List of artifacts in biblical archaeology

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The following is a list of artifacts—objects created or modified by human culture—that are significant to biblical archaeology.

## Contents

* 1 Selected artifacts significant to biblical chronology
* 2 Other significant artifacts
* 2.1 2000 BC
* 2.2 1500 BC
* 2.3 14th century BC
* 2.4 10th century BC
* 2.5 9th century BC
* 2.6 8th century BC
* 2.7 7th century BC
* 2.8 6th century BC
* 2.9 5th century BC
* 2.10 2nd century BC
* 2.11 1st century BC
* 2.12 1st century AD
* 3 Controversial
* 4 Forgery or claimed forgery
* 5 Significant museums
* 6 External lists
* 7 See also
* 8 References
* 8.1 Sources

## Selected artifacts significant to biblical chronology

The table lists artifacts which are of particular significance to the study of biblical chronology. The table lists the following information about each artifact:

Name
In English
Current location
Museum or site
Discovered
Date and location of discovery
Date
Proposed date of creation of artifact
Writing
Script used in inscription (if any)
Significance
Reason for significance to biblical archeology
Refs
ANET[1] and COS[2] references, and link to editio princeps (EP), if known
Name  | Image  | Current location  | Discovered  | Date  | Writing  | Significance  | Refs

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Autobiography of Weni  |  | Cairo Museum  | 1880, Abydos  | -2280 c.2280 BC

| Egyptian hieroglyphs | Records the earliest known Egyptian military campaigns in Sinai and the Levant.  | ANET 227–228
Sebek-khu Stele  |  | Manchester Museum | 1901, Abydos  | -1860 c.1860 BC

| Egyptian hieroglyphs | Records the earliest known Egyptian military campaign in Retjenu, including Sekmem (s-k-m-m, thought to be Shechem).  | ANET 230
Statue of Idrimi  |  | British Museum  | 1939, Alalakh  | -1500 c.1500 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Records the earliest certain cuneiform reference to Canaan | ANET 557
Merneptah Stele  |  | Cairo Museum  | 1896, Thebes | -1209 c. 1209 BC

| Egyptian hieroglyphs | While alternative translations have been put forward, the majority of biblical archeologists translate a set of hieroglyphs on Line 27 as "Israel", such that it represents the first documented instance of the name Israel in the historical record, and the only record in Ancient Egypt.
Bubastite Portal  |  | Original location | 1828, Karnak  | -0925 c. 925 BC

| Egyptian hieroglyphs | Records the conquests and military campaigns in c.925 BC of Shoshenq I, of the Twenty-second Dynasty, identified with the biblical Shishaq. Towns identified include Rafah (rph), Megiddo (mkdi) and Ajalon (iywrn)  | ANET 242–243
Mesha Stele  |  | Louvre  | 1868, Dhiban, Jordan  | -0850 c.850 BC

| Moabite language  | Describes the victories of Moabite king Mesha over the House of Omri (kingdom of Israel). It bears the earliest certain extra-biblical reference to the Israelite god Yahweh, and—if French scholar André Lemaire's reconstruction of a portion of line 31 is correct—the earliest mention of the "House of David" (i.e., the kingdom of Judah). One of the only two known artifacts containing the "Moabite" dialect of Canaanite languages (the second is the El-Kerak Inscription)  | COS 2.23 / ANET 320–321
Kurkh Monoliths  |  | British Museum  | 1861, Üçtepe, Bismil  | -0850 c.850 BC

| Assyrian cuneiform  | The Shalmaneser III monolith contains a description of the Battle of Qarqar at the end. This description contains the name "A-ha-ab-bu Sir-ila-a-a" which is generally accepted to be a reference to Ahab king of Israel,[3][4] although it is the only known reference to the term "Israel" in Assyrian and Babylonian records, a fact brought up by some scholars who dispute the proposed translation.  |
Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III  |  | British Museum  | 1846, Nimrud  | -0825 c.825 BC

| Assyrian cuneiform  | Contains what is thought to be the earliest known picture of a biblical figure: possibly Jehu son Omri (mIa-ú-a mar mHu-um-ri-i), or Jehu's ambassador, kneeling at the feet of Shalmaneser III.  | COS 2.113F / ANET 278–281
Saba'a Stele  |  | Istanbul Archaeology Museums  | 1905, Saba'a  | -0800 c.800 BC

| Assyrian cuneiform  | Records Adad-nirari III's Assyrian campaign to Pa-la-áš-tu (Philistia)  | COS 2.114E / ANET 282 / EP[5]
Tel Dan Stele  |  | Israel Museum  | 1993, Tel Dan  | -0800 c.800 BC

| Old Aramaic | Significant as an extra-biblical corroboration of Israel's past, particularly in lines 8 and 9, which mention a "king of Israel" and a "house of David". The latter is generally understood by scholars to refer to the ruling dynasty of Judah. Although the meaning of this phrase has been disputed by a small minority of scholars,[6] today it is generally accepted as a reference to the Davidic dynasty.[7][8][9][10] |
Nimrud Slab  |  | Unknown | 1854, Nimrud  | -0800 c.800 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes Adad-nirari III's early Assyrian conquests in Palastu (Phillistia), Tyre, Sidon, Edom and Humri (the latter understood as the Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)).  | COS 2.114G[11]
Nimrud Tablet K.3751  |  | British Museum  | 1850 c.1850

