Shard Indicates Earlier Old Testament

Discovery of the earliest known Hebrew writing ~ an inscription dating from the 10th century B.C., during the period biblically ascribed to King David's reign ~ could mean that portions of the Bible were written centuries earlier than previously thought.

Until now, scholars have held that the Hebrew Bible originated in the 6th century B.C. But the newly deciphered Hebrew text is about four centuries older, scientists announced this month.

"It indicates that the Kingdom of Israel already existed in the 10th century BCE and that at least some of the biblical texts were written hundreds of years before the dates presented in current research," said Gershon Galil, a professor of Biblical Studies at the University of Haifa in Israel, who deciphered the ancient text.

The writing was discovered more than a year ago on a pottery shard dug up during excavations at Khirbet Qeiyafa, near Israel's Elah valley.

Click here for the LiveScience article.