Ivory-inlay Piece in the Shape of a Palm Tree
Iron Age IIA–IIB, 9th–8th Century BCE
Image

Engage with this Source
Related Guide
Visual Culture and Performing Arts in Ancient Israel
Evidence for the material culture of ancient Israel comes mostly from artifacts and archaeology and attests to the influence of the great empires that surrounded Israel.
Related Guide
Provenance and Dating of Artifacts from the Biblical Period
Artifacts help historians reconstruct the past, using layers of excavation to establish the chronology of the sites they excavate.
Related Guide
Carvings from Ancient Israel
Ornate carvings in bone and ivory were used for decoration in both special and everyday objects in ancient Israel.
You may also like

Ivory-inlay Piece with Repeating Palmettes
This piece from Samaria shows lotus shoots sprouting from the base of each palmette, with alternating open and closed blossoms. The repetition of the images is characteristic of the art of this period…

Ivory-inlay Piece with Lotus Chain
The lotus image on this ivory from Samaria was originally an Egyptian symbol of the life-giving power of the god Ra—experienced through the fragrance of the flower—and of the afterlife.

Ivory-inlay or Appliqué Piece Depicting a Rosette
Rosettes like the one on this piece from Samaria were common floral decorative motifs in ancient Near Eastern art.

Crouching Ivory Lion Figurines
In the ancient Near East, images of paired lions served as guardians at building entrances and on furniture, where these two figurines from Samaria were presumably placed. According to 1 Kings 10:19…

Ivory-openwork Panel with a Battle between a Wild Bull and a Lion
The battle between a wild bull and a lion, which are among the most powerful animals, is a common theme in ancient Near Eastern art. In this panel from Samaria, the lion’s claws are embedded in the…

Ivory-openwork Panel with a Sphinx Striding through Lotus Flowers
Sphinxes are among the most ubiquitous images on Iron Age Levantine ivories. The sphinx combines the features of several animals; it has the head of a human, the wings of an eagle, and the body of a…