Byblian royal inscriptions
The Byblian royal inscriptions are five inscriptions from Byblos written in an early type of Phoenician script, in the order of some of the kings of Byblos, all of which were discovered in the early 20th century.
They constitute the largest corpus of lengthy Phoenician inscriptions from the area of the "Phoenician homeland"; it is the only major site in the region which has been excavated to pre-Hellenistic levels.
The five royal inscriptions
- The Ahiram Sarcophagus, discovered in 1923, together with two fragments of alabaster vases with the name of Ramesses II. Currently in the National Museum of Beirut.
- The Yehimilk inscription published in 1930. Currently in the museum of Byblos Castle.
- The Abiba’l inscription, on a throne on which a statue of Sheshonq I was placed, found in 1895, published in 1903. Currently in the Vorderasiatisches Museum Berlin.
- The Osorkon Bust or Eliba'l Inscription, inscribed on a statue of Osorkon I; known since 1881, published in 1925. Currently at the Louvre.
- The Safatba'al inscription or the "Shipitbaal inscription", found in Byblos in 1936, published in 1945. Currently in the National Museum of Beirut.