BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Carved Ivory Emerges from Biblical Jerusalem

Figurine challenges views about Judahite art

The ivory head from Jerusalem. Courtesy Koby Harati and Irena Lidski-Reznikov, City of David Archives and the IAA.

Compared to surrounding regions, ancient Judah has revealed relatively few human figurines. That does not mean, however, that such figurines were unknown to the land. Recent excavations at the City of David Archaeological Park have revealed one such example, the only known anthropomorphic carved ivory found in Jerusalem from the Iron Age II (c. 1000–586 BCE). With no exact parallels, the small ivory carved in the shape of a woman’s head provides a wealth of information on the trade of luxury goods in ancient Judah and the kingdom’s iconographic repertoire.

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An Ivory Head

During the Iron Age, carved ivories were luxury goods, often belonging to local elites. To date, they have primarily been uncovered at important capital cities, including the Neo-Assyrian capitals of Kalhu and Dur-Sharrukin, as well as Jerusalem and Samaria. Closely sharing artistic details and designs, these ivories indicate extensive trade networks and a shared artistic language among Near Eastern elites. However, despite anthropomorphic designs being common in the rest of the Near East, those previously discovered in Jerusalem have exclusively featured floral and geometric motifs, possibly reflecting the biblical taboo against graven images. Yet, the newly discovered ivory shows that Jerusalem elites were full participants in this artistic practice.

The carved ivory head was discovered on the southeastern ridge of Jerusalem, the main area of occupation during the Iron Age. The head, which was broken in antiquity, measures less than an inch tall and depicts a woman with hair styled in the manner of an Egyptian wig. The carved head also includes a band across the forehead with a square element attached to the side of the head. The eyes are narrow, with only a single line to depict the eyebrow. The nose is mostly broken, but what remains of the lips shows they were quite prominent. Considering the small size of the head and the ivory’s smooth back, the excavators suggest that it was likely used to decorate a larger object, possibly a piece of luxury furniture.

Unfortunately, the location where the ivory head was found does not help identify how it was originally used. It was discovered in a layer of fill material excavated against the side of the city’s eastern fortification wall. Based on the pottery, the entire fill layer can be securely dated to the second half of the seventh century BCE. Yet, it is likely that the ivory head itself is older, as luxury items were often kept for a long time and even handed down from generation to generation. This suggests the ivory head could even predate Judah’s vassalage to Assyria, when luxury goods became more common as a result of increased trade. Indeed, several ivory artifacts have been uncovered in Jerusalem from the ninth and early eighth centuries. If this is the case, it would provide fascinating new insight into Judah’s early participation in the broader economic and cultural world of the Near East.

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Depicting Women in the Ancient Near East

Despite the use of carved ivory throughout the ancient Near East, the Jerusalem head is unusual. Within the Near Eastern artistic repertoire, female heads are typically found in one of three places. First, they can feature within a larger statue depicting the entire person. Second, they are sometimes found as the heads of female sphinxes. Third and perhaps most common is their appearance in the famous “woman at the window” motif. However, as the Jerusalem head is cut cleanly, it was likely not broken off from a larger ivory object and is thus unlikely to belong to any of the three motifs. Nevertheless, although it is not possible to definitively connect the use of the carved head to any specific regional motif, the way that the woman is depicted places it within the broader conversation of Iron Age artistic styles.

The head may also be part of a lesser-known Judahite tradition seen in the enigmatic Judean pillar figurines, small female statuettes featuring a pillar-shaped body with arms holding the woman’s breasts, and a head that could be either quite simple or highly detailed. The clay figurines are often understood to be cultic, although they are frequently found deposited alongside other common household objects. The Jerusalem ivory head bears some similarities to the more detailed pillar figurines. Still, the specific way the ivory head may be connected to the pillar figurine tradition remains uncertain.

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