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Robin Ngo 03/13/2015

This Bible History Daily feature was originally published in October 2014. It has been updated.Ed.
To accuse someone of being a philistine today implies that that person is crass, unintellectual and lacking in culture.
Where did this term come from? Who were the Philistines? In the Bible, the Philistines were the enemies of the Israelites.
The Biblical conflict is well-attested, from Samsons slaying of a thousand Philistines (Judges 15) to Davids battle with
the Philistine giant Goliath (1 Samuel 17 ) to King Sauls impalement on the walls of Beth Shean at the hands of the
Philistines (1 Samuel 31). Through archaeology, however, we have learned that the Philistines were just one tribe of Sea
Peoples who invaded Canaan in the 12th century B.C.E. and settled along the coast. The Bible refers to all of these tribes
collectively as the Philistines.
The Philistines established the famous PentapolisGaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gath and Ekronin the southern coastal
plain. Archaeological excavations at each of these sites, save for Gaza (due to the modern buildings constructed atop its
tell), reveal a rich material culture with origins in the Aegean. The Philistines were far from lacking in culture as the
modern derogatory term suggests.
In The Other Philistines in the November/December 2014 issue of BAR, Ephraim Stern sheds light on the
Philistines in the Bible who lived in the northern region of Canaan. These settlers may be called the northern Sea
Peoples to differentiate them from the Sea Peoples who lived in the south (the Philistines).

Who were the Philistines? In the

Bible, the Philistines and the
Israelites were enemies.

As the point where three of the worlds major religions converge, Israels history is one of the richest and most
complex in the world. Sift through the archaeology and history of this ancient land in the free eBook Israel: An Archaeological Journey, and
get a view of these significant Biblical sites through an archaeologists lens.
Capitalizing on the power vacuum left by the Egyptians and Hittites, the Sea Peoples launched a series of
attacks in the Levant in the second half of the 13th century B.C.E. Pioneering archaeologist Trude
Dothan describes this struggle in What We Know About the Philistines:
In wave after wave of land and sea assaults [the Sea Peoples] attacked Syria, Palestine, and even
Egypt itself. In the last and mightiest wave, the Sea Peoples, including the Philistines, stormed south
from Canaan in a land and sea assault on the Egyptian Delta. According to Egyptian sources,
including the hieroglyphic account at Medinet Habu, Ramesses III (c. 11981166 B.C.) soundly
defeated them in the eighth year of his reign. He then permitted them to settle on the southern
coastal plain of Palestine. There they developed into an independent political power and a threat
both to the disunited Canaanite city-states and to the newly settled Israelites.
Reliefs at the Temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu
We know about the different tribes of Sea Peoples not from the Bible but from Egyptian sourcesand
the Egyptians in battle with three tribes of Sea
from archaeology. The famous sculpted reliefs at the Temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu depict the depict
Peoples: the Danunu, the Sikils and the Philistines.
Egyptians in battle with three tribes of Sea Peoples: the Danunu, the Sikils and the Philistines (pictured
Photo: Leslie Anne Warden.
above). In addition, the 11th-century B.C.E. Story of Wenamun papyrus describes an Egyptian priests
journey to the Canaan/Phoenician coast to purchase Lebanese cedar trees and includes a reference to the Sikil settlement at Dor.

For more on the Philistines, check out The Philistines BAS Library Special Collection, featuring articles by such experts as Trude Dothan, Seymour
Gitin and Lawrence E. Stager.

Archaeological investigations north of the Philistine Pentapolis have uncovered five significant sites
inhabited by the northern Sea PeoplesAphek, Tell Qasile, Tell Gerisa, Jaffa and Dorof which Dor is the
largest.
Excavations at the northern Sea Peoples site of Dor, which author Ephraim Stern directed for two
decades, reveal that the Sikil city boasted a particularly strong defense wall and engaged in metallurgical

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activities. Cult objects discovered at Dor reflect Aegean and Cypriot origins and are also attested in the
Philistine material record.

This cow scapula, or shoulder blade, with incised

grooves from Dor has also been found at a number
of other Sea Peoples sites and probably originated
in Cyprus. Its purpose is unknown. Photo: Courtesy
Ephraim Stern.

There are, however, some differences in the material culture of the northern and southern Sea Peoples.
This monochrome strainer-spout jug from Dor (pictured below left) helped Stern distinguish between the
pottery of the southern Philistines and the northern Sea Peoples. Although the jug is decorated with motifs
similar to Philistine bichrome pottery, it is painted in only one colorred. Monochrome pottery, Stern concluded, differentiates northern from
southern Sea Peoples vessels.

