Nimrud Ivories
Thousands of Phoenician and Syrian ivories — the same art that filled Ahab's palace — hoarded by Assyria
Found 1845 — Austen Henry Layard (1845–51); William Loftus (1854–55); Max Mallowan and the British School of Archaeology in Iraq (1949–63); Iraqi excavations in the 1970s–80s
Where Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), Iraq (Iraq)
Dates from 9th–7th century BCE · Iron Age IIB / Neo-Assyrian · Divided Kingdom (Assyrian tribute and plunder from the Levant)
Now at British Museum, London; Iraq Museum, Baghdad; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; many other museums
How Nimrud Ivories was found
Found in the palaces and storerooms of Kalhu, especially Fort Shalmaneser, and in wells where they had been thrown when the city fell in 612 BCE; Mallowan's team recovered thousands of pieces.
What it is
The largest collection of ancient carved ivory known: furniture panels, boxes, handles and fittings carved in Phoenician, North Syrian and Assyrian styles — sphinxes, 'women at the window', lions attacking bulls, and lotus friezes — some inlaid with gold and glass, and some bearing Phoenician or Aramaic letters.
Why it matters for the Bible
These ivories show where the Samaria ivories came from and what happened to them. Assyrian kings demanded ivory furniture as tribute and plunder from Israel, Phoenicia and Aram — the Black Obelisk and Tiglath-Pileser's annals list 'ivory beds' from the western kingdoms — and stored them by the thousand. Amos's warning that the 'houses of ivory' would perish was fulfilled when such treasures ended up in Assyrian storerooms.
The Hebrew word: KAH-lach
כָּלַח
כָּלַח is pronounced KAH-lach and means Calah — the Assyrian city of Nimrud, named in Genesis 10:11 (Strong's H3625).
People this discovery connects to
- Ahab — אַחְאָב (Ach-AHV) — father's brother
Places
- Calah (Kalhu / Nimrud) — כָּלַח (KAH-lach) — (uncertain)
Events
Assyrian tribute from Israel and Phoenicia · Fall of Samaria and plunder of its palaces
Nimrud Ivories in Scripture
Genesis 10:11-12 Nimrod builds Calah, 'the great city' — the site of these ivories.
Questions people ask
What is Nimrud Ivories?
The largest collection of ancient carved ivory known: furniture panels, boxes, handles and fittings carved in Phoenician, North Syrian and Assyrian styles — sphinxes, 'women at the window', lions attacking bulls, and lotus friezes — some inlaid with gold and glass, and some bearing Phoenician or Aramaic letters.
When was Nimrud Ivories discovered?
It was found in 1845 by Austen Henry Layard (1845–51); William Loftus (1854–55); Max Mallowan and the British School of Archaeology in Iraq (1949–63); Iraqi excavations in the 1970s–80s, at Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), Iraq.
Where is Nimrud Ivories today?
British Museum, London; Iraq Museum, Baghdad; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; many other museums.
Which Bible verses does Nimrud Ivories relate to?
Genesis 10:11-12.
Related discoveries
- שֵׁןSamaria IvoriesCarved furniture inlays from the 'ivory house' of Ahab and his successors
- מוֹשִׁיעַNimrud Slab of Adad-nirari IIIAssyria lists 'the land of Omri' among its tributaries
- פּוּלAnnals of Tiglath-Pileser IIIMenahem's tribute, Pekah's overthrow, Hoshea's appointment, and 'Jehoahaz of Judah'
- קֶשֶׁרNimrud Prism of Sargon IIA second Assyrian telling of Samaria's fall and the exile of its people
- מִנְחָהBlack Obelisk of Shalmaneser IIIJehu of Israel bowing before the Assyrian king — the only known portrait of an Israelite king
- חוֹתָם'Jezebel' SealAn opulent Phoenician-style seal that may — or may not — have belonged to Ahab's queen
Sources
- Herrmann & Laidlaw, Ivories from Nimrud (British School of Archaeology in Iraq series)
- Wikipedia: Nimrud ivories