Bodashtart was a prolific builder, and his name is attested on some 30eponymous inscriptions found at theTemple of Eshmun and elsewhere in thehinterland of the city of Sidon inLebanon. The earliest discovered of Bodashtart's inscriptions was excavated in Sidon in 1858 and was donated to theLouvre. This inscription dates back to the first year of Bodashtart's accession to the throne of Sidon and commemorates the building of a temple to the goddess Astarte. The Temple of Eshmunpodium inscriptions were discovered between 1900 and 1922 and are classified into two groups. The inscriptions of the first group, known asKAI 15, commemorate building activities in the temple and attribute the work to Bodashtart. The second group of inscriptions, known as KAI 16, were found on podium restoration blocks; they credit Bodashtart and his son Yatonmilk with the construction project and emphasise Yatonmilk's legitimacy as heir. The most recently discovered inscription as of 2020 was found in the 1970s on the bank of theBostrenos River, not far from the Temple of Eshmun. The inscription credits the King with the building ofwater canals to supply the temple in the seventh year of his reign.
Three of Bodashtart's Eshmun temple inscriptions have been left in place; the others are housed in museums inParis,Istanbul, andBeirut. Bodashtart is believed to have reigned for at least seven years, as evidenced by the Bostrenos River bank inscription. Little is known about his reign other than what has been learned from his dedicatory inscriptions.
The nameBodashtart is theRomanized form of thePhoenician𐤁𐤃𐤏𐤔𐤕𐤓𐤕, meaning "from the hand ofAstarte".[1] Spellings of the King's name include:Bdʿštrt,[2]Bad-ʿAštart,[3]Bodʿashtart,[4]Bodʿastart,[5]Bodaštart,[6]Bodʿaštort,[7]Bodachtart,[8] andBodashtort.[9]
The absolute chronology of thekings of Sidon from the dynasty of Eshmunazar I has been much discussed in the literature; traditionally placed in the course of the fifth century BC, inscriptions of this dynasty have been dated back to an earlier period on the basis ofnumismatic, historical, and archaeological evidence. A comprehensive examination of the dates of the reigns of these Sidonian kings has been presented by the French historianJosette Elayi who shifted away from the use ofbiblical chronology. Elayi used all the available documentation of the time and included inscribedTyrianseals andstamps excavated by the Lebanese archaeologistMaurice Chehab in 1972 from Jal el-Bahr, a neighbourhood in the north of Tyre,[10][11][12][13][14] Phoenician inscriptions discovered by the French archaeologistMaurice Dunand in Sidon in 1965,[15] and the systematic study of Sidonian coins, which were the first dated coins in antiquity, bearingminting dates corresponding to the specific years of the reigns of the Sidonian kings.[11][16] Elayi placed the reigns of the descendants of Eshmunazar I between the middle and the end of the sixth century; according to her work, Bodashtart reigned fromc.525 BC toc.515 BC.[17][18][19]
Two bronze fragments from anAssyrian palace gate depicting the collection oftribute from the Phoenician cities ofTyre andSidon (859–824 BC).British Museum.
Sidon, which was a flourishing and independentPhoeniciancity-state, came underMesopotamian occupation in the ninth century BC. TheAssyrian kingAshurnasirpal II (883–859 BC) conqueredthe Lebanon mountain range and its coastal cities, including Sidon.[20] In 705, KingLuli joined forces with theEgyptians andJudah in an unsuccessful rebellion against Assyrian rule,[21][22] but was forced to flee toKition with the arrival of the Assyrian army headed bySennacherib. Sennacherib instated Ittobaal on the throne of Sidon and reimposed the annualtribute.[23] WhenAbdi-Milkutti ascended to Sidon's throne in 680 BC, he also rebelled against the Assyrians. In response, the Assyrian kingEsarhaddon captured and beheaded Abdi-Milkutti in 677 BC after a three-year siege; Sidon was stripped of its territory, which was awarded toBaal I, the king of rivalTyre, and loyalvassal of Esarhaddon.[24]
