Archaeological Data On The Jewish Community Of Elephantine

The island of Elephantine. Bottom left: Nilometer Temple of Khnum

The Jewish community is a community of Elephantine Jewish Egyptian era of Persian Achaemenid ( ^fifth century BC. ) living on the Elephantine Island , then called Its history is known from the Elephantine papyri and archaeological excavations of the Jewish sector housing. These documents cover a period of -495 to -399.

The Aramaic papyri of Elephantine

A rich documentation, consisting of papyrus in Aramaic , found in the Elephantine Island , tells us in detail about the life of a Jewish community settled in Elephantine and Syene ( Aswan today). These are soldiers who live with their families in the garrison to monitor the southern border of Egypt. Edited by Cowley in 1932 by then Grelot in 1972 (Old Persian, Elamite, Akkadian) is engraved on a cliff near Babylon. It is not legible from below, but Darius ^I , based upon the end of the inscription, "reproduces ), "and it was written and read to me. Then I sent throughout the provinces. The story dates from -522 to -520. Elephantine papyrus is a copy later, perhaps under Darius II of this Aramaic version.

If these papyri do not exactly know when these soldiers Judean come to Egypt , it seems clear that it is the pharaoh Apries , grand son of Necho II , who arranges their visit to -587 at the siege of Jerusalem ( the fall 29-07-586) . The community built "sometime before Cambyses" according to the papyri, a veritable temple with "holocaust, incense and oblation" ( Cambyses invaded Egypt in -525 , the site dominated Persia and was crowned Pharaoh).

The daily life of the Jewish community of Elephantine

Through a series of Payri published by Cowley Grelot then by , we know everything about life Mibtahyah, born circa -475 , married 15 years with a Jew of Elephantine (his father a dowry of a house and a field), a childless widow thirteen years later, owned a second home that gives him his father, married an Egyptian this time, divorced in -440. It keeps the houses, as the marriage contract, and suing to recover it gains other household goods. She married another Egyptian (between -447 and -441 ), who leaves a widow with two son to -420. She died ten years later. The full text is given by Joseph Larch-Modrzejewska .

Note the very nature of modern legislation on women in ancient Egypt , and the lack of xenophobia in the Egyptian population (these mixed marriages are common in Elephantine ) as in Egyptian courts. Note also that the Jewish community does not respect any of the Deuteronomic requirement which, since Josiah and Ezra , absolutely prohibits any mixed marriage.

The "Easter papyrus"

Ezra and Nehemiah want to strengthen the bonds of Judaism in Jerusalem with the Jewish community of Elephantine. A document called the "Passover papyrus, dated -419 or -418, attests. This is a letter to Ydonyah's nephew Mibtahyah by Hananyah (perhaps the brother of Nehemiah or any of its employees). This letter requests that Elephantine is now respected for the celebration of Easter and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the fixed date of 15 to 21 month of Nissan as in Jerusalem, and not a local date related to the early harvest .

The destruction of the Temple of Elephantine

Ruins of the Temple of Khnum, southern tip of Elephantine

The operation of the Temple of Elephantine poses a double problem of religion vis--vis the Jewish worship on the one hand (the Deuteronomic principle of the centrality of religion in Jerusalem is violated, the use of trigram YHW instead of the Tetragrammaton YHWH is designed with the withdrawal of a letter, to circumvent the prohibition of Deuteronomy: YWH see article ), vis--vis the Egyptian cult of the other (the cult of Khnum , the god-hammer of Elephantine, god potter unborn children, does not accommodate the sacrifice of rams during the regular practice of the Holocaust).

In -410 , a revolt broke out, instigated by Egyptian priests of Khnum , against the Jewish temple. They are officers who lead the Persians action and destroy the temple altogether. They are attacking the building and property, but not physically to people. The performers will then be slaughtered, the Jewish priests who are so, in what seems like a settling of accounts, partially avenged: "For men who wished evil to this shrine, they were all killed, and we have had in show. " The Egyptian priests of Khnum, agitators, but not players of the revolt are not harassed.