Northern Sea Peoples vessels, such as this one from

Dor, are monochromethey are painted in just red.
Photo: Courtesy Ephraim Stern. Philistine vessels are
bichromethey are decorated with red and black
paint.

Discover more differences in the material culture of the northern Sea Peoples and the southern Philistines by reading the full article The Other
Philistines by Ephraim Stern in the November/December 2014 issue of BAR.

BAS Library Members: Read The Other Philistines by Ephraim Stern as it appeared in the November/December 2014 issue of Biblical
Archaeology Review.
Not a BAS Library member yet? Join the BAS Library today.

This Bible History Daily feature was originally published on October 13, 2014.

Adornment in the Southern Levant

The Philistine Marketplace at Ashkelon
Severed Hands: Trophies of War in New Kingdom Egypt

Permalink: http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/the-philistines-to-the-north/

0 57 8

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Posted in Ancient Israel.

Tagged with archaeological, archaeological excavation, archaeologist, archaeology, archaeology review, ashkelon, bas library, beth shean, bib-arch.org, bible, bible
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stern, hittite, hittites, israelites, lawrence e. stager, lebanese cedar, philistines, ramesses, samuel, seymour gitin, the philistines, trude dothan, who were the
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1. Paul says
It is interesting how only one tribe of Sea Peoples is mentioned in the bible; the Phillistines. If not for Egypts dry climate that preserves the papyrus
writings that mention other tribes like the Sikil (Sicily) who established themselves as a maritime power at the city of Dor (which the author of this
magazine article excavated).
Apart from its significance in establishing the Sikil presence at Dor, The Tale of Wen-Amon is the single most important source for the history of
Palestine in the 11th century B.C.E., otherwise considered a Dark Age because of its lack of textual evidence (The Many Masters of Dor; Part 1,
When Canaanites Became Phoenician Sailors, by Ephraim Stern, BAR, Jan./Feb. 1993, p.26).
Though the Sea Peoples who settled in Canaan borrowed some local cultural traditions along with those they brought from the Aegean world, the last
holdouts of traditional Canaanite culture were reduced to the portion of coastline along what is modern Lebanon. So while the Phillistines were more
advanced than the Israelites in metallurgy (1 Samuel 13:19-22), they lacked the artistic refinery of the Phoenicians with whom David and Solomon had
trade relations (1 Kings 5:15) and possibly a military alliance (2 Chronicles 1:16-17) that eventually put the squeeze on the Sea Peoples monopoly of
northern Canaan.
Perhaps the story of the ark of the covenant being captured by the Phillistines alludes to the cultural superiority of the Israelites, who borrowed the
pattern of the cherubim that adorn the ark from the Phoenicians. It has been suggested that the affliction of the Phillistines was not hemorrhoids but
impotence. as has been hinted at when they were required to atone for their theft by offering golden ophalim (1 Samuel 5:17) that represent the
phallus statues found in Gaza of which some appear to show that the Phillistines did practice circumcision, contrary to the popular term
uncircumcised Phillistine (1 Samuel 17:26) that was slung at Goliath. It has also been noted that Sampson acquired the attributes of the Greek hero
Heracles when he carried the gates of Gaza and set them down facing Hebron (Judges 16:3), like the Pillars of Heracles at the Strait of Gibraltar. To
me this signifies that it is cultural stagnation on the part of the Phillistines (likely orchestrated by the Phillistine lords known as seren from which we
derive the word tyrant) that they have to all act in concert just to frustrate Sampsons love life, as if the contest between Popeye and Brutus wasnt
enough (Judges 14:20).
.
October 1 1 , 201 4, 9:43 pm

2. Paul says
That is Popeye and Bluto, not Brutus (which makes me seem brutish and uncultured for not getting that right). I dont think its farfetched to use
Popeye the Sailor to denote the status of Sampson as hailing from a seafaring culture or at least his tribe of Dan as being identified with the Sea
Peoples since the name Dan is akin to the Denyen mentioned in Egyptian sources. Sampson was in his element when he tried to assimilate with the
Phillistines by marrying a woman from Timnah within the territory of Dan (Joshua 19:46) before the Danites migrated north. So it was in Sampsons
time when the Phillistines controlled Joppa and the Sikil controlled Dor and if you wanted to be a success, the lifestyle of the Sea Peoples was likely
your ticket, as was sung by Deborah; and Dan why did he linger by the ships? (Judges 5:17). Joppa was the early Israelites link to the world and
it was here that the apostle Peter received a vision to spread the gospel to the gentiles (Acts 10:8-23).
There is a record preserved on papyrus of an Egyptian military officers account of taking control of Joppa during the reign of Thuthmose III. The people
of Joppa were deceived into thinking the 200 baskets given them was tribute while the soldiers hid inside. A similar tactic was used in the Arabian
tale, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. In the animation, Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Babas Forty Thieves, Popeye is on guard duty when he hears
an alert about a thief and after flying around the globe in his boat/plane, he crashes in the desert. Popeye, Olive Oil and Wimpy eventually make it to
a city where they find a cafe where Popeye (under his breath) orders a desert with no sand. Then the thieves arrive on horseback and the leader of
the thieves, Abu Hassan, is played by Bluto who sings about what a terrible guy he is and who captures Olive Oil and makes her do the laundry.
What does this have to do the Sea Peoples? Nothing.
October 1 2, 201 4, 1 0:1 3 pm

