event · evt_deir_alla_balaam_text_production
Production and destruction context of the Deir Alla Balaam plaster texts
A fragmentary literary text in ink on plaster names Balaam son of Beor and divine beings in a settlement context.
What is the evidence?
observation
A fragmentary literary text in ink on plaster names Balaam son of Beor and divine beings in a settlement context.proposed causes
The name and literary text are secure; date, dialect, fragment order, and relationship to biblical texts remain debated.
Inspect the sources →Review and provenance
Specialist reviewer: not recorded. Review date: not recorded.
Dataset workflow: proposed. This is separate from specialist review.
Confidence describes the stated assessment; it does not certify expert approval. How review works.
Chronology
Dating intervals may describe uncertainty or phases; their width alone does not establish event duration.
850 BCE–750 BCE
Precision: approximate range
Chronology model: best current range
highThe name and literary text are secure; date, dialect, fragment order, and relationship to biblical texts remain debated.
- informs · provides primary evidence
Aramaic Texts from Deir ‘Alla — Jacob Hoftijzer, Gerrit van der Kooij (1976)Primary edition.
Locator: text groups I-II and archaeological context - informs · critiques interpretation
The Balaam Text from Deir ‘Alla Re-evaluated — Gerrit van der Kooij, Jacob Hoftijzer (1991)Provides alternatives.
Locator: re-evaluated readings - informs · contextualizes
The Balaam Text from Deir ‘Alla — Jo Ann Hackett (1984)Provides literary analysis.
Locator: biblical comparison
Interpretation and caveats
Independent Transjordanian evidence for a Balaam tradition and Northwest Semitic literary practice; relationship to biblical Balaam traditions is comparative, not automatically direct.
Event context
Classification
Event type: literary inscription event
Evidence layer: archaeological
Timeline role: regional core
People and places
Locations: Deir Alla, Jordan Valley, Deir Alla, Jordan Valley
Why it matters to the timeline
The text adds a non-biblical Transjordanian literary tradition and tests how shared figures should be modeled.
Alternative interpretations
- Direct source or close antecedent for the Numbers Balaam story.
- Independent use of a widely circulating seer figure and motifs.
- A local ritual or didactic composition with no direct biblical link.
Research notes
- Primary edition. Role: provides primary evidence. Locator: text groups I-II and archaeological context.
- Provides alternatives. Role: critiques interpretation. Locator: re-evaluated readings.
- Provides literary analysis. Role: contextualizes. Locator: biblical comparison.
Evidence and sources
- informs · provides primary evidence
Aramaic Texts from Deir ‘Alla — Jacob Hoftijzer, Gerrit van der Kooij (1976)Primary edition.
Locator: text groups I-II and archaeological context - informs · critiques interpretation
The Balaam Text from Deir ‘Alla Re-evaluated — Gerrit van der Kooij, Jacob Hoftijzer (1991)Provides alternatives.
Locator: re-evaluated readings - informs · contextualizes
The Balaam Text from Deir ‘Alla — Jo Ann Hackett (1984)Provides literary analysis.
Locator: biblical comparison
Referenced records
- Jordan Valley · entity
- Deir Alla · entity