The Ekron inscriptions The Ekron description was discovered in 1996 at Tel Miqne, and the text of the inscription verified that the identification of Tel Miqne as ancient Ekron was indeed correct. The text dedicates to a goddess called פתגיה (Ptgyh) a temple built by the “ruler” or “chief” (שר) of Ekron, one Akish son of Padi son of Yasid son of Ada son of Ya’ir. The Ekron inscription dates to the 7th century BCE. the importance of the inscription for biblical studies is that it “dramatically confirmed the place name, along with the names of five of its rulers, and two of them are specifically mentioned in the Bible.” (quoting Schoville) Some scholars read פתגיה and interpret it in relation to Greek potnia, “lady” or “mistress,” and in turn identify that “lady” or “mistress” as Asherah. Schoville, in turn, seems to take this as proof that the Philistines came from Crete and assimilated to Canaanite culture by the 7th century BCE.The first monumental epigraphic inscription from Southern Palestine, found during the final season of the excavation at Tel Mikne-Ekron. The excavation not only confirms Tel Mikne as the site of the Philistine city of Ekron, but also names a number of Philistine kings. Dated to 604 B.C., it also names a goddess not otherwise known from ancient history, according to head excavator Sy Gitin. Altar at Mount Ebal The excavator of this site, Adam Zertal, advances the interpretation that the installation was an altar built by Joshua upon entering the promised land, in fulfillment of Moses’ command to that effect. The case for the installation being an altar is based on the preponderance of scorched or burned animal bones found in the ash layers. The case for connecting this altar with the early Iron Age Israelites is the lack of donkey, dog, or pig bones in the ash of the burned bones. Zertal’s inference that the installation is an altar used by the same population that occupied the new Iron I villages in the Palestinian highlands—people that Finkelstein and Dever both call “proto-Israelites”—seems pretty reasonable. Going a step further and identifying the altar as Joshua’s altar is intriguing, but there’s nothing that specifically links the Ebal altar to any specific person—not that we should expect to find a “Joshua was here” graffito on the side of the altar or the wall of the larger enclosure.
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 22:16:01 +0000
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