Sidon returned to its former level of prosperity while Tyre was besieged for 13 years (586–573 BC) by theChaldean kingNebuchadnezzar II.[25] After theAchaemenid conquest in 539 BC, Phoenicia was divided into four vassal kingdoms: Sidon, Tyre,Byblos andArwad.[26][27] Eshmunazar I, a priest of Astarte and the founder of his namesake dynasty, became King of Sidon around the time of the Achaemenid conquest of theLevant.[28] During the first phase of Achaemenid rule, Sidon flourished and reclaimed its former standing as Phoenicia's chief city, and the Sidonian kings began an extensive program of mass-scale construction projects, as attested in theSarcophagus of Eshmunazar II and Bodashtart inscriptions.[28][29][30]
The ashlar podium at theTemple of Eshmun, Bustan el-Sheikh (near Sidon)
Bodashtart was a prolific builder who carved hiseponymous inscriptions found at theTemple of Eshmun and elsewhere in thehinterland of the city of Sidon inLebanon. The earliest discovered of the inscriptions, known today as CIS I 4, was found during excavations in Sidon in 1858. It was donated by French archaeologistMelchior de Vogüé to theLouvre where it is housed today.[31][32] The interpretation of inscription CIS I 4 is still a matter of debate; some scholars construe the text as a commemoration of building a temple to Astarte during the first year of Bodashtart's reign, while others posit that the text records the dedication of theSharon plain to the temple of said goddess.[note 1][29][34][33]The Sidonian king carried out an extensive expansion and restoration project of the Temple of Eshmun, where he left some 30 dedicatoryPhoenician inscriptions at the temple site that are divided into two groups belonging to two construction phases.[35][36] The first phase of the construction project involved adding a secondpodium at the base of the temple.[35] During this construction phase, a first group of inscriptions (known asKAI 15) were carved on the added podium's foundation stones. These inscriptions commemorate the construction project and attribute the work to Bodashtart alone.[29][37] The second set of inscriptions (KAI 16) was placed onashlar restoration stones. The KAI 16 inscriptions mention Bodashtart and his son Yatonmilk, emphasize the latter's legitimacy as heir,[note 2][29][37] and assign him a share of credit for the construction project.[9][38][19] Yatonmilk is believed to have succeeded Bodashtart to the throne of Sidon as is inferred from the Bodashtart inscriptions. There is no further extant literary or archaeological evidence left by Yatonmilk himself.[39]
Phoenician inscription of King Bodashtart found on the Temple ofEshmun's podium. Bustan el-Sheikh,Sidon, 6th century BC.[38] It belongs to theKAI 16 group of Bodashtart inscriptions that mention both the King and his heir Yatonmilk.
According to the American archaeologist and historianCharles Torrey and the Polish biblical scholarJózef Milik, the Bodashtart's KAI 15 inscriptions commemorate the building of theEshmun temple and indicate the names of the quarters and territories of the Kingdom of Sidon.[note 3][7][41] Torrey interpreted the inscription thus: "The king, Bad-ʿAštart, king of the Sidonians, grandson of king ʾEšmunazar, king of the Sidonians; reigning in [or ruling over] Sidon-on-the-Sea, High-Heavens, [and]Rešep District, belonging to Sidon; who built this house like the eyrie of an eagle; (he) built it for his god Ešmun, the Holy Lord [Prince]."[3][42][note 4]
The KAI 16 Bodashtart inscriptions read: "King BDʿŠTRT and thelegitimate (ṣdq) son, YTNMLK, King of the Sidonians, grandson of King Eshmunazor, King of the Sidonians, built this temple for the god ʾEšmun, the holy prince".[2][45][46] Another translation reads: "King Bodashtart, and his pious son (or legitimate successor), Yatonmilk, king of the Sidonians, descendants (bn bn) of King Eshmunazar, king of the Sidonians, this house he built to his god, to Eshmun, lord/god of the sanctuary".[47]
Anotherin situ inscription was recorded in the 1970s by Maurice Chéhab on theBostrenos River bank 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) upstream from the Temple of Eshmun. The inscription credits Bodashtart with the building water installations to supply the temple and dates the work to the seventhyear of his reign, which indicates that he ruled for at least this length of time.[note 5][29][49][50][12]
Apart from inscriptions detailing Bodashtart's building activity, little is known about his reign.[29]
