View source for Elephantine

{{Short description|Island in the Nile}}
{{Distinguish|Elephanta Island|Elephant Jason Island|Elephant Island|Elephant Island (Vanuatu)}}
{{Infobox islands
| name                               = Elephantine
| native_name                        = جزيرة فيلة<br />(Ⲉ)ⲓⲏⲃ<br />𓍋𓃀𓅱𓃰
| native_name_link                   = 
| native_name_lang                   = arz
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| image_name                         = Aswan, Elephantine, west bank, Egypt, Oct 2004.jpg
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| image_caption                      = West bank of Elephantine Island on the [[Nile]]
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| pushpin_map                        = Egypt
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| label                              = Elephantine
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| pushpin_map_caption                = Location in the [[Nile]] at [[Aswan, Upper Egypt]]
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| waterbody                          = Nile
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| length_m                           = 1200
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| country                            = Egypt
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[[File:Elephantine by Zureks.jpg|thumb|View south (upstream) of Elephantine Island and Nile, from a hotel tower.]]
'''Elephantine''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|ɛ|l|ɪ|f|æ|n|ˈ|t|aɪ|n|iː|,_|-|ˈ|t|iː|-}} {{respell|EL|if|an|TY|nee|,_-|TEE|-}};{{r|merriam-webster|p=351}} {{langx|egy|𓍋𓃀𓅱𓃰|[[wikt:ꜣbw#Etymology 2|ꜣbw]]}}; {{langx|arz|جزيرة الفنتين}}; {{langx|el|Ἐλεφαντίνη}} ''Elephantíne''; {{langx|cop|(Ⲉ)ⲓⲏⲃ}} {{translation|cop|(e)iēb}}, {{IPA|cop|jæb}}) is an [[island]] on the [[Nile]]{{r|merriam-webster|p=351}}, forming part of the city of [[Aswan]] in [[Upper Egypt]]. The [[archaeological site|archaeological dig]]s on the island became a [[World Heritage Site]] in 1979, along with other examples of Upper Egyptian architecture, as part of the "Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae" (despite Elephantine being neither Nubian, nor between Abu Simbel and Philae).{{r|unesco}}

The island has been studied through excavation sites. Aramaic papyri and ostraca have been collected to study what life was like on Elephantine during the time of Ancient Egypt. There have been studies about the Elephantine Triad and the Jewish presence that formulated on the island.{{r|bunson1995}}

The standard reference collection of the Aramaic documents of the [[Elephantine papyri and ostraca|Elephantine Papyri and Ostraca]] is the ''[[Textbook of Aramaic Documents from Ancient Egypt]]''.{{r|cook2022}} They document (among other things) a [[mercenary]] community with its own [[Yahweh]] temple that coexisted and conflicted with local Egyptian religion, culminating in the temple's destruction in 410 BCE.

==Etymology==
The island was known to the [[ancient Egypt]]ians as {{lang|egy|𓍋𓃀𓅱𓃰}} ([[wikt:ꜣbw#Etymology 2|ꜣbw]]), meaning an elephant{{r|project-rosette}}. Through [[Middle Egyptian]] {{IPA|/ˈʀuːbaw/}} to Medio-Late Egyptian {{IPA|/ˈjuːbəʔ/}} to Coptic (Ⲉ)ⲓⲏⲃ {{IPA|/ˈjeβ/}}.

==Geography==
Elephantine, or what Ancient Egyptians called Yebu or Abu, is located at the uppermost part of the Nile river that is a part of Aswan.{{r|smith1908}}{{r|merriam-webster|p=351}} With the length of {{cvt|1.6|km|mi}} and width of {{cvt|450|m|ft}} at its widest point, Elephantine was located in the first [[Nome (Egypt)|nome]].{{r|bunson1995}}{{r|muller2016}} The layout of this and other nearby islands in Aswan can be seen from west bank hillsides along the Nile. The island is located just downstream of the [[Cataracts of the Nile|First Cataract]]{{r|merriam-webster|p=351}}, at the southern border of [[Upper Egypt]] with [[Lower Nubia]]. This region above is called Upper Egypt because it is further up the Nile.{{r|bunson1995}}

