Mesha Stele

Quick Facts: Who was Mesha Stele?

Subject:

Mesha Stele

Known for:

Moabite stele detailing Mesha's victory over Israel, a key artifact in Semitic epigraphy.

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2Day Chrono-Wiki & Primary Historical Archives

Origins & Early Life

The Mesha Stele, also known as the Moabite Stone, is a stele dated around 840 BCE containing a significant Canaanite inscription in the name of King Mesha of Moab (a kingdom located in modern Jordan). Mesha tells how Chemosh, the god of Moab, had been angry with his people and had allowed them to be subjugated to the Kingdom of Israel, but at length, Chemosh returned and assisted Mesha to throw off the yoke of Israel and restore the lands of Moab. Mesha also describes his many building projects. It is written in a variant of the Phoenician alphabet, closely related to the Paleo-Hebrew script. The stone was discovered intact by Frederick Augustus Klein, an Anglican missionary, at the site of ancient Dibon (now Dhiban, Jordan), in August 1868.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

A "squeeze" (a papier-mâché impression) had been obtained by a local Arab on behalf of Charles Simon Clermont-Ganneau, an archaeologist based in the French consulate in Jerusalem. The next year, the stele was smashed into several fragments by the Bani Hamida tribe, seen as an act of defiance against the Ottoman authorities who had pressured the Bedouins to hand over the stele so that it could be given to Germany. Clermont-Ganneau later managed to acquire the fragments and piece them together thanks to the impression made before the stele's destruction. The Mesha Stele, the first major epigraphic Canaanite inscription found in the Southern Levant, the longest Iron Age inscription ever found in the region, constitutes the major evidence for the Moabite language, and is a "corner-stone of Semitic epigraphy", and history. The stele, whose story parallels, with some differences, an episode in the Bible's Books of Kings (2 Kings 3:4–27), provides invaluable information on the Moabite language and the political relationship between Moab and Israel at one moment in the 9th century BCE.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

It is the most extensive inscription ever recovered that refers to the kingdom of Israel (the "House of Omri"); it bears the earliest certain extrabiblical reference to the Israelite God YHWH. It is also one of four known contemporaneous inscriptions containing the name of Israel, the others being the Merneptah Stele, the Tel Dan Stele, and one of the Kurkh Monoliths. Its authenticity has been disputed over the years, and some biblical minimalists suggest the text was not historical, but a biblical allegory. The stele itself is regarded as genuine and historical by the vast majority of biblical archaeologists today. The stele has been part of the collection of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, since 1873.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1868: 1868 Milestone — The stone was discovered intact by Frederick Augustus Klein, an Anglican missionary, at the site of ancient Dibon (now Dhiban, Jordan), in August 1868.
2. 1873: 1873 Milestone — The stele has been part of the collection of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, since 1873.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Mesha Stele

True or False: “The Mesha Stele is considered the first major epigraphic Canaanite inscription found in the Southern Levant.”

Answer (TRUE ⭕): It is recognized as a cornerstone of Semitic epigraphy and provides invaluable information on the Moabite language.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Abdülmecid II — Historical peer (Born in 1868) (1868): Last Ottoman Caliph and prominent Turkish aesthete, head of the Osmanoğlu family.
• Adah Isaacs Menken — Historical peer (Died in 1868) (1868): American actress, painter, and poet known for sensational stage performances.
• A. K. Fazlul Huq — Historical peer (Born in 1873) (1873): Pakistani statesman and jurist, known as Sher-e-Bangla, a founding father of Pakistan.
• Adam Sedgwick — Historical peer (Died in 1873) (1873): Pioneering British geologist and Anglican priest, co-founder of modern geology.

Frequently Asked Questions about Mesha Stele