Newsgroup: it.cultura.storia
Titolo: Iscrizione egiziana su re David?

Frugando tra gli archivi di BAS, Biblical Archaeology Society che 
pubblica una delle piu' autorevoli riviste in materia di archeologia in 
Palestina, ho trovato questo articolo
 
Per chi non sapesse chi e' Kenneth A. Kitchen
http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_Kitchen
 
 
 
A leading Egyptologist has recently suggested that the name of the 
Biblical king David may appear in a tenth-century B.C.E. Egyptian 
inscription. If correct, this mention of David dates a hundred years 
earlier than the mention of the “House of David” in the now-famous stele 
from Tel Dan and fewer than 50 years after the great king’s death!
According to Egyptologist Kenneth A. Kitchen of the University of 
Liverpool, in England, “David” is the probable reading of one name in a 
hieroglyphic list carved on the exterior south wall of the great Temple 
of Amun in Karnak, Upper Egypt.1
This is the third possible mention of David in ancient inscriptions. The 
clearest reference is in the much-heralded Tel Dan inscription from the 
ninth century B.C.E., which refers to the “House of David” (bytdwd, or 
Beit David). Carved in Aramaic on what appears to be a victory stele 
celebrating the victory of an Aramean king over Judah and Israel, this 
inscription was found in 1993 by Israeli archaeologist Avraham Biran.2
The eminent French paleographer André Lemaire has also detected a 
reference to the House of David in the long-known but still not 
completely deciphered Mesha Stele (also called the Moabite Stone), which 
is contemporaneous with the Tel Dan Stele, although this reference to 
the “House” is based on an unclear reading, and the reading of “David” 
is based on a highly probable reconstruction of the initial letter of 
the name.3
Now, it is suggested, a reference to David may be found in Egypt as 
well. In the 15th century B.C.E., Pharaoh Thutmose III initiated the 
practice of carving on the walls of the Temple of Amun in Karnak the 
names of territories he conquered or over which he claimed dominion. The 
last of the Egyptian rulers to follow this custom was the tenth-century 
B.C.E. pharaoh Sheshonq I, called Shishak in the Bible (1 Kings 14:25 
and elsewhere). Shishak campaigned in Palestine in 925 B.C.E. In the 
following year, he had a vast triumph-scene, including over a hundred 
place-names, carved on the temple wall.
One of the place-names in Shishak’s list is h(y)dbt dwt (toponyms 105 
and 106). The first word means “highland” or “heights.” The question is 
how we should read the second term, dwt. The first letter is clear: d. 
At least in principle, the second letter, w, the equivalent of the 
Hebrew letter waw, can be read as a vowel, o, or as a consonant, v. Both 
usages are found in the Shishak list (and in Hebrew generally). The 
third letter is clearly a t. Thus the word could theoretically be read 
dot or davit. Neither, however, makes any sense as far as we know.
Could the reading davit really be “David?” Kitchen makes the case that 
it can—and that it is. He has found a reference in another Semitic 
language in which t replaces the final d in the name of King David. This 
occurs in a sixth century C.E. Ethiopic inscription from South Arabia. 
The reference is unmistakably to the Biblical king David. It appears in 
a victory inscription by an Ethiopic ruler from Axum who had invaded 
South Arabia. In celebrating his triumph, the ruler cited two psalms (19 
and 65) and named David in this connection. David is spelled Davit, 
however, exactly as in the Shishak list.4
Kitchen also explains why the mention of David—or, rather, the “Heights 
of David”—makes excellent sense in the Shishak list of toponyms. The 
list is divided into three main sections, differentiated geographically. 
The first five rows (out of 11) cover the area southwest of Judah, as 
well as northwest, north central and east Israel (plus some lost or 
unclear sites). The second section (the next five rows) includes south 
and southwest Judah and the Negev. The third section (row 11) is damaged 
but, insofar as it is readable, includes names from south and southwest 
Israel, including Philistia.
The name we are concerned with occurs in row 8 (the second section), 
which includes sites in south Judah and the Negev, including Arad. 
Another name in this row is, for example, “the Terrain of Tilwan (or 
Tilon).” So “the Heights of David” seems to follow this structure.
 
Before he became king, David was a fugitive active in this general area. 
He fled from King Saul and was joined by his fellow tribesmen and 
fugitives until he had a force of 400 men. His first stop was at 
Philistine Gath, whose ruler he would later serve. From Gath, David went 
to Mizpeh of Moab. From there he returned to Judah, by which time his 
force had increased to 600 men. He roamed about in the wilderness of 
Ziph (including the Hill of Hachilah), in the wilderness of Maon, in the 
wilderness (and heights) of Ein Gedi, near the Dead Sea, and in the 
Aravah (the valley south of the Dead Sea), managing always to escape 
from Saul’s forces. Finally, David decided to stop roaming about and to 
ally himself with the Philistine king of Gath, who gave David the city 
of Ziklag, where he and his men could live (see 1 Samuel 21–30). 
Although Ziklag’s precise location is in dispute, it is clearly on the 
border of the Negev, if not in the Negev itself.5 Given this 
geographical setting and David’s prominence, it would not be surprising 
that a site in this region would be named the “Heights of David.”
At least this is Professor Kitchen’s suggestion. “I do not claim 
certainty,” Kitchen admits, “but there is at least a high degree of 
probability” that this is the correct reading. “‘David’ here is nothing 
too spectacular,” he concludes.
-- 
"Affronta qualunque cosa stressante come un cane. Se non puoi mangiarla
o giocarci, semplicemente facci sopra la pipì e passa oltre" Snoopy
"Odio la parola omofobia. Non e' fobia. Tu non sei spaventato. Sei
stronzo" Morgan Freeman

 ... ho trovato questo articolo
 
interessante, in ogni caso le propostre di lettura riportate non si
riferiscono ad un personaggio di nome Davide, ma  a localit�, "alture" o
"casa" di Davide
 
-- 
Maurizio Pistone    strenua nos exercet inertia  Hor.
 
http://blog.mauriziopistone.it
 
 
http://www.lacabalesta.it
 
 
http://blog.ilpugnonellocchio.it
 


infatti ho messo il punto interrogativo. Comunque e' interessante la 
possibilita' che il nome David come eponimo della regalita' di Giuda sia 
cosi' antico.
 
-- 
"Affronta qualunque cosa stressante come un cane. Se non puoi mangiarla
o giocarci, semplicemente facci sopra la pip� e passa oltre" Snoopy
