Clay Seal of Important Government Official from the Reign of Josiah Discovered – OpentheWord.org
King Josiah listening as a scribe reads from the Book of DeuteronomyCredit: Wikipedia, Public Domain Over the years, archaeologists in Israel have discovered signet rings worn by the politically connected and the rich. These were used to impress a person’s mark, either in wax or clay, on important documents and items to confirm ownership. While the rings are often discovered, finding the clay or wax seal in which these images were impressed is rare. This is because they are delicate and easily destroyed or damaged. But earlier this month, archaeologist Mordechai Ehrlich discovered a clay seal impression that was in remarkable shape, the Temple Mount Institute reports. According to the Institute, the words written on the seal in ancient Hebrew dated to the sixth and seventh century read: “’Belonging to Yed[a‛]yah (son of) Asayahu.’ – ליד[ע]יה (בן) עשיהו“ This caught everyone’s attention because the Bible describes a person with the same name. He was an important government official during the reign of Judah’s Godly king, Josiah. Josiah had ordered the Jewish Temple repaired after his father, King …
