Among the carved ivories found by Layard and Loftus at Nimrud in the nineteenth century a few bear alphabetic inscriptions or single letters which may be fitters' marks. Similar pieces have been found subsequently at other sites of the first millennium B.C. and it was to be expected, therefore, that further examples might be discovered in the large collections of ivories unearthed during the current series of excavations at Nimrud by the British School of Archaeology in Iraq. Several inscribed pieces were found during the 1961 season and they are published here together with those from earlier seasons.

Four alphabetic inscriptions on ivories are already known. The ivory strip from Arslan Tash is of particular value as it enables a date to be given to the bedstead of which it was a part and to associated ivories. On it is a dedication, in Aramaic, “to our lord Hazael.” Hazael, king of Damascus c. 843–796 B.C. is the only known historical figure to whom such reference might apply. If, then, it is correct to attribute this ivory to the late ninth century B.C., it may be that it formed an item of the tribute taken from Damascus by Adad-nirari. III c. 804 B.C. which included ivory furniture. There are two inscribed pieces from the Loftus collection of Nimrud ivories: a knob inscribed “property of Milki-ram” (l m l k r m) and a text too damaged to be deciphered. At Ur an ivory box-lid was found, beneath a pavement laid in the reign of Nebuchadrezzar II (605–561 B.C.) which carries a two line dedication in Phoenician: “This box Amat-Ba‘al, daughter of Pat-isi, slave-girl of [the master?] presents to Ashtart. For this may she bless me during the life of the master […..] son of Yasod.