War of sea peoples on the northeast wall of the temple of Ramses III in Medinet Habu

Did the Philistines get to Canaan by land or by sea? The debate continues.

Authors Tristan Barako and Assaf Yasur-Landau raise fascinating questions regarding the mode of transport used by the Sea Peoples, including the Philistines, during their migrations (“One if by Sea…Two if by Land,” BAR 29-02). A pivotal question is whether Late Bronze/Early Iron Age galleys used by the Sea Peoples—like the one depicted five times on the walls of Ramesses III’s temple at Medinet Habu—could transport a culture and its movables. Barako argues that penteconters (50-oared ships) could be used for this purpose; however, in his response to Yasur-Landau, Barako backs away from this assertion and contends that actually there could have been merchant ships in the fleet (“Philistines Upon the Waters,” BAR 29-04). In doing so he muddies the waters.

Barako then relies on parallels from Egyptian and Syro-Canaanite merchant ships, ignoring the question of how available such ships would have been to the Sea Peoples during their migratory phase. While some Syro-Canaanite ships appear to have been absorbed into the Sea Peoples’ fleet, the case for Egyptian ships being pressed into service is at present nonexistent.

Read the rest of A Complex Migration in the Biblical Archaeology Society Library.