Textbook of Aramaic Ostraca from Idumea, Volume 5

Volumes 1–4 published some 1,600 ostraca that gave us insight into agriculture, economics, politics, onomastics, and scribal practices from fourth/third-century BCE Idumea and Judah. The ostraca in volume 5 come from the same milieu, but the information they provide is entirely new and different. This volume presents 485 ostraca, including 99 land descriptions, 168 uncertain texts, and 218 assorted remains, scribal exercises, and forgeries, along with useful indexes and tables and a comparative list of entries. The land descriptions—which record local landmarks, ownership boundaries, and land registration—provide rich complementary material to the rest of the Idumean ostraca. The “uncertain texts” are fragmentary, in poor condition, or contain other abnormalities. As the TAO corpus becomes better understood and as imaging techniques improve, these texts will help to fill gaps in knowledge. The final section includes the remains of scribal practices and forgeries, important because they help to show the authenticity of the other two thousand pieces.

A unique collection of documentary sources for fourth/third-century BCE Idumea—and, by extension, Judah—this multivolume work will be a powerful resource for those interested in onomastics and social and economic history.

Bezalel Porten is Professor Emeritus at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is the author or coauthor of ten books and more than one hundred articles.

Ada Yardeni was the author or coauthor of more than fifty articles and books on Hebrew paleography, including The Book of Hebrew Script.

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations and Select Bibliography

Introduction

Explanation of Typographic Conventions

Grain Equivalencies

Terminology of Ceramic Descriptions

Numeration Legend

Missing Photos and Drawings

Texts (485 texts)

The Land Descriptions of the Idumean Ostraca in Their Ancient Near Eastern Context (by Tania Notarius)

H1.1-10.8 Land Description Dossier (99 Texts)

H1.1-3 Land Descriptions with Sacred Places

H2.1-20 Land Descriptions with the Caption “Plot/Portion,” Usually at the Beginning

H3.1-17 Land Descriptions with Groves Figuring Prominently

H4.1-14 Land Descriptions with Olive Trees/Groves Figuring Prominently

H5.1-15 Other Land Descriptions Measured in Seed Capacity

H6.1-6 Land Descriptions Without Measurements

H7.1-5 Fragmentary Land Descriptions with lot

H8.1-5 Fragmentary Land Descriptions with vale

H9.1-6 Fragmentary Land Descriptions with terrace

H10.1-8 Other Fragmentary Land Descriptions

J1.1-12.6 Uncertain Texts Dossier (168 Texts)

J1.1-4 Remains of Names, Products, and Dates

J2.1-26 Remains of Names and Products

J3.1-4 Remains of Names and Dates

J4.1-31 Remains of Names

J5.1-4 Remains of Products and Dates

J6.1-13 Remains of Dates

J7.1-15 Remains of Products

J8.1-11 Remains of Measures

J9.1-9 Remains of Numbers

J10.1-8 Remains of Topographical Words

J11.1-37 Miscellaneous Remains

J12.1-6 Miscellaneous Scripts

K1.1-12.19 Assorted Remains, Scribal Exercises, and Forgeries Dossier (218 Texts)

K1.1-42 Unidentified Remains of One or More Lines

K2.1-24 Unidentified Remains of Script

K3.1-25 Unidentified Remains of Ink

K4.1-29 Remains of Letters and Signs

K5.1-27 Remains of Marks

K6.1-21 Scribal Exercises

K7.1-13 Designs and Drawings

K8.1-3 Seal Impressions

K9.1-5 Undefinable

K10.1-10 Forgeries

K11.1 Other

K12.1-19 Jar Handles and Blank Sherds

Tables

Table 1. Products in TAO (TAO A-J)

Table 2. Names in TAO (TAO A-J)

Table 3. The Dossier of Shekels

Comparative List of Entries

Comparative List of Entries Listed by TAO Number

Comparative List of Entries Listed by ISAP Number

Indexes

Index of Dates (TAO A–G, J)

Index of Numbers (TAO A–G, J)

Index of Sealing Signs (TAO A–G, J)

Index of Words (TAO A–G, J)

Index of Agricultural Terms in the Land Descriptions Dossier (TAO H)

Download a PDF sample chapter here: https://www.psupress.org/sample_chapter/Porten_Introduction.pdf target= blank>Introduction