The facts are very clearly recorded in an Aramaic papyrus written by those who have suffered. Arsham was the satrap of Egypt , that is to say, the governor, an official (Medo-Persia). Vidranga is the governor of Elephantine (Persia). Baghi is the satrap of Judea (Persia). Sin'uballit is the satrap of Samaria (Jewish). Yahhanan is the high priest of the temple of Jerusalem (Jewish). Jdonyah is a priest of the Jewish temple in Elephantine. The full translation of this papyrus (paper 24 cm x 32 cm wrote on both sides, thirty lines, preserved in the Staatliche Museem in Berlin, edited by Cowley No. 30-31, then Grelot No. 102 . ) is given by Joseph Larch-Modrzejewska (there is also a full translation in English on the website of KC Hanson):

"To our lord Baghi, governor of Judea, your servants Ydonyah and his colleagues the priests of Elephantine-the-fortress. The salvation of our Lord, the God of heaven (the) shall at all times! It puts you in favor before the king Darius and members of the royal house! It gives you a long life! Be happy and prosperous at all times. Now, your servant Ydonyah and colleagues speak well:
In the month of Tammuz, the year 14 of King Darius, lorsqu'Arshama moved and went to the king, the priests of Knoub, the god who is at Elephantine-the-fortress, gave money and goods Vidranga the governor who was here, "the sanctuary of the God who is YHW at Elephantine-the-fortress, so be it disappear from there!" Then the rascal of Vidranga Nafana sent a letter to his son, who was the chief the garrison at Syene-the-fortress, saying: "Sanctuary YHW the God who is at Elephantine-the-fortress, like it destroys!" Then said Nafana led the Egyptians with other soldiers, they came Elephantine the fortress with their weapons. They entered the sanctuary, until they destroyed the ground, as to columns that were there, they broke. In addition, there were five main gates built in stone that were in the sanctuary, they destroyed them. Their leaves in good condition, and the hinges of bronze doors and the roof of the sanctuary, while the cedar planks with the rest of the material and things that were there, they burned them with fire. As for the basins of gold and silver and to cases that were in the sanctuary, they all took and appropriated the "."

"But (it) since the days of the kings of Egypt (that) our fathers had built this temple in Elephantine the fortress, and when Cambyses came to Egypt, he found that shrine built, and the sanctuaries of the Egyptian gods They have all been sacked, and no damaging anything in this sanctuary there. Was done when so, ourselves with our wives and children, we are clothed in sackcloth and we fasted and prayed YHW, the Lord of Heaven, who gave us a show that scoundrel Vidranga: we took off his rings of his feet, and all property he had acquired were lost. As for men who wanted evil to this shrine, they were all killed, and we had a show. In addition, before that, in this evil time when we were done, we sent a letter about this to our Lord, and also Yahhanan the high priest and his colleagues the priests in Jerusalem, and brother of Anani and Ostana notables of Judea: it does not send a single letter. In addition, since I Tammuz of the year 14 of King Darius and until now, we are clothed in sackcloth and we fast, our women have held a widow, we're not anointing oil and we do not drink wine. In addition, since that time until today, in the year 17 of King Darius, it has done in the sanctuary or offerings or incense, or burnt. "

"Now, your servant Ydonyah and his colleagues the priests of Elephantine-the-fortress, and all the Jews of Elephantine citizens, speak thus:" If it looks good to our Lord, you care about this sanctuary to be built. See what forced and what friends you have here in Egypt: that a letter be sent to them by you about the shrine of the God YHW, so that the rebuild as it was built before, and the offering, the incense and the Holocaust, we (the) offer in your name at the altar of the God YHW, and we will pray for you at all times, ourselves, our wives, our children and all Jews here. If you make sure that this sanctuary was built, you'll have more merit before YHW, the God of heaven, a man who would offer burnt offerings and sacrifices worth a thousand talents of silver. As for gold, we have sent our instructions. In addition, about the whole affair, we sent a letter in our own name and Dalayah Shlmyah, the son of Sin'uballit, the governor of Samaria. In addition, everything has been done Arsham did not know. On 20 Marheshwan of the year 17 of King Darius. "