The island may have received its name after its shape, which in aerial views is similar to that of an [[elephant tusk]], or from the rounded rocks along the banks resembling elephants.{{r|rosenberg2004}}

==Ancient Egypt==
The island stood at the border between Egypt and Nubia; so, its location made it a natural cargo transfer point for river trade. Trade routes would stop on Elephantine to deliver ivory, a precious good in Ancient Egypt.{{r|bunson1995}} It was an excellent defensive site: A fort had been erected c. 3000 BC on the island during the [[First Dynasty of Egypt|First Dynasty]]{{r|oxford-history|p=64}}, though the island had been occupied earlier{{r|oxford-history|p=64}}.  This border is near the [[Tropic of Cancer]].

Historical texts from the [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt]] mention the mother of [[Amenemhat I]], founder of the [[Twelfth dynasty of Egypt|Twelfth Dynasty]], being from<ref>"Then a king will come from the South, Ameny, the justified, by name, son of a woman of Ta-seti, child of Upper Egypt"{{cite book |title=Kingship, Power, and Legitimacy in Ancient Egypt |chapter=The Beginning of the Twelfth Dynasty |date=2020 |pages=138–160 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/kingship-power-and-legitimacy-in-ancient-egypt/beginning-of-the-twelfth-dynasty/5935C3DF9B4552CCE8AD67124B1E0BA0 |publisher=Cambridge University Press|doi=10.1017/9781108914529.006 |isbn=9781108914529 |s2cid=242213167 }}</ref> the Elephantine Egyptian nome Ta-Seti.<ref>"Ammenemes himself was not a Theban but the son of a woman from Elephantine called Nofret and a priest called Sesostris (‘The man of the Great Goddess’).",{{Cite book |title= A History of Ancient Egypt |last= Grimal|first= Nicolas|publisher= Wiley-Blackwell (July 19, 1994) |year= 1994 |pages=159}}</ref><ref>"Senusret, a commoner as the father of Amenemhet, his mother, Nefert, came from the area Elephantine."{{Cite book |title= Chronicle of the Pharaohs: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers and Dynasties of Ancient Egypt |last= A. Clayton |first= Peter |publisher= Thames & Hudson |year= 2006 |pages=78}}</ref><ref>"Amenemhet I was a commoner, the son of one Senwosret and a woman named NEFRET, listed as prominent members of a family from ELEPHANTINE Island."{{Cite book |title= Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt (Facts on File Library of World History) |last= Bunson |first= Margaret |publisher= Facts on File |year= 2002 |pages=25}}</ref> Many scholars have argued that Amenemhat I's mother was of Nubian origin.<ref>"The XIIth Dynasty (1991–1786 B.C.E.) originated from the Aswan region. As expected, strong Nubian features and dark coloring are seen in their sculpture and relief work. This dynasty ranks as among the greatest, whose fame far outlived its actual tenure on the throne. Especially interesting, it was a member of this dynasty – that decreed that no Nehsy (riverine Nubian of the principality of Kush), except such as came for trade or diplomatic reasons, should pass by the Egyptian fortress at the southern end of the Second Nile Cataract. Why would this royal family of Nubian ancestry ban other Nubians from coming into Egyptian territory? Because the Egyptian rulers of Nubian ancestry had become Egyptians culturally; as pharaohs, they exhibited typical Egyptian attitudes and adopted typical Egyptian policies."{{cite journal |last1=F. J. Yurco |title='Were the ancient Egyptians black or white?' |journal=Biblical Archaeology Review |volume=(Vol 15, no. 5, 1989) |pages=24–9, 58}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=General History of Africa Volume II – Ancient civilizations of Africa (ed. G Moktar) |publisher=UNESCO |pages=152}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Crawford |first1=Keith W. |title=Critique of the "Black Pharaohs" Theme: Racist Perspectives of Egyptian and Kushite/Nubian Interactions in Popular Media |journal=African Archaeological Review |date=1 December 2021 |volume=38 |issue=4 |pages=695–712 |doi=10.1007/s10437-021-09453-7 |s2cid=238718279 |language=en |issn=1572-9842|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Lobban |first1=Richard A. Jr |title=Historical Dictionary of Ancient Nubia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pRUYEAAAQBAJ&dq=amenemhat+textual+evidence+nubian+mother&pg=PA28 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |language=en |date=10 April 2021|isbn=9781538133392 }}</ref><ref name="Morris">{{cite book |last1=Morris |first1=Ellen |title=Ancient Egyptian Imperialism |date=6 August 2018 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-4051-3677-8 |page=72 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jyRgDwAAQBAJ&dq=Amenemhat+I+%22nubian+origin%22&pg=PA72 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Van de Mieroop |first1=Marc |title=A history of ancient Egypt |date=2021 |location=Chichester, West Sussex |isbn=978-1119620877 |page=99 |edition=Second}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Fletcher |first1=Joann |title=The story of Egypt : the civilization that shaped the world |date=2017 |location=New York |isbn=978-1681774565 |pages=Chapter 12 |edition=First Pegasus books paperback}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=Stuart Tyson |title=Ethnicity: Constructions of Self and Other in Ancient Egypt |journal=Journal of Egyptian History |date=8 October 2018 |volume=11 |issue=1–2 |pages=113–146 |doi=10.1163/18741665-12340045 |s2cid=203315839 |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/jeh/11/1-2/article-p113_6.xml |issn=1874-1665}}</ref>

