Research Note: Reconstruction Methodology & Louvre Conservation

Project: Moabite Stone Research Initiative
Phase: Phase 1 - Discovery, Provenance & Physical History

1. Physical Profile of Louvre Inventory AO 5066

The Mesha Stele (Louvre AO 5066 / MNB 752) is exhibited in Room 303 of the Department of Near Eastern Antiquities (Antiquités orientales) at the Musée du Louvre, Paris.

• Dimensions: 124 cm height × 71 cm width × 36 cm depth; weight approx. 840 kg.
• Material: Fine-grained black olivine basalt, sourced locally from Transjordanian volcanic outcrops near Dhiban.
• Inscribed Text: 34 lines of continuous horizontal text (~1,100 characters originally; 613 preserved on original basalt, ~487 restored via paper squeeze).

2. The 1869 Paper Squeeze as Master Template

Because the recovered basalt fragments accounted for only ~55–60% of the monument, Charles Clermont-Ganneau used the torn 1869 seven-fragment paper squeeze (estampage) as the spatial and structural master template for physical reconstruction:

1. The seven paper fragments were flattened, lined, and mounted onto a single backing canvas, establishing the exact two-dimensional profile (124 cm × 71 cm) and line pitch of the original monument.
2. Original basalt fragments were positioned over or adjacent to the canvas backing, aligning individual fracture edges and character contours with inverse impressions on the paper pulp.
3. Isolated stone fragments containing as few as 2–3 letters were anchored to their exact coordinates by matching word-divider dots against the squeeze template.

3. 19th-Century Restoration Techniques at the Louvre

In 1873, Clermont-Ganneau and Louvre conservators reassembled the stele using advanced 19th-century methods:

• Internal Armature: An internal wood and metal frame provided structural support for the ~840 kg composite mass.
• Plaster Filling: Dark-tinted gypsum plaster (plaster of Paris) was poured into missing gaps between basalt fragments to complete the volumetric slab profile.
• Letter Incising: Using the 1869 squeeze under oblique lighting, Clermont-Ganneau painstakingly carved the missing ~487 letters directly into the set plaster fills with fine chisels and burins.
• Conservation Transparency: The restoration maintained clear visual differentiation between original textured black basalt and smooth, neutral dark-gray plaster fills.

4. Modern Digital Conservation & Epigraphic Re-examination

In recent years, the Louvre and international research teams (WSRP, CNRS, Collège de France) have subjected AO 5066 and the 1869 paper squeeze to non-invasive digital imaging:

• Backlit Squeeze Photography (2018): Transmitting high-intensity LED light through the 1869 paper squeeze revealed varying paper fiber density, illuminating ultra-faint impressions made before the stone's destruction.
• Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) & 3D Photogrammetry: Interactive virtual re-lighting and surface normal mapping revealed microscopic stroke profiles, fueling key epigraphic debates on line 31 (reading BT DWD "House of David" vs. BALAK).