An Ancient Gift, An Unlikely FriendshipAs always with unprovenanced inscriptions, I would like to know more about the authentication process. But it does sound likely just from the story that this is a genuine ancient artifact.
10/15/13
Deena Yellin (The Jewish Week)
Steven Fine, a professor of Jewish history at Yeshiva University and director of the school’s Center for Israel Studies, figured an article he published last year in Biblical Archeology Review about ancient tombstones in the Holy Land, would resonate with other archeology buffs.
But he never imagined that “Tales From Tombstones” would move a reader to give him one of those rare relics.
The reader, Pastor Carl Morgan of Woodland, Calif., curator of the Woodland Museum of Biblical Archeology, sent Fine a photo of a limestone gravestone in his collection. Yes, said Fine – it was undoubtedly one of the stones about which he had written.
[...]
Thus began a beautiful and unlikely friendship between the East Coast students and the West Coast pastor. The students called Morgan on a regular basis seeking information about the stone’s measurements, design and other details.
Although it was worn, the students, with Fine’s help, were able to decipher the text. They dated the stone to 430 C.E. — some 360 years after the destruction of the Second Temple, and reconstruct the name on the stone to be ‘Sa’adah, daughter of Pi[nchas].”
“Here’s a Jewish woman we never knew of before in a place were there weren’t likely any rabbis,” says Fine. “When it comes to ancient history, every little scrap of anything is worth something. We try to squeeze as much as we can out of every scrap. Each stone is another brick in our knowledge about Jews in the talmudic period — you never know what connects to what until we have it all together.”
[...]
Bit by bit, a letter at a time, whatever it takes. Until we're done.
(Via Joseph Lauer.)
UPDATE: Joe Lauer also circulated a couple of photographs of the tombstone, courtesy of Steven Fine. With Professor Fine's permission I post them here. For larger versions, click on the images.
