The Biblical Archaeologist - Vol.41, N.3

52 Pages·1978·13.35 MB·English

by  American Schools of Oriental Research

I
ISSN: 0006-0895
"OF BIBLICAL
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ARCHEOLOGIST
VOLUME 41 NUMBER 3 SEPTEMBER 1978
44
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THE TEMPLE SCROLL
BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGIST Biblical Archeologist is published quarterly
is published with the financial assistance of (AMmarecrhic, aJnuS nceh, oSoeplst eomf bOerr,i eDnetcaelRm ebseera) rbcyh t.Ih tes
ZION RESEARCH FOUNDATION purposei s to providet he generalr eaderw ith
Boston, Massachusetts an accurates cholarlyy et easily understand-
able accounto f archeologicadl iscoveriesa nd
A nonsectarian Protestant foundation their bearingo n the biblicalh eritage.U nso-
for the study of the Bible licited mss. are welcome but should be
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Editorial Committee:
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John A. Miles, jr., Universityo f California
Press
Assistants to the Editor:
.
Ronald D. Guengerich,K ent P. Jackson,
C~'~P~C '.4 TerrenceM . Kerestes,K ennethA . Mathews,
Ann Munster, Bruce E. Willoughby
?. r I~' 1
P (I~SJn uisf,r o, Credits:
The Roots of Restriction in Early Israel:
photo on p. 93 suppliedb y the authorw ith
permission of Hendrik van Dijk, Duke
University;p hotos on pp. 94, 101 used by
permissiono f LeonardG orelick;b alk plan
on p. 97 used by permissiono f WilliamG .
Dever;" Prayero f Mursilis"( p. 97) is from
Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the
Old Testament,e d. by James B. Pritchard,
3rd edition with Supplement.C opyright?
1969b y PrincetonU niversityP ress.U sed by
permissiono f PrincetonU niversityP ress.
The TempleS croll:a ll photosa nd figuresa re
from The Temple Scroll, ed. by Yigael
Yadin. Copyright ? 1977 by the Israel
ExplorationS ociety. Used by permissiono f
the Israel ExplorationS ociety.
Colophon: "Controversy" by Margaret
Avison is from The DumbfoundingC. opy-
right ? 1966 by MargaretA vison. Used by
Cover:
permissiono f W. W. Norton & Co.
The inner part of the Temple Scroll, cols. 55-57.
SBIBLICAL
ARCHEOLOGIST
Carol Meyers 91 THE ROOTS OF RESTRICTION:
WOMEN IN EARLY ISRAEL
In the formative period of Israel's history, a transformation in
the status of women occurred which has had an influence on
society even into the 20th century.
J0o
AO
O
Jacob Milgrom 105 THE TEMPLE SCROLL
The Temple Scroll is the last, but not the least, of the Qumran
material to reach the press.
82 LETTER TO THE READERS 125 BOOK REVIEWS
Juel, Messiah and Temple( Brown);
84 POLEMICS & IRENICS Fretheim,T he Messageo f Jonah:A TheologicalC ommen-
tary (Isbell);
Wilkinson,J erusalema s Jesus Knew It: ArchaeologyA s
89 COLLOQUIA Evidence( Hamrick).
121 FORTY YEARS AGO 128 COLOPHON
The second phase, a kind of revisionist view of
women's role and experience in the biblical world, is
now being pursued vigorously, and not by women only.
