Samaria Ivories
Carved furniture inlays from the 'ivory house' of Ahab and his successors
Found 1932 — Joint Expedition to Samaria directed by J. W. Crowfoot (ivories published by Grace Crowfoot, 1938); a few pieces already found by the Harvard expedition in 1910
Where Sebastia (ancient Samaria), West Bank (West Bank)
Dates from 9th–8th century BCE · Iron Age IIB · Divided Kingdom (Ahab to Jeroboam II)
Now at Israel Museum, Jerusalem; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem; British Museum, London; Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East
How Samaria Ivories was found
Hundreds of ivory fragments were found in a dump and in rooms north of the royal palace, apparently thrown out or burned when the city was sacked.
What it is
About 500 fragments of carved ivory plaques and inlays, some with gold leaf, glass and colored stone insets. Designs are Phoenician in style and Egyptian in theme: sphinxes, lotus chains, a 'woman at the window', lions, and the infant Horus on a lotus. They once decorated beds, chairs and wall panels.
Why it matters for the Bible
The Bible speaks of Ahab's 'ivory house' and Amos condemns the rich of Samaria who 'lie on beds of ivory'. These pieces are the physical remains of that luxury and show Israel's court sharing the art of Tyre and Sidon, exactly the Phoenician tie the prophets attacked. Their pagan motifs also illustrate the foreign religious influence Elijah opposed.
The Hebrew word: shane
שֵׁן
שֵׁן is pronounced shane and means ivory (literally 'tooth') (Strong's H8127).
People this discovery connects to
- Ahab — אַחְאָב (Ach-AHV) — father's brother
- Amos — עָמוֹס (Ah-MOSE) — burden-bearer
Places
- Samaria — שֹׁמְרוֹן (Shom-RONE) — watch-mountain
Events
Luxury of the Omride court · Amos's preaching against Samaria's rich
Samaria Ivories in Scripture
1 Kings 10:18 First mention of ivory in Scripture.
1 Kings 22:39 Ahab's 'ivory house' — these carvings are its surviving decoration.
Amos 6:4 Those who lie on beds of ivory in Samaria; the ivories are inlays from just such furniture.
Questions people ask
What is Samaria Ivories?
About 500 fragments of carved ivory plaques and inlays, some with gold leaf, glass and colored stone insets. Designs are Phoenician in style and Egyptian in theme: sphinxes, lotus chains, a 'woman at the window', lions, and the infant Horus on a lotus. They once decorated beds, chairs and wall panels.
When was Samaria Ivories discovered?
It was found in 1932 by Joint Expedition to Samaria directed by J. W. Crowfoot (ivories published by Grace Crowfoot, 1938); a few pieces already found by the Harvard expedition in 1910, at Sebastia (ancient Samaria), West Bank.
Where is Samaria Ivories today?
Israel Museum, Jerusalem; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem; British Museum, London; Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East.
Which Bible verses does Samaria Ivories relate to?
1 Kings 10:18, 1 Kings 22:39, Amos 6:4.
Related discoveries
- שֶׁמֶרSamaria: The Omride Royal AcropolisOmri's new capital and Ahab's palace on the hill he bought from Shemer
- כָּלַחNimrud IvoriesThousands of Phoenician and Syrian ivories — the same art that filled Ahab's palace — hoarded by Assyria
- חוֹתָם'Jezebel' SealAn opulent Phoenician-style seal that may — or may not — have belonged to Ahab's queen
- יַיִן יָשָׁןSamaria OstracaWine and oil receipts from the royal storehouse in the days of Jeroboam II
- כֶּרֶםJezreel Rock-Cut Winery ('Naboth's Vineyard')An Iron Age wine press at the foot of Ahab's Jezreel
- יִזְרְעֶאלJezreel: The Omride Royal EnclosureAhab and Jezebel's fortified compound overlooking the valley
Sources
- Crowfoot & Crowfoot, Early Ivories from Samaria (Samaria-Sebaste II), 1938
- University of Bern research project: The Ivory Carvings from Samaria