Pottery of the Bible

1. Midianite pottery was imported from Qurayyah in modern Saudi Arabia. (see map) The Kenites are a sect of Midianites that Moses invited to join him in the promised land. After settling in the Negev, the Kenites were responsible for importing their own pottery into their new home.
2. "Scholars associate the pottery from Qurayyah with the Midianites, the very people that Moses was said to dwell among when he first fled Egypt—and from whom he chose his wife, Zipporah. Evidence of habitation and culture from that same time period—the presumed time of the Exodus—is practically nonexistent in the Sinai peninsula. Harvard scholar Frank Moore Cross believes that the paucity of evidence in Sinai—and the considerable remains in Qurayyah, Al-Bad' and other Midianite sites—points in favor of an Arabian location for Mt. Sinai." (Mt. Sinai—in Arabia?, Bible Review, Apr 2000, Allen Kerkeslager)
3. Midianite pottery was originally called Edomite pottery which is a misnomer. This is an error and modern archeologists know the difference. Be aware, however older publications often refer to this type of pottery as Edomite pottery. The correct name is "Midianite pottery".
4. Neutron Activation Analysis was conducted on Midianite pottery in 1991 and proved it was all made at Qurayyah where the kiln was discovered.
   
5. When Israel took possession of the promised land in 1406 BC, the Kenites (Midianites) who joined Moses settled in the southern Negev within the territory of Judah, likely in the Mountains on the western edge of the Arabah. It is clear that the Kenites (Midianites) who migrated from Arabia to the promised land with Moses became involved as co-workers at the Timna mines only in its last phases of operation. This proves outright Egyptian control at the time of the Exodus, changing to a partnership with Israel until the mines were abandoned in 1200 BC. Then Egypt was expelled entirely from the Timna/Elat area by Solomon in 950 BC for a short time. This fits perfectly with what the Bible says.
6. The pottery finds at Timna are almost identical to those found at Jezirat Faraun. Three types of pottery were found: hand made, ordinary wheel made and two colour Midianite. The identical Midianite pottery has been found at Timna, Jezirat Faraun, Al-Bad (near the Straits of Tiran) and Qurayyah north east of Mt. Al-Lawz, where they found the factory where the Midianite pottery was made and exported. The Kenites migrated with Moses to the promised land and settled in the Negev. They are the link between Israel and Midianite pottery.
7. Although Egypt had two major mines (Timna and Serabit el-Khadem), both of which had temples to Hathor, no Midianite presence was found at Serabit el-Khadem. This is powerful in that it proves the Kenites were partners at Timna with the Egyptians at Timan: "The fact that nothing like the metal offerings attributed to the Midianites was ever found in the Hathor Temple at Serabit el-Khadem, where similarly no Midianite pottery exists, seems a strong argument for the proposed ethnic identification. Yet, it must be said that a certain degree of reliance is placed on Biblical traditions relating to the Kenites-Midianites as the ancient metalworkers of the southernmost Arabah and in the area of the Red Sea." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
8. Timna and Jezirat Faraun were used at the same time and in conjunction with each other under Egyptian control 1440 BC - 1200 BC. "we now propose to identify early Jezirat Fara'un as a Pharaonic mining harbour. ... investigations and the finds on the island confirmed once more the dates previously proposed, including the existence of fourteenth to twelfth century BC Negev and Midianite ware." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)

