Bryant G. Wood
One of the most important discoveries in Biblical archaeology is that of the Merenptah,2 or “Israel,” Stela. It was discovered in 1896 by W. M. Flinders Petrie in the first court of the mortuary temple of Merenptah in western Thebes (Petrie 1897: 13). Now on display in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, the document contains a brief record of a campaign to Canaan by Merenptah in ca. 1210 BC, in which he claims to have defeated Israel. This is the only direct mention of Israel in Egyptian records, and the earliest mention of Israel outside the Bible.3 The next mention of Israel in an extra-Biblical document is that of Shalmaneser III, who recorded the participation of “Ahab the Israelite” in the battle of Qarqar, Syria, in 853 BC (Younger 2000: 263).4 Merenptah’s scribes wrote the text on the back of a black granite stela of Amenhotep III, which they appropriated from his nearby mortuary temple.
Aerial view of the mortuary temple of Merenptah, looking west. The temple was briefly excavated by W. M. Flinders Petrie in 1896 for the Egyptian Exploration Fund and then more extensively for 15 seasons by the Swiss Institute for Architectural and Archaeological Research in Ancient Egypt between 1971 and 2000. It was recently opened to the public, complete with a small museum (Jaritz 2001), which can be seen in the lower right corner of the complex, behind the palm trees. The Merenptah Stela was found in the west corner of the First Courtyard between the First and Second Pylons.
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Merenptah the Man
Merenptah, which means “beloved of Ptah,”5 was the 13th son of Rameses II, one of Egypt’s greatest pharaohs. His earliest known position was that of “king’s scribe.” Since Rameses lived to be 91 or so, he outlived many of his sons. When Merenptah’s older brother Khaemwaset died in about Rameses’ 55th year, Merenptah became heir apparent and commander-in-chief of the army. He basically took over the reign during his father’s final 12 years. Upon the death of Rameses II in 1212 BC, Merenptah became the fourth Pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty. He continued to live in Rameses, the capital his father had built at modern Qantir in the eastern delta, as well as at Memphis and possibly Heliopolis.
Artist’s reconstruction of the throne room of Merenptah’s Memphis palace, based on excavations by the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania. The building was constructed with massive walls of sun-dried mud bricks, while the columns and doorframes were of limestone. Columns and doorframes from the throne room, as well as portions of the entry pylon, are on display at the University Museum in Philadelphia (Anonymous 1926).
Merenptah’s Memphis palace was excavated between 1915 and 1920 by Clarence S. Fisher for the University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania (Fisher 1917; 1921; 1924; O’Connor 1993). The palace was well preserved due to its destruction by fire and subsequent abandonment. Fisher described the throne room of the palace as “one of the most elaborately decorated and striking halls of which we have any record in Egyptian art” (1917: 220).
Merenptah was already an old man when he came to the throne, probably in his late 60s. By the end of his third year he undertook a campaign to Canaan, no doubt to quell unrest since Egypt had not campaigned there since Rameses II’s 21st year some 50 years earlier. It was on this campaign that Merenptah encountered Israel and bragged of defeating the fledgling nation. The most significant event of his reign was the repulsing of an invasion of a coalition of Libyans and Sea Peoples on Egypt’s western border in his fifth year. Shortly thereafter he quelled a revolt in Nubia, which had conspired with Libya to overthrow Egypt.
Through most of his reign Merenptah was in poor health. Already in his seventh year burial goods were being moved into his tomb in the Valley of the Kings in western Thebes. He died sometime after his tenth year and was buried in tomb KV8, next door to his father’s tomb, KV7. The lid of his second stone sarcophagus (out of four) is on display in the tomb (Brock 2001). The magnificent granite lid of the outer sarcophagus was found reused in the tomb of Psusennes (1039–991 BC) in Tanis, and is now on display in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
Merenptah’s mummy was found in 1898 in a cache of mummies reinterred in the tomb of Amenhotep II (KV35), and is now in the Egyptian Museum. It is of a bald old man, rather obese, who suffered from degenerative arthritis and also from arteriosclerosis in the thigh. He had lost many teeth and the heads of his femurs showed signs of fracture (Shaw and Nicholson 2003: 183–84; Redford 1992b; Kitchen 2003: xxv; 1982: 112, 207, 215).
