A new interpretation of 3,800-year-old inscriptions discovered in an Egyptian turquoise mine has reopened one of archaeology’s most controversial debates: Did Moses, the biblical leader of the Exodus, ever exist?
Independent researcher Michael S. Bar-Ron believes the answer lies in the Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions carved into rock walls at Serabit el-Khadim, an Egyptian Sinai Peninsula mine site. After eight years of study using high-resolution photos and 3D scans provided by Harvard’s Semitic Museum, Bar-Ron says he has discovered two inscriptions reading “zot mi’Moshe” — Hebrew for “This is from Moses” — and “ne’um Moshe”, which means “A saying of Moses.”
If verified, these would be the oldest extra-biblical inscriptional references to Moses, a figure long documented in religious tradition but never confirmed by archaeology. The inscriptions are part of a group of over two dozen Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions first unearthed by Sir William Flinders Petrie early in the 20th century. These writings, which were likely created by Semitic-speaking laborers during the reign of Pharaoh Amenemhat III (c. 1800 BC), represent some of the earliest alphabetic texts known, even predating Phoenician.
Bar-Ron’s theory is not, however, without debate. In his proto-thesis (or early thesis), he suggests that these inscriptions are the voice of a single scribe who had knowledge of Egyptian hieroglyphs and used Proto-Sinaitic script to encode religious and personal messages. He believes the personal tone and poetic form of the scribe support a single authorship.
The inscriptions yield more than possible personal markings. Nearby inscriptions contain invocations to “El,” the archaic Hebrew deity, while others praise Baʿalat, the Semitic counterpart of the Egyptian goddess Hathor. Some of the inscriptions in honor of Baʿalat appear to have been scratched out by followers of El, pointing to a theological rift. A burnt temple dedicated to Baʿalat and inscriptions that mention “overseers,” “slavery,” and a call to depart—possibly to be interpreted as “ni’mosh” (“let us depart”)—give support to religious rebellion and mass departure, recalling the biblical Exodus.
Archaeologists have also uncovered the Stele of Reniseneb and the seal of an Asiatic Egyptian official at the site, pointing to a strong Semitic presence. Bar-Ron even speculates a link to the biblical Joseph, making comparisons with figures like the Semitic vizier Ankhu, who served during the reign of Amenemhat III.
Despite the hype, not everyone is convinced. Per The Daily Mail, Dr. Thomas Schneider, an Egyptologist at the University of British Columbia, dismissed the assertions, calling them “completely unproven and misleading,” and cautioning that “arbitrary identifications of letters can distort ancient history.” Proto-Sinaitic script is notoriously difficult to decode, and skeptics argue that subjective interpretations can easily lead to the wrong conclusions. But Bar-Ron’s academic advisor, Dr. Pieter van der Veen, supports his research.
Bar-Ron acknowledges that his research, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, is still in progress. He hopes that more research will either challenge or more conclusively prove his claims.
Whether or not the inscriptions refer to Moses, the finds at Serabit el-Khadim nonetheless revolutionize our understanding of ancient Semitic workers in Egypt and their evolving religious identities.
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It seems made up to validate Biblical narrative.
Or perhaps the Biblical narrative is true and this is evidence.
What do you say when other ancient artifacts are found which verify other historical events?
Has there really been anything major prior to a coin with King David’s name? It seems like the mid- to early bronze age is absent most archeological evidence. Might it make more sense that finding stray words from 600 years before the biblical exodus might possibly even refer to a different event or peoples?
We already know people wrote stories about Moses. This is (possibly?) another one, written on a stone, which suggests it was an old and widespread story, as are the stories about Osiris, or Tammuz or the Man in the Moon…
Yep, there was a Smithsonian article several years ago claiming to have proven King David existed. He claimed a lot of things but had zero evidence to back it up including Davids summer palace that didn’t exist. Claimed hundreds to thousands worked in the cooper minds in the middle of a dessert days from the rest of society yet had no landfill ,fire pits which would be evidence of human inhabitants and their culture and beliefs..In the case of this article and Moses, if it in fact says Moses we know there were many other religions that have the same story lines that the New Testament has. A man born of a god and mortal woman who’s life and experiences paralleled that of Jesus including his death all of which came before Jesus. While there could have been a man named Moses it doesn’t mean he climbed a mountain and was given a stone tablet by God and clumsily dropped and broke it twice and had to return to get copies that didn’t say the same thing as the ones before.imagine finding s baby floating in a basket in a river. You can’t make this stuff up. Oh wait….