, Nimrud

| -0733 c.733 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes Tiglath-Pileser III's (745 to 727 BC) campaigns to the region, including the first known archeological reference to Judah (Yaudaya or KUR.ia-ú-da-a-a).  | COS 2.117 / ANET 282–284
Sargon II's Prism A  | N.A.  | British Museum  | 1850 c.1850

, Library of Ashurbanipal

| -0710 c.710 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes Sargon II's (722 to 705 BC) campaigns to Palastu, Judah, Edom and Moab.  | COS 2.118i / ANET 287
Siloam inscription  |  | Istanbul Archaeology Museums  | 1880, Siloam tunnel | -0701 c.701 BC

| Paleo-Hebrew)  | Records the construction of Siloam tunnel | COS 2.28 / ANET 321
Lachish relief  |  | British Museum  | 1845, Nineveh | -0700 c.700 BC

| Assyrian cuneiform  | Portion of the Sennacherib relief, which depicts captives from Judah being led into captivity after the Siege of Lachish in 701 BC  | COS 2.119C / EP[12]
LMLK seals  |  | Various | 1870 onwards  | -0700 c.700 BC

| Phoenician alphabet (also known as Paleo-Hebrew)  | c.2,000 stamp impressions, translated as "belonging to the King"  | COS 2.77 / EP[13]
Azekah Inscription  |  | British Museum  | 1850 c.1850

, Library of Ashurbanipal

| -0700 c.700 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes an Assyrian campaign by Sennacherib against Hezekiah, King of Judah, including the conquest of Azekah.  | COS 2.119D
Sennacherib's Annals |  | British Museum, Oriental Institute of Chicago, and the Israel Museum  | 1830, likely Nineveh, unprovenanced | -0690 c.690 BC

| Assyrian cuneiform  | Describes the Assyrian king Sennacherib's siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC during the reign of king Hezekiah.  | COS 2.119B / ANET 287–288
Esarhaddon's Treaty with Ba'al of Tyre  |  | British Museum  | c.1850, Library of Ashurbanipal  | -0675 c.675 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes a treaty between Esarhaddon (reigned 681 to 669 BC) and Ba'al of Tyre with respect to pi-lis-te  | COS 2.120 / ANET 533
Ekron inscription  |  | Israel Museum  | 1996, Ekron  | -0650 c.650 BC

| Phoenician alphabet | The first known inscription from the area ascribed to Philistines  | COS 2.42
Cylinders of Nabonidus  |  | British Museum and Pergamon Museum  | 1854, Ur  | -0550 c.550 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes Belshazzar (Balthazar) as Nabonidus' eldest son  | COS 2.123A
Nebuchadnezzar Chronicle  | (Photo Gallery)[14] | British Museum  | 1896 (acquired), unprovenanced | -0550 c.550 – 400 BC [15]

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes Nebuchadnezzar's first siege of Jerusalem in 597 BC, the Siege of Jerusalem (597 BC)  | COS 1.137 / ANET 301–307
Cylinder of Cyrus  |  | British Museum  | 1879, Babylon  | -0530 c.530 BC

| Akkadian cuneiform  | King Cyrus's treatment of religion, which is significant to the books of Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah.  | COS 2.124 / ANET 315–316
Nabonidus Chronicle  |  | British Museum  | 1879 (acquired), Sippar, unprovenanced | -0250 4th –1st century BC[16]

| Akkadian cuneiform  | Describes the conquest of Babylon by the Persian king Cyrus the Great  | COS 1.137 / ANET 301–307 / EP[17]
Temple Warning inscription |  | Istanbul Archaeology Museums  | 1871, Jerusalem | 20 c.23 BC – 70 AD

| Greek  | Believed to be an inscription from Herod's Temple, warning foreigners ("allogenē") to refrain from entering the Temple enclosure  |
Trumpeting Place inscription  |  | Israel Museum  | 1968, Jerusalem | 50 c.1st century AD

| Hebrew[18] | Believed to be a directional sign for the priests who blew a trumpet, consistent with an account in Josephus  |
Arch of Titus |  | Original location | n.a., Rome | 82 c.82 AD

| Latin  | Relief showing spoils from the Sack of Jerusalem by Titus in 70 AD. Depicted are the menorah and trumpets, as well as what might be the Table of Showbread.  |

## Other significant artifacts

### 2000 BC

* Creation myths and flood myths – recorded on the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Atra-Hasis tablets, the Enûma Eliš, the Eridu Genesis and the Barton Cylinder
* Law tablets – ancient Near East legal tablets: Code of Hammurabi, Laws of Eshnunna, the Code of Ur-Nammu, king of Ur (c. 2050 BC), the Laws of Eshnunna (c. 1930 BC) and the codex of Lipit-Ishtar of Isin (c. 1870 BC).[19] Later codes than Hammurabi's include the Code of the Nesilim.[20] Hittite laws, the Assyrian laws, and Mosaic Law / Ten Commandments. (see Cuneiform law).
* Execration texts – earliest references to many Biblical locations
* Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446– A document that lists the names of 45 individuals, including a Canaanite woman named "Šp-ra." Scholars assume that this is a hieroglyphic transliteration of the Hebrew name "Shiphrah," which also appears in Exodus 1:15–21. However, the document dates to c. 1833-1743 BCE (centuries before the biblical Shiphra would have lived).[21][22]

