Oldest written reference to Moses may be etched into ancient Egyptian mine, claims researcher
Scholar makes controversial claim about inscriptions found in desert
- An American-Israeli epigraphist, Michael S. Bar-Ron, claims two 3,800-year-old inscriptions found at a turquoise mine in the Egyptian desert could be the earliest written references to Moses.
- The Proto-Sinaitic etchings, discovered at the Serabit el-Khadim mining site in the Sinai Desert, date from 1800 to 1600 BC, predating the earliest biblical texts.
- Bar-Ron interprets the texts as “Zot M’Moshe” and “Ne’um Moshe”, potentially translating to “This is from Moses” and “Declaration of Moses”, which would be the oldest non-biblical mentions of Moses.
- He also suggests the inscriptions, which refer to the deity El, contain warnings and rebukes against the ancient goddess Ba’alat cult, whose temple was at the site.
- Academic reception to Mr Bar-Ron's interpretation is mixed, with some Egyptologists like Thomas Schneider calling it “completely unproven and misleading”, though Mr Bar-Ron stresses his work is peer-reviewed.