Wednesday, August 11, 2004
Tablets used for Cecil B. DeMille's 1923 production of The Ten Commandments.
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
Tablets seen in The Ten Commandments 1924
Friday, June 18, 2004
Backtracking:
Thursday, June 17, 2004
I wrote to Arthur H. Borman (director of the 1993 comedic film, And God Spoke) and asked about the lettering on the tablets in his film. He responded: “The truth is, the tablets don't have ancient Hebrew written on them. Our prop guys actually had quite a sense of humor and carved out backwards English letters on the Styrofoam prop tablets. There is never a close up of the tablets readable in the film, so no one ever noticed. If they did, however, they would have discovered that, if you really study each letter, one of the tablets spells out the sentence: HELP BEING HELD CAPTIVE IN TABLET MAKING FACTORY. Therefore, I don't think that would be much help for you.... But thanks for your question.
Monday, June 14, 2004
I read of a talk given on April 20, 2004 by writing systems expert (and author) Peter T. Daniels titled, "The Handwriting of the Lord: What did the Ten Commandments Look Like?" I asked him what he said. He told me that he come to the conclusion that “we haven't the slightest idea what the tablets looked like…One thing I can say for sure, if the Decalogue was written in Hebrew, it
didn't look like the script used in The Ten Commandments; if we date the Exodus ca. 1200, the script shown is from quite a few centuries later.”
Thursday, June 3, 2004
I asked Robert Reed about an illustration at: http://www.jaars.org/museum/alphabet/people/moses.htm, which the site states is from the book,The Alphabet Makers. I asked for the name of the artist and a better image. He provided the image and stated that he thought the artist was Katherine Voigtlander.
I found that the text wraps the way text in the ANE wrapped and, again like other artifacts from that area and period, is mostly "full-justified." The text appears to be taken from the passages beginning at Exodus 20:2-17 but, unlike most illustration of the tablets, carries the full text rather than some sort of truncated or abbreviated version. Because of this, however, not much of it fits on the visible tablet. In fact, there are only two commandments visible. This begs the question as to whether this was a conscious decision, and if so, upon what was such a decision based. The text of the Bible states that the words were written on both sides, and one interpretation has it that this means on a total of four sides, rather than merely the faces of both tablets. This would imply that either less would be written on each than is customarily shown, or one tablet was merely a copy of the other. The illustration suggests the former rather than the latter. In addition, there are a few letters missing or different, and I wondered if that was intentional.
The script itself appears to be most similar to Phoenician of the 7th through 9th Centuries BCE, rather than Proto-Canaanite or Proto-Sinaitic of earlier times more commonly associated with the various dates of the exodus from Egypt. I wonder, too if this was a conscious decision,
Monday, May 24, 2004
Micha Berger, on the Avodah Mailing list (volume 8, number 105, Monday February 4, 2002)
Mentioned that he felt that the luchot could have been ruby.
He noted to me: “The Mekhilta on 34:1 says that G-d commanded Moshe to quarry the stone for the luchos from a gem found under his tent. The question is how to translate the
word for the type of gem”
When I asked if it could have been “ruby colored” (red), he stated: The Mechilta uses the word ‘sanpirion’, thus the usual identification with sappire. However, the Hebrew for sappire is ‘sapir’, and that's the word used in the text to describe the first tablets. Ruby and sapphire are both corundum, so it's plausible to identify red corundum (ruby) with a word similar to sapphire. Some translate sapir as ‘blue marble’. It's a matter of identifying a biblical Hebrew word for a stone that has no further description.”
Thursday, June 17, 2004
I wrote to Arthur H. Borman (director of the 1993 comedic film, And God Spoke) and asked about the lettering on the tablets in his film. He responded: “The truth is, the tablets don't have ancient Hebrew written on them. Our prop guys actually had quite a sense of humor and carved out backwards English letters on the Styrofoam prop tablets. There is never a close up of the tablets readable in the film, so no one ever noticed. If they did, however, they would have discovered that, if you really study each letter, one of the tablets spells out the sentence: HELP BEING HELD CAPTIVE IN TABLET MAKING FACTORY. Therefore, I don't think that would be much help for you.... But thanks for your question.