While biblical religion and its principal surviving
offshoots - Christianity, Judaism, and Islam - have
been regarded as the principal guardians of male
supremacy, providing divine sanction for male
Letter to the Readers
arrogance and assertiveness and an unpromising field
for revisionist research, surprising (at least to
traditional scholars) theories and supporting data have
Ancient Woman, Future Temple, been produced and adduced by a small but growing
and Current Study party of dedicated scholars. Among this group we may
identify Carol Meyers, a distinguished archeologist and
biblical scholar, whose work has been characterized by
The women's movement of our time has made excellent training, methodical care, creative insights,
forceful contact with the religious establishment, as the and solid supporting evidence. In her work and
daily papers and weekly and monthly magazines report especially in the article in the current issue of BIBLICAL
in painful detail. As bastions of conservative tradition, ARCHEOLOGISTth e two phases of the women's
churches and synagogues have resisted or yielded, movement mentioned earlier come together and are
compromised and temporized, according to their transcended. That a modern woman scholar should call
doctrines and temperaments. Persistent paradoxes attention to the unusual and remarkable role of women
become visible as the debates become public. It is not in early and decisive biblical times expresses this
too much to say that women have historically and to confluence impressively and carries with it the
the present been the major constituency, the behind- confidence and assurance that both factors will have
the-scenes support for much of church life, and an their impact and become typical of the future. A major
equally indispensable - if less integrally organized - shift in the pattern of academic life will match a similar
group in the life of the synagogue. While women adjustment in our view of the biblical record and the
generally have been relegated to inferior official roles, participation and importance of women in biblical life
if any, and have served as the foot-soldiers in the and times.
armies of the Lord or as the hewers of wood and Our other major article stands in rather stark
drawers of water, nevertheless, in the same settings they contrast with the article by Carol Meyers, although it
have also become leaders and prophets, founders and illustrates one of the points which she is at pains to
rulers in great religious communities and movements: emphasize: the important shift in the tradition and
one need only cite women such as Miriam and practice in Israel once the crises of its birth and
Deborah in ancient Israel, or Mary Baker Eddy and settlement had been experienced. The necessities of an
Ellen G. White in recent America. age of constant emergencies became the narrow and
With respect to archeological and biblical restrictive constraints of a later time. In the account of
matters, we can recognize two phases of the move- the Temple Scroll presented by Jacob Milgrom, we see
ment's impact in these days, though neither represents a more typical picture of male-dominated religious
an entirely new development. The first has to do with ideology and cult practice. Perhaps the last of the Dead
women in the field, literally in the case of archeology, Sea scrolls to come into scholarly hands, this may well
academically in the case of both archeology and the be the most important, certainly for an understanding
Bible. Belated recognition is gradually having an effect, of the true nature of sectarian doctrine and the goal of
and while actual numbers remain small, percentages their rigidly disciplined and ascetic behavior. The holy
are climbing at a respectable rate. While there always temple in the midst of the holy city within the holy land
have been women at the professorial level and on the represented at once a sublime reality and a heavenly
firing line and not just at the student level and on the objective: to be worthy to live in God's domain and to
receiving end, the phenomenon is no longer rare, and enhance the holiness of that realm by a life in full
more and more equality of opportunity will produce conformity with the revealed will of God as communi-
commensurate results. As though there should ever cated and interpreted by his chosen leaders and guides.
have been any question, women have demonstrated In these last days (and they are expected to be the last
repeatedly that they can cope with the subject matter of days of all), a new society has been formed to preserve
Near Eastern archeology and biblical studies in all its the ancient tradition of divine truth and to embody in
ramifications: linguistic, literary, historical, philosophi- its behavior the ultimate values and virtues of biblical
cal, theological, sociological, anthropological - and religion. Out of this commitment would come the
can bear up under the rigors of fieldwork, whether kingdom of God in all its glory, the restoration of the
sheer physical exertion or survival under adverse true Israel, and devastation of all its foes.
climatic and other conditions, at least as well as men, Quite clearly, it is a male-dominated picture:
and often better. priests and teachers, leaders and followers, models and
82 SEPTEMBER1 978
emulators, all are there. The holy territory is barred to of such patterns of thinking and living has left indelible
women, as the special features and requirements of the marks on these communities, and the full participation
cult restrict celebrants, participants, and audience to of women in all aspects of religious observances, and at
those of the male sex. The rules for priests - a male all levels of responsibility and authority, is still a
prerogative firmly established in the Israelite tradition subject of acrimonious conflict.