3. Kurt says
The island of Crete (usually held to be identical with Caphtor), though not necessarily the original home of the Philistines, was the place from which
they migrated to the coast of Canaan. (Jer 47:4; Am 9:7; Just when this migration began is uncertain. However, as early as the time of Abraham and
his son Isaac, Philistines resided at Gerar in southern Canaan. They had a king, Abimelech, and an army under the command of a certain Phicol.
Ge 20:1, 2; 21:32-34; 26:1-18;
Some object to the Genesis references to Philistine residence in Canaan, arguing that the Philistines did not settle there until the 12th century
B.C.E. But this objection does not rest on a solid basis. The New Bible Dictionary edited by J. Douglas (1985, p. 933) observes: Since the
Philistines are not named in extra-biblical inscriptions until the 12th century BC, and the archaeological remains associated with them do not appear
before this time, many commentators reject references to them in the patriarchal period as anachronistic. However, in showing why such a position
is not sound, mention is made of the evidence of a major expansion of Aegean trade reaching back to about the 20th century B.C.E. It is pointed out
that a particular groups not being prominent enough to be mentioned in the inscriptions of other nations does not prove that the group did not exist.
The conclusion reached in that New Bible Dictionary is: There is no reason why small groups of Philistines could not have been among the early
Aegean traders, not prominent enough to be noticed by the larger states.
http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200274451
October 1 3, 201 4, 1 2:1 1 pm

4. Paul says
Kurt makes a good point about the alleged Phillistine presence at Gerar long before the arrival of the Sea Peoples in 1200 B.C.E., and it seems that
the term Phillistines was applied to other Sea Peoples who disappeared from the historical record, like the Minoans who were also from the island of
Crete. During the period of Hyksos domination the Minoans established relations with the Hyksos rulers in Egypt at Tanis, the biblical Zoan. Recently
scholars have focused on an obscure reference to what may have been a tsunami on a stela of the Pharaoh who expelled the Hyksos from Egypt,
Ahmose I. It has been suggested that this was the turning point that ended Hyksos domination in Egypt since their seaports were destroyed.
In Psalm 78:12-13 there is a connection between the field of Zoan and the parting of the sea though it doesnt say which sea. Its possible that in
verse 43 the miracles in the field of Zoan is the act of God that would change the course of history. This was thought to have taken place around
1600 B.C.E., a thousand years before the culture of horseback-riding was introduced from the steppes of Eurasia, so that the references to horse and
rider in the sea in Exodus 15:1,21 is likely an eye witness account of the remnants of the Hyksos forces in the flood waters.
http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/news//reinterpreting-the-tempest-stela/
October 1 3, 201 4, 1 0:08 pm

5. jose says

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WJs is new erudits pubblish the new history ahahahahahaha

October 1 5 , 201 4, 1 2:01 pm

6. Carl says
After reading the current article in BAR, and looking over the color drawing of the sculpted reliefs. I wonder about the ethnic origins of these people.
The reliefs are showing Egyptians fighting from their boats with these sea peoples. One group has Broom like head dresses, and are caucasian
looking. Then there are darker skinned Africans wearing helmets with bull horns, but also some caucasian prisoners with the same helmets in an
Egyptian boat. Do these helmets represent a connection to Bull worship? A connection to Santorini? Where did this mixed ethnic group come from,
and why did they coalesce together? There names may give something away Dananu. Could they be worshipers of goddess Dianna?
October 23, 201 4, 4:5 5 pm

1. Paul Revere News Sunday Edition: October 12th, 2014 | paulreverenews.com linked to this post on October 12, 2014
[] The Philistines to the North Bible History Daily []
2. The Northern Philistines | Dr. Claude Mariottini Professor of Old Testament linked to this post on October 13, 2014
[] an article titled, The Philistines to the North, published in Bible History Daily, Robin Ngo gives an overview of these Northern Philistines.
Below is an excerpt taken from Ngos []
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