Endnote 26 – How Did the Philistines Get to Canaan? One: by Sea

Significant also is the dearth of Egyptian XXth Dynasty finds from Philistine Pentapolis sites prior to and during the Philistine settlement. Under Ramesses III, a reinvigorated Egypt attempted to regain control of southern Canaan, an effort reflected in the numerous Egyptian finds dating to the XXth Dynasty recovered at sites in Israel, but outside of Philistia. This apparent lack of Egyptian activity during the XXth Dynasty in Philistia is no mere coincidence; the Egyptians were not in Philistia during this period because a people hostile to Egypt—namely, the Philistines—were there in their place. The weight of the evidence from Philistine Pentapolis sites is considerable, and the pattern that emerges cannot be dismissed due to the vagaries of archaeological discovery. It reflects a historical development that offers a more reasonable explanation of the archaeological data than the chronological revision suggested by Finkelstein.