Merenptah’s Records Pertaining to Israel
We have three records in the Karnak Temple in ancient Thebes, modern Luxor, concerning Merenptah’s exploits: a battle relief of his Canaanite campaign, a record of his victory over the Libyans and Sea Peoples (Kitchen 2003:2–10; Schulman 1987), and a poetic hymn celebrating Merenptah’s victories. It is possible to determine the order in which these records were placed in the temple (Yurco 1986: 212–13). Battle reliefs were normally carved on exterior temple walls. The year 5 war, a much more important event than the Canaanite campaign, was recorded as text only on an interior wall of a court called “Cour de la Cachette,” because thousands of fragments of royal and private statuary were found buried there in 1902. Since the Canaanite battle reliefs are on the exterior west wall of the court, this indicates that they were carved before Merenptah’s year 5 war. When the year 5 war was recorded, it appears there was no further room on the exterior walls for battle reliefs and thus a textual record of the event was made on the interior east wall of the Cour de la Cachette.
Finally, adjacent to the year 5 textual record, a summary poetic hymn was recorded, now in badly damaged condition. The later was devoted primarily to the Libyan war, with the Canaanite campaign being mentioned only briefly at the end. The famous Merenptah Stela is a smaller copy of the Karnak hymn. The Stela apparently was prepared specifically for Merenptah’s mortuary temple and thus would have been carved toward the end of his reign. In addition to these three records, there are surviving remnants of pictorial scenes attributed to Merenptah at the northern and southern extremes of the interior east wall of the Cour de la Cachette.
We shall examine the three records dealing with the Canaanite campaign by starting with the last to be written, the Merenptah Stela, since it is complete.
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The victory hymn of Merenptah, commonly known as the “Merenptah” or “Israel” Stela. Composed in ca. 1208 BC, the Stela is 10.4 ft (3.18 m) high and 5.3 ft (1.63 m) wide (Trapani 2001b). It tells of Merenptah’s victory over a coalition of Libyans and Sea Peoples who attacked Egypt’s western frontier. Almost as an aside, the last two lines record an earlier campaign to Canaan and Merenptah’s supposed subjugation of Israel. This is the earliest recorded instance of the name Israel outside the Bible and the only direct mention of Israel in Egyptian records.
Merenptah’s Stela
All 28 lines of the Merenptah Stela are complete. It has been described as a hymn to Merenptah, since it was written in a poetic style and is laudatory in nature. It begins with the exact day the text was composed in Merenptah’s fifth year. Then follows 26 lines describing Merenptah’s victory over the Libyans and Sea Peoples in the fifth year of his reign. The last two lines were added as an addendum, giving a retrospective account of an earlier campaign to Canaan that took place shortly after Merenptah became ruler (Kitchen 2003: xxv; Yurco 1990: 36), or ca. 1210 BC. Thus, by the end of the 13th century BC, the Israelite tribes had achieved sufficient status to be deemed worthy of being defeated by the king of one of the most powerful nations on earth. This counters the theory being touted by many scholars that the nation of Israel did not come into existence until the 12th century BC.6
Nearly all investigators agree that the Canaan section has a chiastic structure, a poetic format which has matching, or mirror image, elements before and after a focal, or climactic, point. Exactly how that format should be laid out, however, has been a matter of heated discussion. The most rational arrangement, I believe, is that proposed by Bimson (1991: 21). With only minor modifications, it provides a logical balance between the various elements of the poem.7
There are several aspects of this format that are significant. First, is the “ring” nature of the structure, proceeding from the general to the particular. A and A’ are global terms describing Egypt’s world domination, B and B’ boast Merenptah’s supremacy over the nations of the eastern Mediterranean, while the places named in C, D and C’ are individual city-states ostensibly conquered by Merenptah in his Canaanite campaign.
Second, the focal point, D, of this short poetic report is the subjugation of Gezer. Indeed, this seems to have been the most important result of the campaign, because afterward Merenptah took the epithet “Binder of Gezer” (Kitchen 2003: 1; 1999: 76). Thirdly, Israel and Khurru (a general term for Palestine) are in parallel with Libya, Hatti (Asia Minor and northern Syria) and Canaan (southern Syria and the Palestinian coastal plain). This arrangement suggests that Israel was a significant power in the region at that time (cf. Hasel 2004: 81; 2003: 37; 1994: 54, 56, note 12; Waterhouse 2001: 35; Hoffmeier 2000: 41; Kitchen 1994b: 74; Bimson 1991: 22–24; Yurco 1986: 212; Stager 1985: 61*; Williams 1961: 140–41; Albright 1939: 22).