Monday, June 14, 2004
I read of a talk given on April 20, 2004 by writing systems expert (and author) Peter T. Daniels titled, "The Handwriting of the Lord: What did the Ten Commandments Look Like?" I asked him what he said. He told me that he come to the conclusion that “we haven't the slightest idea what the tablets looked like…One thing I can say for sure, if the Decalogue was written in Hebrew, it
didn't look like the script used in The Ten Commandments; if we date the Exodus ca. 1200, the script shown is from quite a few centuries later.”
Thursday, June 3, 2004
I asked Robert Reed about an illustration at: http://www.jaars.org/museum/alphabet/people/moses.htm, which the site states is from the book,The Alphabet Makers. I asked for the name of the artist and a better image. He provided the image and stated that he thought the artist was Katherine Voigtlander.
I found that the text wraps the way text in the ANE wrapped and, again like other artifacts from that area and period, is mostly "full-justified." The text appears to be taken from the passages beginning at Exodus 20:2-17 but, unlike most illustration of the tablets, carries the full text rather than some sort of truncated or abbreviated version. Because of this, however, not much of it fits on the visible tablet. In fact, there are only two commandments visible. This begs the question as to whether this was a conscious decision, and if so, upon what was such a decision based. The text of the Bible states that the words were written on both sides, and one interpretation has it that this means on a total of four sides, rather than merely the faces of both tablets. This would imply that either less would be written on each than is customarily shown, or one tablet was merely a copy of the other. The illustration suggests the former rather than the latter. In addition, there are a few letters missing or different, and I wondered if that was intentional.
The script itself appears to be most similar to Phoenician of the 7th through 9th Centuries BCE, rather than Proto-Canaanite or Proto-Sinaitic of earlier times more commonly associated with the various dates of the exodus from Egypt. I wonder, too if this was a conscious decision,
Monday, May 24, 2004
Micha Berger, on the Avodah Mailing list (volume 8, number 105, Monday February 4, 2002)
Mentioned that he felt that the luchot could have been ruby.
He noted to me: “The Mekhilta on 34:1 says that G-d commanded Moshe to quarry the stone for the luchos from a gem found under his tent. The question is how to translate the
word for the type of gem”
When I asked if it could have been “ruby colored” (red), he stated: The Mechilta uses the word ‘sanpirion’, thus the usual identification with sappire. However, the Hebrew for sappire is ‘sapir’, and that's the word used in the text to describe the first tablets. Ruby and sapphire are both corundum, so it's plausible to identify red corundum (ruby) with a word similar to sapphire. Some translate sapir as ‘blue marble’. It's a matter of identifying a biblical Hebrew word for a stone that has no further description.”
Monday, May 10, 2004
I saw an image on the Web of a monument very much like the FOE monuments, but said to be much older:
http://www.evansville.net/user/boneyard/posey.htm
It described as follows:
"Posey County Courthouse 10 Commandments
This monument of the 10 Commandments has sat on the northwest corner of the Posey County, Indiana Courthouse for nearly a century."
The tablets on it seem to have roman numerals rather than Hebrew. Today, I wrote to boneyard@evansville.net to learn more.
http://www.evansville.net/user/boneyard/posey.htm
It described as follows:
"Posey County Courthouse 10 Commandments
This monument of the 10 Commandments has sat on the northwest corner of the Posey County, Indiana Courthouse for nearly a century."
The tablets on it seem to have roman numerals rather than Hebrew. Today, I wrote to boneyard@evansville.net to learn more.
Yesterday night I happened upon this comment made by Harry S Truman on November 16, 1952, on laying the cornerstone of Washington Hebrew Congregation's new temple in Washington, DC:
“On this cornerstone we see the two tablets of stone, with the Ten Commandments in their ancient Hebrew form, a replica of the tablets Moses brought down from Mount Sinai."
