Tel Dan Stele
(aka The House of David Inscription)
8th or 9th century B.C.
Reproduction
The “House of David” is central to the Old Testament narrative, but until recently there was no extra-biblical evidence to substantiate the biblical references to the Davidic dynasty. In 1966 excavations began at Tel Dan in the northern part of Galilee near the Golan Heights, under the direction of archaeologist Avrham Biran. This site was called Leshem (Joshua 19:47) or Laish (Judges 18:27) in ancient times.
A black basalt stele (an upright stone slab or pillar with inscription) with Aramaic text was discovered near the city gate. The largest fragment was excavated in 1966, and two smaller fragments were found in 1994. It appears to have been part of a victory stele erected by Hazael King of Aram (present day Syria). The inscription describes the beginning of Hazael's reign and his battles, in which he killed "seventy kings," among them Jehoram King of Israel and Ahaziah King of Judah, whose names appear in partial form. It corresponds to the biblical account in 2 Chronicles 22, which describes the war between Hazael and the kings of Israel and Judea, Jehoram and Ahaziah respectively (2 Kings 8:7-15, 28; 9:24-29). The stele may have been smashed into pieces by Jehoash, king of Israel, who fought the Arameans three times and defeated them (2 Kings 13:25), recovering the city of Dan.
By far the most interest in the Tel Dan Stele was generated by the statement that the author had “killed [Achaz]yahu son of [Joram kin]g of the House of David.” The Aramaic word, ביתדוד, is identical to the Hebrew word for the “house of David.” This was the first occurrence of a reference to the “house of David” outside of the biblical text.
A black basalt stele (an upright stone slab or pillar with inscription) with Aramaic text was discovered near the city gate. The largest fragment was excavated in 1966, and two smaller fragments were found in 1994. It appears to have been part of a victory stele erected by Hazael King of Aram (present day Syria). The inscription describes the beginning of Hazael's reign and his battles, in which he killed "seventy kings," among them Jehoram King of Israel and Ahaziah King of Judah, whose names appear in partial form. It corresponds to the biblical account in 2 Chronicles 22, which describes the war between Hazael and the kings of Israel and Judea, Jehoram and Ahaziah respectively (2 Kings 8:7-15, 28; 9:24-29). The stele may have been smashed into pieces by Jehoash, king of Israel, who fought the Arameans three times and defeated them (2 Kings 13:25), recovering the city of Dan.
By far the most interest in the Tel Dan Stele was generated by the statement that the author had “killed [Achaz]yahu son of [Joram kin]g of the House of David.” The Aramaic word, ביתדוד, is identical to the Hebrew word for the “house of David.” This was the first occurrence of a reference to the “house of David” outside of the biblical text.