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Merenptah receives the “sword of victory.” The two matching scenes in the “lunette” at the top of the stele depict Merenptah in ceremonial garb receiving the sword of victory from the god Amun-Ra (wearing the crown with two tall plumes). Behind the king on the right is the god Khonsu and on the left the goddess Mut. The three deities comprised the “Theban triad” of Amun-Ra, king of the gods and father of the Pharaoh; Mut, consort of Amun and symbolic mother of the king; and Khonsu, the moon-god and son of Amun-Ra and Mut. Amun-Ra says to Merenptah, “Take for yourself your sword for valor, in every foreign country” (right), and “Receive for yourself the sword over every foreign country, united in one place” (left) (Kitchen 2003: 10, 11; Yurco 1990: 27).
A All the rulers are prostrate, saying “Peace!” Not one among the Nine Bows dare raise his head.
B Plundered is Libya. Hatti is at peace. Carried off is Canaan with every evil.
C Brought away is Ashkeon.
D Taken is Gezer.
C’ Yenoam is reduced to non-existence.
B’ Israel is laid waste, having no seed. Khurru has become widowed, because of Nile-Land
A’ All lands together are (now) at peace. Everyone who roamed about has become subdued.
In Egyptian hieroglyphics, names were accompanied by a “determinative” which defined the nature of the name. In contrast to the other names in the report, which have the determinative for a foreign territorial state, Israel has the determinative for a people or group of people. This indicates that Israel was not a territory or city-state, but a community (Kitchen 1998: 101; 1994b: 74–75). This is in exact agreement with what the Bible tells us about Israel at this time in their history. In 1210 BC Israel was in the middle of a 40-year time of peace following the defeat of Jabin king of Hazor in ca. 1230 BC (Jgs 5:31) during the period of the judges. Israel was still a tribal entity without cities, a king or a formal political structure.
A very unusual feature of the Stela is the fact that the name Israel was written in the masculine, whereas other nations and cities were in the feminine, as was normal Egyptian practice (Gardiner 1957: 69, par. 92.1). The name Israel, of course, is masculine, deriving from Jacob/Israel, the founder of the tribal federation that became the nation of Israel. How much the Egyptian scribes understood about Israel we do not know, but they were sufficiently well informed to know that Israel was a masculine name.
Perhaps the most striking aspect of this contemporary record is the statement that “Khurru (Palestine) has become widowed because of Nile-land (Egypt).” The implication is that, since Israel was “laid waste,” the entire region became a widow. This again indicates that Israel was the major power in the highlands of Canaan at this time.8
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Merenptah’s Karnak Victory Hymn
Of Merenptah’s original hymn of victory in the Karnak Temple, only about 1/6 has survived. The name of Israel is missing, although the names of the city-states Ashkelon, Gezer and Yenoam can be discerned. It is comprised of 39 lines, whereas the Merenptah Stela, a smaller version for Merenptah’s mortuary temple, has only 28 lines. The scribes accomplished this compression by stacking hieroglyphs vertically within the horizontal lines (Kitchen 1994b:71–72; Kuentz 1923).
The original of the text of Merenptah’s Stela. Located on a wall in the Karnak temple in Luxor, only about 1/6 of the inscription remains. The first legible line at the upper right is the beginning (reading right to left) of the fifth line of the inscription. The bottom line at the lower left is the end of line 39, the last line of the document. The names Ashkelon, Gezer and Yenoam appear at the end of line 37. Since the name Israel appears after Yenoam in the Merenptah Stela, it would have appeared at the beginning of line 38, which, sadly, is missing.
Merenptah’s Battle Reliefs
In the winter of 1976–1977 Frank Yurco was in Luxor, Egypt, with the University of Chicago’s Epigraphic Survey. They were recording the many hieroglyphic inscriptions that cover the walls of the ancient temples there. At the time, Yurco was working on his doctoral dissertation on the late 19th Dynasty (ca. 1212–1185 BC). During his free time he would collect data relevant to that time period (Yurco; 1990: 21; 1986: 196). As he studied a set of war reliefs on the outer western wall of the Cour de la Cachette in the Karnak Temple, he made a startling discovery. All previous scholars had attributed those reliefs to Rameses II (ca. 1279–1212 BC), but when Yurco studied the cartouches (ovals in which the king’s name was placed), it was evident that the name of the next Pharaoh, Merenptah (ca. 1212–1202 BC), was associated with the reliefs, not Rameses II (1990: 24–25; 1986: 196–99; cf. Kitchen 1999: 72–75; 1998: 103–104; 1996: 38). Furthermore, he determined that the scenes were a pictorial representation of the Canaanite campaign recorded on the famous Merenptah Stela (1990: 26–33; 1986: 199–201; Hasel 2003: 31–32).