I sent an e-mail message to bfogg@whctemple.org and asked if the lettering referred to above is actually ancient Hebrew or the Hebrew found in a sefer Torah.
“On this cornerstone we see the two tablets of stone, with the Ten Commandments in their ancient Hebrew form, a replica of the tablets Moses brought down from Mount Sinai."
I sent an e-mail message to bfogg@whctemple.org and asked if the lettering referred to above is actually ancient Hebrew or the Hebrew found in a sefer Torah.
Yesterday, while awaiting an image from Main Line Reform Temple Beth Elohim in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, I happended to be shown as I saw a picture taken at a Bat Mitzvah there about seven years ago. In the background one can see the ark. It turns out the Hebrew of their Ten Commandments is the square Hebrew, rather than the more ancient paleo-Hebrew. Oh well...
Friday, April 30, 2004
Backtracking…
April 28, 2004
I happened upon the recent issue of Mental_Floss (Vol. 3, Issue 2) while visiting my local bookstore, and chuckled upon seeing the cover. Albert Einstein holding the tablets from the 1956 Cecil B. DeMille film (with same errors). I wrote to the editor.
April 27, 2004
In response to my request, George George Grena sent digitized photos of the Fraternal Order of Eagles 10 commandments monument in Redondo Beach California. It is clear that the paleo-Hebrew on these tablets includes the commandment omitted from the tablets in DeMille’s 1956 film.
I will try to find out if the first tablet, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, carries the exact same illustrations.
March 26, 2004
On the web page advertising the CD, iLumina, Moses holds the 1956 DeMille tablets (though dark letters on a lighter stone)—with the same errors, except that the stone on the left facing the viewer is flipped so that it is a mirror image. Messages to the company have not yet (as of 4/30) been answered.
April 28, 2004
I happened upon the recent issue of Mental_Floss (Vol. 3, Issue 2) while visiting my local bookstore, and chuckled upon seeing the cover. Albert Einstein holding the tablets from the 1956 Cecil B. DeMille film (with same errors). I wrote to the editor.
April 27, 2004
In response to my request, George George Grena sent digitized photos of the Fraternal Order of Eagles 10 commandments monument in Redondo Beach California. It is clear that the paleo-Hebrew on these tablets includes the commandment omitted from the tablets in DeMille’s 1956 film.
I will try to find out if the first tablet, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, carries the exact same illustrations.
March 26, 2004
On the web page advertising the CD, iLumina, Moses holds the 1956 DeMille tablets (though dark letters on a lighter stone)—with the same errors, except that the stone on the left facing the viewer is flipped so that it is a mirror image. Messages to the company have not yet (as of 4/30) been answered.
Friday, April 02, 2004
I wrote today to Gad B. Sarfatti of Bar Ilan University, in reaction to his chapter, “The Tablets of the Law as a Symbol of Judaism,” in The Ten Commandments in History and Tradition (English version).
His chapter on the tablets made reference to Ruth Mellinkoff’s 1974 article, “The Round-topped Tablets of the Law: Sacred Symbol and Emblem of Evil.” (I have had some correspondence with Ms. Mellinkoff on this subject.) He, like Mellinkoff, suggests that the medieval artists based their shape of the tablets on tabula rassa or Christian diptychs.
I mentioned to Sarfatti that there are those who firmly believe that the arched-topped tablets of the Decalogue are not "authentically Jewish," and that flat-topped tablets are a more accurate representation. I also commented that Ms. Mellinkoff’s article is sometimes used by others as evidence that arched-topped tablets are of Christian design and therefore do not represent the "original" shape.
I asked him to respond to the theory that the arch-top came down to medieval artists via its use in Christian church architecture, and that the early Christian’s used this arch because of their familiarty with its use and symbolism on monumental tablets. So, though the artists may not have been aware that their tablet design was similar to tablets created in the Ancient Near East, they carried on the tradition, none-the-less.