1. In 1991, J. Gunneweg worked with The Hebrew University and the University of Bonn to do a Neutron Activation Analysis of pottery. This is test allows scientists to identify the trace elements in pottery and establish a unique fingerprint for each of the 81 pieces tested. The purpose was to see if a common type of clay was used from a single geographic location:
   "The purpose of this study is to establish the origin of the three above mentioned different pottery styles in order to shed some light on important inter-regional contacts between, on the one hand, the Negev and Timna and, on the other hand, Egypt, Midian and Edom. These different pottery repertories are listed in Table 1 according to chronological period and style and with the names used in the present study." (Edomite, Negev, Midianite Pottery: Neutron Activation Analysis, Gunneweg, 1991 AD)
2. It was discovered that the chemical make up of the Midianite pottery at Timna, for example, had a unique very fingerprint:
   "`Midianite' pottery: Two painted 'Midianite' sherds (N27 and 28) from smelting site 2 at Timna show a chemical composition which is different from all pottery seen so far. This 'Midianite' pottery is chemically characterized by an unusually low calcium content ( 0.5%) and high lanthanum and thorium (75 and 25 ppm respectively), whereas cobalt is low (6.5 ppm). (Edomite, Negev, Midianite Pottery: Neutron Activation Analysis, Gunneweg, 1991 AD)
3. The result of the scientific tests was stunning, since it proved that indeed Midianite pottery found in the Negev was imported from a kiln discovered at Qurayyah, in modern Saudi Arabia.
   "We have compared these data with those obtained from archaeologically defined local 'Midianite' pottery, which was obtained through the late Mrs C.-M. Bennett from Parr's survey at Qurayyah in Midian (Arabia) and analysed at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory. Cluster analysis made it clear that the two sherds from Timna statistically match a mixed Timna-Qurayyah group of pottery believed to have been locally made in north-west Arabia, perhaps at Qurayyah. Qurayyah is a likely candidate because this ceramic does not analyse as Negev or Edom wares and Qurayyah is archaeologically the major site in a region which served as a corridor between Arabia and the Negev. However, additional production centres are not excluded, even at sites close to Timna. ... Columns 8 and 9 show the chemical composition of this 'Midianite' pottery. Statistical comparison shows that these compositions are quite similar." (Edomite, Negev, Midianite Pottery: Neutron Activation Analysis, Gunneweg, 1991 AD)
4. "Early Iron Age I Timna, with its highly centralized metal-mining activities, was certainly dependent on foreign trade because no major settlements have been found near Timna which could have imported Timna's entire copper output. Although Egyptian cartouches and other finds at Timna (including the Hathor Temple itself) may point to at least an Egyptian connection there, the picture obtained from this study is much more complicated. By tracing the copper of Timna one establishes an export trade to distant countries, but this does not answer the question of who was mining and working copper at Timna. This can partly be solved by determining unidirectional trade in pottery of the people who worked there. INAA data show that 75% of all pottery analysed from Timna (Negbite', 'Midianite' and 'faience' wares) was imported from Edom proper, whereas 10% could have come from Arabia (perhaps Qurayyah)." (Edomite, Negev, Midianite Pottery: Neutron Activation Analysis, Gunneweg, 1991 AD)

1. Midianite pottery was found at Timna
2. Midianite pottery is characterized by two colour (bichrome) painting and fine workmanship.
   
3. The actual kiln where this pottery was manufactured has been discovered at Qurayyah. (see map below)
   "Other new aspects of chronology and of historical interpretation are provided by the absolute dating at Timna of the decorated Midianite pottery. This pottery had previously been found by the expedition in the smelting camps of the western Arabah and on the island of Jezirat Fara'un in the Red Sea. Prior to this some sherds of this ware had been found by N. Glueck during his survey of the eastern Arabah and Edom and called 'Edomite' ware. In 1935 Glueck dated this pottery correctly to the thirteenth to twelfth centuries se. Yet, until it appeared in stratified and absolutely dated contexts in the Timna excavations, it could not be dated with any certainty and its origin also remained a matter of conjecture. Today the Timna types of Midianite ware are dated to the fourteenth to twelfth centuries c and there is good archaeological evidence for its origin in north-west Arabia, in the area of Midian. Indeed, the survey report of Midian published in 1970 describes the site of a kiln at Qurayyah where this decorated pottery was actually produced and a Late Bronze Age date for at least some of it was correctly suggested by Peter Parr. At Qurayyah a whole sequence of decorated ware was found ; some of it seems earlier than the Timna ware, other pieces seem later, but there can be no doubt that the Timna ware is fully represented at Qurayyah. Although the results of comparative analyses of the Qurayyah and Timna pottery are still awaited, it may confidently be said that the Timna pottery originates from Midian and provides the first certain absolute dates for the ancient town sites of Midian, where this pottery is to be found." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
4. The identical Midianite pottery has been found at Timna, Jezirat Faraun, Al-Bad (near the Straits of Tiran) and Qurayyah north east of Mt. Al-Lawz, where they found the factory where the Midianite pottery was made and exported. The Kenites migrated with Moses to the promised land and settled in the Negev. They are the link between Israel and Midianite pottery.
   