Locations of Merenptah’s reliefs and texts in the Karnak Temple, as well as Shishak’s record of his 925 BC campaign ‘ to Canaan.
There are three reasons the reliefs were previously dated to Rameses II (Yurco 1990: 26, 37, note 1; 1986: 196; 1978):
1. In the midst of the battle scenes is a copy of a peace treaty Rameses II made with the Hittites in his 21st year.
2. Above the two northern-most scenes (Scenes 2 and 3), on the cornice of the wall, is a cartouche of Rameses II.
3. In one of the battle scenes (Scene 2) is a prince named Khaemwaset, thought to be a son of Rameses II who bore that name.
Yurco determined that the two scenes to the north (left) of the Hittite treaty were inscribed over an earlier battle scene that indeed belonged to Rameses II. But the reinscribed scene belonged to Merenptah. The original scene probably depicted the battle of Qadesh in which Rameses II fought the Hittites. That explains the presence of both the Hittite treaty and the cartouche of Rameses II above the northern scenes (Yurco 1990: 26; 1986: 205). Yurco maintained that the name Khaemwaset in Scene 2 was more likely a son of Merenptah since the scenes can be dated to his reign (Yurco 1990: 37, note 5; 1986: 206).
The scenes south (right) of the Hittite treaty were carved on previously unused walls.9 They include battle scenes (1 and 4), binding of Shasu (Bedouin) prisoners (Scene 5), collecting and bundling prisoners (Scene 6), prisoners marched off to Egypt (Scene 7), presentation of prisoners to the god Amun (Scene 8), Amun presenting the sword of victory to Merenptah (Scene 9) and Merenptah smiting his enemies before Amun (Scene 10). The wall where Scenes 9 and 10 were originally carved is totally missing, but the scenes can be conjectured based on loose blocks found nearby and the standardized layout of Egyptian battle scenes.
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Layout of Merenptah’s Canaanite battle reliefs in the Karnak Temple. The upper dotted line indicates the top of the wall as it exists today. The southern blocks were taken down on orders of Emperor Constantine I (AD 306–337) in order to remove an obelisk from the temple (Yurco 1990: 21—22). The obelisk, from the reign of Tuthmosis III (ca. 1504–1450 BC), eventually made its way to Rome where it stands today in the Piazza San Giovanni in Laterano. The dotted rectangles are places where Christian Copts removed stones to provide support for buildings they constructed against the wall. Some of the missing blocks have been found and assigned to various scenes (Le Saout 1982). The numbers of the scenes are those assigned by Frank J. Yurco in his ground-breaking study of these reliefs (1990; 1986). Arrows denote the direction of the king’s movements.
That these reliefs depict a campaign in Canaan is clear from Scene 1, which names Ashkelon. Since Merenptah had only one Canaanite campaign, it is obvious that the battle scenes and the textual record on Merneptah’s Stela relate to the same campaign. Moreover, since three cities are depicted, and three cities are named in the Stela (Ashkelon, Gezer and Yenoam), Yurco concluded that the two unnamed cities in the reliefs are most likely Gezer and Yenoam (Hasel 2003: 31–32; Yurco 1990: 28; 1986: 199). Assuming a clockwise direction for the order of the scenes, as was common in Egyptian war scenes (Yurco 1990: 32; 1986: 206–207), and assuming the order of the scenes to be the same as the order of triumphs listed in the Stela (Yurco 1991; 1990: 32; 1986: 199), Scene 2 would be Gezer, Scene 3 Yenoam and Scene 4 Israel.
Although Anson Rainey has agreed that the reliefs should be attributed to Merenptah, he objects to the identifications of Scenes 2–4 proposed by Yurco (Rainey 2003: 180–84; 2001: 68–74; 1991). He raises the following arguments and reinterpretations:
1. There need not be a correspondence between the reliefs and the Stela (2003: 180–81; 2001: 72; 1991: 58).
2. Scene 2 is more likely Yenoam than Gezer as claimed by Yurco since Merenptah is on foot rather than in his chariot. Yenoam would be a difficult place to use a chariot since it was an inland city (2003: 181, 182–83; 2001: 72).
3. Scene 3 is more likely Gezer than Yenoam as claimed by Yurco since Merenptah is in his chariot. The land around Gezer is conducive to the use of a chariot since it is close to the coast (2003: 182; 2001: 72).
