The inscription on Monolith-3 originally guarded the entry to the monolithic-tomb, written in large letters in the lintel above the entrance. Since antiquity the inscription has been almost entirely destroyed and today only one word can be reconstructed with any confidence.
Translation of the Monolith-3 Inscription:
“[Belonging to --][- --- --- --- cur]˹s˺ed!”
Image A. Drawing of the lintel's left side of the lintel showing the extant writing. Drawing published by Clermont-Ganneau.
Image B. The remains of the left side of the lintel showing the final letter of the inscription (ר). Photograph taken by Matthew Suriano in 2016.
The remains of the inscription, first published by Charles Clermont-Ganneau, consists of the final two letters on the far left side. The last letter of the inscription is a reš (ר). Only the top part of the adjacent letter remains, but there is enough to compare letters and identify the second one also as a reš. This strongly suggests that the final word of the inscription was ארר (“curse”). In 1902 R. A. S. Macalister visited the tomb and reported that he was able to distinguish a ל on the remaining portion of the inscription’s right side. In its present state, it is impossible to verify Macalister’s observation. But his suggestion is noteworthy because funerary inscriptions occasionally began with a prepositional phrase (–ל) indicating the tomb’s occupant.
Image B. Photograph of the plaster squeeze of the lintel's left side the existing letter and the remains of a second letter. Published by Clermont-Ganneau.
Image C. Drawing of Monolith-3's entrance, published by Clermont-Ganneau. The letters, added by the MMO:VAS project, mark the original lintel (A.) and the original height of the door (B.) before the current entrance was cut.
The tail of the a reš (ר) is elongated, which is typical of the Paleo-Hebrew inscriptions in the necropolis. But the size of the letter in this inscription is notable. Its height is 12 cm. The remains of the lintel on the left and right sides allow us to reconstruct its original dimensions, 23 x 80 cm. The vestige of writing on the far left side indicates that the inscription consisted of one line. It is estimated from this information that the inscription was approximately twenty letters long.