His chapter on the tablets made reference to Ruth Mellinkoff’s 1974 article, “The Round-topped Tablets of the Law: Sacred Symbol and Emblem of Evil.” (I have had some correspondence with Ms. Mellinkoff on this subject.) He, like Mellinkoff, suggests that the medieval artists based their shape of the tablets on tabula rassa or Christian diptychs.
I mentioned to Sarfatti that there are those who firmly believe that the arched-topped tablets of the Decalogue are not "authentically Jewish," and that flat-topped tablets are a more accurate representation. I also commented that Ms. Mellinkoff’s article is sometimes used by others as evidence that arched-topped tablets are of Christian design and therefore do not represent the "original" shape.
I asked him to respond to the theory that the arch-top came down to medieval artists via its use in Christian church architecture, and that the early Christian’s used this arch because of their familiarty with its use and symbolism on monumental tablets. So, though the artists may not have been aware that their tablet design was similar to tablets created in the Ancient Near East, they carried on the tradition, none-the-less.
I was told today by the archivist at BYU that he did not remember anything in the production files on this film that relate to DeMille's relationship to Freemasonry, or attempts to use the film to promote Freemasonry in any way. So, the appearance of Samaritan script on DeMille’s 1924 tablets remains a mystery…for now.
I heard that Main Line Reform Temple Beth Elohim in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, has a display of the tablets of the Ten Commandments which has on it ancient Hebrew letters. I wrote an administrator at the temple yesterday, and was informed today that I would be sent via e-mail a photo of the tablets as soon as soon as possible. I also requested the date they were made and the name of the artist. It will be interesting to see if anyone knows the answers to those questions, as well as how soon “as soon as possible” is…
Thursday, April 01, 2004
Wrote again to the archivist at Brigham Young University to see if he knew anything about the Masonic connection to the tablets used in DeMille's 1924 version of The Ten Commandments.
(I had discovered the the script used on those tablets are shown on a chart in The Jewish Encyclopedia, and are Samaritan circa 1210 BCE. Samaritan script is used in the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry. It has been suggested that Samaritans believe their script was the same as that which appeared on the original tablets carried by Moses.)
Also resent the message on the same subject to Shawn Eyer, an adjunct professor in the philosophy and religion program at John F. Kennedy University. He is currently the Senior Warden of Orinda Lodge no. 122, F&AM California. He also serves as the Orinda Lodge webmaster and chair of the lodge's education committee. His Masonic affiliations include the Southern California Research Lodge, the Grand College of Rites, the Oakland Valley of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, S.J., the Scottish Rite Research Society, and the College of the Consistory.
(I had discovered the the script used on those tablets are shown on a chart in The Jewish Encyclopedia, and are Samaritan circa 1210 BCE. Samaritan script is used in the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry. It has been suggested that Samaritans believe their script was the same as that which appeared on the original tablets carried by Moses.)
Also resent the message on the same subject to Shawn Eyer, an adjunct professor in the philosophy and religion program at John F. Kennedy University. He is currently the Senior Warden of Orinda Lodge no. 122, F&AM California. He also serves as the Orinda Lodge webmaster and chair of the lodge's education committee. His Masonic affiliations include the Southern California Research Lodge, the Grand College of Rites, the Oakland Valley of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, S.J., the Scottish Rite Research Society, and the College of the Consistory.
I wrote to snopes.com about clearing up an urban legend that appears on the Web regarding "The Heston Identity." It is a trigonometry formula that supposedly appears on the back of one of the tablets in the 1956 film, The Ten Commandments. In fact, it is a myth that was created by a high school math teacher (now retired). I wrote to him and he informed me of the circumstances. Initially, I had checked snopes.com and found nothing. Hopefully, they will now post something.
Wrote to Main Line Reform Temple Beth Elohim, to follow up on Rabbi Max Weiss' comment that the temple has (or had) a display of the tablets of the Ten Commandments which had on it ancient Hebrew letters. The response also came today-- it will be investigated.
