The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz
Boulder pile with cattle carvings, claimed as Aharon's calf altar
Found 1984 — Ron Wyatt (1984); filmed by Bob Cornuke and Larry Williams (1988); later Jim and Penny Caldwell and the Doubting Thomas Research Foundation
Where Foot of the Jabal al-Lawz / Jabal Maqla range, near Al-Bad', Tabuk Province (Saudi Arabia)
Dates from Petroglyphs c. 4th millennium BCE onward; claim c. 1446 BCE · Rock art, mostly dated by Saudi surveys to the Neolithic and later · Golden calf at Sinai (claimed)
Now at Site (fenced archaeological area, Saudi Arabia)
How The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz was found
Explorers entering without permits noticed a cluster of large boulders at the foot of the mountain range carved with cattle figures. Saudi authorities later fenced the boulders and posted a guard station; the fence was opened to licensed tours from 2019.
What it is
A stack of large granite boulders about 6 m high, standing in the plain below the mountain. Several faces are pecked with images of cattle, some with long curved horns, plus ibex and human figures. Proponents say the cattle resemble Egyptian Apis or Hathor images and that no other bovine art exists nearby.
Why it matters for the Bible
This is offered as the altar Aharon (Aaron) built for the golden calf in Exodus 32. Saudi archaeologists who surveyed the region reported about 50 rock-art sites with cattle in the Al-Bad' area alone and some 300 across northwest Arabia, and dated the cattle images to the Neolithic, when wild and domestic cattle roamed a wetter Arabia. Rock art of this kind cannot be dated to a single year and carries no inscriptions. Gordon Franz also notes the Bible says Aharon built the altar, not that the people carved cattle on it. The petroglyphs are real and interesting; the calf-altar reading is not accepted by professional archaeology.
The Hebrew word: EH-gel
עֵגֶל
עֵגֶל is pronounced EH-gel and means calf, young bull; the 'molten calf' of Exodus 32 (Strong's H5695).
People this discovery connects to
- Aaron — אַהֲרֹן (ah-hah-ROHN) — uncertain; perhaps 'mountain of strength' or 'light-bringer'
Places
- Mount Sinai — הַר סִינַי (hahr see-NAI) — mountain of Sinai
Events
The golden calf (claimed location)
The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz in Scripture
Exodus 32:4-5 Aharon makes the molten calf and builds an altar before it; the boulder pile is claimed to be that altar.
Psalms 106:19-20 'They made a calf in Horeb' and exchanged their glory for the image of an ox that eats grass.
Questions people ask
What is The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz?
A stack of large granite boulders about 6 m high, standing in the plain below the mountain. Several faces are pecked with images of cattle, some with long curved horns, plus ibex and human figures. Proponents say the cattle resemble Egyptian Apis or Hathor images and that no other bovine art exists nearby.
When was The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz discovered?
It was found in 1984 by Ron Wyatt (1984); filmed by Bob Cornuke and Larry Williams (1988); later Jim and Penny Caldwell and the Doubting Thomas Research Foundation, at Foot of the Jabal al-Lawz / Jabal Maqla range, near Al-Bad', Tabuk Province.
Where is The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz today?
Site (fenced archaeological area, Saudi Arabia).
Which Bible verses does The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz relate to?
Exodus 32:4-5, Psalms 106:19-20.
Is The 'Golden Calf Altar' Petroglyphs at Jabal al-Lawz authentic?
The petroglyphs exist; the Saudi survey dates similar cattle art in the region to the Neolithic, far earlier than any Exodus date. No licensed excavation supports the golden-calf reading.
Related discoveries
- עָשָׁןThe Blackened Summit of Jabal MaqlaThe dark peak said to be scorched when YHVH descended in fire
- מַצֵּבָהHar KarkomA Negev mountain covered in rock art, proposed as Sinai by Emmanuel Anati
- מִדְיָןJabal al-Lawz: The Official Archaeology and the 2019 OpeningWhat Saudi surveys actually found, and how the fenced site became a tour stop
- עַיִןMaqna 'Springs of Moses' (Arabian Elim and Marah claims)Palm-oasis springs on the Gulf of Aqaba offered as the twelve wells of Elim
- צוּרThe 'Split Rock of Horeb' near Jabal MaqlaA giant cleft boulder in Saudi Arabia claimed as the rock Moshe struck
- מַצֵּבָהThe 'Altar of Moses' and 'Twelve Pillars' at Jabal al-LawzStone structure and column fragments at the mountain's foot, claimed from Exodus 24
Sources
- Franz, 'Is Mount Sinai in Saudi Arabia?', Bible and Spade 13 (2000) / ABR
- Biblical Archaeology Society, 'Did Amateur Archaeologists Find the Real Mt. Sinai?'
- Doubting Thomas Research Foundation, 'The Golden Calf Worship Site'
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