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Posted on 01/17/2003 7:12:38 PM PST by Pokey78
The appearance of an inscribed stone tablet in Jerusalem has sharply divided Israeli experts, who say it is either the most sensational archaeological discovery in the Holy Land since the Dead Sea Scrolls or an ingenious fraud.
The tablet contains 15 lines of text, in which King Jehoash, who ruled in the 9th century BC, records how he repaired the temple, an event related in the Second Book of Kings in the Old Testament.
If proved genuine it would be the first independent proof of the existence of Solomon's temple, and provide the first incontrovertible physical proof of the biblical narrative. But the origins of the tablet are murky. It was not found in an archaeological dig and no one is saying where it came from.
It was first offered for sale - it could be worth millions of pounds - to the Israel Museum, but experts there were uncertain of its origins. But 10 months of tests by Israel Geological Institute have been unable to fault the tablet.
The inscription appears to be some 2,500 years old, to judge by the patina, and experts suppose that it stood in the temple until the Babylonians destroyed it in 586 BC, after which the tablet was covered in dirt and rubble.
Even more intriguing is that the geologists have found traces of pure gold which had been burned into the stone - perhaps a sign that it was in the temple when it was destroyed.
"They could be from gold-plated objects in the home of a very rich man, or a temple," said Amos Bean, director of the institute. "It is hard to believe that anyone would know how to do these things to make it look real."
Dr Shimon Ilani, one of the institute's researchers who has co-authored a paper on the tablet, says he cannot offer a certificate of authenticity, but the experts have found no evidence to cast doubt on its authenticity.
Scholars from rival fields have raised doubts about the tablet, saying the find is just too perfect, when nothing remotely similar has ever been found in the Holy Land.
Prof Yosef Naveh, an expert on the development of the Hebrew alphabet at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told the newspaper Ha'aretz yesterday that he thought the tablet was a forgery.
Supporters of the tablet's authenticity believe that it was unearthed during Palestinian excavations on the Temple Mount - the site of the Second Temple destroyed by Romans in 70 AD - which is now occupied by the Al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock.
To the consternation of Israeli archaeologists, tons of debris, perhaps containing valuable historical material, was removed from the site to provide underground space for Muslim worshippers.
If proved genuine, the tablet would have a dramatic political effect on the dispute over who should control the Temple Mount, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, if there is ever a peace agreement.
The Palestinian leadership contends that it is a purely Islamic site and claims there never was a Jewish temple there - despite the evidence of ancient historians, the Gospels, early Christian pilgrims and Islamic writers.
Digging through the crushed debris after they dump it has turned up pottery shards from both the first and second Temple eras and on up through the byzantine era. Pieces of worked marble are common, as well as mosaic tiles from the later muslim era. What they're doing is indeed an archaeological outrage.
http://www.vendyljones.org.il/
The 'Shemen Afarshimon', the Holy Anointing Oil from the First Temple.
You might be thinking of that Wyatt guy. He's a liar as well as a crackpot. Mr. Jones is quite credible.
The two main groups I know of are the 'Temple Institute' and the 'Temple Mount Faithful'. They have been making many of the items necessary for the Temple, and their belief is that it will be rebuilt on the Temple Mount. Their websites:
http://www.templeinstitute.org/
http://www.templemountfaithful.org/
A good site for Temple Mount related articles is: http://www.templemount.org/ There are a number of interesting articles and links on that page, especially concerning exactly where the original Temple was located on the Mount. Everyone says the Dome of the Rock covers it, but Tuvia Sagiv, a Tel Aviv architect and researcher, says different. His evidence is very compelling, and definitely worth reviewing. According to his research, the Holy of Holies was located under the current Fountain in the plaza south of the mosque. That is where many muslims was their feet before going to pray. Since the entire current Mount is actually of Roman construction built on fill, the original level is many meters underneath it. Interesting enough, his positioning of the Holy of Holies is directly in line with the Kotel prayer site. If he is correct, which it seems from the evidence he is, when Jews pray toward the wall, they pray directly facing the exact position of the Holy of Holies.
Dr. Jones, and others, believe that the Ark and original Tabernacle are to be re-placed at Gilgal, as it was before Solomon built the Temple. I had never heard this view before, and his explanation of it, with biblical backing, is very interesting and thought provoking. He has rabbinical advice and consent on everything he does, so it's not just his idea.
I wondered if that was original material too. It's probably modern packing, but to be honest I have no idea.
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