Merneptah Stele

(aka the Menetaph Stele, aka Israel Stele)

Merneptah Stele

• Dated to 1209/1208 BCE

• Inscription by the Ancient Egyptian king Merneptah (reign:1213 to 1203 BC)

• Found at Thebes

Merneptah Stele

• “Canaan is captive with all woe. Ashkelon is conquered, Gezer seized, Yanoam made nonexistent; Israel is wasted, bare of seed.”

Merneptah Stele

• The determinative accompanying Gezer, Ashkelon and Yanoam indicate they are city-states.

• The determinative accompanying Israel indicates it is a foreign people, perhaps a nomadic tribe.

Merneptah Stele

• Scholarly debate about translation for I.si.ri.ar. Some scholars suggest it doesn’t refer to Israel but Jezreel.

• Only known Egyptian reference to the Israelites

• Earliest known reference to the Israelites

Mesha Stele

Mesha Stele

• Commemorates the victory of Mesha, a Moabite king, over Omri the king of Israel.

• Dated to 840 BCE

Tel Dan Stele

Tel Dan Stele

• Aramaic inscription• King of Damascus, Hazael, commemorates a

victory over Israel.• The inscription includes the phrase, ‘House of

David’.• Dated to 9th or 8th century BCE