Statue Find 'A Revelation' (Phoenician 'Baal Addir')

Australian News.com ^ | 8-7-2002

[blam]

Statue find 'a revelation'

From correspondents in Rome
August 07, 2002

A HUMAN-size statue of Baal Addir, the Phoenician god of the dead, has been found in an ancient tomb in southern Sardinia.

The statue was found in a burial site used by the ancient people of Carthage, who held the southern Mediterranean island after the Punic Wars against the Romans in the third century BC.

Italy's national research centre today said the discovery of the red-and-black statue pointed to the large presence of Carthaginians on the island from 510 to 238 BC.

They had apparently used the statue to ward off demons.

"The discovery is an exceptional revelation because few examples of Phoenician and Punic statues exist and are often in a bad state of conservation," the centre said.

Archaeologists also found an Egyptian-style polychrome relief near the tomb's entrance which dates to before 425 BC, the centre said

[Dr. Thorne]

Um... this site is called FreeRepublic.com.

I think you're looking for FreeArchaeology.com.

[an amused spectator]

You'll find that many Freepers are avid historians. blam keeps us abreast of many ancient historical news pieces so that we are free to concentrate a majority of our time on our political activities.

Thanks, blam!

[JennysCool]

Good God, man! I get ALL my archaeology news here on FR. Why don't you go to a forum called NarrowMind.com and let us enjoy in peace.

[blam]

FYI.

[SurferDoc]

Great post, blam. And a bump for broadening of interest.

[RightWhale]

FreeArchaeology.com

We can gain some understanding of our present situation in this Republic by learning some more about our history, and the Punic Wars are part of our heritage. For that mattter, everything in every galaxy back to the creation of the universe is fair game. Wobbling muons and virtual particle dark matter and all.

[APBaer]

Thank you Blam.
I always enjoy your informative posts of
articles that I would not otherwise see.

[LostTribe]

Another good one, Blam. Keep up the good work!

[Constitution Day]

Interesting article (as usual).
Anyone who doesn't like it can ignore it, or suck eggs.

[3AngelaD]

More, more, more archeology, please. Anything mezoamerican?
You don't know where you're going unless you know from whence you came.

[SauronOfMordor]

Any pictures?

[JudyB1938]

I am a Christian, so I really get upset when I see self-avowed "Christians" at FReeRepublic who delight in trouble-making. You are to show your light, not your hatefulness.

I am 64 years old, but I still get upset at old codgers who think they know it all and can dictate to the world.

HINT: One of the main rules at FreeRepublic is this:

IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE TOPIC/SUBJECT,
DON'T CLICK ON THE THREAD.

DUHHH.

[irish guard]

>>>>>>>>>>>Any pictures?<<<<<<<<<<

It would be nice, we could send one to Bily Jeff and he could drool over it, just like when he went ga ga over that mummy.

I am so happy he is no longer president.

[r9etb]

"Carthage must be destroyed!" -- Cato the Elder

Not trying to make a point -- the phrase has just been stuck in my head for a few days...

[gcruse]

Great article, blam. Thanks for posting it.

[JudyB1938]

I tried to find a picture, but couldn't. However, I did come across these interesting sites.

Gods of Darkness (long list)

Middle Eastern Gods by Function (listed by category)

Baal-Addir
The Phoenician god of fertility and the underworld. He is the patron deity of the city-state Byblos (near Beirut) and from there his cult spread all the way to Carthage. The Roman troops stationed in North Africa called him Jupiter Valens.

A good overview in how the Baal gods related to the Israeli God
Our canonical documents, particularly the books of the Former and the Latter Prophets, level an extensive polemic against Israelite devotion to "Baal" (ba`al), or "the baal" (hab-ba`al) or "the baals" (hab-be`alim), among other gods imagined to be subordinate or even alien to the state god, Yhwh -- the host of heaven, the Asherah/Asherim, the Ashtoret/Ashtarot, the Queen of Heaven, to name a few. Modern scholars, for the most part, have taken the Biblical testimony at its word. They thus understand the cults of such gods as imports either from the nations Israel had defeated in Canaan (as Judg 1:1- 3:5) or from the nations "around" Israel (as Spieckermann 1982:201-211): astral worship (the host of heaven, the Queen of Heaven), for example, is sometimes ascribed to Assyrian influence (see Stahelin 1843:85-86; Spieckermann 1982:215-225; Lemaire 1986:228; contrast Kaufmann 1956:3/2:389- 90); in origin, the gods were those of foreigners. [continued at website]

[tpaine]

Dr. Thorne, you signed up 1998-10-12, and say:

"I am a retired opera singer and actor who likes to stay within the realm of the Republican Party in it's conservative wing. My political leanings are informed by my Christian walk above all else. The inerrant Word of God supersedes all other documents and I will adhere to God's Law above the laws of men. Although I believe our society is in decline, I rejoice because I know that my Redeemer liveth!"

-- Doc, - I believe that one of the many reasons our society is in decline is due to the fact that far too many people ignore our constitution, [the law of men in this country], -- in favor of their own vision of what the 'rules' should be.

Any comment?

[Delbert]

Sounds like that statue they dug up in The Exorcist. Phoenicians Gods of the dead are better left buried otherwise "some heads are gonna spin." : )

[techcor]

Sounds like that statue they dug up in The Exorcist

Now that's scary. I was thinking the same thing.