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PITHOM

(Heb. piṯōm)

One of the Egyptian store-cities built by Israelite forced labor (Exod. 1:11). The name (Egyp. Pr-ỉtm) means “House of Atum,” the Egyptian solar-deity Re (cf. Jer. 43:13, Beth-shemesh; LXX Heliopolis; the LXX of Exod. 1:11 mentions Pithom along with “On, which is Heliopolis”).

Early excavators identified Pithom with Tell el-Maskhûṭah at the eastern end of the Wadi Tumilât in the district of Succoth. Several Egyptian inscriptions bearing the cartouche of Rameses II were discovered at the site, but later excavations found no architectural remains dated before the 7th century b.c.e. Current consensus identifies Pithom with Tell er-Reṭâbeh farther W in the Wadi Tumilât. Clear evidence indicates occupation during the 19th Dynasty (Seti I, Rameses II, and Merneptah).

Bibliography. B. MacDonald, “Excavations at Tell el-Maskhuṭa,” BA 43 (1980): 49-58; E. P. Uphill, “Pithom and Raamses: Their Location and Significance,” JNES 27 (1968): 291-316; 28 (1969): 15-39.

Lawrence A. Sinclair

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

PITHOM

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)