Sarcophagus of Ahiram, Phoenician King of Byblos
1 Kings 5:32
Solomon’s masons, Hiram’s masons, and the men of Gebal (Byblos) shaped them. Thus, the timber and the stones for building the house were made ready.
In this picture archived by the United States Library of Congress is a limestone sarcophagus from the Beirut Museum for Ahiram, King of Byblos, a site on the Lebanese coast. A Phoenician inscription on the cover identifies the receptacle as a “Sarcophagus made by Ittobaal, son of Ahiram, king of Byblos, for Ahiram his father as a dwelling place for all eternity.” Ahiram likely ruled in the tenth century BCE, a contemporary of King Solomon.
Sarcophagus of Ahiram
Museum of Beirut
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division National
Overview
Inscription from Sarcophagus
“Sarcophagus made by Ittobaal, son of Ahiram, king of Byblos, for Ahiram his father as a dwelling place for all eternity.”
In the Bible
Solomon’s masons, Hiram’s masons, and the men of Gebal (Byblos) shaped them. Thus, the timber and the stones for building the house were made ready.
וַֽיִּפְסְל֞וּ בֹּנֵ֧י שְׁלֹמֹ֛ה וּבֹנֵ֥י חִיר֖וֹם וְהַגִּבְלִ֑ים (בִּיבְּלוֹס) וַיָּכִ֛ינוּ הָעֵצִ֥ים וְהָאֲבָנִ֖ים לִבְנ֥וֹת הַבָּֽיִת.
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