ANCIENT DIALOGUES
As a calligrapher I have a passion for the beauty of the Hebrew letter which led me to research its source. These same letters eventually would take on a new style and become origins of modern Hebrew.
In the 9th century BCE, ancient Semitic inscriptions were engraved in stone stele to commemorate a King’s military victories. The inscriptions carved into the stele of Tel Dan and Mesha extol the military actions of the “King of Israel”, in relation to his God and his people. They correspond to events from the Bible’s Book of Kings 2.
As a calligrapher I have a passion for the beauty of the Hebrew letter which led me to research its source. These same letters eventually would take on a new style and become origins of modern Hebrew.
In the 9th century BCE, ancient Semitic inscriptions were engraved in stone stele to commemorate a King’s military victories. The inscriptions carved into the stele of Tel Dan and Mesha extol the military actions of the “King of Israel”, in relation to his God and his people. They correspond to events from the Bible’s Book of Kings 2.
Tel Dan stele
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Mesha stele
I made hand rubbings of these original stone fragments onto a page and then added brushstrokes of paint. I sought to create a dialogue between past and present, and to express my sense of powerlessness at the unrelenting cycle of violence in our land. I wish to acknowledge and thank Dr. Avraham Biran z”l of the HUC School for Biblical Archaeology for granting access and permission to “rub” the original stone fragments before they were transferred to the Israel Museum. 
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