5. "The extraordinary variety and workmanship of the Midianite vessels found in the temple, as compared with the Midianite pottery from the other sites of Timna, is a clear indication that these sophisticated vessels were brought as votive gifts for the Hathor Temple. In the light of the finds of Midianite pottery with identical decorations on identical ware in north-western Arabia, it seems certain that the Midianite pottery was brought to the Timna temple all the way from there, perhaps from the large Midianite town at Qurayyah, about 160 km. south of Aqaba." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
   
6. "On the other hand, recent surveys of Midian have produced surprising discoveries of a developed civilization in precisely the period in question, the end of the Late Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age, the 13th to 12th centuries. At Qurayyah archaeologists discovered a major fortified citadel, a walled village and extensive irrigation works (see photo of citadel at Qurayyah). Characteristic pottery called Midianite ware—usually called Hejaz ware in Saudi journals—radiates out from the northern Hejaz into southern Transjordan and sites near Eilat, notably Timna. Extraordinarily enough, it is absent from the Sinai. In short we have a blank Sinai and a thriving culture in Midian in this era." (Israelite Origins, An Interview with Frank Moore Cross, Bible Review, Aug 1992)
7. "Scholars associate the pottery (shown here, compare with image of landscape at Qurayyah) from Qurayyah with the Midianites, the very people that Moses was said to dwell among when he first fled Egypt—and from whom he chose his wife, Zipporah. Evidence of habitation and culture from that same time period—the presumed time of the Exodus—is practically nonexistent in the Sinai peninsula. Harvard scholar Frank Moore Cross believes that the paucity of evidence in Sinai—and the considerable remains in Qurayyah, Al-Bad' and other Midianite sites—points in favor of an Arabian location for Mt. Sinai." (Mt. Sinai—in Arabia?, Bible Review, Apr 2000, Allen Kerkeslager)
8. When reading the quote below, remember Midianite pottery was once incorrectly called "Edomite ware": "Another type of pottery with stylistic features similar to those of `Edomite' ware [Midianite pottery] was found by B. Rothenberg in the Hathor shrine at Timna, which was dated by two cartouches of Seti I and Ramses V, ranging in time from 1318 to 1156 BC. Rothenberg called the painted pottery 'Egyptian' because of the 'Egyptian' connection (Rothenberg 1972 and 1988; Glueck 1935, 152). In 1968, during Parr's survey of northern Hejaz in Arabia, J. Dayton found similar painted pottery at Hereibe (ancient Dedan) and at Qurayyah (Midian) (Parr et al. 1970) and called it 'Midianite' while dating it to correspond to that found at the Hathor shrine in Timna (c. fourteenth to twelfth century BC). This hand- and wheelmade pottery was also found at various copper smelting sites at Timna of which three are particularly well dated, that is smelting sites 2 and 3, and a group of undisturbed smelting sites on top of a plateau, Slaves Hill, which is difficult of access and is considered to have been occupied by mining Midianites. Our survey there revealed pottery fragments, some of which were painted `Midianite' while others were of a type of ceramic which is slipped in buff, red, green and blue tints. It is the latter which has been classified as 'Egyptian faience-like' ware (Rothenberg 1972 and 1988) and 'Midianite' by others (Parr et al. 1970). The chronology of these wares at Timna possibly covers the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age I periods (1318-1156 BC), based on datable Egyptian cartouches, scarabs and other finds." (Edomite, Negev, Midianite Pottery: Neutron Activation Analysis, Gunneweg, 1991 AD)
9. "The appearance of pottery of clearly non-local origin does not of course imply automatically the appearance of foreign people and it is quite possible that it was commercially imported. However, this issue should be considered within the context of all objects found in the temple, including its architecture and furnishings and, not least, the overall picture of the Timna sites. It would be unreasonable to doubt that Midianites actually worked and worshipped in Timna. There was no Midianite pottery in the earliest, initial phase of the temple and it seems plausible to assume that at the very beginning of Egyptian copper mining in Timna the Midianites were not yet working there, while the Amalekites from the Negev were already present. Perhaps this fact explains the differences between Sites 3o and 34, located opposite the temple in Nahal Nehushtan and defended by a strong wall, and the other sites of Timna which had no defensive wall. Whereas at Site 30 no Midianite ware was found (but there was an early stage of metallurgy, known to us from fifteenth to fourteenth century Egyptian smelters of Bir Nasib in Sinai) and very little Midianite pottery was located at Site 34, a large quantity of Midianite ware was found at the unwalled sites of Timna and also in the excavation of Site 2 where it appears from the very beginning and in all levels of the smelting camp. We may perhaps see here a repetition of the story of the Egyptian mines in Sinai where, after obvious conditions of enmity at the beginning of mining in the Wadi Maghara with defensive walls put up around the miners' camps and even a stronghold in the centre of the valley, the Egyptians, after initial setbacks, reached a peaceful working agreement with the local Semitic tribes, and defensive measures were no longer needed. In Timna, according to the evidence in the temple, the Midianites and the Amalekites, the indigenous inhabitants of the area, seem to have become some kind of 'partners' not only at work but also iii the worship of Hathor." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
10. "All over Site 2, as at most sites in the Timna Valley, sherds of three distinct kinds were collected: 1. 'Normal' ordinary wheel-made pottery, plain but well-fired, consisting mainly of many-handled storage jars, carinated bowls, jugs and juglets. 2. Coarse, hand-made, deep as well as shallow bowls used for cooking and domestic purposes, akin to that previously found in the Central Negev Mountains, and named 'Negev-type ware'. Many of the flat bottoms of these bowls show mat-impressions. 3. Unique, pink-buff ware, decorated with bichrome geometrical designs (red-brown and black), made of well-levigated, evenly fired clay. Most of these sherds found at Site 2 belonged to large deep and shallow little bowls, with flat bottoms and straight sides, and having an occasional knob-handle projecting from the rim. There were also fragments of deep cups, decorated with bichrome `Union-Jacks' and similar geometrical decorations, and shallow bowls with a floral design in the centre. No pottery of this kind has ever been found in Palestine but it has been picked up on the surface of sites in Jordan, and had been named 'Edomite pottery'. Since there is evidence for a Midianite origin of this ware, it should now be called 'Midianite' pottery." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
