Goliath Shard Recreation (resin cast about 3 by 1 /12 inches) The shard dates back to around 950 B.C. within 70 years of when David fought Goliath, making it the oldest Philistine inscription ever found. This shard was discovered at Tel es-Safi, thought to be to be the location of the Philistine city of Gath. "Scratched on a shard typical of the Iron Age IIA, two non-Semitic names written in Semitic "Proto-Canaanite" letters were found. These two names, "ALWT" and "WLT" , are etymologically similar to the name Goliath."