An artifact described as one of the most important archaeological finds of all time will soon go on display in the United States.
The Tel Dan Stele, a stone inscribed with ancient Hebrew, is the oldest known archaeological evidence of the existence of King David, a king of ancient Israel.
The monument fragment will be loaned from the Israel Museum to Herbert W. Armstrong College in Oklahoma from September 22 to November 25 as part of the exhibition “The Kingdom of David and Solomon Revealed.”
The Tel Dan stele, discovered in 1993, will go on display at an Oklahoma university starting this month.
Exhibition curator Brad Macdonald said: ‘This is a tremendous honour for Oklahoma and the Armstrong Foundation.
‘This artifact provides extraordinary insight into biblical history and is possibly the most important archaeological discovery ever made in Israel.
‘This is only the second time the trail has reached America.’
The Tel Dan Stele was dIt was discovered in 1993 and carbon dating places its creation at the end of the 9th century BC.
The large rock features several lines of text describing the victory of an Aramean king over a “king of the House of David.”
The writings corroborate passages from the Hebrew Bible.
For centuries, scholars had dismissed King David as a mythological figure or disputed the time period in which he ruled the Israelites as recounted in the Bible.
“The discovery of the stele sent shockwaves through the archaeological community,” Macdonald said.
‘It overcame the common belief that King David was a fictional character and reinforced the credibility of the Bible as a valuable historical source.
“This is just one of the reasons why this is one of the most important archaeological discoveries ever made.”
Archaeologists believe the stone slab confirms the existence of King David, who is said to have been a young shepherd who became Israel’s third and most crucial king around 1000 BCE when he united all the tribes of Israel under one monarch.
The large rock dates back to the late 9th century BC and features several lines of text describing the victory of an Aramean king over a “king of the House of David.”
David is said to have been a young shepherd who became the third and most crucial king of Israel around 1000 BC when he united all the tribes of Israel under one monarch.
The Bible also states that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a descendant of Nathan, the son of David.
David was the first king of a united Israel and the founder of a dynasty, according to the Old Testament Books of Samuel.
However, the most popular Bible story is about David defeating the giant Goliath using only a stone and a sling.