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Elephantine “Passover Letter”

An object record bringing together its image, metadata, rights, and context.

Timeline
From 419 BCE to 418 BCE

Fragmentary Aramaic letter, Berlin P.13464, dated 419/418 BCE, on Nisan dates and ritual instructions. “Passover” is restored in a lacuna; no complete Torah is attested.

Modern guide to Berlin P.13464, Hananiah’s letter to Jedaniah, 419/418 BCE. Distinguishes surviving wording from restoration; “Passover” belongs to reconstructed text. Not a photograph or complete transcription.

Illustration — not a photograph of the original object

CC BY · Modern diagram by IL Archive · CC BY 4.0

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Modern guide to Berlin P.13464, Hananiah’s letter to Jedaniah, 419/418 BCE. Distinguishes surviving wording from restoration; “Passover” belongs to reconstructed text. Not a photograph or complete transcription

License · Image source

Object details

Title
Elephantine “Passover Letter”
Rights
CC BY

Metadata

These are descriptive fields, not conclusions.

Edition
2

Text

Object

Hananiah’s letter to Jedaniah and colleagues, year five of Darius II, 419/418 BCE; TAD A4.1 / Cowley 21. Fragmentary text includes Nisan 15 and 21 and purity/leaven instructions.[1]

Preserved and restored

Passover and parts of the instructions are editorial restorations. The museum notes interpretive disagreement. Not a copy of the five books or evidence that every law was followed. Image: modern explanation, not papyrus photography. A separate 407 BCE petition attests a YHW temple at ElephantineElephantine / YebIsland near Aswan at the Nile’s first cataract; Persian-period Aramaic papyri document a Jewish community and Yaho’s temple.Glossary · Click to read the explanation.[2]

References and notes

  1. ERC Elephantine Project, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Pap. Berlin P.13464, TAD A4.1 / Cowley 21. Object metadata and edited translation with restoration brackets; 419/418 BCE. Passover is restored, interpretation disputed. Restricted image licence not used for a purported papyrus photograph. Return to the text ↑
  2. ERC Elephantine Project, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Pap. Berlin P.13495, TAD A4.7. 407 BCE petition, especially R6–14 and V6–13: YHW temple, rebuilding request, Jerusalem and Samaria contacts. Return to the text ↑

Research history

Substantive changes are retained here. Minor copy edits remain in the internal operational log.

  1. Edition 2 · 11 October 2026 · editor:aladmin

    Substantive record update

    Read this revision in its original language (Arabic)

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Cite this record

IL Archive, «Elephantine “Passover Letter”», Edition 2, https://ilarchive.com/en/artifacts/elephantine-passover-letter