Explorations in Bible lands during the 19th century - H. V. Hilprecht

DURING 10 in CENTURY: PALESTINE 021
at Jerusalem writes a letter on a clay tablet, in Babylonian
cuneiform characters and in the Assyrian language, to his
sovereign in Egypt, already speaks volumes ! Who
would
have believed this to be possible, even twenty years ago ?
A stronger proof for the
prevalence of Babylonian
and Assyrian civilization
in
the whole of Western Asia
Minor is not conceivable!
What inferences may and
must be drawn from this
regarding the existence of
many other evidences of
Babylonian civilization
and
conceptions in ancient Canaan
and therefore also
among the ancient Israelites,
cannot yet be fully conceived.
These letters also
have a philological value.
Along with and instead of
Assyrian words are sometimes
found Canaanite words
the writer.
and forms, more familiar to
These Canaanite
glosses demonstrate — what was previously suspected
but could not be proved — that the language of the Canaanites
was essentially identical with Hebrew. Our geographical
knowledge is likewise enriched by the mention
of numerous cities, in part heretofore unknown, while the
proper names lead
religion of the Canaanites.
Letter of Abdi-Kheba of Jerusalem, 1400 b. c.
to important inferences in regard to the
If such discoveries were made in Egypt, may we not hope
that the soil of Palestine still conceals treasures just as precious
? The above-mentioned excavations in Tell el-Hesy