I think you should actually read Exodus. Your interpretations of the stone tablets being “clumsily” dropped and broken twice made me laugh. As well as your insinuations that the Old Testament is “made up”. There is a significant about of evidence that validates historical truth to the Old Testament.
I think you should definitely read Exodus. And the facts you try to deliver are not anywhere near facts. Moses was neither like Jesus nor do their stories compare. And this is actually not new news either. There’s a great documentary on how it’s very possible the timeline is messed up for when the jews or what would be the jews were in Egypt. We know they were there based on what the bible says and what has been found in Egypt. But I would suggest you get your “facts” correct because it’s the Old Testament that is the story of Moses and there are not other religions that have had the same stories other than those religions that came from judaism. But there is no ancient stories whatsoever that compares to the New Testament and that of Jesus so you’re incorrect absolutely on that one. And just one tidbit of info for you, there was a stele discovered from another ancient civilization that had went to war with ancient Israel and the stele commemorates the king on his victory against King David and the Israelites. So we know he existed as well.
Sargon of Akkad and Moses share striking similarities in their birth narratives, often cited as an example of a common “forsaken hero” trope: both were born in secret to mothers who couldn’t keep them, placed in waterproofed reed baskets and set adrift on a river (Sargon on the Euphrates, Moses on the Nile), rescued by strangers (a water drawer for Sargon, an Egyptian princess for Moses), raised away from their origins, and grew to become legendary leaders chosen for a divine purpose. These parallels suggest a shared literary tradition, with some scholars believing the Sargon legend influenced the later biblical account. Also the origin story of the Egyptian God Horus.Horus (Egyptian god) and Moses (Hebrew prophet) share striking narrative parallels, particularly in their infancy: both were hidden by their mothers in reed baskets on the Nile to escape a tyrannical ruler (Seth/Pharaoh), rescued, and adopted by royalty, becoming destined leaders who challenged oppressive power and embodied divine/royal authority, leading their people as saviors. Also worth mentioning Abraham came from the city of Ur a city state who’s whole origin story is based on flood that covered the world so yes there are other religions and story’s from the old testament that come from other cultures
Are you stephen king the author from maine ..i read so many of your books when i was in high school ,really liked them ,thanks.
Exactly—twisting archaeology to fit the Bible is textbook pseudoscience. Manipulate the findings to force it into Biblical narratives? That’s not science—it’s dogma in a lab coat. Distorting archaeology to align with the Bible is pure pseudoscience.
The voice of your reason is appreciated. Archeology is a science. It is not validated by religions
These inscription are stated to date back to around 1800BC, which is around the time of Abraham. Moses flourished around 1200 BC. These referneces are to a completely different person named Moses.
Nobody has to make anything up to ‘validate’ the Bible. If you know anything about archaeology you must know there Is ample proofs to illustrate that so many things in it are based on real people, places and incidences. Even things now known by modern science to be true and unknown until recently.
We know they worshipped other God’s. I believe we don’t need a fabrication to have faith in this because we have evidence of a flood.
People choose to believe in such things as they will but as history rewind is not hard to believe nor except, because science believe people exist them so why couldn’t Moses and Jesus, just keep digging and alot of things are gonna be difficult to except when the real truth is understood,, some people want like what they will find out about themselves and thier very existence,, and where they really came from and who they came from,,, bold truth
No, there is no evidence -zero, zilch, nada – of any global flood.
You keep telling yourself that lie.
Same to you.
People have believed in a myriad of lies for many years.
Each group believes in their own version of lies, normally the same as those which their parents believed.
And , here you are. Believing, out of hand something you have no direct evidence for.
Moses was an Egyptian name given to an Israelite child. He was most likely not the only little boy with this name – there may have been many with this name. the context of the writing with which it was found only leads to more questions..
I totally agree with this statement. Bravo
A lot of people overlook the fact that “Moses” is an Egyptian name.
As fascinating as this discovery is, I think we all need to keep in mind that if one person was named Moses (and I have no issue with the idea of an historical “Moses” written about in the Old Testament), there had to have been others.
Firstly, Moses was given the Egyptian name by an Egyptian princess which makes sense because he was raised in the royal family! According to the Bible and the fact it actually is an Egyptian name gives more credence to the Biblical narrative
Timing would.be off from Biblical narrative. Israeli slaves were building city of Ramses dates to around 1350 BC.
Not sure about Ramses, but 1800BC seems way too old.
They did not build the city of “Ramses!” They built the city before it was ever called the city of Ramses. Which btw, that city was renamed later. And there’s good reason for it being recorded as the city of Ramses in the Bible. So how do you suppose the city was called that in 1350 BC but was actually built much earlier!
