Albright, W. F. “The Phoenician Inscriptions of the Tenth Century B. C. from Byblus.” Journal of the American Oriental Society 67, no. 3 (1947): 153–60. https://doi.org/10.2307/596081.
KAI 004
Gibson 3:06
Metadata
- Collection
- In Situ at Find-Spot
- Keywords
-
- Inscription | Royal
- Inscription | Temple
- Language
- Phoenician / Punic
- Script
- Phoenician
- Find Type
- Excavation
- Material
- Stone
- Updated by
- James D. Moore, 2026-06-28
- Date (Paleographic)
- Gregorian -950 to -920
General Notes
The Yeḥimilk inscription was published by Dunand in a 1930 article. Martin (1961, 66-67) shows that this inscription was incised on the stone over a faded pseudohieroglyphic inscription whose traces and ruling lines are still subtly visible. It occurred after the stone broke away from a larger piece, with evidence from the right margin moving leftward at the worn bottom right corner to accommodate the shape. Moscati (1968, 11) and Gibson (1982, 17) both suggest that Yeḥimilk has founded a new dynasty, as he does not provide his lineage and explicitly affirms his own rightful kingship. The Phoenician text comprises 7 lines. This is one of five royal inscriptions from an old period at Byblos, around the tenth century B.C.E. See the notes to 11441 for further information. The Yeḥimilk inscription now rests in the museum of the Byblos Castle in Lebanon.
Avishur, Yitsḥaḳ. Stylistic Studies of Word-Pairs in Biblical and Ancient Semitic Literatures. Alter Orient Und Altes Testament 210. Kevelaer: Butzon & Bercker, 1984.
Bange, Ludger A. A Study of the Use of Vowel-Letters in Alphabetic Consonantal Writing. München: Verl. UNI-Druck, 1971.
Cross, F. M., and D. N. Freedman. Early Hebrew Orthography: A Study of the Epigraphic Evidence. American Oriental Series 36. New Haven, CT: American Oriental Society, 1952.
Donner, Herbert, and Wolfgang Röllig, eds. Kanaanäische und aramäische Inschriften. 5., erw. Und überarbeitete Aufl. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1971.
Dunand, Maurice. “Nouvelle Inscription Phénicienne Archaique.” Revue Biblique (1892-1940) 39, no. 3 (1930): 321–31. https://www.jstor.org/stable/44102431.
Dunand, Maurice. Fouilles de Byblos: texte. 1926-1932. Vol. 1. Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner, 1939.
Magnanini, Pietro. Le iscrizioni fenicie dell’Oriente: Testi, traduzioni, glossari. Rome: Centro di Studi Semitici, Istituto di Studi del Vicino Oriente, 1973.
Martin, M. “A Preliminary Report after Re-Examination of the Byblian Inscriptions.” Orientalia 30, no. 1 (1961): 46–78. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43073578.
Moscati, Sabatino. The World of the Phoenicians. Translated by Alastair Hamilton. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1968. http://archive.org/details/worldofphonician0000unse.
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Textual Notes
1 - זבני𐤟 : Z- is a proclitic relative pronoun found only in archaic Byblian royal inscriptions (Krahmalkov 2000, 166). 2 - הות : HWT is an oblique form of the 3ms pronoun. It has a parallel in Ugaritic. Krahmalkov observes that it may serve to emphasize the referent, though it does not appear at all in Tyro-Sidonian Phoenician(2000, 157). Gibson notes also how only HWˀ appears in Biblical Hebrew, but the Dead Sea Scrolls contain a longer HWˀH form (1982, 19). 2 - הבתמ: Gibson points this out as the earliest attestation for the definite article in Phoenician, used here when the noun is followed by a demonstrative. It does not also attach to the demonstrative, or appear on an adjective (KDŠM) with a definite noun in line 7 of this inscription. It is absent from ˀAḥiram 11441, the earliest of the Byblian royal inscriptions (1982, 19). 3 - ובעל : The T is missing for "Baˁalt of Byblos." Following Gibson here, that this is a mistake on the part of the mason and the letter was accidentally omitted. There is plenty of space at the end of the line for the T, which is clearly not written, but this brings it into line with deity name found in the royal inscriptions of ˀAbibaˁal (11445), ˀElibaˁal (11446), and Šipiṭbaˁal (11447) (1982, 18-19). 7 - קדשמ𐤟 הא: There seems to be just enough space for this restoration. I see the DŠM less confidently than Gibson, who marks them as uncertain and partially reconstructed. The Q is clear and traces of the D may be visible. The rest of the word is reconstructed from its appearance earlier in the inscription, and Gibson notes that Hˀ is reconstructed on the basis of a similar formula in the later Yeḥawmilk inscription (11450) from Byblos in line 9 (1982, 18-19).
Text and Translation
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John C.L. Gibson Last updated 26 April, 2026 by James D. Moore
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John C.L. Gibson Last updated 26 April, 2026 by James D. Moore
Temple which Yehimilk king of Byblos (re-) built;
he it was who restored all the ruins of these
temples. May Baalshamem and the Mistress of
Byblos and the assembly of the holy gods of
Byblos prolong the days and years of Yehimilk
over Byblos! For [he is] the legitimate and rightful
king in the sight of the holy gods of Byblos.
Moore, James D., Cody Beasley. 'KAI 004.' DEAPS. 04 Feb, 2026. https://deaps.osu.edu/text_objects/11444. Accessed: 01 Jul, 2026.