The Hebrew University has actually found an ivory comb from 1700 BCE that is engraved with a plea to rid oneself of lice. The main part of the comb is somewhat eroded, perhaps by the pressure of fingers holding the comb during haircare or the removal of lice from the head or beard. The side of the comb with 6 thick teeth was utilized to untangle knots in the hair, while the other side, with 14 fine teeth, was utilized to remove lice and their eggs, much like the current-day two-sided lice combs sold in stores.
As there were no elephants in Canaan during that time period, the comb likely came from close-by Egypt– factors suggesting that even individuals of high social status suffered from lice.
Second, the inscription on the comb sheds light on some hitherto improperly confirmed elements of the daily life of the time, haircare and dealing with lice.
Aerial view of Tel Lachish. Credit: Emil Aladjem
The letters of the engraving were etched in an extremely shallow way. It was excavated in 2017 however the letters were noticed just in subsequent post-processing in 2022 by Dr. Madeleine Mumcuoglu. It was cleaned and preserved by Miriam Lavi.
Hebrew University Professor Yosef Garfinkel. Credit: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The ivory comb is little, measuring roughly 3.5 by 2.5 cm. The comb has teeth on both sides. Their bases are still noticeable, the comb teeth themselves were broken in antiquity. The main part of the comb is rather deteriorated, perhaps by the pressure of fingers holding the comb throughout haircare or the elimination of lice from the head or beard. The side of the comb with 6 thick teeth was used to untangle knots in the hair, while the opposite, with 14 great teeth, was utilized to eliminate lice and their eggs, much like the current-day two-sided lice combs sold in stores.
There are 17 Canaanite letters on the comb. They are antiquated in kind– from the very first phase of the innovation of the alphabet script. They form seven words in Canaanite, reading: “May this tusk root out the lice of the beard and the hair.”
” This is the very first sentence ever discovered in the Canaanite language in Israel. The comb inscription is direct evidence of the usage of the alphabet in daily activities some 3700 years back.
Ancient combs were made from wood, ivory, or bone. Ivory was a very costly product and likely an imported luxury object. As there were no elephants in Canaan during that time duration, the comb likely originated from close-by Egypt– factors showing that even individuals of high social status experienced lice.
The research team analyzed the comb itself for the existence of lice under a microscopic lense and pictures were taken of both sides. Remains of head lice, 0.5– 0.6 mm in size, were discovered on the second tooth. The climatic conditions of Lachish, however, did not permit the preservation of whole head lice however just those of the external chitin membrane of the nymph stage head louse.
Regardless of its little size, the engraving on the comb from Lachish has really unique features, a few of which are unique and fill in spaces and lacunas in our understanding of numerous elements of the culture of Canaan in the Bronze Age. For the first time, we have a whole verbal sentence composed in the dialect spoken by the Canaanite inhabitants of Lachish, enabling us to compare this language in all its aspects with the other sources for it. Second, the inscription on the comb clarifies some hitherto improperly testified aspects of the daily life of the time, haircare and dealing with lice.
Third, this is the first discovery in the region of an engraving describing the function of the things on which it was composed, instead of dedicatory or ownership engravings on objects. Further, the engravers skill in effectively executing such small letters (1– 3 mm large) is a reality that from now on should be taken into account in any attempt to sum up and reason on literacy in Canaan in the Bronze Age.
Lachish was a significant Canaanite city-state in the 2nd millennium BCE and the 2nd most important city in the Biblical Kingdom of Judah. To date, 10 Canaanite inscriptions have actually been discovered in Lachish, more than at any other website in Israel.
Reference: “A Canaanites Wish to Eradicate Lice on an Inscribed Ivory Comb from Lachish” by Daniel Vainstub, Madeleine Mumcuoglu, Michael G. Hasel, Katherine M. Hesler, Miriam Lavi, Rivka Rabinovich, Yuval Goren and Yosef Garfinkel, 2022, Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology.DOI: 10.52486/ 01.00002.4.
The ancient ivory comb Credit: Dafna Gazit, Israel Antiquities Authority
The Hebrew University has actually found an ivory comb from 1700 BCE that is inscribed with a plea to rid oneself of lice.
The alphabet was established around 1800 BCE and was utilized by the Canaanites and later, many other languages throughout the world. Till recently, there had actually been very couple of Canaanite engravings found in the Land of Israel, with just a couple of isolated words having actually been discovered. However, a current discovery has changed this, as an entire sentence in Canaanite was discovered etched on a small ivory comb. This sentence, which dates back to around 1700 BCE, includes a spell against lice.
The little ivory comb including an entire sentence in Canaanite, dating back to around 1700 BCE, was discovered at Tel Lachish in Israel by a team from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Southern Adventist University. The engraving on the comb was understood by Dr. Daniel Vainstub, a Semitic epigraphist at Ben Gurion University.
