Tell al-Rimah stela

Inscription · early 8th century BC · Israel and Judah · also called Stele of Adad-nirari III from Tell al-Rimah

Date: early 8th century BC (the stele’s carving)
Found: Tell al-Rimah, Nineveh province, Iraq, 1967. Excavated in spring 1967 by the British School of Archaeology in Iraq, whose team under David Oates dug the site from 1964 to 1971. It was still standing in place inside the cella of a late Assyrian shrine, beside the podium.
Now: Iraq Museum, Baghdad (IM 70543)
Passages: 2 Kings 13:10–13, 2 Kings 13:25

What it is

A stele of grey “Mosul marble”, 1.3 metres high, showing Adad-nirari III of Assyria praying before the symbols of his gods, with the inscription carved across the king’s robe. It records a campaign to the west in which he received tribute from Mari’ of Damascus, from Joash the Samarian, and from the rulers of Tyre and Sidon. The later lines, which named the governor Nergal-eresh, were deliberately erased.

How it connects to the Bible

Joash, also spelt Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz, reigned over Israel in Samaria early in the 8th century BC (2 Kings 13:10–13). The stele is the earliest known cuneiform text to name Samaria. Assyria’s blow against Damascus at this time may help to explain how Jehoash won back cities from the Aramaeans (2 Kings 13:25).

What scholars debate

The year of the campaign, and so the stele’s exact date, is debated.

Sources

Checked 2026-10-21. All archaeological finds