Six New Unrecorded Israelite Hebrew Seals

VISIONS OF LIFE IN BIBLICAL TIMES

ESSAYS IN HONOR OF MEIR LUBETSKI

Edited by Claire Gottlieb, Chaim Cohen

and Mayer Gruber

SHEFFIELD PHOENIX PRESS

2015

CONTENTS

Foreword viiAcknowledgments xiList of Abbreviations xiiList of Contributors xvii

MEIR LEDOROT: A LIGHT TO THE GENERATIONSSaul Lubetski, Uriel Lubetski and Leah Lubetski Feldman 1

SHAKESPEARE’S CAINSPaula S. Berggren 5

PHARAOH’S ‘THIRD-MAN CHARIOTEERS’ (EXOD. 14.7; 15.4) AND THE UNNOTICED LITERARY ALLUSION TO THE BATTLE OF QADESH IN THE SONG OF THE SEA

Chaim Cohen 17

ROOMS OR REEDS IN NOAH’S ARK? Mynq IN GENESIS 6.14John Day 47

SIX NEW UNRECORDED ISRAELITE HEBREW SEALSRobert Deutsch 58

THE SAGES’ INTERPRETATIONS OF THE LAW CONCERNING THE DEFAMER (DEUT. 22.13-21)

Joseph Fleishman 70

THE SUCCESSION RIVALRY BETWEEN ADONIJAH AND SOLOMON (1 KINGS 1–2): THE STORY’S GENESIS AND ITS HISTORIOGRAPHICAL, LITERARY AND RHETORICAL VALUES

Moshe Garsiel 95

GENESIS 1 IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY:FIRST THINGS FIRST

Claire Gottlieb 128

vi Visions of Life in Biblical Times

‘…AND FOR THE PHARAO’: AN INTRIGUING OSTRACON FROM THE SHLOMO MOUSSAIEFF COLLECTION

Martin Heide 140

JOSHUA AND EGYPTRichard S. Hess 144

BLESSINGS FOR THE OVERLORD!ANOTHER AMMONITE SEAL

Regine Hunziker-Rodewald 151

THE KEY METHODS OF TARGUM CHRONICLESIsaac Kalimi 177

THE PLACE OF QUMRAN IN JEWISH HISTORY:A BEIT MIDRASH

Andre Lemaire 200

HOW THE ARAMAIC VERSIONS HELP ELUCIDATE PROBLEMS IN THE BURNING BUSH EPISODE (EXOD. 3.1-4)

David Marcus 218

THE IDEOLOGY OF DIVINE KINGSHIP AT UGARITRobert R. Stieglitz 225

A DOUBLE-HEADED BULL PROTOME—DOES IT REPRESENT THE ARAMAEAN MOON GOD?

Peter van der Veen 235

NOTES ON FORMULAE AND DECIPHERMENT OF LEGAL TEXTS FROM THE JUDAEAN DESERT

Ada Yardeni 249

Publications of Meir Lubetski 265Index of References 269Index of Authors 278

SIX NEW, UNRECORDED ISRAELITE HEBREW SEALS1

Robert Deutsch

The corpus of West Semitic stamp seals and seal impressions is constantly

et al.Goulart and Gane 2012; Reich 2012; Faust and Eshel 2012). In parallel, unprovenanced epigraphic artifacts are surfacing on the antiquities market

(Avigad, Heltzer and Lemaire 2000; Lemaire 2007; Deutsch 2011; 2012; van der Veen and Deutsch 2014; Shaked et al. 2013).

The provenanced epigraphs are usually published by the excavators in

the epigraphic material of unknown provenances (with only few exceptions: Avigad 1986; Eph’al and Naveh 1996; Avigad and Sass 1997; Avigad, Hel-tzer and Lemaire 2000) may remain unpublished, sometimes for decades or even unrecorded by the specialists. We have no way of knowing what is the volume of unpublished West Semitic epigraphic artifacts kept in private collections but a careful estimation is in the thousands, probably extending to ten thousand items.

Often, the witch-hunt after the collectors who possess antiquities, to-gether with the recent fashion for the so-called ‘politically correct’ attitude of several leading archaeological magazines to avoid and even prevent any publication of ‘unprovenanced’ material, have a negative result. Instead of searching for a solution of how to record and publish such material in order to preserve these valuable historical documents, the total ban on publication of unprovenanced epigraphic material has a damaging effect. Most collec-tors, with notable exceptions, are keeping their collections hidden away waiting for the right time to release them for publication.

-quently, a corpus of all the inscriptions, with or without known provenance, is needed. Such a corpus can be divided in two sections: (1) epigraphs with known provenance, and (2) epigraphs without recorded provenance. This

1. The author is grateful to Professor Alan Millard, Liverpool University, for reading the manuscript and making valuable remarks and suggestions. The drawings were made by Pnina Arad and the photos by the author.

DEUTSCH Six New, Unrecorded Israelite Hebrew Seals 59

corpus has to be electronically accessible to all and constantly updated. The former section, which for some scholars is less reliable, will provide comparanda for the decipherment of fragmentary or damaged documents unearthed in controlled excavations.