11. The extraordinary variety and workmanship of the Midianite vessels found in the temple, as compared with the Midianite pottery from the other sites of Timna, is a clear indication that these sophisticated vessels were brought as votive gifts for the Hathor Temple. In the light of the finds of Midianite pottery with identical decorations on identical ware in north-western Arabia, it seems certain that the Midianite pottery was brought to the Timna temple all the way from there, perhaps from the large Midianite town at Qurayyah, about 160 km. south of Aqaba. (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
12. On the other hand, recent surveys of Midian have produced surprising discoveries of a developed civilization in precisely the period in question, the end of the Late Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age, the 13th to 12th centuries. At Qurayyah archaeologists discovered a major fortified citadel, a walled village and extensive irrigation works (see photo of citadel at Qurayyah). Characteristic pottery called Midianite ware—usually called Hejaz ware in Saudi journals—radiates out from the northern Hejaz into southern Transjordan and sites near Eilat, notably Timna. Extraordinarily enough, it is absent from the Sinai. In short we have a blank Sinai and a thriving culture in Midian in this era. (Israelite Origins, An Interview with Frank Moore Cross, Bible Review, Aug 1992)
13. The fact that nothing like the metal offerings attributed to the Midianites was ever found in the Hathor Temple at Serabit el-Khadem, where similarly no Midianite pottery exists, seems a strong argument for the proposed ethnic identification. Yet, it must be said that a certain degree of reliance is placed on Biblical traditions relating to the Kenites-Midianites as the ancient metalworkers of the southernmost Arabah and in the area of the Red Sea. (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
14. Other new aspects of chronology and of historical interpretation are provided by the absolute dating at Timna of the decorated Midianite pottery. This pottery had previously been found by the expedition in the smelting camps of the western Arabah and on the island of Jezirat Fara'un in the Red Sea. Prior to this some sherds of this ware had been found by N. Glueck during his survey of the eastern Arabah and Edom and called 'Edomite' ware. In 1935 Glueck dated this pottery correctly to the thirteenth to twelfth centuries se. Yet, until it appeared in stratified and absolutely dated contexts in the Timna excavations, it could not be dated with any certainty and its origin also remained a matter of conjecture. Today the Timna types of Midianite ware are dated to the fourteenth to twelfth centuries c and there is good archaeological evidence for its origin in north-west Arabia, in the area of Midian. Indeed, the survey report of Midian published in 1970 describes the site of a kiln at Qurayyah where this decorated pottery was actually produced and a Late Bronze Age date for at least some of it was correctly suggested by Peter Parr. At Qurayyah a whole sequence of decorated ware was found; some of it seems earlier than the Timna ware, other pieces seem later, but there can be no doubt that the Timna ware is fully represented at Qurayyah. Although the results of comparative analyses of the Qurayyah and Timna pottery are still awaited, it may confidently be said that the Timna pottery originates from Midian and provides the first certain absolute dates for the ancient town sites of Midian, where this pottery is to be found. (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
15. The appearance of pottery of clearly non-local origin does not of course imply automatically the appearance of foreign people and it is quite possible that it was commercially imported. However, this issue should be considered within the context of all objects found in the temple, including its architecture and furnishings and, not least, the overall picture of the Timna sites. It would be unreasonable to doubt that Midianites actually worked and worshipped in Timna. There was no Midianite pottery in the earliest, initial phase of the temple and it seems plausible to assume that at the very beginning of Egyptian copper mining in Timna the Midianites were not yet working there, while the Amalekites from the Negev were already present. Perhaps this fact explains the differences between Sites 3o and 34, located opposite the temple in Nahal Nehushtan and defended by a strong wall, and the other sites of Timna which had no defensive wall. Whereas at Site 3o no Midianite ware was found (but there was an early stage of metallurgy, known to us from fifteenth to fourteenth century Egyptian smelters of Bir Nasib in Sinai) and very little Midianite pottery was located at Site 34, a large quantity of Midianite ware was found at the unwalled sites of Timna and also in the excavation of Site 2 where it appears from the very beginning and in all levels of the smelting camp. We may perhaps see here a repetition of the story of the Egyptian mines in Sinai where, after obvious conditions of enmity at the beginning of mining in the Wadi Maghara with defensive walls put up around the miners' camps and even a stronghold in the centre of the valley, the Egyptians, after initial setbacks, reached a peaceful working agreement with the local Semitic tribes, and defensive measures were no longer needed. In Timna, according to the evidence in the temple, the Midianites and the Amalekites, the indigenous inhabitants of the area, seem to have become some kind of 'partners' not only at work but also iii the worship of Hathor. (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)
16. "The problem of the Kenites: We have no way of telling from the archaeological evidence found at Timna whether or not the Kenites, traditionally the ancient metal-workers of the Arabah, played an active role in the Timna copper works, but it seems likely. According to 1 Samuel 15:5-6 the Kenites were at times connected with the Amalekite Negev settlements and such a connection is also strongly suggested by the Negev ware at Timna. On the other hand, the Kenites are also identified as a clan or tribe of the Midianites and it may be the Kenites-Midianites of this Biblical tradition who made their appearance in Timna. It has already been suggested in the past that Jethro, the Kenite-Midianite father-in-law of Moses, had taught Moses to fashion the Nehushtan, the magic copper serpent, and the Midianite gilded copper snake in the shrine of the Timna Temple in its last, Midianite phase, seems to furnish a factual background for this tradition." (Timna, Beno Rothenberg, 1969 AD)