### 1500 BC

* Ipuwer Papyrus – poem describing Egypt as afflicted by natural disasters and in a state of chaos. The document is dated to around 1250 BC[23] but the content is thought to be earlier, dated back to the Middle Kingdom, though no earlier than the late Twelfth Dynasty.[24] Once thought to describe the biblical Exodus, it is now considered the world's earliest known treatise on political ethics, suggesting that a good king is one who controls unjust officials, thus carrying out the will of the gods.[25]

### 14th century BC

Berlin pedestal (relief 21687)

* Berlin pedestal relief – considered by many modern scholars to contain the earliest historic reference to ancient Israel.[26][27] Experts remain divided on this hypothesis.[28]

### 10th century BC

Gezer calendar in the Istanbul Archaeology Museums.

* Early Paleo-Hebrew writing – contenders for the earliest Hebrew inscriptions include the Gezer calendar, Biblical period ostraca at Elah and Izbet Sartah,[29] and the Zayit Stone
* Pim weight – evidence of the use of an ancient source for the Book of Samuel due to the use of an archaic term.
* Khirbet Qeiyafa pottery sherd – 10th century BC inscription – both the language it is written in and the translation are disputed. Was discovered in excavations near Israel's Elah valley.[30]
* Tell es-Safi Potsherd (10th to mid 9th centuries BC) – Potsherd inscribed with the two names "alwt" and "wlt", etymologically related to the name Goliath and demonstrate that the name fits with the context of late-tenth/early-ninth-century BC Philistine culture. Found at Tell es-Safi, the traditional identification of Gath.
* Khirbet Qeiyafa shrines – cultic objects seen as evidence of a "cult in Judah at time of King David" and with features (triglyphs and recessed doors) which may resemble features in descriptions of the Temple of Solomon.[31]
* Ophel inscription is a 3,000-year-old inscribed fragment of a ceramic jar found near Jerusalem's Temple Mount by archeologist Eilat Mazar. It is the earliest alphabetical inscription found in Jerusalem written in what was probably Proto-Canaanite script.[32] Some scholars believe it to be an inscription of the type of wine that was held in a jar.[33]

### 9th century BC

* Amman Citadel Inscription – 9th century BC inscription in the Ammonite language, one of the few surviving written records of Ammon.
* Melqart stele – (9th–8th century BC) William F. Albright identifies Bar-hadad with Ben-hadad I, who was a contemporary of the biblical Asa and Baasha.
* Ostraca House – (probably about 850 BC, at least prior to 750 BC) 64 legible ostraca found in the treasury of Ahab – written in early Hebrew.
* Balaam inscription (c. 840–760 BC)[34] 9th or 8th century BC inscription about a prophet named Balaam (cf. the Book of Numbers).[35]

### 8th century BC

* Kuntillet Ajrud inscriptions – (9th–8th century BC) inscriptions in Phoenician script including references to Yahweh
* Sefire stele (8th century BC) – described as "the best extrabiblical source for West Semitic traditions of covenantal blessings and curses".[36]
* Stele of Zakkur (8th century BC) – Mentions Hazael king of Aram.
* Tell al-Rimah stela (c. 780 BC) – tells of the exploits of Adad-nirari III, mentioning "Joash King of Samaria"[37]
* Shebna's lintel inscription (8th–7th century BC?) – found over the lintel or doorway of a tomb, has been ascribed to Hezekiah's comptroller Shebna.
* King Ahaz's Seal (732 to 716 BC) – Ahaz was a king of Judah but "did not do what was right in the sight of the Lord his God, as his ancestor David had done" (2 Kings 16:2; 2 Chronicles 28:1). He worshiped idols and followed pagan practices. "He even made his son pass through fire, according to the abominable practices of the nations" (2 Kings 16:3). Ahaz was the son and successor of Jotham.
* Bullae (c. 715–687 BC or 716–687 BC)[38] (clay roundels impressed with a personal seal identifying the owner of an object, the author of a document, etc.) are, like ostraka, relatively common, both in digs and on the antiquities market. The identification of individuals named in bullae with equivalent names from the Bible is difficult, but identifications have been made with king Hezekiah[39] and his servants (????? avadim in Hebrew).
* Annals of Tiglath-Pileser III (740–730 BC):
* Layard 45b+ III R 9,1 possibly refers to [KUR sa-me-ri-i-na-a-a] as ["land of Samaria"][40]
* The Iran Stela refers to KUR sa-m[e]-ri-i-na-a-[a] "land of Samaria"[40]
* Layard 50a + 50b + 67a refers to URU sa-me-ri-na-a-a "city of Samaria"[40]
* Layard 66 refers to URU Sa-me-ri-na "city of Samaria"[40]
* III R 9.3 50, refers to "Menahem the Samarian"[37][41]
* Nimrud Tablet III R 10.2 28–29, refers to the overthrown of Pekah by Hoshea.[37][41]
* one fragment refers to "Azriau" and another it has been joined to refers to "Yaudi". Some scholars have interpreted this as Ahaziah / Uzziah, although this is disputed and has not gained scholarly consensus.[42][43][44][45]
* III R 10,2 refers to KUR E Hu-um-ri-a "land of Bit-Humri"[40]
* ND 4301 + 4305 refers to KUR E Hu-um-ri-a "land of Bit-Humri"[40]
* Babylonian Chronicle ABC1 (725 BC) – Shalmaneser V refers to URU Sa-ma/ba-ra-'-in "city of Samar(i)a"[40]
* Annals of Sargon II (720 BC):
* Nimrud Prism, Great Summary Inscription refers to URU Sa-me-ri-na "city of Samerina"[40]
* Palace Door, Small Summary Inscription, Cylinder Inscription, Bull Inscription refers to KUR Bit-Hu-um-ri-a "land of Bit-Humri"[40]

