An ancient seal with the name of a court official dating 2,600 years old discovered in Jerusalem.
The engraving reads – belonging to Nathan-Melech, Servant of the King.
Dating from the court of a First Temple period
and discovered in an archaeological dig inside a large public building that was destroyed in the sixth century BCE possibly dating from the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE.
Being just one centimeter in size and discovered next to large stone ruins, burnt wooden beams as well as some charred pottery shards.
The debris around showed clear indications that the building itself had been subject to an immense fire.
The dig was conducted by archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority and Tel Aviv University.
The seal bares the name Nathan-Melech which appears once in the Bible in the second book of Kings 23:11 – where the name is described as an official to the court of King Josiah.
What People Are Saying Online
A 2,600-year-old stamp-seal found in Jerusalem names an official of the Bible’s King Josiah. The one-of-kind find is the latest in a string of important seal discoveries that support the biblical account. …See more in this week’s Thinker Update. https://t.co/zo6HptGCDT pic.twitter.com/Mdu7p8FR1c
— Patterns Of Evidence (@PattOfEvidence) 6 April 2019
2,600 year old seal discovered in City of David – A 2,600 year old seal bearing the inscription… https://t.co/oa5t2uS5M2
— Archaeological News (@archaeologybuzz) 31 March 2019
