Abstract
Eight cuneiform tablets, two Egyptian inscriptions and a fragment of a Hittite sealing (Table 15.1) were found in the excavations of Building 1104 (Palace VI) at Tel Aphek (For additional discussions of these objects see: Singer 1983a; Kochavi 1990: xiv-xix, Pls. 29-31 Goren et al. 2006; for additional
bibliography see Horowitz, Oshima and Sanders 2006:29-38). The diversity in the kinds of documents (lexical and administrative tablets, letters, a bulla, a faience seal and a faience plaque) and languages
in which they were written, Sumerian, Akkadian, Canaanite, Egyptian and Hittite, is unique for any Late Bronze Age site in Canaan, especially since the residence was quite small (ca. 400 m 2 ). Excavation of other much larger LB Canaanite palaces has yielded no more than a few cuneiform texts, with the notable exception of Kāmid el-Lōz, where nine cuneiform tablets have been discovered. However, the latter site was the main Egyptian centre of northern Canaan and its prominent place in the Egyptian administrative system, unlike the residence of Tel Aphek (not mentioned in any known texts), is well documented. Indeed, the diversity of texts and languages discovered at Tel Aphek, unparalleled at other Late Bronze Canaanite sites, calls for an historical explanation.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | Aphek-Antipatris II : The Remains on the Acropolis: t |
| Subtitle of host publication | he Moshe Kochavi and Pirhiya Beck Excavations |
| Editors | Yuval Gadot |
| Place of Publication | Tel Aviv |
| Publisher | The Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University |
| Chapter | 15 |
| Pages | 460-471 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9789652660251, 9789652660404 |
| State | Published - 2009 |
Publication series
| Name | Tel Aviv University Sonia and Marco Nadler Institute of Archaeology Monograph Series |
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Keywords
- Excavations (Archaeology)--Israel--Aphek (Extinct city)
- HISTORY / Middle East / General