- are extended to cover all members of the sect, thus It will serve the essential purpose of this
effectively excluding women. In an excess of zeal for communication if readers of the magazine, and the
purity, they invoked the stipulations prohibiting sexual articles mentioned, will consider the principles and
contact during sacral celebrations, and especially questions discussed and contribute their own wisdom
participation in holy war - an ongoing struggle of to the subject. In its present form, the debate about the
cosmic dimensions in which enlistment was for life. relation of women to religion, and their role in the
Under these compelling circumstances, abstinence and religious life of community, has a current urgency as
asceticism became the only way of life for those newspaper and magazine reports of turmoil in various
committed to the achievement of perfection. The Jewish and Christian denominations attest. Perhaps an
profound if obvious effects, and the long-range educated and dispassionate look at the ancient data
implications for the future of such religion and the will help us to understand the issues and make wiser
respective roles of men and women are still matters for decisions than has often been the case in the recent
serious contemplation and discussion within the major past.
surviving communities and their traditions. The legacy
DAVID NOEL FREEDMAN
The Tabernacle Menorah
44
A Synthetic Study of a Symbol from the Biblical Cult
by Carol L. Meyers
The Tabernacle Menorah is a synthetic study of the menorah
which stood in the tabernacle of ancient Israel. By treating it as an
artifact, and by bringing the methods of philology, comparative
archeology, art history, and phenomenology together in an investi-
gation of the object, the nature of its physical reality and of its
symbolic function within the biblical cult can be understood.
It is clear as a result of the study of the biblical and
archeological sources that the details of form and fabrication alone
do not complete our understanding of the tabernacle menorah.
Thus, the peculiar seven-branched shape as well as the general
vegetative and repetitive characteristics are scrutinized as they
appear in other ancient Near Eastern cultures. In this way, the
second level of meaning, the thematic identification of the object, can be determined insofar as Israel's history is
rooted in these cultures. Finally, at the third level of meaning, the symbolic value of the object within the biblical
cult, as a specific historical manifestation of that object, is approached. The concluding chapter deals with the
tabernacle menorah within the Israelite cult. As its emotional overtones become clear, the manner and purpose of
this integration into the Israelite religious experience can be understood.
ASOR DissertationS eries 2
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BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGIST 83
The Earthly and Celestial Temple
I was very interested in your editorial article in
the current BA [40.2, May, 1977], and especially in
your emphasis on the correspondence of the earthly
temple with a celestial blueprint. I developed this point
at some length in my Myth, Legend and Custom in the
Old Testament, pp. 766ff. One point to which I would
draw your attention is the pastoral imagery in Exod
15:13, as implied in the use of the words ndhitia ["you
conducted"] and nihalti ["you guided"], and the
double entente in the term ndwd ["enclosure, pas-
Polemics & Irenics turage"]. (I had a note on this in The Expository Times
47 [1936], 45) I think, too, that tjbibjm6 ["you
brought them in"] in v 17 here has the specific nuance
of "bring the flock to the fold in the evening" - a sense
Biblical Archeologist welcomes corre- which also appears in Arabic bd'a ["to come'"]a nd in
spondence from its readers and will make some other passages of the Old Testament (e.g., Zeph
3:20).
every effort to print those letters, particularly,
that bring new evidence or fresh opinions to THEODORHE . GASTER
bear on key issues. The editors reserve the Barnard College
right to edit for brevity and clarity. How Wide the Biblical World?
A Challenge for Recognition and Preservation
Good News for Modern Editors Students of biblical archeology, by and large,
seem only to have concentrated on the lands of the
In two days I have received two issues of "Anvil of Civilization." Indeed, William F. Albright,
Biblical Archeologist (Vol. 40, Nos. 3 and 4). They are foremost biblical archeologist of modern times,
both excellent editions. includes only the lands from the Phoenician colonies in
As a pastor in a small church, material for daily Northwest Africa and Spain to the Indus Valley. At the
continuing education is hard to find. It is either too time of his writing (1966), printed in New Directions in
technical or mere pablum. The BA has a balance which Biblical Archaeology (1969), he alluded to the fact that
provides professional growth and material which can the Phoenicians were in Western Spain, but added that
be passed on to interested lay people. trans-Atlantic ship routes were unsafe because of
I particularly enjoyed Murphy-O'Connor's winter storms and summer piracy. He, thus, implied
review of the Dead Sea scrolls and Bailey's discussion that there indeed were pirate ships more than two
on Noah's ark. thousand years before Columbus, and that the more
adventuresome would probably have attempted to sail
JOSEPH CARLE
beyond the Mediterranean.
