Biblical Giants in the Land of Canaan?

Jan 31

2 min read

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Has a document been found that once again suggests the Biblical giants mentioned in the Old Testament were real? Papyrus Anastasi I is an Egyptian text that refers to a group known as the Shasu. What information does this "scribal training" sheet provide?

The Bible is well-known for its stories about giants. Goliath is described as being “six cubits and a span,” which is more than 9 feet tall, 1 Samuel 17:4. The giant Og's bed, measuring 13 feet, became a notable artifact in the biblical narrative, as mentioned in Deuteronomy 3:11. Additionally, an Egyptian mercenary is noted to be 7½ feet tall in 1 Chronicles 11:23. When the spies explored the Promised Land, they recounted stories of giants who consumed the land.

(Numbers 13:32-33) "And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. {33} And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight."

Papyrus Anastasi I is an Egyptian document, a "scribal training" sheet offers valuable historical information about early Levant, mentioning various towns in Canaan and Syria.

It also refers to a group called Shasu, describing their warriors as formidable:

“The [valley region] is infested with Shasu … some of them are of four cubits or of five cubits, from head to foot, fierce of face, their heart is not mild, and they hearken not to coaxing.”

Papyrus Anastasi I, housed at the British Museum

Although this might not resonate with modern readers, those in ancient Egypt who were familiar with the royal cubit viewed it as an impressive height. In today's terms, four to five Egyptian cubits equates to roughly 7 to 8 feet, 7 inches in height.

A visual comparison of the height difference between a 6-foot tall man and an 8-foot tall man, highlighting their notable disparity in stature.

The Egyptian wall relief of the Battle of Kadesh (circa 1274 B.C.E.) shows two captured Shasu spies beaten by Egyptians. Unlike typical ancient art that depicts national dominance through size, this realistic image shows large Shasu males compared to their Egyptian captors, similar to Papyrus Anastasi I, which highlights the Shasu as very tall.