It was called the city of Ramses when Ramses the Great built it from a small settlement / military town.
Evidence of a flood doesn’t nearly prove the Bible to be true, necessarily, when hundreds of other cultures also have their account of the flood. It’s all the same story rewritten to suit the times and the directive of the authors
And what about the broken tablet pieces of Thutmose / Tobadzischini / Pahana with the name Mosheh in Proto Canaanite script that washed to my feet 6315 days ago in San Clemente, CA. Who did those belong to???
Elaborate please! I’m listening
Why for you count the days?
Great article
Of course El was not just “the archaic Hebrew deity,” but also a much earlier Canaanite or other Semitic deity or deities, distinct from the Hebrews or Israelites who later adopted El as a god.
Ba’alat, too, was a Canaanite/Phoenician goddess and all the Canaanite languages, including Hebrew, were mutually intelligible, so describing Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions as being in “Hebrew” is misleading. These inscriptions likely preceded what developed as “Hebrew” by a long time in any case.
I am a layman, but from what I have read over the past 20 plus years (during which time the understanding of Proto-Sinaitic has evolved and there have been epigraphic discoveries), my take is that Proto-Sinaitic was Proto-Canaanite from which the Phoenician/Canaanite alphabet evolved, later to become the “Paleo Hebrew” alphabet as well. I believe the Canaanites, as opposed to the differentiated Hebrews or Israelites, were in the Sinai and interacting with Egypt at that stage. There are lots of overlaps in the peoples, languages and writing systems (not to mention terminology), but the tendency to Hebraize everything in the region is disappointing, and a disservice to scholarship and knowledge. It will be interesting to see what more is discovered and how studies of the region evolve.
Very well-stated, sir. Thank you for your thoughtful comment.
Most people agree this writing is Semitic and evolving from hieroglyphics around the time of Moses or earlier. Perhaps it wasn’t actually turquoise miners in 1800 BC, but rather 1440 BC Hebrew people wandering in the Sinai desert. What made Petrie so sure that this writing on stone was 1800 BC? I see no reason it couldn’t be 15th c. BC.
No one has proven conclusively the later dates nor the early date for the Exodus.
What makes one think is that the dating would be in agreement with the proposed backdating of the biblical exodus, still a subject of debate, but which would also be in agreement with archaeological finds in Palestine and Jericho.
People will always be inflamed whenever they see anything about a Bible character in it. For many of these individuals, they only wish the Bible was mere fiction. Sadly, their wishes won’t be. The more you argue, the better things become. Moses lived, the Bible is true
The bible is true?
Many things are true.
Evidence and ultimately proof is required.
Faith is neither.
Doesn’t matter how strong your faith, nor who persuaded you ( as child often), you have a duty to question the veracity of same.
Winged creatures, a burning place, a jealous/ loving/cruel/omnipotent/being we can’t see/hear/touch being promoted by celibate men wearing long dresses….
“If we accept the fundamental principle that the amount of water on Earth has remained constant from the beginning of the planet’s existence until now, and also considering that the mass (and thus the gravitational force) has similarly remained unchanged, then the idea of a flood with such a volume of water being able to place a ship atop a mountain peak is scientifically unacceptable. Essentially, this quantity of water has never existed on Earth’s surface. 🙏🙏🙏”
Look up “ringwoodite” ocean of water in minerals 400 times the volume of the entire ocean surface of the earth. The “fountains of the deep were broken open”
Thank you!
Firstly, mountains weren’t as tall as they are now. And have you forgotten how much frozen water is on this planet?! If Antartica’s ice completely melted that would raise ocean levels by 190ft. That’s not counting the Arctic ice! That would cause it to be higher. The ice sheet is literally 3 miles thick from the top to the actual dirt land of Antarctica at its thickest point. There’s plenty of water on the planet to flood a lot of stuff. And there’s no actual evidence to say that the mountains of Ararat that the Bible speaks of is the one and the same as the one mountain that is called Mount Ararat. Two totally different things.
And yet they have found marine animal fossils on the too of mountains!!
People see what they want but that applies to both sides in the argument. That it applies to all of us is the part that is the hardest to accept.