### 7th century BC

* Bulla of Gemariah son of Shaphan (r. 609–598 BC) – possible link to a figure during the reign of Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 36:10). Archaeologist Yair Shoham notes: "It should be borne in mind, however, that the names found on the bullae were popular in ancient times and it is equally possible that there is no connection between the names found on the bullae and the person mentioned in the Bible."[46]
* Seal of Jehucal (7th century BC) – Jehucal or Jucal is mentioned in chapters 37 and 38 of the Book of Jeremiah where King Zedekiah sends Jehucal son of Shelemiah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to the prophet Jeremiah saying "Please pray for us to the Lord our God" (Jeremiah 37:3). His seal and also one of Gedaliah, son of Pashhur (also mentioned in Jeremiah 38:1 together with Jehucal) were found within a few yards from each other during excavations in the city of David, Jerusalem, in 2005 and 2008, respectively, by Eilat Mazar.[47]
* Khirbet Beit Lei contains oldest known Hebrew writing of the word "Jerusalem", dated to 7th century BC "I am YHWH thy Lord. I will accept the cities of Judah and I will redeem Jerusalem" "Absolve us oh merciful God. Absolve us oh YHWH"[48]
* Mesad Hashavyahu Ostracon is an inscribed pottery fragment dated to 7th century BC and written in ancient Hebrew language. It contains earliest extra-biblical reference to the observance of Shabbat.[49][50]
* Victory stele of Esarhaddon – a dolerite[51] stele commemorating the return of Esarhaddon after his army's second battle and victory over Pharaoh Taharqa in northern ancient Egypt in 671 BC, discovered in 1888 in Zincirli Höyük (Sam'al, or Yadiya) by Felix von Luschan and Robert Koldewey. It is now in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.

### 6th century BC

Ketef Hinnom Priestly Blessing

* Ketef Hinnom scrolls – Probably the oldest surviving texts currently known from the Hebrew Bible – priestly blessing dated to 600 BC.[52] Text from the Book of Numbers in the Old Testament. Described as "one of most significant discoveries ever made" for biblical studies.[53][54]
* Jehoiachin's Rations Tablets (6th century BC) – Describe the rations set aside for a royal captive identified with Jehoiachin, king of Judah (Cf. 2 Kings 24:12,15–16; 25:27–30; 2 Chronicles 36:9–10; Jeremiah 22:24–26; 29:2; 52:31–34; Ezekiel 17:12).[55]
* Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet (circa 595 BC) – a clay cuneiform inscription referring to an official at the court of Nebuchadrezzar II, king of Babylon, possibly the same official named in the Biblical Jeremiah.
* Lachish letters – letters written in carbon ink by Hoshaiah (cf. Nehemiah 12:32, Jeremiah 42:1, 43:2), a military officer stationed near Jerusalem, to Joash the commanding officer at Lachish during the last years of Jeremiah during Zedekiah's reign (c.588 BC) (see Jeremiah 34:7). Lachish fell soon after, two years before the fall of Jerusalem.[56]
* House of Yahweh ostracon is an ancient pottery fragment discovered at Tel Arad probably referring to the Temple at Jerusalem.[57]

### 5th century BC

* Elephantine papyri, ancient Jewish papyri dating to the 5th century BC, name three persons mentioned in Nehemiah: Darius II, Sanballat the Horonite and Johanan the high priest.

### 2nd century BC

* Hasmonean coinage (164 BC – 35 BC)

### 1st century BC

* Western Wall (c. 19 BC) – an important Jewish religious site located in the Old City of Jerusalem. Just over half the wall, including its 17 courses located below street level, dates from the end of the Second Temple period, being constructed around 19 BC by Herod the Great. The remaining layers were added from the 7th century onwards.

