The Biblical Archaeology Society has posted a new study by Professor Yitzhak Roman of Hebrew University in which he concludes that the inscription was carved before the ivory pomegranate was broken. This agrees with the previous study of André Lemaire of Sorbonne University, against the conclusion of Yuval Goren and the Israel Museum that the inscription was forged in modern times.
You can get the original report in Hebrew, or an English translation, as well as various related materials at the BAS website. There’s been quite a bit of discussion in the ANE-2 list, largely attacking the experts or explaining why now it doesn’t matter. If Roman’s and Lemaire’s arguments are invalid, hopefully someone will step up and refute the evidence. You can do your own analysis of the photographs here.
