Archaeologists discover bronze sword of Exodus Pharoah
Archaeologists announced their discovery of a 3,200-year-old bronze sword adorned with hieroglyphs bearing the name of Pharaoh Ramses II at the Tell Al-Abqain site in an excavation site in the Hosh Issa district of Beheira Governorate, in the northern part of the country, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in a September 4 press release.
The sword was discovered in the barracks of a military outpost that protected the Nile Delta against threats from the Western Desert and the Mediterranean Sea. This led researchers to believe it was intended for military use rather than ceremonial purposes.
The structure also contained storerooms used to hold grain and ovens for baking, pottery containing the bones of animals and fish, and was also the burial site for several cows.
Ramses II was the third king of the 19th dynasty (1292–1190 BCE) of ancient Egypt whose reign (1279–13 BCE) was the second longest in Egyptian history. He lived to be ninety-six years old, had over 200 wives and concubines, ninety-six sons and sixty daughters, most of whom he outlived. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the New Kingdom, itself the most powerful period of Ancient Egypt. The 66-year reign of Ramses II marks the last peak of Egypt’s imperial power. On his death, he was buried in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings but his body was later moved to a royal cache where it was discovered in 1881.
Though there are no archeological records identifying the Pharaoh of the Exodus and there is much debate over the identity of the Egyptian king who oversaw the Exodus of the Jews and was, as a result, killed in the splitting of the Red Sea, many scholars believe it was Ramses II and he is one of the more popular candidates. He is known for his extensive building programs and for the many colossal statues of him found all over Egypt, leading to associating him with the Biblical reference to the Hebrews constructing the supply city named Ramses (Exodus 1:11). No record of the exodus of the Jews has been found in any Egyptian tablets but a reference to “Israel” appears on the Victory Stela of Pharaoh Merneptah, one of Ramses’ sons.
An in-depth analysis of the identity of the Pharaoh of Exodus can be found on The Israel Bible website.
Prof. Peter Brand of the University of Memphis, who was not involved in the excavations, said the sword was likely a royal reward given to a high-ranking officer. “The king’s name and titles engraved on it increased the prestige of its owner and ‘advertised’ the king’s wealth, power and generosity,” Brand told Live Science.
“It’s an important discovery for understanding the strategy and especially the logistics of Egypt’s military under Ramesses II,” said Brand, a history professor and director of the Karnak Great Hypostyle Hall Project at the University of Memphis in Tennessee. Other military sites built by Ramesses II, such as forts, have been found in northwest Egypt, but they are not as well preserved as this one, said Brand,
“The weaponry demonstrates the place was well armed and may even have been able to produce some weapons on site,” Brand said.
Researchers also found two inscribed limestone blocks; one has a hieroglyphic inscription that mentions Ramesses II, whereas the other cites an official named “Bay,” the statement reported.
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