Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Harold P. Scanlin" <scanlin AT compuserve.com>]

> Subject: Re: Biblio. ref.: Nash Papyrus
> At 17-04-2001 18:19 Ian Hutchesson <mc2499 AT mclink.it> wrote:
> 
> >>> I was wondering if anyone had any bibliographical references to the
> >>> current understandings of the dating for the Nash Papyrus. I found
> >>> a few mentions of from 100 BCE to 70 CE, but I would prefer to have
> >>> a nice citable source!

For more recent brief references to the Nash papyrus see:

Ada Yardeni's comments re dating in her, _The book of Hebrew script:
History, palaeography, script styles, calligraphy and design_  (Jerusalem:
Carta, 1997) [English edition]:  Under 4. A SEMI-CURSIVE MIXED HASMONEAN
SCRIPT, she says, "The Nash papyrus represents an early stage in the
evolution of the Jewish cursive script.  On palaeographic grounds it may be
dated to approximately the middle of the 2nd century BCE." She then
compares Nash to a dated Idumean marriage contract (176 BCE), and
concludes, "There is a similarity between many letter forms in [the Idumean
ostracon] and letters in the Nash papyrus, confirming the dating of the
latter." page 172

Colette Sirat, _Les papyrus en caracteres Hebraiques trouves en Egypte
(Paris: CNRS, 1985).  She simply cites the general opinion of a 2nd century
BCE date (p. 26), but provides detailed information on the physical
characteristics of the papyrus, p. 26 and p. 47 (fig. 11).

Harold P. Scanlin
United Bible Societies
1865 Broadway
New York, NY  10023
scanlin AT compuserve.com