(Canaanite Origins) Material Artifact (Ishba’al ben Beda)

esh baal esh baal1

Clay jar from Khirbet Qeiyafa, an Iron Age site from around 1020 to 980 BCE inscribed with the name of Ishba’al son of Beda. It’s the same name but most likely not the same person identified as such in Chronicles and as Samuel I as Ishboshet, a rival to King David. The old script and the personal name bearing the name of the storm god Ba’al, both of which fell out of use at some point after the Unified Monarch, says something about the Canaanite origins of the ancient Israelites. An old broken material artifact, the jar was pieced to together like a jig saw. It used to belong to someone. Elongated in form, the jar photographs quite beautifully. You can read more about the object here.

About zjb

Zachary Braiterman is Professor of Religion in the Department of Religion at Syracuse University. His specialization is modern Jewish thought and philosophical aesthetics. http://religion.syr.edu
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