The rebuilding of the Temple of Elephantine

An approach of Jewish priests with the priests of Jerusalem remains unanswered. A year later, it's a process of Persian governors of Samaria and Judea "breakthrough. They ask the Persian governor of Egypt to allow the rebuilding of the temple alike, to authorize the offering and there's incense, but there will be no holocaust allowed in future. The demand reflects both the reluctance of priests to Jerusalem and the willingness of the Egyptian priests of Khnum : The Rams will now be fulfilled. In a second papyrus (Cowley 32, Grelot No. 103), and Baghi Dalayah (a son of the satrap of Samaria) are involved with Arsham by sending a messenger:

"Memorandum and Baghi Dalayah. They said Memorandum. Thou shalt say in Egypt before Arsham, on the home altar to the God of heaven, which was built in Elephantine the fortress-sometime before Cambyses, (and) that this devilish Vidranga was destroyed in the year 14 of King Darius of the building in its place as it was before, and we offer an offering and incense on the altar, according to what was done before. "

The green light is given by the satrap of Egypt -406. The priests of Khnum obtain satisfaction on the bottom, with a promise of Jewish priests. A third papyrus (Cowley 33, Grelot No. 104) contains the thanks of those interested in Arsham :

"Your servants, appointed the son of Ydonyah Gamaryah: 1; Ma'z appointed the son of Natan: 1; Shama'yah appointed the son of Haggay: 1; called Hoshea the son of son of Yatom: 1; called Hoshea the son Nattn of: 1; total of 5 men who are syenites settlers-the-fortress Elephantine, talk this way: If our Lord willing, the sanctuary of our God YHW be built at Elephantine the fortress-like it was before, and there is not a sacrificial rams, goats and cattle, but we offer the incense (and) the offering. And that our Lord will make a survey on that. As for us, we will give the house a sum of our Lord ... and barley: a thousand artabes. "

It seems that the temple was rebuilt, but we lose track of the Jewish community of Elephantine when an Egyptian rebellion in -399 , end the Persians out of Egypt.

Hostility towards the Jewish community

The destruction of the Temple of Elephantine is a local conflict with the main actors are priests (priests of Khnum , Elephantine temple priests) and secondary actors officers Persians. A careful reading of the papyri shows that the Egyptian people is not involved, firstly, and secondly that no Jew was killed or even wounded.

The first pogrom in Egypt will take place much later in Roman Egypt in August 38 to Alexandria. But the Egyptians have no part in this pogrom , which will come from the Greeks. Finally, it is in Roman Egypt that 115 to 117, almost the entire Jewish population of Egypt will be exterminated by the Roman army with the active participation, especially in Alexandria, the Greeks of Egypt.

Notes

Internal Links

• History of Palestine
• Jews in the Hellenistic and Roman Egypt
• Papyrus (paper)
• Place of Women in Ancient Egypt

See also:

• The Bible Unearthed
• Archaeological data on early Israelites
• Archaeological data on the conquest of Canaan
• Archaeological data on the Exodus and Moses
• Merneptah Stele
• Archaeological evidence of David and Solomon
• Archaeological data on the Philistines
• Omri and archaeological data on the Omrides
• Archaeological data on the first written in Hebrew

Documents for further reading

• Joseph Larch-Modrzejewska , Shayne JDCohen Cornman and Robert "The Jews of Egypt of Ramses II to Hadrian", PUF , Paris, 1991 Collection: Quadriga, 1997 - Armand Colin, Collection: Civilizations U, February 1997. ISBN 2-200 -21,249-6. English translation: "Jews of Egypt from Ramses II to Emperor Hadrian", Princeton University Press, October 1997.

• (In) Petition of Jewish priests with the priests of Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple of Elephantine

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