King David: myth and history
Abstract
The personality of King David since the days of his reign has always been attracting the historians' and writers’ attention. Since the discovery of the Tel Dan inscription in 1993 there is little doubt about his physical existence. Nevertheless, while some scholars continue to consider him as a founder of the Empire (i.e. a united monarchy with the city of Jerusalem as its capital), some others still believe him to be an epic hero if not completely a folklore personage. The article deals with the information regarding King David as the first monarch of all Israelite tribes and his son King Solomon as his immediate successor on the throne. A comparison of the Biblical text with the archaeological data offers a conclusion that the phenomenon of the unified monarchy at that time was hardly identical to what was considered a unified monarchy in the 19th cent. Notwithstanding this fact, the personality of King David seems to be more realistic than that of King Solomon. In fact the description of the latter lacks exact and realistic features thus making this narrative a typical “golden age” saga of the bygone times.
About the Author
A. S. Desnitsky
Institute of Oriental Studies; The Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration
Russian Federation
Competing Interests: not
Russian Federation
Andrey S. Desnitsky - Ph. D habil. (Philol.), Professor Russian Academy of Sciences.
Moscow
Competing Interests: not
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For citation:
Desnitsky A.S. King David: myth and history. Orientalistica. 2019;2(3):710-723. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31696/2618-7043-2019-2-3-710-723
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