Superior, Wisconsin Although an amateur biblical archeologist and
student of Near Eastern history, I, nonetheless, often
The December, 1976, and March issues of pondered over the seemingly strange origins of
Biblical Archeologist arrived last week and were most American history with the landing of Columbus in
welcome. I found the article by Meinardus entitled "St. 1492. Was the Old World of the Ancient Near East in
Paul Shipwrecked in Dalmatia" very interesting. part responsible for the settlement of American peoples
I have been active in studying New Testament in the New World? The more I read, the more
chronology and geography for some years, as a private convinced I became, and yet only a dearth of material
hobby, and possess a copy of the article by A. Acworth has been published on the subject by leading biblical
quoted by Meinardus in his bibliography. scholars and archeologists, except for a handful in
L. B. GALBRAITH recent years. Is it because the "Establishment" feels
Christchurch, New Zealand threatened when challenged by intelligent and educated
men? Albright seems to have been aware of this
I want to say also what a fine job I think you problem when he wrote that, until recently, the legion
are doing with BA. I am back to reading it again. of skeptics has included most biblical scholars. He goes
on to state that this negative approach has led to
JACK R. LUNDBOM wholesale rejection of archeological evidence bearing
Hilmar, California on biblical history. Among the examples he cites are
84 SEPTEMBER1 978
those who reject the conclusion of epigraphists and New Worlds. Barry Fell, marine biologist turned
paleographers. He states that in order to deny or linguist and epigrapher since 1975, has found artifacts
discount these discoveries, one should first spend some and has deciphered North American inscriptions
time on the subject. If scholars can accept Columbus revealing Egyptian, Celtic, Libyan, and other settlers
and Cabot, why not the Canaanites and Celts? who established themselves in Pennsylvania, New
Mesoamerican discoveries include the artifacts Hampshire, Vermont, West Virginia, Ohio, and
of the pre-Columbian melting pot. Alexander von elsewhere. Is it possible that all these discoveries are a
Wuthenau of Mexico City argues in his book, The Art hoax? It brings to mind the thoughts of Albright when
of Terracotta Pottery in Pre-Columbian Central and he spoke of "the conspiracy motivation of international
South America, that Semites, Africans, and even archeology." America B.C. (Ancient Settlers in the
Japanese all reached the New World before Columbus. New World) clarifies such problems as Mystery Hill,
The Central American Indians, the Aztecs, Incas, and shows how the languages of some Indian tribes, such as
Mayas, all had a tradition of a bearded white man the Auni and Pima, are descended from ancient
who came from across the Atlantic, from the East, Mediterranean tongues, and how the Micmac Indians
bringing with him his knowledge of agriculture, incorporated Egyptian hieroglyphs into their language.
metallurgy, and other arts. Another proponent of these Fell's knowledge of ancient scripts is revealed in such
concepts is Cyrus H. Gordon. His book, Before problems as the Davenport Calendar Stele, found in
Columbus (Links Between the Old World and Ancient Iowa in 1874, which, as important and exciting as the
America), seems to have come and gone, almost Rosetta stone, was written in three languages: Egyptian
unnoticed. He feels that pre-Columbian America was hieroglyphs, Iberian-Punic, and Libyan. Replete with
not isolated from the rest of the world but was in numerous fascinating photographs, diagrams, and
contact with the East for thousands of years. Despite charts, every reader will find it to be a convincing
the fact that Gordon's ideas were presented almost a book.
