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Usshishkin 1976
Usshishkin 1976
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Royal Judean Storage Jars and
Private Seal Impressions
DAVID USSISHKIN
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DAVID USSISHKIN BASOR 223
0 iOcm\
I I , I
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1976 ROYAL JUDEAN STORAGE JARS AND PRIVATE SEAL IMPRESSIONS 3
(Tufnell's
the study of the royal storage jars and their Type
date.484), and the sole complete storage
This is in fact the principal Judean sitejar whichthese
where carries a private stamp is of that type
jars have been found in situ in a well-defined
(Diringer 1941: 43-44, pl. 3: 9;Inge 1941: 107, pl. 10;
stratigraphic context, and hence the Tufnell 1953: 109, 341, pls. 47A:9, 78:1, 5). Second,
destruction
date of Level III becomes crucially important for of the handles with private stamps
the distribution
fixing the chronology of the royal storagematches
jars.that
Theof the royal stamps. Storage jar
handlesissue,
destruction date of Level III is a controversial with private stamps are known from
and it is hoped that the renewed excavations various sites in Judah, and those sites which
will
uncover new data which will enable us to settle this produced a considerable number of royal stamps
point conclusively. also produced handles with private stamps.
Even before the discovery of the two royal storageMoreover, in some cases handles with the same
jars mentioned above, it was quite clear, on purely private stamp were discovered at different sites; e.g.,
archeological grounds, that the royal and privatethe handles stamped Itnhm mgn which were found
stamps were related to each other (Aharoni 1964:at Lachish, Ramat Rahel, and Gibeon (Diringer
61; 1967: 103; Naveh 1968: 72-73, n. 26). First, the1941: 41-42, pl. 3:7; Tufnell 1953: 341, pl. 47A:7;
storage jar handles with private stamps are similar Aharoni 1964: 32, fig. 37:5, pl. 40:5; Pritchard 1959:
in type to the handles of the royal storage jars 29, figs. 10:8, 11:8) and are an indication that the
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4 DAVID USSISHKIN BASOR 223
O 10cm.
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1976 ROYAL JUDEAN STORAGE JARS AND PRIVATE SEAL IMPRESSIONS 5
.iv. .
AN'; I.i
.I U
.... ":.
;; . . ? a?:
L.
tk. Ab.
. .. .. . . .. ..
*?? . , ..,I . , .
. . ' . ...4j
.- , . . " ,.... . .. .
J4.:.
storage jars which carried these stamps must have in the same context. It must be borne in mind that it
originated from central workshops, like the royal is impossible to prove the point. One can use shape,
storage jars. Third, one storage jar handle from size, color, material, texture, etc., to demonstrate
Ramat Rahel carries two impressions, one of a royal the similarity between different handles, thus
stamp with a two-winged symbol, and one of a indicating that none of these factors is an obstacle to
private stamp which reads lnr ? bn' (Aharoni 1962: attributing the handles to the same jar, but that is as
16-17, fig. 14:2, pl. 6:2). far as we can go. It has to be remembered that
Our storage jars introduce a decisive datum theoretically even identical handles could have
which sheds new light on the relationship between belonged to different storage jars.
the royal and private stamps. It is now clear that in Locus 1089 at Lachish is a room situated beside
at least two cases royal stamps and private stamps the road which leads into the city from the inner city
impressed on separate handles belong to the same gate of Level III (Tufnell 1953: 124-25, pl. 114). It
storage jar. This conclusion is now certain with the had a mud floor and brick walls on stone
restoration of the storage jars; had this not been foundations. Pottery vessels and other objects
possible, the different handles would probably have found on or above the floor, crushed and cov
been regarded as belonging to separate storagejars. the debris which filled the room when the ci
Therefore, the new datum immediately raises the Level III was destroyed. Three handles with
question of whether there are similar cases in which stamps of three different kinds, three handle
handles with both royal and private stamps private stamps of three different kinds, and a
belonged to the same storage jar but are not with an illegible stamp were registered by
considered as such because only the stamped excavators (cf. the list of finds in Tufnell 1953
handles were preserved and not thejars. There are in In addition, another handle carrying the p
fact a few examples where this may have been the stamp mglm :hymlk was discovered in this
case, in which handles of both types were discovered few years ago by H. Geva during a study v
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6 DAVID USSISHKIN BASOR 223
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1976 ROYAL JUDEAN STORAGE JARS AND PRIVATE SEAL IMPRESSIONS 7
?.: :..i
1'::
'it
.ii:?i. .~?PPPIM Iiii. P I:Mls
.,.~~~... ,,i:~~iii~ ?c :
4 tQ
s,
Fig. 5. Handle no. 860 from Tell Beit Mirsim stamped Plyqm ncr ywkn.
