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The well preserved bronze bottle is about ten centimeters long and weighs about 280 grams. The clearly legible inscription is on the outside. The archaeological context suggests that the bottle was in use until the [[Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)|Mamluk period]]. The bottle is considered to have been made in the [[Iron Age]] II period, which would suggest use for 2,000 years. |
The well preserved bronze bottle is about ten centimeters long and weighs about 280 grams. The clearly legible inscription is on the outside. The archaeological context suggests that the bottle was in use until the [[Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)|Mamluk period]]. The bottle is considered to have been made in the [[Iron Age]] II period, which would suggest use for 2,000 years. |
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The contents of the bottle |
The contents of the bottle seeds of barley, wheat and grass. A [[ dating| analysis]] the to be about 460 BC.<ref> AzizeThe Ammonite Bottle and Phoenician FlasksAncient Near Eastern Studies . , .<ref> |
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== The inscription == |
== The inscription == |
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Latest revision as of 12:48, 25 October 2025
Ammonite-language inscription on a bronze bottle from Jordan
The Tel Siran inscription is an inscription on a bronze bottle (or “situla“) found at Tel Siran on the campus of the University of Jordan in Amman. It was first published on 27 April 1972. It is considered the first complete inscription in the “Ammonite language“. The bronze bottle is now in the Jordan Archaeological Museum. It is known as KAI 308.
The well preserved bronze bottle is about ten centimeters long and weighs about 280 grams. The clearly legible inscription is on the outside. The archaeological context suggests that the bottle was in use until the Mamluk period. The bottle is considered to have been made in the Iron Age II period, which would suggest use for 2,000 years.
The contents of the bottle included seeds of barley, wheat and grass. A carbon-14 analysis dated the contents to be about 460 BC.[1] The bottle also contained copper traces. Since these remains have a different metallic makeup to the rest of the bottle, it has been suggested that these are the disintegrated remains of an unidentifiable copper object.[1]
The inscription consists of eight lines of legible text. They are attached in the direction from the opening of the bottle to its bottom. Line four protrudes into this floor, while line 5 only contains a single word. It has been translated as:
| Inscription | Original (Phoenician alphabet) | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Line 1 | 𐤌𐤏𐤁𐤃 𐤏𐤌𐤍𐤃𐤁 𐤌𐤋𐤊 𐤁𐤍 𐤏𐤌𐤍 | mʿbd ʿmndb mlk bn ʿmn | The achievement of Amminadab, king of the Ammonites, |
| Line 2 | 𐤁𐤍 𐤄𐤑𐤋𐤀𐤋 𐤌𐤋𐤊 𐤁𐤍 𐤏𐤌𐤍 | bn hṣlʾl mlk bn ʿmn | the son of Hiṣṣalʾel, king of the Ammonites, |
| Line 3 | 𐤁𐤍 𐤏𐤌𐤍𐤃𐤁 𐤌𐤋𐤊 𐤁𐤍 𐤏𐤌𐤍 | bn ʿmndb mlk bn ʿmn | the son of Amminadab, king of the Ammonites; |
| Line 4 | 𐤄𐤊𐤓𐤌 𐤅𐤄 𐤂𐤍𐤕 𐤅𐤄𐤀𐤕𐤇𐤓 | hkrm wh gnt whʾtḥr | the vineyard and the gardens and the pools |
| Line 5 | 𐤅𐤀𐤔𐤇𐤕 | wʾšḥt | and the cisterns |
| Line 6 | 𐤉𐤂𐤋 𐤅𐤉𐤔𐤌𐤇 | ygl wyšmḥ | May he rejoice and be happy |
| Line 7 | 𐤁𐤉𐤅𐤌𐤕 𐤓𐤁𐤌 𐤅𐤁𐤔𐤍𐤕 | bywmt rbm wbšnt | for many days and for years |
| Line 8 | 𐤓𐤇𐤒𐤕 | rḥqt | to come |
F. Zayadine and H. O. Thompson, the first editors, referred to the script as Aramaic script and dated the inscription paleographically to the first half of the 7th century BC.[2] F. M. Cross, on the other hand, sees the inscription as the latest stage of development of the “Ammonite language” and dates it to around 600 BC for paleographic reasons.[4][5]
- ^ a b Azize, Joseph (2003). “The Ammonite Bottle and Phoenician Flasks”. Ancient Near Eastern Studies. 40: 62–79. doi:10.2143/ANES.40.0.562934.
- ^ a b Thompson, Henry O.; Zayadine, Fawzi (December 1973). “The Tell Siran Inscription”. Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research (212): 5–11. doi:10.2307/1356304. JSTOR 1356304. S2CID 163378372.
- ^ Ahlström, G.W. (1984). “The Tell Sīrān Bottle Inscription”. Palestine Exploration Quarterly. 116 (1): 12–15. doi:10.1179/peq.1984.116.1.12.
- ^ Frank Moore Cross: Notes on the Ammonite Inscription from Tell Sīrān. In: Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 212 (1973), pp. 12–15, here p. 13-14.
- ^ COMMENTARY ON THE TELL SIRAN INSCRIPTION, HENRY O. THOMPSON: “The initial study suggested that the text was in the Phoenician script which relates directly to Dr. Frank Cross’ judgment that the script and language are pure Canaanite. A detailed survey of published inscriptions shows that the Siran script is closest to Aramaic of c. 700 B.C. However, Cross (who is undoubtedly the world’s leading expert in ancient Near East epigraphy), claims that Ammonite had an independent development from the parent Aramaic from c. 750 on. Diagnostic forms fell 100 years behind so that the Siran inscription dates c. 600 B.C. shortly before this Ammonite script was destroyed by the Babylonians and replaced by Aramaic. What is not clear in his discussion is when does a branch of Aramaic become pure Canaanite and how does a conquering army destroy a script?”
