Literature and Art

The most well-known inscriptions are from the Old Aramaic period. Several of them occur on various artistic representations; however, no distinctively Aramean artistic qualities have yet been identified.

• Perhaps the most well-known and commonly disputed Aramaic text is the Tel Dan Stele. The commemorative stele was found in the early 1990s, and since that time, nearly every aspect of the text has been debated. The stele dates to the ninth century. It has historical value for Israel and Judah, their kings, and the interactions between Aram and these kingdoms (Hafthorsson, A Passing Power, 49–65). For more information about the Tel Dan Stele, see this article: Tel Dan Stele.

• The Tell Fakhariyeh Bilingual Inscription was discovered in 1979. It dates to the mid-ninth century bc, and the Aramaic portion consists of 23 lines. The inscription is found on a life-size human statue along with a parallel inscription in Akkadian. Both texts consist of two dedications and are found on the skirt of the figure. They shed light on the interactions between Aram and Assyria, the religious practices associated with the storm god Hadad, and linguistic reconstruction (Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 176; compare Naveh, “Proto-Canaanite, Archaic Greek, and the Script of the Aramaic Text on the Tell Fakhariyah Statue,” 101–13).

• The Melqart Stele (also known as the Bar-Hadad Stele) is a dedicatory royal inscription. It was found in 1939 in a village north of Aleppo and has five lines of text below a relief of the god, Melqart. The inscription dates to the mid-ninth or early eighth century bc. The text commemorates Melqart answering a prayer from the king of Aram. It appears to mention Bar-Hadad and his father. However, the text is severely fragmented (Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 176–77; Hafthorsson, A Passing Power, 33–39).

• The Zakkur Stele depicts an event similar to the Assyrian royal texts of Shalmaneser III, which describe Adad-Idri of Aram-Damascus leading a coalition of other Syrian entities against the Assyrians at Qarqar. This inscription portrays Ben-Hadad, son of Hazael, leading a coalition of 10 northern Syrian kings against Zakkur, king of Hamath and Luash. The stele is inscribed on three sides and at one time bore a relief, probably of the god Iluwer. The text dates from the early eighth century bc (Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 177–78; Hafthorsson, A Passing Power, 65–66).

• The Sefire treaties collectively represent the longest Old Aramaic inscription—approximately 100 lines of text dating from the eighth century bc. Although three Sefire Stelae exist, the first is of special historical interest since it describes a treaty between Aram and other entities. The treaties represent first hand witnesses to treaty formulas of this period (Hafthorsson, A Passing Power, 66–69; Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 178–80). For more information about the Sefire Treaties, see this article: Sefire Treaties.

• The Hadad and Panamu inscriptions aid both religious study and historical reconstruction of the Aramean culture around modern-day Zinjirli. Both were inscribed on statues and date from the mid-eighth century bc (Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 180–82).

• Six Bar-Rakib inscriptions date to the mid-eighth century bc. Three are of little value due to their fragmentary condition. But the other three aid in historical reconstruction as well as linguistic understanding (Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 183).

• The Arslan Tash and Nimrud Ivory plaques both confirm other references to Hazael as a superior entity. The former is inscribed upon or accompanied a gift presented to Hazael. Presumably, the latter served a similar function (Hafthorsson, A Passing Power, 40–43).

• Two bronze inscriptions from Samos and Eretria occur on different objects, but arguably bear an identical text. The former is found on a horse blinker; the latter is on a more elaborate polygonal ornament in the shape of a horse’s forehead. The artistry of this ornament depicts a symmetrical arrangement of four female figures with three feline heads, above which is a winged sun-disk (Hafthorsson, A Passing Power, 43–49).

• Other Old Aramaic inscriptions include the Nerab Funerary Inscriptions from the late eighth or early seventh century, the Tell Halaf Altar Inscription, the Ordek Burnu Stele, the Hamath Graffiti, the Nineveh Lion Weights, the Luristan Bronzes, the lmr Jar Handle, and the inscribed ceramic vessels from En Gev, Tel Hadar, and Tel Dan (Layton, “Old Aramaic Inscriptions,” 184–86; Kochavi, “The Land of Geshur Project, 1993,” 140).