decade ago, little has changed. It is not difficult to How long will the "Establishment" remain
postulate that in the same way the Egyptians and skeptical and silent? Let their voices be heard so that
Persians came to forget their ancestral scripts which we laymen can learn the truth. For in the wooded lands
had to be deciphered by foreign scholars, so did the of Vermont, New Hampshire, and elsewhere, we have
ancestors of the American Indians forget the discovery our own American-biblical heritage that is much in
of the wheel, and Europe forgot the discovery of its need of preservation. Artifacts and inscriptions that
earlier pioneer sailors who reached New World shores predate Columbus by hundreds, if not thousands of
before the 15th century. Further support came to light years, as Fell writes in the closing paragraph of chapter
in 1968 when Gordon first published an article on the one, are already being vandalized. Will we hear the
authenticity of the Phoenician text from Parahyba, voices of archeological scholars, students of history,
Brazil (originally discovered in 1874), which recorded museum curators giving their support? Are we to
how Canaanites had set sail from Ezion-geber via the change the face of our history? Can we accept the
Red Sea, in the 19th year of King Hiram of Tyre. For challenge?
two years they sailed with ten other ships, but were lost
after a storm. Eventually, fifteen souls reached the N. ROSENSTEIN, M.D.
shores of South America. The text has been dated to Elizabeth, New Jersey
the 6th century B.C. Barry Fell Reexamined
The Bat Creek stone from Tennessee, originally
investigated in 1894 (now housed in the Smithsonian The Department of Anthropology of the
Institution), was recently discussed as a Judean SmithsonianI nstitutiono ccasionallyr eceivesi nquiries
inscription dating from about A.D. 100 (Occasional regarding the book America B.C.: Ancient Settlers in
Publications: The Epigraphic Society, September, the New World, by Barry Fell (Quadrangle/New York
1976). Epigraphically, it closely resembles Hebrew Times Book Co., 1976). This book attempts to
letters of Jewish coinage from the Bar Kokhba revolt. demonstrate that a number of early peoples (including
Were these brave Jews perhaps those who, fed up with Phoenicians, Libyans, Carthaginians, and Egyptians)
Roman domination over Israel, set sail for distant had contact with the New World long before the brief
peaceful shores? Further reports appeared in The visits of the Norsemen about A.D. 1000. The evidence
Courier Journal, Louisville, Tennessee (1953 and 1967) cited includes stone inscriptions found, or alleged to
of the inscribed Hebrew coins of Bar Kokhba's revolt have been found, in the New World; American Indian
against Rome, found also in Hopkinsville and Clay words, place names, and writing systems claimed to be
City. But all these discoveries, seemingly genuine, made of Egyptian, Celtic, Norse, Semitic, or other Old World
little impression on archeologists or historians. origin; and certain carved stones, stone structures, and
America's bicentennial year saw the publication artifacts. The statement below has been prepared to
of an even more exciting and stimulating book. It was explain briefly why Smithsonian specialists in linguis-
now not only South and Central American discoveries tics and New World prehistory consider the conclu-
that supported the common bondage of the Old and sions reached in this book to be incorrect.
BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGIST 85
None of the inscriptions mentioned in America of the Egyptian language. Any argument for a
B.C. can be accepted as genuine ancient inscriptions relationship between these two forms of writing would
carved in the New World. Some appear to be need to account for the vast differences between them.
accidental or random markings, while others have been The superficial resemblance of a few signs in each is of
created by hoaxers. In particular, the alleged Phoe- no significance given the complete dissimilarity of the
nician inscription from the Paraiba province of Brazil systematic principles of the two writing systems.
(p. 111) and the Davenport Tablets from Iowa are not Furthermore, it has not been shown that there are any
genuine; all evidence indicates that they were made in unexplained features of the Micmac writing system that
the 19th century (Cross 1968; McKusick 1970). It is not an hypothesis of Egyptian derivation would clarify.