4. The dress of the enemy in Scene 4 is that of Canaanites (2003: 181–82; 2001: 69; 1991: 58).
5. The enemy in Scene 4 is depicted as having a chariot and the Israelites were not sufficiently advanced technologically to have had chariots in 1210 BC (2003: 181–82; 2001: 69–70; 1991: 58–59).
6. Scene 4 is not necessarily in open country as Yurco claimed, since as there is room for a city to be depicted on the left side of the scene; it is more likely Gaza (= the “Canaan” in the Merenptah Stela) (2003: 183; 2001: 72; 1991: 59).
7. Captives being led to Egypt in Scenes 5, 7 and 8, depicted and labeled as Shasu, are Israelites (2003: 184; 2001: 74; 1991: 59).
We shall now examine each scene in turn, as well as comment on Rainey’s criticisms.
Correspondence
Since three of the four Karnak scenes are not labeled, it is not possible to achieve certainty in their identification. By applying logic, however, plausible identifications can be realized. Since Merenptah had only one campaign to Canaan, and since both the reliefs and the Stela deal with a Canaanite campaign, it stands to reason that both the reliefs and the Stela record the same campaign. Secondly, the four scenes coincide with four entities in Canaan named on the Stela as being defeated by Merenptah (Hasel 2003: 31–32). Matching the scenes to the names on the Stela, however, is more speculative as several unprovable assumptions must be made.
First, it must be assumed that the entities in both records are the same. Second, it must be assumed that the order of the naming of the entities is the same in both records. Third, it must be assumed that the scenes proceed in a clockwise direction, matching the south-to-north order of the Stela. Ashkelon (Scene 1) provides a starting point since it is named on the reliefs. Based on the preceeding assumptions, the identifications of Gezer, Yenoam and Israel can be proposed for the remaining three unidentified scenes.
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Scene 1, Merenptah attacking the city of Ashkelon. Above the king’s bow is a rhetorical text proclaiming his greatness. The inscription between Merenptah’s horse and the city reads, “The despicable town which His majesty carried off, it having been disloyal: Ashkelon. It says, ‘Happy is he who is loyal to you, and woe is he who transgresses your boundaries! Confirm (?) the inheritance, (that) we may tell of your might to every foreign land ignorant (of it)!’” (Kitchen 1996: 40).
Although this procedure cannot be proven beyond doubt, it provides a logical explanation for the identifications of the reliefs, as Yurco originally proposed.
Scene 1: Ashkelon
There can be no doubt as to the interpretation of Scene 1. It depicts Merenptah in his chariot charging the city of Ashkelon. Beneath his horses and to the left, are Egyptian soldiers with rectangular shields engaging the Ashkelonites, who have round shields. Other Egyptians are scaling ladders to gain entrance to the city. The citizens of Ashkelon are seen on the ramparts praying. Two children are being dropped from the tops of the walls, perhaps as sacrifices (cf. 2 Kgs 3:27).
Ashkelon is located on the southern coast of Israel, about 39 mi (63 km) south of Tel Aviv and 10 mi (16 km) north of Gaza. It was a thriving commercial center from at least 2000 BC until the Crusader period. It is best known in the Bible as one of the cities of the Philistine pentapolis. Samson killed 30 Philistines there to pay off a debt of 30 changes of clothes when the young men at his wedding solved his riddle (Jgs 14:19). Excavations have been underway at Ashkelon since 1985, but remains from Merenptah’s time have not yet been exposed (Schloen 1997).
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Scene 2, Merenptah attacking a Palestinian city, possibly Gezer. Above the attendant holding Merenptah’s horse is the name “Prince Khaemwaset,” most likely a son of Merenptah (Kitchen 1999: 73–74; Yurco 1990: 37, note 5; 1986: 206). The text above the horses reads, “First great chariot span of His Majesty, ‘Beloved of Amun,’ of the Stable of Bainre Meriamun’” (Kitchen 1996: 39). Bainre Meriamun was Merenptah’s prenomen, the name that appears in the first of the two cartouches that were a Pharaoh’s identifying insignia. The text over the city and chariot is rhetorical in nature, ending with “When the chiefs see him [Merenptah], they faint, fear of him is in their hearts, all foreign countries trembling before him” (Kitchen 1996: 39).
Scene 2: Gezer?
Yurco postulated that Scene 2 is a depiction of Merenptah’s attack against Gezer. Gezer is located in the Shephelah, or low hill country, 20 mi (32 km) west of Jerusalem. It was an important location in antiquity since it guarded the route from the main coastal highway to Jerusalem in the central hill country. Gezer was one of the cities the Israelites could not capture during the Conquest (Jos 16:10; Jgs 1:29). During Solomon’s reign it was captured by the king of Egypt and given to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. Solomon then fortified the city (1 Kgs 9:15–17).
