Archaeology

Crown of a Sceptre
Date: 8th century B. C.
In the Bible we find the following passage: "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah... "(Genesis 49:10) What is a sceptre? A sceptre was an ornamental staff belonging to a ruler. It was a symbol of his power. At the top of the sceptre a bud was often placed as a decoration. Here we see the bud in the form of a pomegranate. The pomegranate was a common image for the Israelites because they saw it often in the ornaments of Salomon’s temple - 1 King 7:18. The beautiful crown in this image is originally made of ivory and is only 43 millimetres high.
Facsimile made by B. Bonte
Because of the engraving in ancient Hebrew consonants, this art object has been dated 8th century B.C. What is written on the object? Unfortunately, the text is no longer complete because a small piece of the bud broke off and was lost. But, specialists in palaeography (ancient writing) think that the text must have read: " Holy gift to the priests of the house of YHWH ”.
It is well known that the expression "the house of YHWH" (Jahweh or Jehovah) is often written in the Bible (- see 'Potsherd of Arad' also on this site) The object shown, was made with great skill in such a way that it is hardly possible to see any difference when compared. This was exhibited in the Exposition "The Bible and the Name" - 1999 in Antwerp (Belgium) and afterwards in many other European countries.

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