difficult to carve a message on a rock with modern No prehistoric loanwords of Old World origin
tools. Scientific tests of the weathering rate of the have been found in any North American Indian
scratches, the chemistry of remnant tool filings in the language. The contention is made in America B. C. that
grooves, and the shapes of the tool marks are methods there are words of Egyptian, Semitic, Celtic, and Norse
available to determine the age of a particular origin in certain Indian languages of the Algonquian
inscription, but for none of the alleged American family, but the alleged evidence is seriously flawed. The
inscriptions has an ancient age been established discussion does not distinguish clearly among the
scientifically. Even more conclusively, all of the alleged separate Algonquian languages; ignores basic facts of
ancient New World inscriptions examined by specialists Algonquian grammar, linguistic history, and ety-
have been found to contain linguistic or epigraphic mology; makes many errors on specific facts; miscopies
errors or anomalies consistent with modern manufac- and misinterprets words (or impossible fragments of
ture but inconsistent with a genuine ancient origin. words) and their translations; and shows no awareness
It is claimed in America B.C. that many so- of the basic scientific linguistic procedures that have
called Ogam inscriptions have been found in the New been used by specialists for over a hundred years to
World. Ogam is an alphabet used to write an early study the history of languages. Some examples will
form of the Old Irish language. It was invented no make clear the deficiencies of the evidence presented:
earlier than the 4th century A.D. by someone who had
studied the linguistic theories of the Latin grammarians (1) Western Abenaki aln6ba "person" is com-
pared to modern Scottish Gaelic allaban, which is said
in a Roman school in Britain (Jackson 1953: 151-52). It
is not an ancient Celtic script, and the claims that a to have the (rather different) meaning "immigrant"b ut
form of Ogam was used, without vowels, to write actually means "the act of wandering" (p. 283).
Furthermore, the Abenaki word is related to words in
various languages in the Old and New Worlds (e.g., p.
64) are without credible foundation. Since Ogam letters other Eastern Algonquian languages such as Delaware
consist largely of simple strokes (see the table on p. 52), linadppe, that have been well known for over 150 years
it is not difficult to give an Ogam interpretation to any to be derived from native Algonquian elements
random series of marks. And since the alleged Ogam meaning "ordinary person." Any words borrowed from
words in America B.C. have no vowels and are Celtic in ages past would, of course, not have had the
form they have in the modern languages, and there is
assumed to record words from various Celtic and
Semitic languages, plus Basque and Old Norse (p. 50, little sense in making comparisons to words in a
modern Celtic dictionary rather than to the forms the
58, 194-95), it is a matter of little further difficulty to
select words from this range of languages to match words actually had at the time of the assumed
with the string of consonants which have been read. borrowing. But since the Abenaki word for "person" is
well understood as a native formation, there is simply
The claim is made in America B.C. that the so-
no point in trying to explain it as a loan from some
called hieroglyphics of the Micmac Indians are derived
other language.
from Egyptian hieroglyphics. However, general
resemblances between some individual signs, some of (2) Eastern Abenaki abasi "tree, stick" (given as
which have been misinterpreted or misdrawn (pp. 254- "Wabanaki" abassi "tree") is explained as being "a
58), do not prove a relationship between the two well-known Semitic word," contrasting with the word
writing systems, because there is no explanation of for "tree" in Algonquian languages further west, which
their very different structures. The Micmac writing is said to be "very similar to matsu," the word "in the
system is a purely mnemonic system used to aid in the northeast Siberian tongues" (p. 283). Actually,
reciting of Christian prayers; it cannot be used to write however, both words can be reconstructed from the
new messages. It was developed by Roman Catholic parent Proto-Algonquian language, the original stems
missionaries inspired by the use of pictographic being apanshwiy- "lodgepole" and me'tekw- "tree";t he
mnemonics among the Indians, but its principles have Cree language, for example, has apasoy and mistik
never been explicated in detail (Mallery 1893: 666-71). with these meanings. In the northernmost Eastern
Egyptian hieroglyphics, though employing signs that Algonquian languages, the word for "lodgepole" came
have the shape of recognizable objects, is fundamen- to mean "log," "cut tree," and eventually "tree" in
tally a phonetically based writing system, with certain general. Neither word requires explanation by reference
elaborations of detail, especially tailored to the writing to Semitic or to the language families of Siberia.
86 SEPTEMBER1 978
(3) Western Abenaki pados "boat" is compared Specialists in North American linguistics have generally
to Gaelic bata "boat" (p. 283). These words are actually concluded that it is virtually impossible to interpret
related, but only because both are ultimately loanwords Indian place names from those areas where the native
from Germanic languages. Abenaki pados refers to a languages are known or the names are known only as
European-style boat and is a recent borrowing from used by speakers of English. There simply was not
French bateau "boat," which is in turn derived from an enough information recorded when the Indian lan-
earlier borrowing of Old English bat (the ancestor of guages were still spoken to establish the origin,
English boat). Gaelic bata is borrowed either from Old derivation, and interpretation - the etymology - of
Norse bdtr or from the Old English word. most Indian place names in the eastern United States.