In this scene Merenptah is on foot, with his chariot standing at the ready at the edge of the battlefield. Below the horse, bound prisoners are being led away. As in the Ashkelon scene the people in the town are praying, or possibly begging for mercy.
Rainey has maintained that, since Merenptah is dismounted from his chariot, the scene is more likely of a city in the interior of Canaan where rough terrain would preclude the use of a chariot in warfare. He has suggested the depicted city is Yenoam, known to be located inland, rather than Gezer (2003: 181, 182–83; 2001: 72). Yet, in a scene on the north wall of the Hypostyle Hall at Karnak depicting Seti I attacking Yenoam, the Pharaoh is shown charging the city in his chariot (University of Chicago Oriental Institute Epigraphic Survey 1986: pl. 11). Conversely, two scenes on the south wall of the Hypostyle Hall depict Rameses II attacking the coastal cities of Aphek (Wreszinski 1935: taf. 54a) and Acco (Wreszinski 1935: taf. 55a) on foot. Thus, there is no correlation between the use or non-use of chariots and terrain in Egyptian war reliefs. Yurco’s original identification of Scene 2 as Gezer remains the most plausible.
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Scene 3, Merenptah attacking a Palestinian city, possibly Yenoam. Although the portion of the scene showing the Pharaoh is missing, it is clear from the larger-than-life horses that Merenptah was originally depicted in his chariot assaulting the fortified city seen on the left. Again, the townspeople are praying and a child is being lowered from the ramparts.
Of the four battle scenes, Scene 2 is exceptional in that it is the only one showing Merenptah dismounted from his chariot. Rather than being reflective of the type of terrain, the purpose was more likely to represent Merenptah as personally engaging the enemy in hand-to-hand combat, rather than attacking from a distance in his chariot. Just as Gezer was the focal point of the Stela, the conquest of the city was uniquely portrayed in Merenptah’s war reliefs, undoubtedly as a pictorial representation of his epitaph “Binder of Gezer.”
Excavations at Gezer have revealed that it was defended by a massive 13 ft (4 m) wide wall in the 13th century BC that enclosed an area of ca. 24 acres (Dever 1997: 398; 1993; Merling and Younker 1994: 93–94). Evidence for destruction from the time of Merenptah was also uncovered (Dever 1997: 398; Dever et al. 1974: 50; 1971: 128). In addition, a portable ivory sundial with the name of Merenptah was found at the site (Pilcher 1923)
Scene 3: Yenoam?
Following the order of the Stela, the town depicted in Scene 3 should be identified as Yenoam. The exact location of Yenoam is not known for certain, but from information given in Egyptian texts it was most likely at Tell el-Abeidiyeh, on the Jordan River just south of the Sea of Galilee (Kitchen 1993: 18). Rainey believes this scene should be identified as Gezer, based on the fact that the king is attacking in a chariot, which he claims is indicative of a coastal city. As we pointed out above with regard to Scene 2, however, there is no basis for this argument.
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Scene 4, Merenptah attacking an enemy, possibly Israel. Unfortunately, little is left of Scene 4. On the right the hind legs of Merenptah’s horses can be seen, as well as the pole of the chariot. Beneath Merenptah’s horses is an enemy chariot and to the left defeated enemy.
Scene 4, Israel?
Scene 4 is the most controversial of the scenes since Yurco identified it as depicting Israel. He based his identification on a comparison between the battle reliefs and the Merenptah Stela (1990: 28, 32; 1986: 199–200). In addition, the first three victories named on the Stela have the determinative for urban peoples, while the first three battle scenes depict fortified city-states. The fourth enemy on the Stela, Israel, has the determinative for a non-urban people, corresponding to Scene 4 which did not depict a fortified urban center, according to Yurco. He argued that Merenptah’s chariot is in the center of Scene 4 and therefore there is insufficient room for a fortress (1990: 28, 32; 1986: 199–200). Yurco compared Scene 4 to a scene of Rameses II fighting against non-urban Nubians.
Two loose blocks found near the Merenptah reliefs depict a crown prince going into battle. The blocks, from the top of a scene, show the prince in a chariot and armed soldiers below him proceeding to the left (Yurco 1986: 201, 204–205; Le Saout 1982: 232, Pl. IX.4c). Of the four battle scenes, the only one that could accommodate these blocks would be Scene 4 (Yurco 1986: 205). This is similar to Rameses’ Nubian scene which depicts two of the king’s sons in chariots behind him.