===Archaeological sites===
Between 1893 and 1910, Aramaic papyri, consisting of Jewish archives, were found and collected on Elephantine. There has been a large presence of German excavation with a vast amount of discoveries or papyri and ostraca.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |last=Porten |first=Bezalel |date=December 31, 1999 |title=Elephantine |url=http://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/elephantine |access-date=2024-02-21 |website=Jewish Women's Archive |language=en}}</ref> The documents have led to discoveries about Jewish presence and significance in Elephantine.{{r|rosenberg2004}}<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Margolis |first=Max L. |title=The Elephantine Documents |url=https://doi.org/10.2307/1451065. |journal=The Jewish Quarterly Review |date=1912 |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=419–443 |doi=10.2307/1451065 |jstor=1451065 |via=JSTOR|url-access=subscription }}</ref> French teams also set out to Elephantine where they discovered several hundred ostraca but very few have been published thus far.<ref name=":02" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Müller |first=Matthias |date=2016 |title=Among the Priests of Elephantine Island Elephantine Island Seen from Egyptian Sources |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24887875 |journal=Die Welt des Orients |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=213–243 |doi=10.13109/wdor.2016.46.2.213 |jstor=24887875 |issn=0043-2547}}</ref> The major findings from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century are found in these museums; Berlin, Brooklyn, Cairo, London, Munich, and Paris, with the largest collection being in Berlin.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |title=The Elephantine papyri in English: three millennia of cross-cultural continuity and change |date=1996 |publisher=New York : E.J. Brill |isbn=978-90-04-10197-5 |editor-last=Porten |editor-first=Bezalel |series=Idocumenta et monumenta Orientis antiqui (DMOA) |location=Leiden}}</ref>

Ongoing excavations by the [[German Archaeological Institute]] at the town have uncovered many findings, on display in the Aswan Museum located on the island, including a [[mummy|mummified]] ram of Khnum. [[Artifact (archaeology)|Artifacts]] dating back to [[prehistoric Egypt]] have been found on Elephantine. A rare [[calendar]], known as the ''Elephantine Calendar of Things'', which dates to the reign of [[Thutmose III]] during the [[Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt|Eighteenth Dynasty]], was found in fragments on the island.

