A Close Look at the “House of David”

The Mesha Stele, a ninth-century B.C.E. inscription from Moab, details the victories of King Mesha of Moab over the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. The stone might contain a reference to btdwd, “House of David” (bt meaning “house of” and dwd meaning “David”) in its 31st line. Although this reading has been contested, new images of the stone and of the squeeze (papier-mâché impression of the stone) confirm the reading “House of David.” In the below images, full lines represent a safe reading, while the dashed lines refer to reconstructed parts of letters for which no clear traces appear on the stone or the squeeze.

RTI Photo of Stela

Top: an RTI photo of the stela showing the btdwd section.

Bottom: the same photo with the letters bt_wd (the initial dalet is lost) and dot-shaped word dividers highlighted in red.

RTI Photo of Squeeze

Top: an RTI photo of the squeeze showing the btdwd section.