Rainey claims that Scene 4 cannot be of Israelites because they are portrayed as Canaanites and an enemy chariot is shown in the scene. On Rainey’s first point, we need look only to the nearby southern end of the Second Pylon of the Hypostyle Hall to see how the ancient Egyptians portrayed Israelites. There, Pharaoh Shishak recorded his 925 BC campaign to Palestine, also mentioned in the Bible (1 Kgs 14:25–26; 2 Chr 12:1–9). Shishak is seen smiting the Israelites, who are depicted with short pointed beards, shoulder-length hair with a headband and sashes around their waists (University of Chicago Oriental Institute Epigraphic Survey 1954: pl. 5), exactly as the Canaanites were portrayed! It appears that the Egyptian artists depicted all the settled inhabitants of Canaan in a similar fashion, without distinguishing between the various ethnic groups that lived there (cf. Hasel 2003: 34–36; Kitchen 1999: 76; Ward 1992: 1166).
And there is no valid reason why the Israelites could not have had chariots. Yurco suggested they could have been acquired from the Canaanites or Egyptians (1997a: 30; 1990: 34; cf. Kitchen 1999: 78). Amarna Letter 197, from the mid-14th century BC, tells of the king of Ashtaroth, a city in the Bashan, giving chariots to the ‘Apiru, social outcasts and outlaws living outside urban society (Moran 1992: 275). Just a short time before Merenptah’s campaign the Israelites under Barak fought against Jabin king of Hazor. Sisera, commander of Jabin’s army, had 900 chariots at his disposal (Jgs 4:3). Sisera’s chariot force was routed by the Israelites and “Barak pursued the chariots and army” (Jgs 4:16a). If Barak pursued the chariots of Sisera, he himself must have had a chariot. Moreover, “all the troops of Sisera fell by the sword; not a man was left” (Jgs 4:16b), making it possible for the Israelites to plunder the chariots if they so desired.
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Rameses II battling Nubians. In this scene from the temple of Rameses II at Beit el-Wali, Nubia, the Egyptians are fighting a non-urban people, with the engagement taking place in open country. Yurco maintained that Scene 4 of the Merenptah reliefs, which he believed depicted Israel, would have been similar to this one. Note the two chariots of Rameses’ sons behind him.
Rainey is correct in his assertion that there is room on the left side of Scene 4 for a fortress. This has been demonstrated by Hasel (2003: 30). However, since the upper portion of Scene 4 is missing, it is not possible to determine what was there originally. Rainey goes onto speculate that Canaan (“the Canaan” in the original) in the Stela is the city-state of Gaza. While it is true that in some periods the Egyptians referred to Gaza as “the Canaan” (Katzenstein 1982), it is doubtful they did so in the time of Merenptah (Hasel 2003: 38, note 8; Yurco 1990: 38, note 15; 1986: 190). What is more, if “the Canaan” was identified as the city-state of Gaza, the chiastic balance of the poem would be violated.
Scenes 5–10, The Return to Egypt
Scenes 1–4 are unique to Merenptah’s Palestinian campaign, while Scenes 5–10 are stereotypical scenes commonly used in battle reliefs. In Scenes 1–4 the action is from right to left, i.e., toward the north. In Scenes 5–10, on the other hand, the action moves to the right, back to Egypt
Scenes 5, 7 and 8 on the lower register depict Shasu captives being led back to Egypt. The Shasu were tribal desert dwellers whom the Egyptians encountered in the Sinai, southern Transjordan and Canaan. They may have originated in Transjordan (Ward 1992: 1166). In Scene 5 Merenptah binds Shasu prisoners in preparation for the return to Egypt. Scene 7 depicts the Pharaoh in his chariot returning to Egypt with Shasu captives. Only a fragment of Scene 8, showing Shasu captives, has survived. Originally, Scene 8 would have depicted the king presenting Shasu prisoners and spoil to the god Amun.
Rainey believes the Israelites should be identified as Shasu, since both were a tribal pastoralist society (2003: 184; 2001: 74; 1991: 59). Yurco responded by pointing out that since Israel was one of the four entities Merenptah fought in Canaan according to the Stela, we should expect Israel to be represented in the battle scenes. Since there are no Shasu depicted in the battle scenes Yurco concluded that the Egyptian artists did not represent Israelites as Shasu (1997a: 41; 1997b: 497; 1986: 210). Moreover, the Shasu always were uniquely identified textually and pictorially in Egyptian records from ca. 1500–1100 BC (1997a: 41; 1997b: 497; 1985: 210, note 37). Rainey has not provided an explanation as to why the Egyptian scribes would use the name Israel instead of Shasu in Merenptah’s Stela. Hasel adds that the name Shasu most frequently occurs with the determinative for a geographical territory, which is the case with the Merenptah reliefs, whereas the name Israel occurs with the determinative for people on the Stela (2003: 32).