Theoretically, the ideal use of an artifact with unknown provenance is

from a controlled excavation. Two cases have already been published. While recording epigraphic materials of unknown provenance which surfaced on the Jerusalem antiquities market, the author found a bulla that looked famil-iar. The comparison of this bulla with a fragmentary bulla found in 1966 at Lachish (WSS 416) revealed that both bullae were impressed in antiquity by the same seal. The unprovenanced bulla proved that the Lachish bulla belonged to Shebanyahu ‘the servant of the king’ rather than to ‘the son of the king’ (Deutsch 2009).

Similarly, a fragmentary bulla recently found by Eilat Mazar in the City of David excavations preserved the wing and the tail of a bird and a single letter, the letter Yod (Winderbaum 2012: 92-93). An identical bulla impressed by the same seal was published by the author in 1997 and proves that the inscription on the City of David fragmentary bulla has to be restored as ‘Eliyahu’ (Deutsch 1997: 77-78 no. 28; 1999: 94-95, no. 28).2

The present essay belongs to the project started in 1994 together with the late Professor Michael Heltzer of Haifa University to record the epigraphic materials kept in private collections in order to publish them in case they may be lost. Over 1,300 epigraphs, including seals, bullae, arrowheads, ostraca, inscriptions on vessels and weights have already been published (Deutsch and Heltzer 1994, 1995, 1997, 1999; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000, 2003; Deutsch 1999a, 1999b, 2002, 2003a, 2003b, 2004, 2011, 2012).

spots are unknown. A date in the second half of the eighth century, before 721 BCE, is suggested for all six seals.

1.

state of preservation.3 Eight similar Hebrew scarab seals were previously recorded (WSS 59, 328, 373, 377; Deutsch 2011: 429, 487; Deutsch and

2. The bulla is kept in the collection of Mr Shlomo Moussaieff and was published by the author in 1997 in Hebrew. The English translation appeared in 1999.

3. The seal surfaced on the antiquities market in Jerusalem on February 2006 (mea-surements are not recorded). The present location is not reported. The ‘fabric’ of the seal, the visible patina on the surface, the microscopic damages of the incised lines, the typology of the scarab, the iconography and the paleography, all testify in favor of its authenticity.

60 Visions of Life in Biblical Times

three uneven registers by two single lines and is surrounded by a framing

Egyptian hieroglyphic characters, fourteen arranged symmetrically in mirror-shaped pairs from top to bottom. The inscription in the central regis-

The characters are small and deeply incised. The possessive letter lamed is absent, the letter has a horizontal V-shaped head crossing the vertical bar, the letter dalet has a short leg and the letter yod has a cursive tail. The

yw meaning ‘My Lord is Yahweh’, is not found in the Old Testament but it is attested in its southern form with the ending yhw or its shortened version yh (2 Sam. 3.4; 1 Chron. 3.2; 2 Chron. 17.5, 8; Neh. 10.17). The name is also rare in the epigraphic material and is attested only on an ostracon from Samaria (Reisner 1924: 236, 241 42:3) and on a seal bought in Egypt and published by Petrie in 1927: (Petrie 1927: 18, 208; WSS 51), while the southern form of the name and its shortened versions: , or are common (Davies 1991: 268-70; 2004: 126).


2.

The second seal is made of cast bronze (Fig. 2)4

It has the shape of a cartouche adorned with a Proto-Aeolic capital.5 At the back a handle is formed as the head and neck of a duck. The surface of the seal is divided into two uneven registers. The lower, larger register depicts a four-winged scarab resembling the royal emblems of the lmlk type impres-sions on jar handles from the time of Hezekiah king of Judah (Grena 2004: 70). Similar winged scarabs are also attested on Hebrew, Aramaic, Ammo-nite and Phoenician seals and seal impressions (and on the next seal). In the upper register the Hebrew inscription reads:

The letters are carelessly executed, differ in size and are not aligned. The letter lamed is inclined to the left rather than the right, the letter has only two horizontal bars and the last letter is short due to lack of space.

epithet) is the God’. The name is very rare and is probably attested on two unprovenanced Hebrew bullae from the Moussaieff collection (Deutsch 1999a: 20, 21).

4. The seal surfaced on the antiquities market in 2012 and, according to the dealer, it was purchased in Sebaste, the ancient capital of Israel. The seal is heavily corroded, both on the surface and in the incised letters and decoration. A microscopic investigation of the seal made by the author revealed its authenticity beyond any doubt. Its present loca-tion is not reported.

5. A similar seal with a Proto-Aeolic capital adorning a cartouche containing Egyp-

a domestic unit ca. 15 m west of the Phoenician fortress, dated by the excavator to the BCE (Gal 1994).


3.

