New Light on Six Inscriptions from Arad

Abstract

On the basis of new multispectral images, I re-examine six of the inscriptions found by Yohanan Aharoni at Arad. These are Arad 76, an early ration list; Arad 49, an inscribed ritual bowl dated to the late 8th century; three letters that form part of Eliashib's archive (Arad 3, 5 and 12); and a unique school text dated to the late 7th–early 6th centuries that records blessings and expressions of human emotions (Arad 28). Only certain portions of the three letters are discussed in detail whereas the three other inscriptions are rendered in Hebrew transcription, translation, commentary and detailed discussion.

Keywords:

• Arad
• Ostraca
• Eliashib
• Ritual bowl
• School text
• Multispectral imaging

Acknowledgment

Ostracon images are courtesy of the Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University (photographer: Michael Cordonsky) and of the Israel Antiquities Authority. This study was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (Grant 2062/18). I thank Dr. Eran Arie, the former Curator of Iron Age and Persian Period Archaeology at the Israel Museum, Jerusalem for his help. Special thanks are due to Shira Faigenbaum-Golovin who made efforts to improve the images of the inscriptions and supplied several versions of photos, which enabled examination of the ostraca from different angles and dark-light configurations. Finally, thanks are due to the anonymous reviewer who read the article and made numerous useful comments throughout.

Notes

1 For detailed discussion of the date of Stratum XI at Arad, see Herzog 2002: 21–26, 49–52; Singer-Avitz 2002: 111–123; Herzog and Singer-Avitz 2004: 224, 228–231.

2 For discussion of the text and its historical reality, see Na'aman 1979: 70; Eph>al 1982: 78–79 and n. 234; Japhet 1993: 123–125.

3 I very much doubt Herzog’s reconstruction according to which the Arad temple was abolished in Stratum IX and that in the late 8th century (Stratum VIII), the temple area was replaced with regular structures. For discussions of this issue, see Na’aman 2002: 585–592; Herzog 2002: 35–40; 69–72; 2010.

4 Joseph Naveh (1990) discussed in detail the registration of what he designated ʻnameless people' in ancient texts. He examined various Near Eastern, biblical and epigraphic texts and reached the conclusion that informal registration of names and nicknames was a common practice in Semitic societies.

5 For an updated list of the 27 hieratic inscriptions discovered and published so far, see Na'aman 2020: 36, with earlier literature.

6 Many works have examined the kispu rites; that is, the rituals held for the dead ancestors in ancient Near Eastern kingdoms; listing them is not necessary for my discussion.

7 The diagonal black line that crosses the deep break in the clay is not part of the inscription (Aharoni interpreted its lower end as the lower edge of the mem).

8 For the interpretation of the noun/verb >nl, see Bartlett 1989: 214.

9 For an 8th century BCE text from Samaria that includes a number of blessings, see Na'aman 2015b, with earlier literature.