Since the correct original pronunciation of such names
The other examples of alleged ancient loan-
is almost always unknown, and primary information
words in Algonquian languages (pp. 282-84) are
on the meaning or the circumstances of the naming is
equally unpersuasive. It is claimed that there are "many
universally lacking, even knowledgable guesses as to
hundreds of other words of clearly Semitic origin,
their interpretation are impossible in all but a handful
found in the modern Wabanaki language" and "hundreds
of exceptionally clearcut cases. The guesses on the
of roots in Wabanaki and Micmac" from Egyptian, but
meanings of several such names in America B. C. (pp.
the cumulative value of incorrect hypotheses is negative
248-51) are from works that are unknown to Smith-
rather than positive.
sonian scholars, but to the extent that the names are
No American Indian language is derived from
interpretable as Algonquian, comparison with Celtic
an historically known Old World language. The
would be superfluous., For example, the New Hamp-
affinities of the native languages of the Americas (of
shire place name Amoskeag, interpreted as "one who
which there are hundreds, in dozens of families) are
takes small fish," is compared to Scottish Gaelic
presumed to reach back across the Bering Strait.
Ammo-iasgag, said to mean "small-fish stream" (p.
However, these relationships date back to such a
248). But if the place name has any such meaning, it
remote period that not even the closest of them can yet
would have to be the first part (amos-) that designates
be demonstrated conclusively, since there have been
fish or a variety of fish (according to the patterns of
great changes over the many thousands of years since
Algonquian word formation) and this does not match
the ancestors of the Old and New World peoples
Gaelic iasg "fish" very closely. Furthermore, there is no
drifted apart. The claim is made in America B.C. that
Gaelic word ammo- meaning "stream."
songs in the Pima dialect of Papago, a language of the
Uto-Aztecan family spoken in southern Arizona, can In sum, it must be said that the discussions in
be read using a "Semitic" dictionary. But the analysis America B.C. show no knowledge of the correct
that is presented (p. 172) is not consistent with the grammatical analysis of the American Indian languages
grammars of either Papago or any Semitic language: considered. There is no understanding of the grammars
the Papago words have been arbitrarily divided or of the Algonquian languages, Pima, or Zuni, and no
rearranged; the free translation given in the source used conception of the existence of strict rules governing the
has been ignored; and some of the phonetic symbols in permissible order and shape of elements in those
the original publication have been misinterpreted. The languages. To Smithsonian linguists, the arguments
Pima songs are, in fact, in the Pima language and show presented in America B.C. are therefore of no value.
the usual conventions of phrasing and pronunciation In addition to the alleged linguistic and
found in Pima and Papago songs today. The claim in epigraphic evidence, archeological data are cited to
American B. C. that the language of the Zuni Indians of support the theories of the book. For the most part,
New Mexico is descended from the poorly known this evidence consists of comparisons between various
ancient Libyan language is also incorrect. Specialists North American and European cultural elements such
do not accept the interpretation of Libyan as "basically as the shape of copper tools, pottery vessel forms,
Egyptian combined with Anatolian roots" (p. 174), and artistic design elements, effigies, ritual masks, grave-
the statements made about a "North African group" of stones, markers, and monuments (pp. 125-50). None of
languages (p. 175) do not correspond to how specialists these comparisons can be supported by accepted
view the relationships of the languages in question. The standards of archeology. Most are taken helter-skelter
comparisons between "African" and Zuni involve from different time periods, cultures, and places, and
words from various unidentified languages compared the comparisons are thus meaningless. In each case
with Zuni words that are often mistranscribed. The fact there is a more probable explanation for the similarity.