What remains of Scene 6 above Scene 5 shows a group of Canaanite captives and the bottom of Merenptah’s chariot. This was part of the march back to Egypt, displaying Canaanite captives rather than Shasu, as in the bottom registers.
Nothing remains in situ of Scenes 9 and 10. A number of loose blocks from these scenes have been found nearby, however, so it is possible to gain some idea of their original composition. Scene 9 depicted the god Amun sending Merenptah into battle, while Scene 10, a triumph scene culminating the series, took up the full height of the wall and showed the king smiting his enemies before the god Amun.
Summary
All in all, Yurco’s initial analysis in 1986 has held up to scrutiny. In spite of a number of criticisms and proposed alternative interpretations, Yurco’s views remain the most plausible. He maintained that the three unmarked war scenes, in clockwise order from the Ashkelon scene, should be identified as Gezer, Yenoam and Israel, in agreement with the order in the Merenptah Stela. Scene 4, Yurco argued, depicts Merenptah battling Israel in open country. Israel is represented as possessing a chariot and dressed in a fashion similar to that of the Canaanites. Assuming Yurco to be correct, Scene 4 of the Merenptah war reliefs is the earliest known pictorial representation of Israelites, dating to ca. 1210 BC, just 200 years after they entered the Promised Land.
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Israelite captives before Pharaoh Shishak as depicted in the Karnak Temple, Luxor, in the record of his 925 BC campaign against Judah and Israel. The Israelites are portrayed as having short pointed beards, shoulder-length hair held in place with a headband and sashes around their waists. This is identical to the way in which Egyptian artists portrayed Canaanites on ancient wall reliefs.
Pharaoh Merenptah
Bryant G. Wood is director of the Associates for Bibilical Research and director of ABR’s excavation at Hhirbet el-Maqatir.
BSpade 18:3 (Summer 2005) p. 77
Scene 5, Merenptah binds Shasu prisoners to take back to Egypt. The Shasu, a desert-dwelling people, are depicted as bearded, wearing short, often tasseled, kilts or ankle-length garments and turbans. The texts flanking the scene are largely rhetorical, praising the virtues of the king. They say, in part, “Strong Bull, sharp-horned and resolute, who treads down the Asiatics…he causes the chiefs of Khurru (= Palestine) to cease all boasting with their mouths” (Kitchen 1996:40).
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Scene 7, Merenptah in his chariot returns triumphantly to Egypt with captives. The surviving text before and above the prisoners reads, “[The good god who returns, having triumphed over the chiefs of every land; he has trampled down the] rebellious [foreign countries] that had dared to violate his boundary” (Kitchen 1996: 40).
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Scene 8, Shasu captives. Part of a larger scene which originally would have depicted Merenptah presenting captives to the god Amun. Text from a loose block which may belong to this scene reads in part, “Presentation of tribute by His Majesty to his father Amun, [when] he returned from the land of despicable Retenu (Syria), and the chiefs of the foreign lands” (Kitchen 1999: 78; 1996: 41).
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Scene 6, Merenptah in his chariot collecting Canaanite prisoners for the return to Egypt. Only a portion of the bottom of this scene survives and there are no accompanying texts.
Scene 9, Merenptah being sent to war by the god Amun. On the right side of the scene the king stands before Amun holding a bow and khopesh, or “sickle sword.” On the left side, Merenptah sets off for war in his chariot. He holds a whip in his right hand and a sickle sword in his left.
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Scene 10, Merenptah smiting prisoners before Amun. Behind Amun’s head is the goddess Waset (Thebes), armed with a bow and arrows, and holding leashes attached to bound prisoners on top of ovals containing geographic names. At the bottom is a line of 18 prisoners atop name rings. The god Amun says to Merenptah, in part, “[You] have trodden [the foreign lands], you have smitten the [?Sha]su, you have trampled down the tribesfolk of Nubia. [I have cut off for you every foreign land that the sun-di]sk [illuminates], and which had dared to violate your boundary” (Kitchen 1996: 41). Above the goddess it reads, “Victorious Thebes, possessing the sword, Mistress of all lands” (Kitchen 1996: 42).
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