Important technological evidence from the German excavations was recently published, datable to the [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt|Middle Kingdom]]. An intentional production of [[arsenical bronze]], evidence of the cementation alloying process of copper with speiss inside ceramic crucibles, and a piece of speiss, were published from the Elephantine archaeological contexts.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kmošek |first=Jiří |last2=Odler |first2=Martin |date=2025-06-30 |title=Production of arsenical bronze using speiss on the Elephantine Island (Aswan, Egypt) during the Middle Kingdom (Middle Bronze Age) ( c .2000–1650 BCE) |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/arcm.70008 |journal=Archaeometry |language=en |doi=10.1111/arcm.70008 |issn=0003-813X|doi-access=free }}</ref>

In ancient times the island was also a vital [[stone quarries of ancient Egypt|stone quarry]], providing [[granite]] for monuments and buildings all over Egypt.

====Temples====
Prior to 1822, there were temples to [[Thutmose III]] and [[Amenhotep III]]<ref>de Morgan 1894. J. De Morgan . Catalogue des monuments et inscriptions de l'Égypte antique. De la frontière de Nubie à Kom Ombos. Vienne</ref> on the island. In 1822, they were destroyed during the campaign of [[Muhammad Ali of Egypt|Muhammad Ali]], who had taken power in Egypt, to [[History of Egypt under the Muhammad Ali dynasty#Invasion of Libya and Sudan|conquer Sudan]]. Both temples were relatively intact prior to the deliberate demolition.{{Citation needed|date=July 2013}}

[[File:KhnoumTempleElephantine.jpg|right|thumb|Small Kalabsha Temple Reconstruction, south of the island.]]

The main two temples of the island were for the Goddess Satet and the God Khnum.<ref name=":1" /> The first temple was the [[Temple of Satet]], founded around 3000 BC and enlarged and renovated over the next 3,000 years. There are records of an [[Egyptian temple]] to Khnum on the island as early as the [[Third Dynasty of Egypt|Third Dynasty]]. This temple was completely rebuilt in the Late Period, during the [[Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt]], just before the foreign rule that followed in the Graeco-Roman Period. The Greeks formed the [[Ptolemaic dynasty]] during their three-hundred-year rule over Egypt (305–30 BC) and maintained the ancient religious customs and traditions, while often associating the Egyptian deities with their own.[[File:Île d'Éléphantine in the 1809 Description de l'Égypte.jpg|thumb|left|Elephantine, as published in the 1809 [[Description de l'Égypte]].]]Most of the present day southern tip of the island is taken up by the ruins of the Temple of Khnum. These, the oldest ruins still standing on the island, are composed of a granite [[step pyramid]] from the Third Dynasty and a small temple built for the local [[Sixth Dynasty of Egypt|Sixth Dynasty]] [[nomarch]], [[Heqaib]]. In the Middle Kingdom, many officials, such as the local governors [[Sarenput I]] or [[Heqaib III]], dedicated statues and shrines into the temple.
[[File:Khnum temple at Elephantine island, New kingdom.png|thumb|Khnum temple at Elephantine island, New kingdom, Reconstruction]]
[[File:IlhaElefantina.jpg|right|thumb|The [[Aswan Museum]], and a [[nilometer]] (lower left)]]

====Nilometers====
A [[nilometer]] was a structure for measuring the Nile River's clarity and the water level during the annual flood season. There are two nilometers at Elephantine Island.<ref name="bunson1995" /> The more famous is a corridor nilometer associated with the Temple of Satis, with a stone staircase that descends the corridor.<ref name="bunson1995" /> It is one of the oldest nilometers in Egypt, last reconstructed in [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times and still in use as late as the nineteenth century AD. Ninety steps that lead down to the river are marked with [[Arabic numerals|Arabic]], [[Roman numerals|Roman]], and [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|hieroglyphic]] numerals. Visible at the water's edge are inscriptions carved deeply into the rock during the [[Seventeenth Dynasty of Egypt|Seventeenth Dynasty]].

The other nilometer is a rectangular basin located at the island's southern tip, near the Temple of Khnum and opposite the Old Cataract Hotel. It is probably the older of the two. One of the nilometers, though it is not certain which, is mentioned by the Greek historian [[Strabo]].

