Submitted by coldrum in 2008:
Archaeologists in southeastern Turkey have discovered an Iron Age chiseled stone slab that provides the first written evidence in the region that people believed the soul was separate from the body, University of Chicago researchers announced.
The Neubauer Expedition of the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago found the 800-pound basalt stele at Zincirli (pronounced "Zin-jeer-lee"), the site of the ancient city of Sam'al.
The inscription reads in part: "I, Kuttamuwa, servant of Panamuwa, am the one who oversaw the production of this stele for myself while still living. I placed it in an eternal chamber(?) and established a feast at this chamber(?): a bull for [the storm-god] Hadad, ... a ram for [the sun-god] Shamash, ... and a ram for my soul that is in this stele."
"The stele is the first of its kind to be found intact in its original location, enabling scholars to learn about funerary customs and life in the eighth century B.C.," the researchers said. "At the time, vast empires emerged in the ancient Middle East, and cultures such as the Israelites and Phoenicians became part of a vibrant mix."
Read more at National Geographic.
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