### 1st century AD

* Rock of Calvary (Golgotha), identified by Constantine's mother Saint Helena and Macarius of Jerusalem, within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
* Caiaphas ossuary, found in 1990 in southern Jerusalem which may mention the High Priest Caiaphas who was responsible for the conviction of Jesus for blasphemy, although this is disputed.
* Miriam ossuary, found in 2011 in the Valley of Elah and mentions the High Priest Caiaphas who was responsible for the conviction of Jesus for blasphemy
* Grotto of the Nativity, identified by Constantine's mother Saint Helena and Macarius of Jerusalem, within the Church of the Nativity
* Pilate Stone (c. 36 AD) – carved inscription attributed to Pontius Pilate, a prefect of the Roman-controlled province of Judaea from 26 to 36 AD.
* Pool of Bethesda – in the nineteenth century, archaeologists discovered the remains of a pool corresponding to a description in John's Gospel.
* Delphi Inscription (c. 52 AD) – The reference to proconsul Gallio in the inscription provides an important marker for developing a chronology of the life of Apostle Paul by relating it to the trial of Paul in Achaea mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles (18:12–17).
* Erastus Inscription (Roman period) – an inscription found in 1929 near a paved area northeast of the theater of Corinth, dated to the mid-first century and reads "Erastus in return for his aedileship paved it at his own expense."[58] Some New Testament scholars have identified this aedile Erastus with the Erastus mentioned in the Epistle to the Romans but this is disputed by others.[59][60]
* Judaea Capta coinage (after 70 AD) – a series of commemorative coins originally issued by the Roman Emperor Vespasian to celebrate the capture of Judaea and the destruction of the Jewish Second Temple by his son Titus in 70 AD during the First Jewish Revolt.
* Nazareth Inscription bears an edict of Caesar prohibiting grave robbing.

## Controversial

* Borsippa – identified as the Tower of Babel in Talmudic and Arabic culture, but not accepted by modern scholarship.
* Ebla tablets – once thought to have made references to, and thus confirmed, the existence of Abraham, David, Sodom and Gomorrah among other Biblical references.
* Foundation Stone – stone also called the Well of Souls, now located in the Dome of the Rock. According to the Bible, King David purchased a threshing floor owned by Araunah the Jebusite,[61] and some believe that it was upon this rock that he offered the sacrifice mentioned in the verse. David wanted to construct a Temple in Jerusalem, but as his hands were "bloodied", he was forbidden to do so himself. The task was left to his son Solomon, who completed the Temple in c. 950 BC.
* Uzziah Tablet (8th century BC or 30–70 AD?) – controversial tablet discovered in 1931 by Professor E. L. Sukenik of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in a Russian convent.
* Jehoash Inscription – controversial black stone tablet in Phoenician regarding King Jehoash's repair work. Suspected to be a forgery (but see: Book of Kings).
* Warren's Shaft – possible route corresponding to the biblical account of Joab, king David's commander, launching a secretive attack against the Jebusites, who controlled Jerusalem.
* Ivory pomegranate – a thumb-sized semitic ornamental artifact bears an inscription: "Holy (sacred) to the Priest of the House of God (YHWH)", thought to have adorned the High Priest's sceptre within the Holy of Holies.
* Tower of Siloam – ruins possibly mentioned in the Gospel of Luke.[62]
* James Ossuary – a 1st-century limestone box that was used for containing the bones of the dead, bearing an Aramaic inscription in the Hebrew alphabet, "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus", cut into one side of the box.
* Talpiot Tomb – Joshua son of Joseph tomb; its identification with Jesus is highly controversial.
* Caiaphas ossuary – a highly decorated ossuary twice inscribed "Joseph, son of Caiaphas" which held the bones of a 60-year-old male, discovered in a burial cave in south Jerusalem in November 1990.
* Sudarium of Oviedo – a bloodstained piece of sweat cloth (Latin: Sudarium) thought to be the cloth that was wrapped around the head of Jesus Christ after he died as described in John 20:6–7. Now it is kept in the Cámara Santa of the Cathedral of San Salvador, Oviedo, Spain .
* Titulus Crucis – a piece of wood claimed to be a relic of the True Cross, which Christian tradition holds to be a part of the cross's titulus (inscription). Now it is kept in the church of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme in Rome.
* Acheiropoieta (see Shroud of Turin, Image of Edessa, and the Veil of Veronica).
* Relics attributed to Jesus, including those identified by Constantine's mother Helena and Macarius of Jerusalem, such as the Holy Nails, Holy Tunic and the True Cross.
* Shapira Scroll, leather strips containing a somewhat different text of the Ten Commandments, belonging to Moses Wilhelm Shapira, a Jerusalem antiquities dealer. Widely discredited following its 1883 release, resulting in Shapira's suicide. Has been reassessed following the 1946 discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

## Forgery or claimed forgery

* Shapira collection – other biblical artifacts in the possession and allegedly forged by Moses Shapira.[63][64] The discovery of the Dead Sea scrolls in 1947, in approximately the same area he claimed his material was discovered, has cast some doubt on the original forgery charges.[63][64]
* Stone Seal of Manasseh – Stone seal of Manasseh, King of Judah c.687–642 BC. Reportedly offered to a private collector for one million dollars.[65]

## Significant museums

* Israel Museum, Jerusalem
* Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem[66]
* Hecht Museum
* Oriental Institute, Chicago
* British Museum
* The Louvre

## External lists

* ANET: Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament. Third Edition with Supplement. Ed. James B. Pritchard. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 1969
* COS: The Context of Scripture. 3 volumes. Eds. William W. Hallo and K. Lawson Younger. Leiden: Brill, 1997-2002
* RANE:  Readings from the Ancient Near East: Primary Sources for Old Testament Study. Baker Academic. September 2002. ISBN 978-0801022920. https://archive.org/details/readingsfromanci0000unse.
* Indices to ANET and COS: [1] and [2]
* Dr. Ralph W. Klein's tables of artifacts - 10 pages of tables sorted by era
* Extra-biblical sources for Hebrew and Jewish history (1913)
* http://www.egyptologyforum.org/EEFtexts.html
* Bible History Daily The Biblical Archaeology Society website, publishers of Biblical Archaeology Review

