Excavations in Jerusalem have unearthed what may be the first extra-Biblical evidence of the prophet Isaiah. Just south of the Temple Mount, in the Ophel excavations, archaeologist Eilat Mazar and her team have discovered a small seal impression that reads “[belonging] to Isaiah nvy.” The upper portion of the impression is missing, and its left side is damaged. Reconstructing a few Hebrew letters in this damaged area would cause the impression to read, “[belonging] to Isaiah the prophet.”Maybe. This essay is a good quick summary of a Biblical Archaeology Review article that, unusually, is available in full online for free (here). But do also read the additional discussion here and links. So far epigraphers are not convinced that the Isaiah of the seal is the same as Isaiah the prophet, although most do not rule it out either.
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