The third seal is made of red carnelian and is set in the bronze bezel of a (missing) ring or a pendant (Fig. 3).6 The seal is dome-shaped and measures

scarab with two plants on each side. A similar scarab is found on the pre-vious seals (with parallels given). Six letters are engraved symmetrically, three at the top and three at the bottom. The inscription reads:

The two letters lamed have a typical Hebrew rounded hook-shape with a prominent inclination of almost 45 degrees to the right and the letter yod is vertical as expected in the Hebrew script. The letter alef is damaged by the breakage but its left part is visible, a V turned on its side, typical of early

shin is not diagnostic but the square shape of the letter ayin suggests an Ammonite source.

-ing ‘God/El has saved’ (WSS 482). The name is found in the Old Tes-tament in its full and shortened forms , (1 Kgs 19.16, 17, 19; 2 Sam. 5.15). Similar versions of the name are , , and

(WSS 504; Davies 1991: 369, 381). The name is common in Hebrew and Ammonite epigraphy and is attested on seals, seal impressions, ostraca and on an ivory from Nimrud (WSS 894, 895, 960, 975, 979; Millard 1962; Deutsch 2003a: 89; 2011: 565; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000: 62).

6. The seal surfaced on the antiquities market on March 2007, said to be found by a young boy on the ancient tell of Acco. Presently it is kept in the private collec-tion of a collector who prefers to remain anonymous. The damage to the seal was probably caused by the increasing tension of the bronze corrosion over the years. A microscopic investigation of the seal and its bezel reveals its authenticity beyond any doubt.


4.

The fourth seal is made of burnt agate (Fig. 4)7

into two registers by a double line and is surrounded by a framing line. The lower register depicts a highly artistic representation of a palmette. Similar iconography is attested on Hebrew seals and seal impressions (WSS 119, 166, 231, 272, 348, 351; Deutsch 1999a: 70, 91; 2011: 587; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000: 112, 137; 2003: 11, 14, 19; Ornan et al. 2012: 9*). Palmettes are also common in Phoenician art decorating ivory inlays and gold jewel-

inscription reads:

‘Belonging to Broshah’

7chipped at the upper left corner and in the middle of the upper register. A microscopic investigation of the seal revealed a solid deposit of patina on the iconography in the lower register. The authenticity of the seal is beyond doubt. Its present location is not reported.


The script is carefully executed by a skillful engraver, the letters are per-fectly aligned, have the correct inclinations and symmetrically placed in the register. The personal name name ‘Broshah’, meaning ‘Cypress’ (Josh. 41.19, 55.13 ; accad. ), is not attested in the Old Testament but appears on a single Hebrew seal of unknown provenance kept in the Mous-saieff collection (Lemaire 1999: 108*; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000: 17).

Figure 4. Belonging to Broshah

5. Gedorah8 made of dark brown

and is set in a silver pendant measuring 39.8 mm in height. Pendants of similar type are known in gold, silver and bronze, and also are cast with the seal or carved in bone (Basmachi 1975–76: 405, Fig. 189; Keel 1995: 109; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000: 1, 70, 112, 124-25, 131, 135; Deutsch 2011: 487).

At the top there is a horizontal ankh with triangle head. The letter dalet is

8. The seal is in the collection of Dr David Jeselsohn of Zurich. A microscopic investigation of the seal and its pendant made by the author in 2007 revealed clear solid patina on the surface of the seal, in the carved letters and in the iconography. The silver pendant is heavily corroded which proves the authenticity of both the seal and its setting in antiquity.


large with a triangle shaped head with a short leg and the letter resh has a square head. The possessive letter lamed is absent. The inscription reads:

gdrh‘(Belonging to) Gedorah’

Semitic epigraphy. The name is found in the Old Testament in its shortened form gdr ‘Gedor’ (1 Chron. 8.31; 9.37). Gedorah is also the name of at least two biblical towns (Josh. 15.36; 1 Chron. 4.23), which may be the source of the personal name.9

Figure 5. (Belonging to) Gedorah

9. See also the biblical towns gdr ‘Geder’ and gdrwt ‘Gederoth’ (Josh. 12.13; 15.41).


6.

The sixth seal is a scarab perforated lengthwise (Fig. 6),10 in very good

were previously recorded (WSS 59, 328, 373, 377; Deutsch 2011: 429, 487; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000: 2, 10), and see seal no. 1 above. The

-

characters on one side and four Hebrew letters on the opposite side. At the bottom an additional character resembles the rising sun. Two dots are

-tion reads:

The letters and the characters are deeply engraved by a professional hand, yet the letter is reversed.

meaning ‘Yahweh has rescued’ (WSS 498). The name is found in the Old Testament (2 Sam. 23.26; 1 Chron. 2.39; 11.27; 27.10), on ostraca from Samaria and on seals and bullae of unknown provenance (Davies 1991: 350-51; WSS 494, 603?; Deutsch and Lemaire 2000: 132).

10. The seal surfaced on the antiquities market in Jerusalem on February 2006, an is presently kept in a private collection in Israel. The ‘fabric’ of the seal, the visible patina on the surface, the microscopic damages of the incised lines, the typology of the scarab, the iconography and the paleography, all testify in favor of its authenticity.


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Documents

Six New Unrecorded Israelite Hebrew Seals