Ancient Licecomb’s Oldest Sentence in First Alphabet

• A letter engraved on an old lice comb could be the oldest known sentence to have been written in an alphabet.
• The ivory comb contains a sentence written in early Canaanite script. It is estimated that the comb dates back nearly 4,000 years.
• The excavations were overseen by a professor who said that it was “a landmark” in the history of human writing ability. 

A letter engraved on an old lice comb could be the oldest known sentence in the first alphabet.

The doubled-edged ivory comb, which was excavated in Israel, bears an engraved inscription wishing away lice, according to researchers writing in the Hebrew University-affiliated Jerusalem Journal of Archaeology.

An inscription written in Canaanite script from early Canaanite times, consisting of 17 letters, says: “May this tutk root out lice of the hair, and the beard.”

Professor Yosef Garciafinkel, an archaeologist from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, was one of the people who supervised excavations that led to the discovery of the comb. He said that this discovery was “a landmark event in the history of writing.” 

Researchers estimate that the comb dates back to approximately 1700 BCE, despite attempts to date it using carbon dating. 

The small comb measures 3.5cm x 2.5cm and was found in an area of the former ancient Canaanite city Lachish, which was the second most important city within the Judean Kingdom.

Researchers examined the comb under a microscope to discover the remains of head lice in the teeth. This led them to determine its purpose.

The comb was made of elephant ivory, which is an expensive material that was likely imported from Egypt at that time. This suggests that lice were a problem for even those in high social standing.

The comb’s one side features six large teeth that can untangle hair and the other has 14 smaller teeth that can remove lice eggs and prevent them from growing back. Researchers speculate that the central section of the comb is partially eroded from pressure from fingers when it was being held.

It was discovered in 2017. However, researchers noticed engravings on its surface in December last year. These engravings have since been confirmed as being written in the very early stages of the Canaanite script.

The Canaanite script, which was created around 3,800 years ago, is the oldest known alphabet. An earlier system of writing used symbols to represent sounds and words.

Although there have been a few other inscribed words and letters found, researchers believe this to be the oldest inscription of an entire sentence.

This is the first sentence found in Israel’s Canaanite language. Professor Garfinkel stated that there are Canaanites living in Ugarit, Syria. However, they use a different alphabet and write in a different script. Jewish News Syndicate.

“The Canaanite cities were mentioned in Egyptian documents, Amarna letters that were written in Akkadian and the Hebrew Bible. The comb inscription is direct evidence that the alphabet was used in daily activities around 3,700 years back. This is an important landmark in the history and evolution of human writing ability.