Hebrew Letter, Written 2,700 Years Ago on Earthen Pot, Discovered

Portions of a letter from an Israelite peasant written some 2,700 years ago, which were found by Israel archaeologists on the coastal plain, may be part of the oldest Hebrew letter ever discovered, the Israel Antiquities Department said today. The discovery of this letter was reported by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency in January.

The fragments of an earthen pot, on which the letter was written, were found on the site of an ancient fort a mile south of Yavne Yam near the coast. Scientists have completed assembling the fragments and have deciphered about half of the text which has been tentatively dated as having been written in the Seventh Century before the Common Era. The letter is an appeal from the peasant to his prince for return of a cloak which, in accordance with customs of the period, had been confiscated for a bad debt which the writer denied.

Scientists said here last night that besides including at least one word which has not been found in any other known Hebrew text, the letter seemed to indicate that King Josiah had extended his sovereignty to the coastal plain and had settled the area with Judean peasants. It had been known that Josiah conquered northern Israel and parts of the Negev but the coastal plain had been thought to be an Assyrian province at that time. The new evidence indicated that Josiah took advantage of the decline of the Assyrian empire and conquered the coastal plain.

The scientists pointed out that the letter was written in a very skilled script but in clumsy language, suggesting that the letter was dictated by the peasant to a professional scribe, typical of the scribes who sat near city gates to handle such writing chores. Other fragments included Hebrew inscriptions on pottery which indicated that the letter was not misplaced but originated in the Israelite population resident in the area at that time.