Princess Tamar of Judah, Queen Tamar Tephi of Ireland?

On July 4, 1996, a televised announcement was made by then Prime Minister, John Major, of the British government's intention to return the "Stone of Destiny" to its rightful owners, the Scots.   The proclamation announced the return of the "Stone of Scone" (pronounced Skoon,) over which all the monarchs of England have been crowned for 700 years, to its former residence at Scone Scotland. Its location at Westminster Abbey has been a point of contention between the Scots and the British since its removal by Edward I in 1296, along with the other symbols of the defeated Scottish crown. This was finally righted on November 15th of that year, as Prince Andrew, representing Queen Elizabeth II, ceremoniously handed over possession of the Stone to the people of Scotland, where it now rests safely at Edinburgh Castle.

The stone, commonly known as "Jacob's Pillar" (or Pillow), is reputed to be the very same stone the Biblical patriarch, Jacob, used for a pillow as he slept in the wilderness on the way to find a wife in the land of his father's kinsman, Laban. That was the very same stone on which he had slept and dreamed of the stairway to heaven after tricking his father, Isaac, into giving him his twin brother's birthright blessing.

According to legend, the stone was carried to Ireland by the prophet Jeremiah in the sixth century, BC. Jeremiah fled Judea with Tamar and Scota, the two daughters of King Zedekiah and, after an ill-fated refuge in Egypt, he supposedly brought them to Ireland. They are said to have made the journey within a short time after Jerusalem was finally overtaken by Nebachudnezzar and the seventy years of Babylonian captivity began. Zedekiah had been captured and forced to watch the massacre of his sons, after which the soldiers "put out his eyes" and carried him off to Babylon, where he later died. Jeremiah, the daughters of Zedekiah and a group of the poorest Judahites had been left in Judah to be "vine-dressers and husbandmen" for the Babylonian government, to which they were also forced to pay monetary tribute.

When the appointed Governor, Gedaliah, was murdered by the leader of a rebel faction, "all the People, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and came to Egypt: for they were afraid of the Chaldees." (2 Kings 25:26). In fact, the people had been grumbling about paying tribute to Babylon for some time, and the Prophet Jeremiah had prophesied against their intentions to flee to Egypt. He had repeatedly told them that God would only preserve them if they stayed in their own land. On the other hand, if they went to Egypt, God would send Nebachudnezzar and his army to conquer Egypt and they would all be killed or taken captive.

When they left Judea, Jeremiah went with them (after all, he was their Prophet), taking his scribe, Baruch, and the two daughters of Zedekiah along with him to Egypt, where he continued to prophesy against the fugitive Judahites for some time. The people, who had quickly adopted Egyptian paganism, were warned time and again to abandon their idolatrous practices and return to their homeland before the coming destruction, but they continually ignored the warnings.

At this point, the Biblical account of the scribe, the prophet and the two princesses ends, and the legend begins. As we shall see, the facts are intriguing and the story compelling, although highly controversial, and its detractors are almost as convincing as its proponents. Primarily, detractors point to a problem of dating, which is always grist for the historical mill. In this case, they say, the legendary prophet and his royal companions could not have lived in the same century as the actual people they are supposed to have been, nor could Tamar and her supposed husband, King Eochaid I (79th Monarch of Ireland), have been contemporaries. For that matter, Ollamh Fadhlah, the "wonderful seer" of celtic legend, whom they identify with Jeremiah, could not even have lived contemporaneously with the princess Tamar, they argue. For more information from the pro-side, my readers are encouraged to delve into the links provided above. Anyway, legends are always fun to believe, and so they will be.

The following is excerpted from a 1995 article by archaeologist, Michael S. Sanders, whose stated intent at the time was to lead an excavation of Irish burial site of Queen Tamar Tephi, where he believed he would find the Ark of the Covenant. Whether this project was ever undertaken is not known to this writer. Mr. Sanders explains the connection of the Stone of Destiny to the legend of Princess Tamar.

© 1995, Michael S. Sanders, all rights reserved, reprinted with permission.