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JERI0017

Judaea. Jericho. 5 CE to 70 CE. Soft limestone ossuary with incised ornamentation. Funerary.
Transcription

יהועזר אזביא קנמומא אזביא אזביא אזביא

Translation

Yeho'ezer the Ezobite, the cinnamon, the Ezobite. The Ezobite, the Ezobite

Diplomatic

[no diplomatic]

Terminus post quem:
Terminus ante quem:
Notes
Ossuary has low feet. Height describes that of chest plus that of vaulted lid. Corresponding pairs of holes are drilled through the edges of the lid and the chest's rim, on one each side. Short guidelines from the lid to the rim mark the location for drilling. The holes are clearly not outlets for body secretions or for the establishment of contact between body and soil (in accordance with Jerusalem Talmud), as on other ossuaries. These holes seem intended for closure, perhaps with iron rivets. No such rivets were found here; perhaps the holes were never used or rope was used for closure and has since disintegrated. Ornamentation on the chest's front side consists of two metopes in line frames, each containing a six-petalled rosette within concentric line circles. Ornamentation on the chest's left and right sides is similar; a line frame contains a six-petalled rosette within a concentric line circles. First two lines appear on the chest's back; last two on the lid's front. יהועזר is the plene spelling of the name. This and another Yeho'ezer in the tomb are identified as Ezobites presumably to distinguish them from other family members with the name (see inscription "jeri0012"); this one is further distinguished with the appellation "cinnamon," used as a term of endearment or nickname in status emphaticus. It is derived from the Hebrew-Aramaic קנמון, influenced by the Greek κιννάμωμον and variants such as κίναμον. Other nicknames derived from aromatic plants are attested in "balsam," "saffron," "aloe," and possibly "thyme." Bet Ezob is located in eastern Transjordan. Josephus mentions that the village Bethezuba, "The House of Hyssop," was inhabited during this period by Jews, some wealthy. This ossuary constitutes proof that an infant as young as five or six months could merit his or her own, in accordance with rulings in Semakhot 3:2. Repetition of the name of the deceased may express grief of the mourner(s) or improve upon an unsatisfactory first inscription.

Languages

Hebrew, Aramaic

Dimensions

H: 19.5+5 cm; W: 32.5 cm; D: 16.5 cm

Date

5 CE to 70 CE

Current location

No provenance provided.

Figures

  • line frames front, left and right sides of chest

  • metopes within frames on front side

  • encircled six-petalled rosettes in metopes and on left and right sides of chest

  • concentric line circles encircling rosettes

Bibliography

Source of diplomatic

No bibliography available for diplomatic transcription.

Source of transcription

No bibliography available for transcription.

Source of translation

No bibliography available for translation.

Other sources

  • Rahmani, L.Y. A Catalogue of Jewish Ossuaries in the Collections of the State of Israel. Edited by Ayala Sussmann. Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1994. page plate 118, fig. 803:R.
    Zotero
  • Rahmani, L.Y. A Catalogue of Jewish Ossuaries in the Collections of the State of Israel. Edited by Ayala Sussmann. Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1994. page plate 118, fig. 803:F.
    Zotero
  • Rahmani, L.Y. A Catalogue of Jewish Ossuaries in the Collections of the State of Israel. Edited by Ayala Sussmann. Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1994. page plate 118, fig. 803:L.
    Zotero
  • Rahmani, L.Y. A Catalogue of Jewish Ossuaries in the Collections of the State of Israel. Edited by Ayala Sussmann. Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1994. page 244-245.
    Zotero
  • Rahmani, L.Y. A Catalogue of Jewish Ossuaries in the Collections of the State of Israel. Edited by Ayala Sussmann. Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1994. page plate 118, fig. 803:B.
    Zotero
  • Hachlili, Rachel. “The Goliath Family in Jericho: Funerary Inscriptions from a First-Century A.D. Jewish Monumental Tomb.” Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 235, no. Summer (1979): 31–66. page 31-66.
    Zotero
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The project can be cited as:

Satlow, Michael L., ed. 2002 - . “Inscriptions of Israel/Palestine.” Brown University. https://doi.org/10.26300/PZ1D-ST89

This inscription can be cited as:

"Inscriptions of Israel/Palestine," JERI0017, 4 April 2025. https:doi.org/10.26300/pz1d-st89