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Wednesday, February 23, 2022

Online lecture on the Mount Zion cryptic stone cup inscription

H-JUDAIC: EVENT: The Cryptic Inscription of Mount Zion, Jerusalem: Ritual and Theonyms (February 23). Tonight at 7:00 pm GMT, a lecture by Professor David Hamidovic at the University of Lausanne (Switzerland). Follow the link for (free) registration information.
A unique ten-line Aramaic inscription on the side of a stone cup commonly used for ritual purity during Second Temple times was uncovered during archaeological excavations on Jerusalem’s Mount Zion in June 2002. Inscriptions of this kind are extremely rare and only a handful have been found in scientific excavations made within the city. The new inscription, from the first century CE was deciphered by a team of epigraphic experts in an effort to determine the meaning of the text, which is clear but cryptic. David Hamidovic proposes a new attempt at deciphering by studying the so-called "cryptic" script. The preserved text and the archaeological context give a better understanding of the function of the artefact. A ritual containing the name of the deity (theonym) is one possibility.
PaleoJudaica posts pertaining to the Mount Zion cryptic stone cup inscription are here and links, here, here, and here. It's been a long time since I have heard anything about it.

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