Ba`alat Gebal
Encyclopedia
Ba‘alat Gebal, 'Lady of Byblos
', was the goddess of the city of Byblos, sometimes known to the Greeks as Baaltis.
She was generally identified with the pan-Semitic goddess ‘Ashtart
and so equated with the Greek goddess Aphrodite
. However Sanchuniathon
equates her with the Greek goddess Dione
and presents her as a sister of ‘Ashtart (Aphrodite) and Rhea
(who is probably Asherah
), all three being wives of El
. He says she bore daughters to El and that it was El who gave the city of Byblos to Baaltis who is also called Dione.
Ba‘alat Gebal was distinguished in iconography from ‘Ashtart or other aspects of ‘Ashtart or similar goddesses by two, tall, upright feathers in her headdress.
The temple of Ba‘al Gebal in Byblos was built around 2700 BC
. Dedications from Egyptians begin appearing from the 2nd to 6th dynasties. Two of them equate Ba‘alat Gebal with the Egyptian goddess Hathor
.
Byblos
Byblos is the Greek name of the Phoenician city Gebal . It is a Mediterranean city in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of present-day Lebanon under the current Arabic name of Jubayl and was also referred to as Gibelet during the Crusades...
', was the goddess of the city of Byblos, sometimes known to the Greeks as Baaltis.
She was generally identified with the pan-Semitic goddess ‘Ashtart
Astarte
Astarte is the Greek name of a goddess known throughout the Eastern Mediterranean from the Bronze Age to Classical times...
and so equated with the Greek goddess Aphrodite
Aphrodite
Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, and procreation.Her Roman equivalent is the goddess .Historically, her cult in Greece was imported from, or influenced by, the cult of Astarte in Phoenicia....
. However Sanchuniathon
Sanchuniathon
Sanchuniathon is the purported Phoenician author of three lost works originally in the Phoenician language, surviving only in partial paraphrase and summary of a Greek translation by Philo of Byblos, according to the Christian bishop Eusebius of Caesarea...
equates her with the Greek goddess Dione
Dione (mythology)
Dione was a Greek goddess primarily known as the mother of Aphrodite in Book V of Homer's Iliad. Aphrodite journeys to Dione's side after she has been wounded in battle protecting her favorite son Aeneas. In this episode, Dione seems to be the equivalent of the earth goddess Gaia, whom Homer also...
and presents her as a sister of ‘Ashtart (Aphrodite) and Rhea
Rhea (mythology)
Rhea was the Titaness daughter of Uranus, the sky, and Gaia, the earth, in Greek mythology. She was known as "the mother of gods". In earlier traditions, she was strongly associated with Gaia and Cybele, the Great Goddess, and was later seen by the classical Greeks as the mother of the Olympian...
(who is probably Asherah
Asherah
Asherah , in Semitic mythology, is a Semitic mother goddess, who appears in a number of ancient sources including Akkadian writings by the name of Ashratum/Ashratu and in Hittite as Asherdu or Ashertu or Aserdu or Asertu...
), all three being wives of El
El (god)
is a Northwest Semitic word meaning "deity", cognate to Akkadian and then to Hebrew : Eli and Arabic )....
. He says she bore daughters to El and that it was El who gave the city of Byblos to Baaltis who is also called Dione.
Ba‘alat Gebal was distinguished in iconography from ‘Ashtart or other aspects of ‘Ashtart or similar goddesses by two, tall, upright feathers in her headdress.
The temple of Ba‘al Gebal in Byblos was built around 2700 BC
27th century BC
The 27th century BC is a century which lasted from the year 2700 BC to 2601 BC.-Events:*2900 BC – 2334 BC: Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period.*2775 BC – 2650 BC: Second Dynasty wars in Egypt....
. Dedications from Egyptians begin appearing from the 2nd to 6th dynasties. Two of them equate Ba‘alat Gebal with the Egyptian goddess Hathor
Hathor
Hathor , is an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of love, beauty, music, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
.