fsf: f
WE
.... ~r~i
:M usf
room is enclosed by
distinguished two levels with a
identical pottery, stone
and w
the fourth the handle with the is
side private stamp
wide was found in the open a
The area outside
upper one: "The pottery of the the lower level inroom
this p
entrance, may well have been considered by area is identical in character with the pottery above
Albright as part of the same locus. The stone walls it, and the latter includes two stamped jar handles
of the room were apparently preserved to a height ofbearing the impression of the seal of Eliakim..."
about 90 cm. above floor level, as we learn from the(Albright 1943: 66). No additional data are given in
elevation points given in the plan. The house in the report about the circumstances of the discovery
which our handles were found was probably similar and the context of the handles.
in appearance and in state of preservation to other The fact that the two handles were found at the
houses of this level, such as the neighboring house same time in one clearly defined locus at a site where
(Albright 1943: pl. 33a). In this area Albrightstamped storage jar handles are so scarce seems to
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8 DAVID USSISHKIN BASOR 223
US
CMS
Fig. 7. Handle no 580 from Tell Beit Mirsim stamped Imlk hbrn with a two-winged symbol.
3
CM~S
Fig. 8. Handle no. 579 from Tell Beit Mirsim stamped Imlk hbrn with a two-winged symbol.
quite possible that they could be from the same jar. The
indicate that the two handles may have belonged to
ware, size, and shape are quite similar. I do not know that
the same storage jar. Their similarity in size and
there is any way you can prove that this is so, but I would say
shape is apparent in the photograph published there
in is a good probability.
the report (Albright 1932b: 92, pl. 40:4-5) and in the
new ones shown in figs. 5-6. Both handles are keptTheat observations of Mrs. Lapp, who has so much
present in the Bible Lands Museum in Pittsburgh, experience in the field of Palestinian pottery, speak
PA, where they were examined at my request by for the themselves. It seems that there is a good case for
reconstructing the two handles in question in one
Curator, Nancy L. Lapp. After studying the handles
storage jar.
she gave me her opinion in a letter of 9 April 1975:
One handle stamped Imlk hbrn with a two-
After careful examination of the Elyakim handle (no. 860) winged symbol was discovered on 4 May 1928 in
and the "royal" seal handle (no. 867), I would say that it Room
is SE 31 A-2 and was given the excavation
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1976 ROYAL JUDEAN STORAGE JARS AND PRIVATE SEAL IMPRESSIONS 9
I,
?~1*;?;~;, fY r:
..Xi j iv :~ ?~
T'':? 3
t
s? s' f?` ?
r;v -' t?? 't i.
r ?~u*
~G: ~
~1?' ;d~' I IR~uFl~t~F~PX?~"c~i~F;?,~ a?:
Fig. 9. Handle no. 623 from Tell
Beit Mirsim stamped Pllyqm n' r l~f;: ? E~r 'y~I?-:~q
iwkn.
r~X,?
*.Sr?', Fi
*? ?. it: "~T~'?~
1?.??
?i?~',7;~'~L*?~'";
?Itr"' ?:
~:""~~JIF?PI~*~AL~b~F~~~~?~ilF.I~I~~-r'~~'
ii r'l
ir
1* ?1E~1-1 t a
.?? grj.
r
: ? 1F I, Lx "li i~E~f~
~i??ti le r
.i\
t '' r
I ?I.
.+??r?l
*t?'
'"""
:.r. r15`
I?~. ;t:;?~d'i??
*:E:
?? ~4 ~ii~ ...
::X i
F fjl q
c;~
i., r?
a. ??? I
t~;~F
*?r. ,ic.Jr
L ~t :
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10 DAVID USSISHKIN BASOR 223
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1976 ROYAL JUDEAN STORAGE JARS AND PRIVATE SEAL IMPRESSIONS 11
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12 DAVID USSISHKIN BASOR 223
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1976 ROYAL JUDEAN STORAGE JARS AND PRIVATE SEAL IMPRESSIONS 13
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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