## See also

* Archaeology of Israel
* Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem
* Assyro-Babylonian religion
* The Bible and history
* Biblical archaeology (excavations and artifacts)
* Chronology of the Bible
* Cities of the Ancient Near East
* Hittite sites – Hittites – History of the Hittites

* Levantine archaeology
* Library of Ashurbanipal
* List of biblical figures identified in extra-biblical sources
* List of burial places of Biblical figures
* List of Egyptian papyri by date
* List of proposed Assyrian references to Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)
* List of megalithic sites
* Model of Jerusalem in the Late 2nd Temple Period
* Near Eastern archaeology
* Nag Hammadi library – early Christian gnostic papyri.
* Non-canonical books referenced in the Bible
* Oxyrhynchus Papyri – collection of Old and New Testament papyri, Apocryphal works and works of Philo

## References

1. ↑ ANET: Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament. Third Edition with Supplement. Ed. James B. Pritchard. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 1969
2. ↑ COS: The Context of Scripture. 3 volumes. Eds. William W. Hallo and K. Lawson Younger. Leiden: Brill, 1997–2002
3. ↑ The Hebrew Bible: New Insights and Scholarship edited by Frederick E. Greenspahn, NYU Press, 2008 p. 11
4. ↑ Ancient Canaan and Israel: New Perspectives By Jonathan Michael Golden, ABC-CLIO, 2004, p. 275
5. ↑ Unger, Eckhard; Istanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri (1 January 1916). "Reliefstele Adadniraris 3 aus Saba'a und Semiramis". Konstantinopel Druck von Ahmed Ihsan. https://archive.org/details/reliefsteleadadn00ungeuoft.
6. ↑ Rainey 1994, p. 47.
7. ↑ Grabbe, Lester L. (28 April 2007). Ahab Agonistes: The Rise and Fall of the Omri Dynasty. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN:9780567251718. "The Tel Dan inscription generated a good deal of debate and a flurry of articles when it first appeared, but it is now widely regarded (a) as genuine and (b) as referring to the Davidic dynasty and the Aramaic kingdom of Damascus."
8. ↑ Cline, Eric H. (28 September 2009). Biblical Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. ISBN:9780199711628. Today, after much further discussion in academic journals, it is accepted by most archaeologists that the inscription is not only genuine but that the reference is indeed to the House of David, thus representing the first allusion found anywhere outside the Bible to the biblical David.
9. ↑ Mykytiuk, Lawrence J. (1 January 2004). Identifying Biblical Persons in Northwest Semitic Inscriptions of 1200–539 B.C.E. Society of Biblical Lit. ISBN:9781589830622. Some unfounded accusations of forgery have had little or no effect on the scholarly acceptance of this inscription as genuine.
10. ↑ Biran, Avraham; Naveh, Joseph (1993). "An Aramaic Stele Fragment from Tel Dan". Israel Exploration Journal (Israel Exploration Society) 43 (2–3): 81–98.
11. ↑ The Philistines in Transition: A History from Ca. 1000–730 B.C.E. By Carl S. Ehrlich P:171
12. ↑ "Discoveries among the ruins of Nineveh and Babylon;". https://archive.org/stream/discoveriesamon00layagoog#page/n159/mode/1up.
13. ↑ Warren, Charles (1870). "Phoenician inscription on jar handles". Palestine Exploration Quarterly 2 (30 September): 372.
14. ↑ "Photos of the Nebuchadnezzar Chronicle. Clay tablet; New Babylonian. Chronicle for years 605-594 BC. © Trustees of the British Museum". https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details/collection_image_gallery.aspx?assetId=339880001&objectId=320055&partId=1.
15. ↑ "Babylonian Chronicle Tablet (The British Museum, #21946)". https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=320055&partId=1&searchText=Nebuchadnezzar+Chronicle&page=1.
16. ↑ Clyde E. Fant, Mitchell G. Reddish, Lost Treasures of the Bible: Understanding the Bible Through Archaeological Artifacts in World Museums , p. 228. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2008. ISBN:0-8028-2881-7
17. ↑ Sidney Smith, 1924
18. ↑ Aderet, Ofer (9 March 2017). "The Writing on the Wall, Tablet and Floor". Haaretz. http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/the-writing-on-the-wall-tablet-and-floor-1.417504.
19. ↑ Charles F. Horne (1915). "The Code of Hammurabi: Introduction". Yale University. http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/medieval/hammint.htm.
20. ↑ "Code of Nesilim". Fordham.edu. http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/1650nesilim.html.
21. ↑ van Heel, Koenraad Donker (2014). Mrs. Tsenhor. Oxford University Press. p. 114. ISBN 978-977-416-634-1. https://www.google.com/books?id=eBgnDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA114.
22. ↑ "Brooklyn Museum". https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3369.
23. ↑ Quirke 2014, p. 167.
24. ↑ Willems 2010, p. 83.
