Neo-Hittite relief from the entrance to Palace n° 3 in Samal (Zincirli), Aramean style, 8th century BC.
This is King Barecub (or: Bar-Rakib) with an inscription concerning the founding of the palace.

The inscription is written in the Aramaic alphabet, which is adapted from the Phoenician alphabet and became distinctive from it by the 8th century BC. The letters all represent consonants, some of which are ‘matres lectionis’ (= the use of certain consonants to indicate a vowel), which also indicate long vowels. The Aramaic alphabet is historically significant, since virtually all modern Middle Eastern writing systems can be traced back to it, as well as numerous non-Chinese writing systems of Central and East Asia. This is primarily due to the widespread usage of the Aramaic language as both a lingua franca and the official language of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, and its successor, the Achaemenid Empire. Among the scripts in modern use, the Hebrew alphabet bears the closest relation to the Imperial Aramaic script of the 5th century BC, with an identical letter inventory and, for the most part, nearly identical letter shapes.

Zincirli/Samal lies in the province of Gaziantep, 10 km north of the district town of Islahiye.
The kingdom of Samal was a Neo-Hittite/Aramean middle power of the Middle-East (900-850 BC), then became a vassal state of the rising Neo-Assyrian empire and later a province of that empire. Excavations revealed a heavily fortified citadel within a larger double walled fortification with 100 bastions and three gates.
The Samal kingdom ended shortly after the annihilation of Assyria (612 BC).

Correspondent: J.M.Criel, Antwerpen.
Sources: Website of ‘hittitemonuments.com’ & Wikipedia.