Linear A Ivory Comb Text from Lachish Israel (1400 BCE)

(November 21, 2022, updated January 2, 2024)

Text in Akkadian Linear A (Levant Text 8)

1. [                     ] Gi
2. Qu  AKu [ 2 ]P Ḫi         (P has no vertical handle, Ḫi is more image based than normal for this time and likely is the missing Phaistos Disk version)
3. ŠiGi  ṢaMa  Qu  Ki  Qi‘u  Nu     (notice the small vertical line on the Ṣ which is a merger of Linear A styles)

Text Translated into English

1. ……. emotional-energy
2. Life-threads, emotion-owls [2 unreadable words ] Hu-powers
3. The conflict dehydrating the life-threads (hairs) is involving envy of the Revealer (Kate/Hekate)

References

(November 21, 2022) Lachish was a major city located 25 miles southwest of Jerusalem. It was occupied during the Pottery Neolithic (5500–4500 B.C.E.), Chalcolithic (4500–3300 B.C.E.), and early Bronze Age (3300–3000 B.C.E.). It slowly grew into a major city during the Middle Bronze Age (2000-1650 BCE) only to be destroyed at the end of that period. It was resettled during the Late Bronze Age (1550-1130 BCE), and Persian/Hellenistic periods (538–37 B.C.E.). The comb text dates to the destruction of the Middle Bronze City when it became part of the destruction debris. Later it was mixed in with later trash and deposited in a pit outside of a Judean palace. The ivory comb was found in June/July 2016 during the 4th season of an archaeological excavation led by Yosef Garfinkel. (Vainstub and all 2022). The comb was found within a meter of the bottom of the trash pit which had debris dating as late as 700 BCE so archaeology cannot be used to date it. The very shallowly incised inscription was noticed  in December 2021 by Dr. Madeleine Mumcuoglu.

Some kind of shrine called the Fosse Temple was constructed in three major phases during the late Bronze Age (1550-1200 BCE, level VII). It was built within a filled-in moat at the northwest corner of the mound outside the city.

The city was destroyed around 1200 BCE during the Bronze Age collapse. The city which appeared after that was an Egyptian influenced city. During this time the Acropolis temple was built in the Egyptian architectural style. A large bronze shoe for the city’s gate socket bore the cartouche of Pharaoh Ramesses III (1182–1151 B.C.E.). This Egyptian influenced city was destroyed around 1130 BCE apparently by the Philistines. It then lay abandoned for two centuries. (The Solar Shrine is  Zoroastrain dating to the Persian empire period)

References

(November 21, 2022, updated January 2, 2024)

The Words Used in Their Translation

1. Ytš - claimed to be the Hebrew root ntš meaning “to root out.” Tries to get around the different spelling by claiming this root is grammatically modified. Proper word roots are invariant in regards to grammatical constructions which is why they are called roots.
2. Ḥṭ - authors admit this word in not Hebrew but find a close parallel in rabbinic literature from Roman times referring to a certain type of animal tooth.
3. D - meaning “this” in Arabic
4. L - claims this letter is silent only acting to introduce a direct object
5. Qml - meaning “lice” in Arabic
6. Śʿ[r] - claims it means “hair” in all Semitic languages (not true)
7. Zqt - claims it means “chin” in Akkadian. It actually means “fish.”

Literal Translation Using Their Words

1. Root out tooth li-
2. -ce hair chi-
3. -n

• “And he sent to her a comb that kills lice”

References