1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910457957003321

Autore

Way Kenneth C

Titolo

Donkeys in the Biblical World : Ceremony and Symbol / / Kenneth C. Way

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Winona Lake, Indiana : , : Eisenbrauns, , 2011

©2011

ISBN

1-57506-643-2

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (290 p.)

Collana

History, archaeology, and culture of the Levant ; ; 2

Disciplina

299/.2

Soggetti

Ezels

Oude Testament

11.42 history of Old Testament times

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Gebaseerd op proefschrift Hebrew Union College, 2006.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Nota di contenuto

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Foreword -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Chapter 1 Introduction -- Chapter 2 The Donkey in Ancient Near Eastern Texts -- Chapter 3 The Donkey in Near Eastern Archaeology -- Chapter 4 The Donkey in Biblical Literature -- Chapter 5 Synthesis -- Appendix: Equid Terminology -- Bibliography -- Indexes

Sommario/riassunto

In this volume, Kenneth Way explores the role of donkeys in the symbolism and ceremonies of the biblical world. His study stands alone in providing a comprehensive examination of donkeys in ancient Near Eastern texts, the archaeological record, and the Hebrew Bible. Way demonstrates that donkeys held a distinct status in the beliefs and rituals of the ancient Near East and especially Canaan-Israel.The focus on ceremony and symbol encompasses social and religious thoughts and practices that are reflected in ancient texts and material culture relating to the donkey. Ceremonial considerations include matters of sacrifice, treaty ratification, consumption, death, burial, “scapegoat” rituals, and foundation deposits; symbolic considerations include matters of characterization, association, function, behavior, and iconographic depiction. However, the distinction between ceremony



and symbol is not strict. In many cases, these two categories are symbiotic. The need for this study on donkeys is very apparent in the disciplines that study the biblical world. There is not a single monograph or article that treats this subject comprehensively. Philologists have discussed the meaning of the Amorite phrase “to kill a jackass,” and archaeologists have discussed the phenomenon of equid burials. But until now, neither philologists nor archaeologists have attempted to pull together all the ceremonial and symbolic data on donkeys from burials, ancient Near Eastern texts, and the Hebrew Bible. Way’s study fills this void.