That 14th BCE Century Archaeological Find

This is a cuneiform:



The real story:

A tiny clay fragment – dating from the 14th century B.C.E. – that was found in excavations outside Jerusalem’s Old City walls contains the oldest written document ever found in Jerusalem, say researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The find, believed to be part of a tablet from a royal archives, further testifies to the importance of Jerusalem as a major city in the Late Bronze Age, long before its conquest by King David, they say.

The clay fragment was uncovered recently during sifting of fill excavated from beneath a 10th century B.C.E. tower dating from the period of King Solomon in the Ophel area, located between the southern wall of the Old City of Jerusalem and the City of David to its south. Details of the discovery appear in the current issue of the Israel Exploration Journal.

Excavations in the Ophel have been conducted by Dr. Eilat Mazar of the Hebrew University Institute of Archaeology...The fragment that has been found is 2x2.8 centimeters in size and one centimeter thick. Dated to the 14th century B.C.E., it appears to have been part of a tablet and contains cuneiform symbols in ancient Akkadian (the lingua franca of that era).

The words the symbols form are not significant in themselves, but what is significant is that the script is of a very high level, testifying to the fact that it was written by a highly skilled scribe that in all likelihood prepared tablets for the royal household of the time, said Prof. Wayne Horowitz...

Someone sent me a humorous version:-

The recent discovery of an inscription dating to the C14 BCE contained only the words YOU, YOU WERE, THEM, TO DO, and LATER.

While I profess no expertise in Akkadian, I would like to submit an possible full translation. Noting that the script is indeed of high quality, I agree that the writer was perhaps part of the royal family. However, the words might make sense if one is open to the possibility that the writer was NOT a male, but perhaps a female, and not a scribe per se, but a wife writing a message to her husband.

See below

YOU (idiot)... YOU WERE (supposed to do the dishes).
(I had to get the maid to do)...THEM.
(there is always so much) TO DO.
(and whenever there is work to do, all I ever hear you say is) ...
LATER.

While this translation is open to conjecture, if the excavation reveals a dog house with husband like remains, I think the translation will be proven correct.

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