Many sources claim that the fabled "Well of Eratosthenes", famous in connection with [[Eratosthenes]]' presumed calculation of the [[Earth's circumference]], was located on the island. [[Strabo]] mentions a well that was used to observe that Aswan lies on the [[Tropic of Cancer]], but the reference is to a well at [[Aswan]], not at Elephantine. Neither nilometer at Elephantine is suitable for the purpose, while the well at Aswan is apparently lost.<ref>{{cite book|last=Meyboom|first=P. G. P. |title=The Nile Mosaic of Palestrina: Early Evidence of Egyptian Religion in Italy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jyTFEJ56iTUC|year=1995|publisher=BRILL|isbn=90-04-10137-3|page=52}}</ref>

=== Elephantine triad ===
The Elephantine Triad is between Khnum, [[Satis (goddess)|Satis]], and [[Anuket]], it is debated if Anuket is the daughter of the two or the sister of Satis.<ref name="bunson1995" /><ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Parikh |first=Amee |date=2023-05-24 |title=Anuket: The Ancient Egyptian Goddess of the Nile {{!}} History Cooperative |url=https://historycooperative.org/anuket/ |access-date=2024-02-22 |language=en-US}}</ref> Elephantine was the dwelling place of [[Khnum]], the ram-headed god of the cataracts, who guarded and controlled the waters of the Nile from caves beneath the island.<ref name="bunson1995" />

Satis was worshipped from very early times as a [[war goddess]] and protector of this strategic region of Egypt. When seen as a [[fertility goddess]], she personified the bountiful annual flooding of the Nile. The cult of Satis originated in the ancient city of [[Aswan]]. Later, when the triad was formed, Khnum became identified as her consort and, thereby, was thought of as the father of Anuket. His role in myths later changed; another deity was ascribed duties with the river. At that time his role as a potter enabled him to be assigned a duty in the creation of human bodies.

Anuket was the Goddess of the first cataract and is referred to as the personification of the Nile.<ref name="bunson1995" /> A cult is formed on the Island for Anuket.<ref name=":12" />

==Jewish presence==

The [[Elephantine papyri and ostraca]] are caches of legal documents and letters written in [[Imperial Aramaic]] dating to sometime in the fifth century BC.<ref name="Botta2">{{cite book |last=Botta |first=Alejandro |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UQKll2gTg4kC&pg=PA16 |title=The Aramaic and Egyptian Legal Traditions at Elephantine: An Egyptological Approach |publisher=T&T Clark |year=2009 |isbn=978-0567045331 |pages=15–116}}</ref><ref name="Grabbe2">{{cite book |last=Grabbe |first=Lester L. |author-link=Lester L. Grabbe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qQNlslA72SkC&pg=PA193 |title=A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period (vol. 2) |publisher=Bloomsbury T&T Clark |year=2011 |isbn=978-0567541192 |page=103}}</ref> These papyri document the presence of a community of Judean mercenaries and their families on Elephantine, starting in the seventh century BCE. The mercenaries guarded the frontier between Egypt and [[Nubia]] to the south.<ref name="Schama2">{{cite episode |title=In the Beginning |series=The Story of the Jews |last1=Schama |first1=Simon |network=PBS |date=September 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Toorn |first=Karel Van Der |title=Becoming a Diaspora Jew: Behind the Story of Elephantine |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2019 |isbn=978-0-300-24949-1 |pages=1–88}}</ref> Following the [[Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC)|587 BCE destruction of Jerusalem]], some [[Kingdom of Judah|Judean]] refugees traveled south and, in what may be called an "exodus in reverse", settled on Elephantine. They maintained their own temple (the [[House of Yahweh (biblical term)|House of Yahweh]]), in which [[Land of Onias#Legitimacy of its sacrificial cult|sacrifices were offered]], evincing [[Canaanite religion|polytheistic beliefs]], which functioned alongside that of [[Khnum]].<ref>[[A. van Hoonacker]], ''Une Communauté Judéo-Araméenne à Éléphantine, en Egypte, aux vi et v siècles avant J.-C,'' London 1915 cited, [[Arnold J. Toynbee|Arnold Toynbee]], ''[[A Study of History]],'' vol.5, (1939) 1964 p125 n.1</ref> It is not clear when or why the Jewish community settled in Elephantine.<ref name="smith1908" />

