Tel Dan Stele
Aramean victory inscription naming the 'House of David'
Found 1993 — Avraham Biran (Hebrew Union College); fragment first noticed by surveyor Gila Cook
Where Tel Dan (Tell el-Qadi), northern Israel (Israel)
Dates from c. 840–800 BCE · Iron Age IIA–B · Divided Kingdom (Jehu's revolt; wars with Aram-Damascus)
Now at Israel Museum, Jerusalem
Names a biblical person David, Jehoram (Joram), Ahaziah ('House of David'; Jehoram and Ahaziah partly restored; Hazael inferred as author, not named)
How Tel Dan Stele was found
Reused as a building stone in a wall by the outer gate plaza; the letters showed up in low afternoon light. Two more fragments were found in 1994.
What it is
Three joining fragments of a basalt victory stele, about 32 cm high as preserved, carved in Old Aramaic letters. The surviving thirteen lines have an Aramean king (almost certainly Hazael) boasting that he killed the 'king of Israel' and the king of the 'House of David' (bytdwd).
Why it matters for the Bible
This is the earliest text outside the Bible to name David's dynasty, written within about 150 years of his life. It also gives an Aramean account of the same deaths of Yehoram (Jehoram) of Israel and Achazyahu (Ahaziah) of Judah that 2 Kings 9 credits to Jehu. It does not prove details of David's reign, but it shows that a 'House of David' was a known royal house in the ninth century BCE.
The Hebrew word: Beit Dah-VEED
בֵּית דָּוִד
בֵּית דָּוִד is pronounced Beit Dah-VEED and means House of David (the Davidic dynasty) (Strong's H1004 + H1732).
People this discovery connects to
- David — דָּוִד (Dah-VEED) — beloved
- Hazael — חֲזָאֵל (Cha-zah-EL) — El has seen
- Jehoram (Joram) — יְהוֹרָם (Ye-ho-RAHM) — YHVH is exalted
Places
- Dan — דָּן (Dahn) — judge
Events
Wars between Israel/Judah and Aram-Damascus · Deaths of Jehoram and Ahaziah (2 Kings 9)
Tel Dan Stele in Scripture
1 Samuel 16:13 First mention of David in Scripture.
2 Kings 8:28-29 Names the two kings, Jehoram of Israel and Ahaziah of Judah, whom the stele's author claims to have killed.
2 Kings 9:24-27 The Bible credits Jehu with these killings; the stele offers a rival Aramean claim.
Questions people ask
What is Tel Dan Stele?
Three joining fragments of a basalt victory stele, about 32 cm high as preserved, carved in Old Aramaic letters. The surviving thirteen lines have an Aramean king (almost certainly Hazael) boasting that he killed the 'king of Israel' and the king of the 'House of David' (bytdwd).
When was Tel Dan Stele discovered?
It was found in 1993 by Avraham Biran (Hebrew Union College); fragment first noticed by surveyor Gila Cook, at Tel Dan (Tell el-Qadi), northern Israel.
Where is Tel Dan Stele today?
Israel Museum, Jerusalem.
Which Bible verses does Tel Dan Stele relate to?
1 Samuel 16:13, 2 Kings 8:28-29, 2 Kings 9:24-27.
Related discoveries
- שַׁעַרTel Dan Iron Age Gate ComplexThe stone gate, plaza and 'seat of judgment' where the Tel Dan Stele was reused
- אַל־תִּירָאZakkur SteleA king of Hamath saved from 'Bar-Hadad son of Hazael' — Ben-Hadad III in stone
- מֶלֶךְ אֲרָםShalmaneser III's Annals of 841 BCEThe Calah bull and marble-slab texts recording Hazael's defeat and Jehu's tribute
- הֲדַדHazael Booty Inscriptions (Arslan Tash Ivory and Samos Horse Frontlet)Luxury goods marked 'for our lord Hazael', carried off as plunder across the ancient world
- מָצוֹרTell es-Safi/Gath: Hazael's Siege TrenchA 2-km ditch and burnt city marking the Aramean destruction of Gath
- גָּלְיָתGath (Tell es-Safi): Goliath's HometownThe 2005 ostracon with Goliath-like names and Hazael's siege trench
Sources
- Biran & Naveh, 'An Aramaic Stele Fragment from Tel Dan', IEJ 43 (1993)
- Wikipedia: Tel Dan Stele