Bulla of Azariah and Gemeriah

A bulla is a round seal that was once affixed to an official document. These seals would indicate who the document came from. Many bulla have been found in archaeological digs. Some came from people who are named in the Bible. Israeli archaeologist Yigal Shiloh uncovered 51 bulla (clay seals) in 1982. One of the most notable contained two lines of ancient Hebrew text. The impression reads “belonging to Azariah, son of Hilkiah.” The 2,600-year-old seal dates roughly to the time of King Nebuchadnezzar’s first siege of Jerusalem in 605 B.C.

“Azariah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, the officer over the house of God” (1Chronicles 9:11)

Shaphan the scribe is mentioned several times in the Bible including a notable occasion when he was sent by Hilkiah the high priest to deliver a “book of the law” to the king (2Kin. 22). His name appears on a seal uncovered in 1982. The impression reads “belonging to Gemariah, son of Shaphan.” This father and son is also mentioned in several other scriptures (Jer. 36:10-12).