25. ↑ Gabriel 2002, p. 23.
26. ↑ Veen, Pieter van der; Zwickel, Wolfgang (23 January 2017). "The Earliest Reference to Israel and Its Possible Archaeological and Historical Background". Vetus Testamentum 67 (1): 129–140. doi:10.1163/15685330-12341266.
27. ↑ Theis, Christoffer (2003). "Israel in Canaan. (Long) Before Pharaoh Merenptah? A fresh look at Berlin statue pedestal relief 21687". Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections 2 (2010), pp. 15–25. doi:10.2458/azu_jaei_v02i4_van_der_veen.
28. ↑ Canaan and Israel in Antiquity: A Textbook on History and Religion, Second By K. L. Noll, P:138
29. ↑ "What's the Oldest Hebrew Inscription? A Reply to Christopher Rollston". Biblical Archaeology Society. 22 August 2012. http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/uncategorized/what’s-the-oldest-hebrew-inscription/.
30. ↑ "Archaeology: What an Ancient Hebrew Note Might Mean". Christianity Today. 18 January 2010. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/januaryweb-only/13-11.0.html.
31. ↑ "Archaeologist finds first evidence of cult in Judah at time of King David". http://phys.org/news/2012-05-archaeologist-evidence-cult-judah-king.html.
32. ↑ Nir Hasson, "Israeli archaeologists dig up artifact from time of Kings David and Solomon", Haaretz, 15 July 2013.
33. ↑ "Decoded: Jerusalem's oldest Hebrew engraving refers to lousy wine". Times of Israel. http://www.timesofisrael.com/decoded-king-solomon-era-jug-engraving/.
34. ↑ Hoftijzer, J. & van der Kooij, G. (1976) "Aramaic Texts from Deir 'Alla", in: Documenta et Monumenta Orientis Antiqui 19. Leiden: Brill
35. ↑ Stern, Philip. Balaam in scripture and in inscription. Midstream (2002), (accessed 27 February 2009).
36. ↑ Kaufman, S. A.. Anchor Bible Dictionary. pp. 173–178. http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:0PKViXZ2JkAJ:www.nelc.ucla.edu/Faculty/Schniedewind_files/NWSemitic/Aramaic_ABD.pd.
37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 Text and History: Historiography and the Study of the Biblical Text , page 168
38. ↑ See William F. Albright for the former and for the latter Edwin R. Thiele's, The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings (3rd ed.; Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan/Kregel, 1983) 217. But Gershon Galil dates his reign to 697–642 BC.
39. ↑ Grena (2004), p. 26, Figs. 9 and 10
40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 40.2 40.3 40.4 40.5 40.6 40.7 40.8 Kelle, Brad (2002), "What's in a Name? Neo-Assyrian Designations for the Northern Kingdom and Their Implications for Israelite History and Biblical Interpretation", Journal of Biblical Literature 121 (4): 639–666, doi:10.2307/3268575
41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 Kalimi, Isaac (2005). The Reshaping of Ancient Israelite History in Chronicles. Eisenbrauns. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-57506-058-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=--IvHbPo024C&pg=PA106. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
42. ↑ Dunn, James D. G.; Rogerson, John William (19 November 2003). Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 9780802837110. https://books.google.com/books?id=2Vo-11umIZQC&pg=PA273. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
43. ↑ Kitchen, Kenneth Anderson (1 January 2003). On the Reliability of the Old Testament. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 9780802849601. https://books.google.com/books?id=Kw6U05qBiXcC&pg=PA18. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
44. ↑ Bible.org , Quote: "For a defense of the idea that Azariah of Judah headed up an anti-Assyrian coalition, see Tadmor, 'Azarijau of Yaudi' Scripta Hierosolymitana 8 (1961): 232–271. However, Israelite and Judaean History, Old Testament Library. Edited by John H. Hayes and J. Maxwell Miller. London: SCM Press, 1977 says, 'Recently, Na'aman [Nadav Na'aman. "Sennacherib's 'Letter to God' on His Campaign to Judah", BASOR CCXIV (1974) 25–39] has shown conclusively that the fragment presumably mentioning Azriau king of Yaudi actually belongs to the time of Sennacherib and refers not to Azariah but to Hezekiah. In Tiglath-Pileser's annals there are two references to an Azariah (in line 123 as Az-ri-a-[u] and in line 131 as Az-r-ja-a-í) but neither of these make any reference to his country. Thus the Azriau of Tiglath-pileser's annals and Azariah of the Bible should be regarded as two different individuals. Azriau's country cannot, at the present, be determined.' Na'aman separates the country (Yaudi) from the name Azriau (p. 36). Also p. 28 on line 5 where the original transcription was '[I]zri-ja-u mat Ja-u-di' he reads 'ina birit misrija u mat Jaudi'. However, Kitchen, On the Reliability of the Old Testament (OROT), p. 18, is less dogmatic. He says 'Hence we cannot certainly assert that this Azriau (without a named territory!) is Azariah of Judah; the matter remains open and undecided for the present and probably unlikely.' See Also CAH, 3:35–36."
