Sunday, May 10, 2009

New Ancient Document

This (HT: Paleojudaica) looks like it might be interesting. Kudos to the IAA for providing a hi-res photograph link.

The cursive script is hard to read. The beginning of the text, at least, is in Aramaic: בתרין עשר (on the 12th day) and then dated to לחרבן בית ישראל -- an unusual dating formula, to be sure ("after the destruction of the house of Israel"). However, I am told that the rest of the text is in Hebrew, and that it will be published in due course by Esti Eshel and Ada Yardeni.

1 comment:

Paul Flesher said...

Ed,
The first two words of the dating formula are not that unusual, CHorban Beyt. They appear in the Mishnah, on the Zoar (south end of the Dead Sea) tombstones, and in a couple of later Ketubot. It is the third word "Yisrael" that makes it quite unusual.

Eric Meyers and I have separate articles coming out on the Zoar material and related uses of the formula.

Paul Flesher