I agree with Maunder…that said, I have my own beliefs about what is and how it was…man…the article is interesting…more about when, where and the site relationship to trade routes would be of further interest…
I accept that I do not fully understand the intent nor the original meaning of any ancient writing or tablet text. If I could read those same writings or tablets as a contemporary of the authors, my view would be different at least. As is, I am left with the opinions of others, consensus groups, or my imagination. I prefer the latter. E. Maunder, Science Of The Stars
Interestingly, this time frame differs markedly from a textual literalist chronology of Moses (ca. 1450 BCE) and the revised chronology (ca. 1250 BCE) that most Christians and Jews use for historical context. This would not be what either would expect, or know what to do with. If correct it seems to bring written forms of semitic language in the area a good deal farther into the past. Fascinating!
Maybe Moses existed in real life, maybe he didn’t and is only a name put to a collection of stories gathered down through the ages. Nobody is ever going to know for sure. But does that really matter ? The writings attributed to him, many times showed wisdom, though some of them were way too severe and downright cruel and he was either in a bad mood the day he wrote those or someone else in history tossed it in to the story line and attributed it to him. Supposedly some of his not so nice laws were later done away with and rectified by Jesus. At least that’s what other holy books tell us.
But the point is that if a person is on a spiritual road through life, they can gain knowledge from some ancient writings and rise higher out of the darkness. Anything that looks like God would not sanction particular parts of a writing should be avoided. Of course, this requires knowing the correct original meaning of a phrase or word.
Humans rising out of darkness, may sound like a joke when we look at the violence mankind has inflicted on each other over the last 100 years, with two World Wars and the numerous other wars and genocides people have had to endure. But this is not to say that teachings of the past can’t help those who know there is a better way. It’s up to the individual to find out what writings are true and enlightening as opposed to writings coming from some twisted belief someone may have added later.
Religions all over the world have a bit of both of these elements, whether they came from an actual holy person or not. So, it really doesn’t matter. The road out of darkness is what matters. It gets easier the further along you actually begin to climb.
But, yes, here comes the big BUT; Some are descending and under the illusion they are climbing.
It always rings alarm bells for me when archaeologists or researchers go looking to prove Biblical stories. In any scientific discipline, we cannot simply seek evidence for that which we already believe to be true. We must also realize that any ancient text was written by a human hand and that humans tend to skew truths towards what they want them to be. The Bible was not written down by God himself. El was not only the archaic Hebrew god: he was part of the Canaanite pantheon (a term not mentioned in this piece), along with Baalat, equated with Hathor. The temple was dedicated to Hathor/Baalat because she was associated with copper and turquoise. What we see at the site is evidence of two Canaanite deities, no Hebrew writing (because it did not exist yet) and references to “a strong Semitic presence”: the Canaanites, who were the people who populated the land from Syria to the Sinai, were Semitic people, but they were not Jews. This entire idea is laid out to mislead people into thinking that Jews were and are the only Semites in the area and that is false. (I am an archaeologist and I study the Canaanites and Phoenicians so I do know something on the topic).
Not sure about Moshe n the tablets, but I did at a dig near old Ur that indicated the Habiru developed fermentation process earlier than anyone else, hence the name He Brews…
I understand that some don’t believe in God, or the Bible .You think even books not written about Christianity and Jesus are also part of the big lie? The Bible says every head will bawl and every knee will bend. I believe in God and I believe it is real. If not why do they continue to find proof, most would rather disprove the Bible,I personally see more than some people who have not been to Egypt or any place Jesus walked or his people lived before he was born,the old testament says he will be born. I pray that everyone finds the gift of salvation.
One has to do a truly deep dive into history before you understand what may have happened and what is then easy to see did not happen. The Hebrews were not slaves in Egypt. That was Babylon, from which they were ‘delivered’ and after-which they wrote their book – this was a book of the Stories of the Rabbis – and written in approximately 600BC – 589BC and on. Is that 43 generations of hand-me-down, word of mouth stories? (the answer is yes)
They have the idea that Moses was the big Rabbi, true-blood but a part of the Pharaonic house, the Chosen one – and that Ramasses chased them away. And who was this great Ramasses? – they saw him looking down from colossi on every cliff face all the way from Egypt to Judea.
Unfortunately for hear-say, and to show how stories get changed, the Ramasses they had for their stories was RamassesII and the Ramasses involved was his grandfather, Ramasses (I), who was the priest and Sef Paramasses who inherited from the childless Horemheb, the enemy of the Heretic who, on Homemheb’s passing returned from his exile years in the Hyksos homeland of the Egyptian Nile Delta (where all the 16th and 17th Hykoso Pharaohs were from – and who were Semite) to take back his throne in Waset (a city renamed a thousand years later by the Greeks for one of their Greek cities, Thebes) – but was rebuffed and sent packing. And I have every detail from focused study – Not dogma, you’re not going to find truth in dogma –