1. Qudeirat is where most people wrongly believe Kadesh Barnea is located. It is virtually on every Bible map produced for the last 75 years.
2. They have found Midianite pottery at Qudeirat:
   The upper fortress, as mentioned above, was extremely rich in ceramic remains. ... There were also two characteristically delicate Cypro-Phoenician juglets and fragments of painted "Edomite" ware. [Midianite Pottery] Crude handmade pottery also was found at this level, including the incense-burner, alluded to above, several complete oil-lamps, and numerous cooking-pot sherds. (Excavations At Kadesh-Barnea: 1976-1978, Ein el-Qudeirat, Rudolph Cohen, 1981 AD)

1. Midianite pottery was found at Elat (Tell el-Kheleifeh)
2. "Like the fortresses and fortified settlements of the Negev, the pottery of Tell el-Kheleifeh falls into two categories of manufacturing technique: the crude, handmade "Negevite" wares and several horizons of wheelmade pottery. Included among the wheelmade corpus are examples that belong to the so-called "Midianite," "Edomite," and "Assyrian" horizons. The former is represented by six sherds whose stratigraphic context is uncertain at best. Given the uncertainty of field provenance and the chronology of "Midianite" pottery, which can antedate the Tell el-Kheleifeh assemblage by some four centuries (Rothenberg and Glass 1981: 85-114; 1983: 100-1), these few sherds surely do not document an occupational horizon." (Excavations at Tell el-Kheleifeh: A Reappraisal, Gary D. Pratico, 1985 AD)

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