The temple may have been built in reaction to [[Manasseh of Judah|Manasseh]]'s reinstitution of pagan worship or simply to serve the needs of the Jewish community.<ref name="Botta2" />

=== Conflict Between Jews and Egyptians ===
There is bias that surrounds the Jewish and Egyptian interactions that occurred on Elephantine but the findings show that there was often culture interchange.<ref name="smith1908" /> Conflict began due to a stone that was originally the Egyptian's but turned up in the hands of the Jews.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Toorn |first=Karel van der |date=2021-12-16 |title=Previously, at Elephantine |url=https://lockwoodonlinejournals.com/index.php/jaos/article/view/1053 |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |volume=138 |issue=2 |doi=10.7817/jameroriesoci.138.2.0255 |issn=2169-2289}}</ref>

The earliest recount of the Jewish temple is from 525 BC.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Gordon |first=Cyrus H. |date=1955 |title=The Origin of the Jews in Elephantine |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/542551 |journal=Journal of Near Eastern Studies |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=56–58 |doi=10.1086/371243 |jstor=542551 |issn=0022-2968}}</ref> In 410 BC, the Jewish temple, the [[House of Yahweh (biblical term)|House of Yahweh]], was burned down by a Persian military commander due to bribery from Khnum priests.<ref name="bunson1995" /><ref name=":4" />{{r|rosenberg2004}} While no explicit reasoning has been given for this lash out, it has been suspected that the priests did this because of the Jewish rituals of sacrificing of sheep, especially during Passover.{{r|rosenberg2004}} Papyri records that have been collected from this time show Jewish letters asking [[Bagoas]] for help rebuilding the temple.{{r|rosenberg2004}}

The standard reference collection of the Aramaic documents of the [[Elephantine papyri and ostraca|Elephantine Papyri and Ostraca]] is the [[Textbook of Aramaic Documents from Ancient Egypt]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cook |first=Edward |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kdCIEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA6 |title=Biblical Aramaic and Related Dialects: An Introduction |date=2022-09-29 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-78788-8 |language=en}}</ref>

==Other features==

The [[Aswan Museum]] is located at the southern end of the island. Ongoing excavations by the [[German Archaeological Institute]] at the island's ancient town site have uncovered many findings that are now on display in the museum, including a [[mummy|mummified]] ram of Khnum. A sizable population of [[Nubians]] live in three villages in the island's middle section. A large luxury hotel is at the island's northern end.

The Aswan Botanical Garden is adjacent to the west on [[el Nabatat Island]].

