You have hobbit horses? 
That is so cool!
Posted on 11/10/2005 4:37:28 AM PST by SJackson
CONTACT: Elana Oberlander, Office of the Spokesman, Bar-Ilan University
Has the Biblical Goliath Been Found?
Bar-Ilan University Archaeologists Unearth Earliest Philistine Inscription in Which Names Similar to Goliath Appear
Ramat Gan - A very small ceramic sherd unearthed by Bar-Ilan University archaeologists digging at Tell es-Safi, the biblical city "Gath of the Philistines", may hold a very large clue into the history of the well-known biblical figure Goliath. The sherd, which contains the earliest known Philistine inscription ever to be discovered, mentions two names that are remarkably similar to the name "Goliath". Tell es-Safi/Gath is located in the southern coastal plain of Israel, approximately halfway between Ashkelon and Jerusalem.
The discovery is of particular importance since the Bible attributes Gath as the home town of Goliath. "Gath of the Philistines," was one of the major cities of the Philistines, the well-known arch-enemies of the Israelites in the biblical text. The archaeological find may also be seen as the first clear extra-biblical evidence that the well-known biblical story of the battle between David and Goliath (and, in particular, the very existence of a figure such as Goliath during the biblical period) may be more than just a legend, according to Prof. Aren Maeir, Chairman of Bar-Ilan University's Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, who has been directing the excavations since they began in 1996. Prof. Maeir will present his findings next week at the conference of the American Schools of Oriental Research in the U.S. city of Philadelphia.
Other recent findings uncovered at the recent excavations at Tell es-Safi include a large assortment of objects of various types which are linked to Philistine culture. Additional remains relating to the siege system constructed by Hazael, King of Aram Damascus around 800 BCE, were revealed, along with extensive evidence of the subsequent capture and destruction of the city by Hazael, as mentioned in Second Kings 12:18. Remains of the Crusader period fortress, Blanche Garde, built after the first Crusade in the mid-twelfth century CE, were also discovered.
Written in archaic "Proto-Canaanite" letters, the inscription found on the sherd, dating to the 10th or early 9th century BCE, contains two non-Semitic names: Alwt and Wlt. Most scholars believe the name Goliath, of non-Semitic origin, is etymologically related to various Indo-European names, such as the Lydian name Aylattes. Following intense examination of the inscription, Prof. Maeir (along with his colleagues Prof. Aaron Demsky, an expert in epigraphy at Bar-Ilan University, and Dr. Stefan Wimmer, of Munich University) has concluded that the two names which appear in the inscription are remarkably similar to the etymological parallels of Goliath.
"It can be suggested that in 10th-9th century Philistine Gath, names quite similar, and possibly identical, to Goliath were in use," says Prof. Maeir. "This chronological context from which the inscription was found is only about 100 years after the time of David according to the standard biblical chronology. Thus, this appears to provide evidence that the biblical story of Goliath is, in fact, based on a clear cultural realia from, more or less, the time which is depicted in the biblical text, and recent attempts to claim that Goliath can only be understood in the context of later phases of the Iron Age are unwarranted."
While the letters are Semitic, the names appearing in the inscription are Indo-European (the linguistic family of ancient Greek and related languages). It is assumed by most scholars that the Philistines migrated to the Levant from somewhere in the Aegean region. On their arrival, they brought with them assorted Aegean cultural facets. With time, their culture became more and more effected by the local cultures, slowly incorporating local elements. This inscription, with Semitic script and Indo-European names, is among the earliest hard evidence showing this process.
The Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project is a long-term investigation aimed at studying the archaeology and history of one of the most important sites in Israel. Tell es-Safi is one of the largest tells (ancient ruin mounds) in Israel and was settled almost continuously from the 5th millennium BCE until modern times.
Continuous excavations of the site are planned for at least the next decade.
You have hobbit horses?
That is so cool!
Grrrrrrrrrrr!
I had heard that the 'giants' of Bible lore are being equated to dinosaur bone-fossils.
Not much different than say the Chinese who are known to record time via the different dynasties. Different peoples record time differently. BCE and CE is a more universal way of recording time... like using the metric system for measurements instead of Biblical cubits.
Perhaps the anti BCE CE people would have prefered Jewish (or Israeli) scientists to use something like 13 Adar 2500 (making a number and date up) it is the correct way to mention the date, who to say the Jewish calendar is the wrong way to notate.
Just so I understand, Dr. Lerner, an observant Jewish journalist living in Israel publishes a paper written at Bar-Ilan University, that’s in Israel not New Jersey, and because it reads BC/BCE he’s a Socialist/Communist/Liberal BS artist trying to erase Jesus from Israeli and American culture?
If that’s the argument, there’s a lot of crap flying, but it’s not emanating from Dr. Lerner.
I guess, I don't know the month but it was likely 2871.
A lot of articles are posted on FR from Jewish World Review. Above the title they read
Jewish World Review Nov. 10, 2005 / 8 Mar-Cheshvan, 5766
Guess I've been anti-Jewish all these years by omitting the Hebrew date when posting.
Nope. The years are identical. CE and BCE were simply used to replace BC and AD because they were too Christian-centric. No other reason than that.
This isn't 2005 AD and 2009 CE.
Which, of course, is why they all use the Christ as 0-year marker in their calendaring system as opposed to the Jewish calendar, the Mayan calander, the Japanese calender, the Muslim calendar, etc.
Try again. They just didn't like being stared in the face with a constant reminder of Christ every time they wrote down a date, so they took the same calender, the same 0-year mark, and removed the offensive wording.
Which is actually silly when you think about it. Since Christ was an historical and archaeological figure why be annoyed because he's used as the 0 mark for a calendar. Unless, of course you don't like Christianity as a religion.
It's sort of like renaming the periodic table of elements into something less chemical because it might offend electrical engineers.
Except for the fact that they use it, then pretend it really isn't based on their dating system.
Kind of like me citing an article you wrote and denying you were the author. But, hey, you should be honored that I cited your article.
Sorry, but you're just wrong on this. Look it up. It is not 2009 C.E. It is 2005 C.E.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Era
>>>Which is actually silly when you think about it. Since Christ was an historical and archaeological figure why be annoyed because he's used as the 0 mark for a calendar. Unless, of course you don't like Christianity as a religion.
Jesus was an historical and archaeological figure. He is not accepted as the Christ by Jews, so BC is a problem. Anno Domini, Year of our Lord, is a problem for 2/3 of the world for whom Jesus is not Lord.
Crap is a good description. It's a politically correct replacement for B.C. and A.D..
BC = Christian Era
BCE = Before the Christian Era
CE = Christian Era
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That would be so cool! LOL!
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