Ancient inscription from time of King Soloman unearthed

Apparently it was from a broken wine bottle intended for slave laborers....

http://news.yahoo.com/ancient-inscription-king-solomons-time-unearthed-164121668.html

A shard of pottery unearthed near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem bears an inscription that dates to the 10th century B.C. The inscription is the oldest alphabetic text found in Jerusalem and predates the earliest found Hebrew inscription in the region by 250 years.

The enigmatic letters, which wrap around the top of a neck-less ceramic jar, were written around the time of King David or King Solomon's reign in an early form of Canaanite, not Hebrew. As a result, archaeologists believe a Jebusite or some other non-Israelite tribe member wrote the inscription.

The area around Jerusalem is teeming with archaeological relics. An 11th century B.C. temple found near Jerusalem reveals evidence of fighting between Canaanites, Israelites and Philistines. And an ancient royal garden in the hills above Jerusalem was recently revived. In addition, an ancient seal depicting a man fighting a lion and possibly referencing the Biblical tale of Samson was discovered at Beth Shemesh, an archaeological site about 12 miles (20 kilometers) west of Jerusalem. That seal dates to the 12th century B.C., and was described last year by Tel Aviv University archaeologists.

The fragment was found along with pieces of six other jars of its type. The writing, which included letters about 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) tall, was inscribed into the jar before it was fired, and all the pottery pieces were likely made from clay that originated in the hills around Jerusalem.