Middle Bronze Age Oil Lamp and a Juglet – Biblical Patriarchs Period

$875.00

Middle Bronze Age IIB-C (1750- 1550 BC) artifacts.

  • Middle Bronze Age pottery.
  • (17th – 15th Century BC) oil lamp and juglet.
  • Abrahamic artifacts discovered in Israel.
  • Biblical vessels from the Patriarchs period.
  • Certificate of authenticity and a nice presentation stands included.

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Description

This set of vessels is dated to the Middle Bronze Age IIB-C (1750- 1550 BC).

The Middle Bronze Age marked an important change in the history of the Land of Israel after the decline of the Intermediate Bronze Age (24th – 20th Century BC). In this time many settlements were abandoned, a wave of new settlers and new established cities began to sweep the land.

One of the dominant characteristics of the Middle Bronze Age was the construction of developed fortification systems around the established cities (Among the important cities in Canaan during the period are Jericho, Beit She’an, Hatzor, Lachish and more).

Along with the development of urban life, there was also a significant development in the field of material culture, with the advent of ceramics of a very high quality.

The Middle Bronze Age is of historical-cultural importance mainly due to its identification with the ”Patriarchs period” described in the Bible. For many generations scholars have dealt with the question of the historical background of Abraham’s journey from Mesopotamia to the land of Canaan, and have attempted to date it within the period.

Although an answer to this question has not yet been obtained with certainty, it can be determined with some degree of certainty that the stories of the patriarchs (including those of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) echo the real-cultural context of the Middle Bronze Age.

This set of pottery includes an oil lamp and a juglet which are dated to the second part of the Middle Bronze Age (MB IIB-C), corresponding to the Patriarchs stories and the Canaanite period. Vessels of this type in this set were found in archeological excavations in the Biblical cities of Jericho and Hazor.

The juglet in this set, belongs to the “cylindrical juglet” type, first appear in the beginning of  the Middle Bronze Age, but became far more common in the second part of this period (18th-16th centuries BC). This jug has a cylindrical body shape, a double handle descending from the rim to the body of the vessel, and a slightly rounded base.

Since the nozzle diameter of the vessel is very narrow, it is likely that this vessel was used in the Patriarchs Period to store precious liquids, so that the pouring of its contents could be controlled.

The oil lamp shown in the set is of the shallow rounded bowl type, and indeed, it is shaped like a simple bowl with a curved rim and a pinched spout, where the burning wick was placed. This lamp is an example of the simple but very functional design of the shape of the vessel designed to illuminate the domestic area in the night time.

This set of ancient vessels is a typical example of vessels that were in the Canaanite household during the period of the Patriarchs, as described in the book of Genesis.