45. ↑ In Search of "Ancient Israel": A Study in Biblical Origins. Philip R. Davies, p. 63: "The reference to az-ri-a-u (? ANET ia-u-ha-zi) (mat)ia-u-da-a is seen by a minority of scholars (see e.g. ANET) as a reference to Azariah of Judah; the majority, however, identify the state in question as Y’di, mentioned in the Zinjirli inscription and located in northern Syria."
46. ↑ Shoham, Yair. "Hebrew Bullae" in City of David Excavations: Final Report VI, Qedem 41 (Jerusalem: Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 2000), 33
47. ↑ Kantrowitz, Jonathan (3 January 2012). "Archaeology News Report: Seals of Jeremiah's Captors Discovered!". http://archaeologynewsreport.blogspot.com/2012/01/seals-of-jeremiahs-captors-discovered.html.
48. ↑ "Site History". http://beitlehifoundation.org/history/.
49. ↑ "The First Extra-Biblical Reference to the Sabbath, c. 630 BC". http://cojs.org/cojswiki/The_First_Extra-Biblical_Reference_to_the_Sabbath,_c._630_BC.
50. ↑ "Mezad Hashavyahu Ostracon, c. 630 BC". http://cojs.org/cojswiki/Mezad_Hashavyahu_Ostracon,_c._630_BC.
51. ↑ Verzeichnis der in der Formerei der Königl. Museen käuflichen Gipsabgüsse (1902) page 20
52. ↑ "Solving a Riddle Written in Silver". The New York Times. 28 September 2004. https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/28/science/28scro.html?_r=1&8dpc=&pagewanted=all&position=&oref=slogin.
53. ↑ "The Challenges of Ketef Hinnom: Using Advanced Technologies to Recover the Earliest Biblical Texts and their Context", Gabriel Barkay et al., Near Eastern Archaeology, Vol. 66, No. 4 (December 2003), pp. 162–171 (at JSTOR) .
54. ↑ "Biblical Artifact Proven to Be Real". Webcenters.netscape.compuserve.com. http://webcenters.netscape.compuserve.com/news/package.jsp?name=fte/priestlybenediction/priestlybenediction.
55. ↑ Thomas, D. Winton (1958) Documents from Old Testament Times; 1961 ed. Edinburgh and London: Thomas Nelson and Sons; p. 84.
56. ↑ "Lachish letters". Formerthings.com. 10 January 1938. http://formerthings.com/lachish.htm.
57. ↑ T. C. Mitchell (1992). "Judah Until the Fall of Jerusalem". The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume 3, Part 2: The Assyrian and Babylonian Empires and Other States of the Near East, from the Eighth to the Sixth Centuries BC. Cambridge University Press. p. 397. ISBN 978-0521227179.
58. ↑ "PH209961". Searchable Greek Inscriptions. The Packard Humanities Institute. http://epigraphy.packhum.org/inscriptions/main?url=oi?ikey=209961&bookid;=223&region;=2&subregion;=1.
59. ↑ Friesen, Steven (January 2007). "The Wrong Erastus: Status, Wealth, and Paul's Churches". Corinth in Context. Institute for the Study of Antiquity and Christian Origins. http://www.utexas.edu/research/pasp/corinth/abstracts.html#Friesen. "Thus the Erastus inscription soon became a linchpin in 20th century reconstructions of the social status of Pauline Christianity. Unfortunately, the inscription was incorrectly published and the identification of the two Erastus references is wrong." \- Abstract Only.
60. ↑ Gill, David W. J. (1989). "Erastus the Aedile". Tyndale Bulletin 40 (2): 298.
61. ↑ 1 Chronicles 21:25, and 2 Samuel 24:18–25.
62. ↑ Luke 13
63. ↑ 63.0 63.1 Allegro, John Marco (1965). The Shapira affair. Doubleday.
64. ↑ 64.0 64.1 Vermès, Géza (2010). The story of the scrolls: the miraculous discovery and true significance of the Dead Sea scrolls. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-104615-0.
65. ↑ "Biblical artifacts". Athenapub.com. http://www.athenapub.com/biblical-artifacts.htm.
66. ↑ "New exhibit: Three Faces of Monotheism". http://www.ynetnews.com/Ext/Comp/ArticleLayout/CdaArticlePrintPreview/1,2506,L-3484474,00.html.

### Sources

* Gabriel, Richard A. (2002). Gods of Our Fathers: The Memory of Egypt in Judaism and Christianity. Greenwood Publishing. ISBN 9780313312861. https://books.google.com/books?id=n3x46NoDOcUC&q="a+discussion+between+a+wise+man""and+the+king+himself"&pg=PA23.
* Quirke, Stephen (2014). Exploring Religion in Ancient Egypt. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781118610527. https://books.google.com/books?id=6LAwBQAAQBAJ&q="one+fragmented+manuscript+from+about+1250+BC"&pg=PA167.
* Rainey, Anson F. (November 1994). "The 'House of David' and the House of the Deconstructionists". Biblical Archaeology Review 20 Issue=6: 47.
* Willems, Harco (2010). "The First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom". in Lloyd, Alan B.. A Companion to Ancient Egypt. 1. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781444320060. https://books.google.com/books?id=RK2pLin2sPAC&q="recent+scholarship""late+Twelfth+Dynasty"&pg=PA83.

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