“Hogwash” Says Ebla Scholar to Politics Charge

Professor Buccellati denies any concern by Syria or by Ebla scholars over Biblical connections revealed in tablets.

“Hogwash”, said UCLA’s Giorgio Buccellati to the suggestion that scholars working on Ebla materials might suppress Biblical connections for political reasons.

“Anyone making such a suggestion is either showing his gross ignorance or is guilty of bad faith”, the noted Assyriologist stated. Buccellati is the only American-based scholar on the 10-man committee assigned to study and publish the Ebla materials.

“I can assure you the Syrians are not concerned with any Biblical connections that the Ebla materials might reveal” he said. “Places like Ugarit and Mari are in Syria and have been extremely important in Biblical studies, but the Syrians have never expressed concern over this. Any scholar suggesting a political element in the interpretation of Ebla materials is tilting at windmills. First, they make wild Biblical connections, and then they suggest that the Biblical connections cannot be shown to exist because of political reasons. To make such a suggestion is offensive to good American scholarship.” Buccellati emphasized the word American, suggesting that responsible American scholars should not be making the charge.

Buccellati himself has been digging for years at Tell Terqa in central Syria. This site has numerous Biblical connections, he said, but no concern has ever been expressed by the Syrians over this; and he himself has not been the least apprehensive.