. During Iron A ge I (1200-1000

The silver hoard had been divided into 17 units o f approximately

Polished and cleaned pieces of Tel Dor’s silver h o a rd .

Laboratory analyses showed that the silver contains a gold content of

An ivory game board from Megiddo

The ‘game of 58 holes’ found amongst Megiddo's ivory treasure.

ART FROM THE BIBLICAL WORLD

The Beni Hasan mural

An ivory knife handle from Megiddo

The Megiddo ivory (probably a knife handle) depicting a victory celebration.

Two scenes were carved on the ivory, complimenting one another.

after a victorious expedition (first scene) and the subsequent celebration

The Black Obelisk

Sir Austen Henry Layard (1817-

From the perspective o f ancient Israelite history the second regis­

Tribute o f Jehu, son o f Omri. Silver, gold, a golden bowl, golden

The Lachish reliefs - history in stone

The third scene o f the Lachish reliefs: The storming o f Lachish.

These machines were apparently constructed of flammable materials,

set them on fire by a shower of firebrands thrown from above. As a

Reconstruction of Lachish (level IV-III) before it was conquered in 701 BCE.

two separate scenes, each representing a different stage in the con­

The fourth scene of the Lachish reliefs: Booty-bearers and deportees.

The mosaics of Sepphoris

Reconstruction o f the northern part o f the Roman villa at Sepphoris contain­

The bathing o f Dionysos after his birth with Greek inscription

What archaeologists described as ‘the most exquisite feature o f the

The remains o f buildings represents some o f the most important and

The Giza pyramids and sphinx

HERODOTUS ON THE BUILDING OF THE PYRAMIDS

Being stepped-stoned structures, pyramids were basically the

From the perspective o f ancient Israelite history the second regis

two separate scenes, each representing a different stage in the con

Reconstruction o f the northern part o f the Roman villa at Sepphoris contain

found in Northern Syria. Having originated in Anatolia in the third mil

to have erroneously received the honour for the building achieve