== Primary Scholarly Documents ==

* [[:de:Arthur_Ungnad|Arthur Ungnad]], [[iarchive:aramischepapyr00ungnuoft/page/26/mode/2up|Aramäische Papyrus aus Elephantine]]
* [[Eduard Sachau]], 1908, [[iarchive:dreiaramaischepa00sach_0|Drei aramäische papyrusurkunden aus Elephantine]]
* [[Eduard Sachau]], 1911, [[iarchive:aramaischepapyru01sach|Aramäische Papyrus und Ostraka aus einer jüdischen Militär-Kolonie zu Elephantine]]
<gallery>
Naos votivo di Kasa 1 0147115g.tif|Votive [[Cella|naos]] with sledge and pronaos supported by [[hathor]]ic columns, dedicated by the artisan Kasa to the Elephantine Triad. [[Museo Egizio|Museo Egizio, Turin]].
</gallery>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Nubian village Elephantine Island.JPG|[[Nubia]]n houses on central Elephantine Island
View 071, Verdant Euphantine Island, opposite Assuan, Egypt, 1908.jpg|Verdant Elephantine Island, opposite Assuan, Egypt", 1908. Lantern slide. [[Brooklyn Museum]]
Brooklyn Museum - Island of Elephantine (Egypt) - Edwin Howland Blashfield - overall.jpg|Island of Elephantine, by [[Edwin Blashfield|Edwin Howland Blashfield]]. [[Brooklyn Museum]]
Ruins on Elephantine Island, Aswan, Egypt.jpg|Ruins on Elephantine Island in 2000
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Commons category|Elephantine}}
*[[Sehel Island]]
*[[Temple of Satet]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="bunson1995">{{Citation |last=Bunson |first=Margaret |title=K |date=1995-11-23 |work=A Dictionary of Ancient Egypt |pages=130–141 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195099898.003.0011 |access-date=2024-03-01 |publisher=Oxford University PressNew York, NY |doi=10.1093/oso/9780195099898.003.0011 |isbn=978-0-19-509989-8|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
<ref name="cook2022">{{Cite book |last=Cook |first=Edward |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kdCIEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA6 |title=Biblical Aramaic and Related Dialects: An Introduction |date=2022-09-29 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-78788-8 |language=en}}</ref>
<ref name="muller2016">{{Cite journal |last=Müller |first=Matthias |date=2016 |title=Among the Priests of Elephantine Island Elephantine Island Seen from Egyptian Sources |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24887875 |journal=Die Welt des Orients |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=213–243 |doi=10.13109/wdor.2016.46.2.213 |jstor=24887875 |issn=0043-2547}}</ref>
<ref name="oxford-history">
  {{ cite encyclopedia
    | editor = Shaw, Ian
    | isbn = 978-0-19-280458-7
    | location = Great Clarendon Street, Oxford 0x2 6DP
    | publisher = Oxford University Press
    | title = The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt
    | year = 2000
  }}
</ref>
<ref name="rosenberg2004">{{Cite journal |last=Rosenberg |first=Stephen G. |date=2004 |title=The Jewish Temple at Elephantine |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4149987 |journal=Near Eastern Archaeology |volume=67 |issue=1 |pages=4–13 |doi=10.2307/4149987 |jstor=4149987 |issn=1094-2076}}</ref>
<ref name="project-rosette">
  {{cite web
    | access-date = July 16, 2025
    | title = Project Rosette: Page : page 2, rang : 15, Mot : Abw
    | url = https://projetrosette.info/popup.php?Id=1012&idObjet=423
  }}
</ref>
<ref name="smith1908">{{Cite journal |last=Smith |first=John Merlin Powis |date=1908 |title=The Jewish Temple at Elephantine |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3141839 |journal=The Biblical World |volume=31 |issue=6 |pages=448–459 |doi=10.1086/474061 |jstor=3141839 |issn=0190-3578}}</ref>
<ref name="unesco">{{cite web |url = https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/88 |title = Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae |website = UNESCO World Heritage Centre |publisher = United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization |access-date = 7 September 2021}}</ref>
<ref name="merriam-webster">
 {{cite encyclopedia
    | edition = 3rd
    | encyclopedia = Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary
    | isbn = 0877795460
    | location = Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
    | publisher = Merriam-Webster
    | title = Elephantine
    | url = https://archive.org/details/merriamwebstersg1998merr/
  }}
</ref>
}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite encyclopedia | title = ELEPHANTINE | last = Bresciani | first = Edda | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/elephantine | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. VIII, Fasc. 4 | pages = 360–362 | year = 1998 }}
{{History of Nubia footer|state=collapsed}}{{Kushite religion footer}}{{Ancient Egypt topics}}
{{Islands of Egypt}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Elephantine| ]]
[[Category:Aswan]]
[[Category:Islands of the Nile]]
[[Category:River islands of Egypt]]
[[Category:Archaeological sites in Egypt]]
[[Category:Historic Jewish communities in North Africa]]
[[Category:Khnum]]