Merneptah Stele

The granite monument stands at 310 centimeters tall and 160 centimeters wide, featuring hieroglyphic inscriptions across its gray surface.

Pharaoh Merneptah commissioned this stele in 1208 BCE to document military victories against Libyan forces and campaigns in the Canaan region.

The inscriptions demonstrate Egyptian military documentation methods through detailed accounts of battles, territorial control, and interactions with neighboring populations.

Visitors can examine the stele on the ground floor of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, where it remains under controlled environmental conditions.

The stele contains the earliest known written reference to Israel outside religious texts, appearing in line 27 of the hieroglyphic inscription.

Inception: 1200 BCE

Height: 310 cm

Width: 160 cm

Made from material: granite

GPS coordinates: 25.72000,32.61000

Latest update: May 28, 2025 14:47