Temple of Atargatis

The Temple of Atargatis in Dura-Europos was one of the main temples of the city. The temple was built in the first century AD, when the city was under Parthian rule, and excavated in 1928–1929 under the direction of Maurice Pillet.[1] The temple is located south of the center (referred to by the excavators as the agora) of the city and occupies the northeastern part of the H2 block. The cult building is close to the temple of Artemis Azzanathkona. A relief from the sanctuary of the temple shows the goddess Atargatis, with lions by both sides, accompanied by her husband Hadad. A cult standard is depicted between the two deities, above the lion on the left. It is perhaps the main cult image in the temple. The temple has a courtyard with a monumental entrance and three sanctuaries on the back wall as well as a pronaos in front of it. Atargatis was the mother of Adonis. Hadad and Adonis could also be worshipped here.[2] There were also remains of wall paintings. There are various rooms around the courtyard, some of them with benches along the walls. Some of these rooms could have served as chapels for other deities, while other rooms were dining rooms for the cult community.

Dura-Europos general excavations plan, Temple of Atargatis is marked as H2
Relief from the Temple of Atargatis

The Temple used to share a wall with the building occupying the Southeast corner of block H2, which is believed to have been the living space for the Priests. These speculations have resulted in the adjoining building being named the House of Priests. The alley that runs between the Temple and the House is believed to have supported an upper floor connecting the two buildings, and a barricaded doorway has been found between the two buildings, implying that the residents were affiliated with the Temple.[3]

Various inscriptions by ancient visitors tell of the people who visited the sanctuary; the temple was frequented by people from Hatra. A visitor's inscription in Hatran (an Aramaic language) is addressed to the god of the city of Hatra named Šamaš.[4] Otherwise, a striking number of inscriptions in the temple, some of which were scratched into the walls, were made by women. There is an inscription from the first half of the first century AD that mentions the consecration of a chapel. A number of other inscriptions date from AD 69. Some of the women named in the inscriptions appear to have come from the family of the governors of Dura-Europos. One woman was the granddaughter of the governor Lysias, another woman the wife of the governor Seleucus.[5]

In the walls of the temple there was a cuneiform tablet with old Babylonian script, which names the place Da-wa-ra. This can be an old name for Dura.[6]

References
  1. Baird, Jennifer A. (2018). Dura-Europos. London, UK: Bloomsbury Academic. pp. 10, 23. ISBN 978-1-4725-2211-5.
  2. Sommer, Michael (2005). Roms orientalische Steppengrenze : Palmyra, Edessa, Dura-Europos, Hatra : eine Kulturgeschichte von Pompeius bis Diocletian. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner. pp. 279–280. ISBN 3-515-08724-9.
  3. Baur, P. V. C (1932). The Excavations at Dura-Europos (Preliminary Report of Third Season of Work November 1929-March 1930 ed.). Yale University Press. pp. 25–39.
  4. Lucindau Dirvin (2011). "Strangers and Sojournes: The religious beahvior of Palemyrenbes and Others Foreigners in Dura-Euopos". In Brody, Lisa R.; Hoffman, Gail L. (eds.). Dura-Europos : crossroads of antiquity. Chestnut Hill, Mass.: McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College. p. 204. ISBN 978-1-892850-16-4.
  5. Jean-Baptiste Yon (2016). "Women and the Religious Life of Dura-Europos". In Kaizer, Ted (ed.). Religion, society and culture at Dura-Europos. Cambridge: Yale Classical Studies. pp. 103, 110. ISBN 978-1-107-12379-3.
  6. Baird, Jennifer A. (2018). Dura-Europos. London, UK: Bloomsbury Academic. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-4725-2211-5.

34.746918°N 40.73105°E / 34.746918; 40.73105

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