The PhD comprehensive exams for HB/NWS students consist of four sections: (1) Hebrew and Northwest Semitic languages; (2) biblical criticism; (3) Syro-Pal history; and (4) a minor language of study (mine is Akkadian). For the biblical criticism and Syro-Pal sections, I’ve curated a list of ancient Near Eastern (mostly Northwest Semitic) texts and inscriptions about which the examinee should be able to translate and contextualize with special reference to their relevance for biblical and ancient Near Eastern studies. This list is by no means comprehensive (how can it be when the exam tests our mastery of hundreds of years of material?), but it can serve as a starting point to review the fundamentals.
Catalogue in progress. Last updated: 06/02/2025
Ahirom Sarcophagus (KAI 1)
Description and translation forthcoming.
Abibaʻal Inscription (KAI 5)
Description and translation forthcoming.
Byblian Pseudo-Hieroglyphic Inscriptions
Description forthcoming.
Byblos Necropolis graffito (KAI 2)
A three-line inscription in Phoenician from the royal necropolis at Byblos dating ca. 10th century BCE. The short inscription reads לדעת . הן יפד לך . תחת זן (KAI 2). René Dussaud translated, “Avis, voici ta perte (est) ci-dessous.” William F. Albright (1947) translated, “Attention! Behold, thou shalt come to grieve below here!”
Deir ‘Alla Tablets
Description forthcoming.
Ekron Dedicatory Inscription (KAI 286)
Description forthcoming.
Eliba'l Inscription / Osorkon Bust (KAI 6)
Description forthcoming.
Gezer Calendar (KAI 182 = COS 2.85)
Description forthcoming.
ʾIšbaʿal Inscription
Description forthcoming.
‘Izbet Ṣarṭah Abecedary
The so-called Izbet Sartah abecedary is actually the first line of a five-line inscription on the Izbet Sartah ostracon, for which see below.
‘Izbet Ṣarṭah Ostracon
The short, five-line ostracon was discovered in 1976 at the site of Izbet Sartah east of Tel Aphek in Israel. Dating from about 1200 BCE, the script is classified as Early Alphabetic, its letter forms being quite primitive. Its language is sometimes classified as “Proto-Canaanite” (whatever that means), but almost undoubtedly reflected one of the early Canaanite dialects. While the inscription, by and large, is indecipherable, the first line is clearly an abecedary proceeding right-to-left from aleph to tav. According to Naveh (1990), ll. 2-5 are nothing more than a semi-literate person who “scratched an agglomeration of random letters” (p. 32). While this interpretation seems, at least to me, unlikely, no other current interpretation has proved any more likely in the current state of investigation.
Khirbet Qeiyafa Ostracon
This five-line inscription is written with ink on a potsherd (ostracon) and is extremely faded, precluding definitive translation or interpretation.{1} In the editio princeps, Misgav, Garfinkel, and Ganor offer a reading of only 32 of the 51 signs. Alan Millard identifies 51 of 64 letters but does not hazard a translation. Gershon Galil reads 69 letters and suggested its content was about ethical imperatives of kingship in the early United Monarchy. Brian Donnelly-Lewis’s (2022) recent attempt at interpretation 59 letters, including 12 new readings. Donnelly-Lewis translates as follows: “ʾLTʿŠTR servant of ʾH ̣ŠPT ̣ | By the gods may you judge him who has recounted a false report about the harvest [<In> the gate], I will appear, since he summoned me by (the authority) of the king. I will appear (in court) [and] you will rule in favor of my [case].”
- From Brian Donnelly-Lewis 2022 fn. 1: From the date of its publication, it has received an almost unprecedented number of reviews, republications, and re-evaluations. In alphabetical order: Achenbach 2012; Ahituv 2009; Becking and Sanders 2010, 2011; Demsky 2009, 2012; Galil 2009; Garfinkel 2012; Garfinkel,Ganor,andHasel 2012; George et al. 2014; Hawkins and Buchanan 2011; Level 2012; Levy and Pluquet 2017; Lipiński 2011, 2018; Millard 2011; Misgav 2011, 2018; Misgav, Garfinkel, and Ganor 2009a, 2009b; Puech 2010; Richelle 2015; Rollston 2011, 2012; Sass 2017; Shanks 2010; Shea 2009; Yardeni 2009a, 2009b; and Zilberg 2016, 2018. To see the publications in chronological order (up to 2015), see the compiled bibliographic listings on the excavation website at http://qeiyafa.huji.ac.il/publications.asp#articles.