HALL OF ANTIQUITIES

OF THE

INTERIOR SYRIA

TELL REF’AT ( ARFAD(

Excavations of the English Mission

Tell Ref'at (Arfad) lies at a distance of 35 Km to the North of Aleppo . It was excavated by an English Mission , conducted by Mrs . Seton Williams , who carried out a number of campaigns at this mound . Despite the importance of the mound . this mission has not been able to conduct its explorations regularly and on a wide scale . It is hoped that the future excavations at this, very tell , would bring to light sufficient data in archaeology and history concerning a particular period about which we need more information . Through the excavations which have been carried out so far , we were able to determine the different strata of this tell . They are from top to bottom as follows .

1st Stratum : goes back to the Roman and the Hellenistic Periods ( from the 4th Century B. C. to the 1st Century A. C. )

2nd Stratum: goes back to the Roman and Hellenistic Periods (the 4th Century B.C. ) and the Assyrlan and Aramaean Periods (between the 10th and 6th Century B. C. )

3rd Stratum : from the Aramaean era down to the Bronze Age ( between the 14th and 12th Century B. C. )

4th Strum : goes back to the Bronze Age ( between the 23^rd and 20th Century B. C. )

5th Stratum : goes back to the Jew Stone Age ( Neolithic)

i.e. the 5th and 4th millennium B. C.

Aramaean Stole of Sfire :
This big basalt stele was discovered at the Canal of Sagin and , later on was transported to Sfire a village near Aleppo . This stele is considered to be the most ancient document written in Aramaic . Its letter forms are akin to the ancient Phoenician inscriptions . They were engraved with care and in a manner which makes them easy to read from afar . The beauty of the calligraphy gives us a good idea of the Aramaean script of the 8th century B. C.
The stele reveals the text of a treaty concluded between two kings of North Syria : ( Bar-gayah ) , king of Kittak , and ( Mati-El), king of Arfad, ( ? Tell Ref’at).
King Mati-El whose name signifies (God preserve) is known in the Assyrian texts as the adversary of Tiglath-Pilser I who destroyed the kingdom of Arfad in 740 B. C. after a siege of four years .
The treaty in question threatens Mati-El and his kingdom with severe punishment in case of the breach of his faith . The text of the accord is a long inscription covering the two faces of the Stele . The inscription reads :

" And that seven nurses suckle a baby without satisfying it "
" And that seven mares suckle a foal without satisfying it "
" And that seven cows suckle a calf without satisfying it "
" And that seven ewes suckle a lamb without satisfying it "

Bronze statue of a Baal a god of the Phoenicians :

It was entirely recovered with a thin coat of silver , nothing of which remained save some traces . The god is arrayed in a short loin-cloth , tightened round the slim waist by a belt . The striped part of the belt is divided into four zones and is hanging down from the front by three grooves , which were formerly encrusted with gold or ivory. The legs are in the attitude of the march . The feet are bare . The god is standing on a pedestal . The face is beardless and the lineaments express youth and force . The eyes and eye-brows were encrusted . The hair is hanging loose and ending with spiral locks around the neck .He is putting on a crown surrounded by a band . The crown ends with a flat semi-oval form on which the sun-rays are engraved . The neck looks strong , the shoulders broad and the chest large . The arms are stretched forward and the palms are closed , possibly they were holding something (a weapon or an attitude of god) lost with the passage of time . End of the 2nd millennium B.C. H 43.3 cm. W. 97 cm.

Basalt bas-relief representing a winged sphinx of Syrio-Phoenician type . The stele was found on one of the walls of the god Hadad's Temple ( now the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus ). The bas-relief represents : an animal with a man’s head and a long beard and a double crown ( of Egyptian Style ) on the head. It is in the attitude of the march. This piece was discovered during the excavations conducted by the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums . It dates to the period of the Aramaean King " Hazael " the ninth century B.C.

This stele was executed by the Phoenician artists whom King Hazeal of Damascus , the above noted king , charged with the construction of the Temple of Hadad . It is the very temple which was consecrated to god Jupiter during the Roman era . In the Byzantine ear , this temple became the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. The cathedral was converted into the famous Umayyad Mosque in the Islamic era . L. 69.5 cm. W. 64 cm. H. 64 cm.

A hieroglyphic text found in Tell Koukab - Near Damascus

god " Hadad Yasaai Bin Shamah Nouri "

Basalt sculpture , on the lower front of the garment there is an Assyrian cuneiform writing , on the lower back there is translation to it into Aramaic . 9 Century B.C.