that the methods of investigation employed in America In many cases, the reasoning utilized disregards
B. C. have led to the conclusion of an Old World origin unassailable archeological facts and accepted methodo-
for Pima and Zuni merely demonstrates the invalidity logy, or is based on data long acknowledged to be
of those methods. fraudulent, such as the Davenport Tablets. If it is
The assertion in America B. C. that certain place claimed that ancient Celts, Iberians, Libyans, and
names recorded from New England Indians are others left inscriptions, place names, and stone
actually of Celtic origin is without foundation. monuments throughout much of North America, and
BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGIST 87
that the creators of these works influenced Indian northern Newfoundland. Perhaps some day credible
languages and cultures and stimulated the development proof of other early European contacts will be
of writing systems, then confirmation should surely be discovered in the New World. However, America B.C.
found in the independent discovery in America of does not contain such proof and does not employ the
artifacts or skeletons of Old World origin. Signifi- standard linguistic and archeological methods that
cantly, there is not a single case of such evidence dating would be necessary to convince specialists in these
from pre-Norse times, despite the tremendous amount fields.
of archeological information available on the geo-
graphic areas in question. Prepared by
For these reasons, the arguments of America IVES GODDARD
B. C. are unconvincing. The only accepted case of pre- WILLIAM W. FITZHUGH
Columbian European contact in North America Department of Anthropology
The Smithsonian Institution
remains the Norse site of L'Anse aux Meadows in
REFERENCES CITED (*)
AND SUGGESTED FURTHER READINGS
Arlotto, Anthony T. *Jackson, Kenneth
1972 Introduction to Historical Linguistics. Boston: Houghton 1953 Language and History in Early Britain. Cambridge:
Mifflin. (A general introduction to the methods used to Harvard University Press. (History of the Celtic peoples
study the history of languages, in textbook form.) of Great Britain, with technical linguistic sections.)
Chadwick, John *Mallery, Garrick
1970 The Decipherment of Linear B. Cambridge: Cambridge 1893 Picture-writing of the American Indians. Bureau of
University Press. Paperback. (The classic detective story American Ethnology Annual Report 10: 1-822. Washing-
account of the decipherment of an important early Greek ton, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution. (The classic compen-
script, written for the non-specialist.) Originally published dium of information on all forms of North American
1958. Indian pictographic symbols and symbol systems.)
*Cross, Frank M., Jr. *McKusick, Marshall
1968 The Phoenician Inscription from Brazil. A Nineteenth- 1970 The Davenport Conspiracy. Iowa City: University of
Century Forgery. Orientalia 37: 437-60. (A technical refu- Iowa Press. (The true account of the Davenport Tablets
tation of the alleged genuineness of the inscription by the of Iowa.)
world's leading Semitic epigraphist.) Wauchope, Robert
Friedrich, Johannes 1974 Lost Tribes and Sunken Continents. Chicago: University
1971 Extinct Languages. New York: Philosophical Library, of Chicago Press. Paperback. (An account of various
Inc. Paperback. (Originally published in German, 1957.) nonscientific myths and theories, by a well-qualified
(The history of the decipherment of the writing systems archeologist.)
used for the major extinct languages of the Old World,
with remarks on some scripts which cannot yet be inter-
preted, by a leading scholar in the field.)
Comingn ext in BIBLICAL
)
ARCHEOLOGIST
Editor David Noel Freedman reveals for the first Tell el-Hesi - a redug city:
time the true significance of the Ebla tablets for the Sir Flinders Petrie - 1890;
Bible and patriarchal history in his article, "The
True Story of the Ebla Tablets - Ebla and the Philip Bliss - 1891, 1892;
Cities of the Plain." In light of Ebla, Freedman calls Hesi Joint ArcheologicalE xpedition( ASOR) -
for a new evaluation of the veracity of the patriar- 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1977.
chal narratives and remarks concerning Abraham:
"We must adjust our thinking about the man, his
Valerie Fargo and Kevin O'Connellp rovidea well-
status and stature, his place in history and culture."
illustratedd escriptiono f the first five seasons of the
Don't miss this latest development in the Ebla story. Joint ArchaeologicalE xpedition at Tell el-Hesi.
88 SEPTEMBER1 978