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American Expedition Finds New Sinai Tablets

May 29, 1927
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(Jewish Telegraphic Agency)

New Sinai tablets, resembling those found by Sir Flinders Petrie, famous Egyptologist, were discovered on Mount Sinai by the Harvard-Michigan Sinai expedition under Professors Lake and Blake.

The fragments of the tablets, a despatch from Cairo to the London “Times” states, were taken to the Cairo Museum. The fragments are said to bear inscriptions which are claimed to be the earliest Semitic script.

In commenting upon the discovery of the American scientists, Professor Allan Gardiner, famous English Egyptologist, states that these fragments of Sinai tablets are of extreme importance in view of the prolonged controversy during the past 12 years over the inscriptions on the Sinai Tablets which contain what is believed to be the origin of all alphabets.

Two years ago Professor Hugo Grimme of Munich contended that he had deciphered the Flinders Petrietablets and had found in them a reference to the story of Moses. This contention is regarded by a majority of scholars as fantastic. The Sinai inscriptions are carved on statues and other stone monuments.

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