Bodashtart was a descendant of Eshmunazar I's dynasty. Eshmunazar's heir was his sonTabnit, who fathered Eshmunazar II from his sisterAmoashtart. Tabnit died before the birth of Eshmunazar II, and Amoashtart ruled in the interlude until the birth of her son, then wasco-regent until he reached adulthood. Bodashtart was the nephew of Tabnit and Amoashtart and acceded to the throne after the death of Eshmunazar II at the young age of fourteen.[35][51][52] Some scholars misidentified Yatonmilk as the father of Bodashtart;[53] this was successfully contested by laterepigraphists.[54][55][46]
^1." Au mois de MP' dans l'année de son accession2. à la royauté (lit. de son devenir roi), du roi Bod'ashtart3. roi de Sidon, voici que le roi Bod'ashtart4. roi de Sidon construisit ce SRN du pays5. de la mer pour sa divinité Astarté ".In English: 1.'In the month of MP' in the year of his accession2. to royalty (lit. of his becoming king), of King bod'ashtart3. King of Sidon, behold, King bod'ashtart4. King of Sidon built this SRN of the land5. of the sea for his deity Astarte ".[33]
^Yatonmilk is referred to by Bodashtart as BN ṢDQ, meaning "true son" or "pious son".[35]
^mlk bdʿštrt mlk ṣdnm bn bn mlk ʾšmnʿzr mlk ṣdnm bṣdn ym šmm rmm ʾrṣ ršpm ṣdn mšl ʾš bn wṣdn šd ʾyt hbt z bn lʾly lʾšmn šd qdš Je traduirais ce texte difficile de la façon suivante; j'ajoute des explications entre parenthèses: "Le roi Bodʿaštort, roi des Sidoniens, petit-fils du roi Esmunʿazor, roi des Sidoniens, (qui règne, ou: qui habitent) dans la Sidon maritime (c.-à-d. dans la plaine côtière, avec ses zones ou quartiers du) Ciel-Haut, Terre-des-Rešafim, Sidon (de résidence, ou: de propriété) Royale, (les quartiers) qui en font partie, ainsi que dans la Sidon continentale (à savoir, dans le territoire de montagne, qui allait jusqu'à l' Anti-Liban et la vallée du Jourdain) – ce temple-ci, il (l') a construit à son dieu Eshmun du Territoire Saint".[7]
^Cf.: Eiselen 1907,[43] and Münnich 2013,[44] for other KAI 15 translations.
^"1.... dans l’année sept de son règne (litt. de son être roi) le roi Bod'ashtart2. roi de Sidon petit-fils du roi Eshmun‘azor roi de Sidon /(3a)qui avait construit/ dans Sidon de la Mer,3. Cieux élevés, Pays des Resheps, en outre, à Sidon des Champs voici qu'il construisit et fit le roi Bod'ashtart roi de Sidon ce/le (?)... "In english: "1.... in year seven of his reign (litt. of his being king) King Bod'ashtart2. King of Sidon grandson of King Eshmun'azor King of Sidon / (3a) who had built / in Sidon of the Sea,3. High heavens, Land of the Resheps, moreover, in Sidon of the fields behold, he built and made the King bod'ashtart King of Sidon this / the (?)... "[48]
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Chéhab, Maurice (1983). "Découvertes phéniciennes au Liban" [Phoenician discoveries in Lebanon].Atti del I congresso internazionale di studi Fenici e Punici [Proceedings of the first International Congress of Phoenician and Punic studies] (in French).
Dunand, Maurice (1965). "Nouvelles inscriptions phéniciennes du temple d'Echmoun, près Sidon" [New Phoenician inscriptions from the temple of Echmoun, near Sidon].Bulletin du Musée de Beyrouth (in French).18. Ministère de la Culture – Direction Générale des Antiquités (Liban):105–109.
Kaoukabani, Ibrahim (2005)."Les estampilles phénicienne de Tyr" [The Phoenician stamps of Tyre](PDF).Archaeology & History in the Lebanon (in French) (21). AHL:3–79.
Xella, Paolo; López, José-Ángel Zamora (2005b). "Nouveaux documents phéniciens du sanctuaire d'Eshmoun à Bustan esh-Sheikh (Sidon)" [New Phoenician documents from the sanctuary of Eshmun in Bustan esh-Sheikh (Sidon)]. In Arruda, A. M. (ed.).Atti del VI congresso internazionale di studi Fenici e Punici [Proceedings of the 6th International Congress of Phoenician and Punic studies] (in French). Lisbon: Gregorian Biblical Press. pp. 100–114.
Zamora, José-Ángel (2016). "Autres rois, autre temple: la dynastie d'Eshmounazor et le sanctuaire extra-urbain de Eshmoun à Sidon" [Other kings, other temple: the dynasty of Eshmunazor and the extra-urban sanctuary of Eshmun in Sidon]. In Russo Tagliente, Alfonsina; Guarneri, Francesca (eds.).Santuari mediterranei tra Oriente e Occidente : interazioni e contatti culturali : atti del Convegno internazionale, Civitavecchia – Roma 2014 [Mediterranean sanctuaries between East and West: interactions and cultural contacts: Proceedings of the International Conference, Civitavecchia–Rome 2014](PDF) (in French). Rome: Scienze e lettere. pp. 253–262.ISBN9788866870975.
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