cults of isis and kore

7/24/2019 Cults of Isis and Kore

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JO D I M A G N E S S 159

H TR 94:2 (2001) 159 -79

The Cults of Isis and Kore at Samaria-Sebaste in the Hellenistic and Roman

Periods

Jodi MagnessTufts University

The existence of a cult of Kore at Samaria-Sebaste in the Roman period is attestedby inscriptions, a statue of the goddess, depictions of her on the citys coins, andthe remains of a third century temple building. A Ptolemaic period dedicatoryinscription to Sarapis and Isis found in the vicinity of the Kore temples founda-tions suggests that a Hellenistic shrine or temple to these Egyptian deities oncestood in this area. In this paper, I reexamine the archaeological, numismatic, andepigraphic evidence for these cults at Samaria-Sebaste in the Hellenistic and Ro-man periods. I conclude that the cult of Isis and Sarapis was established at Samariain the Hellenistic period.1It was centered around a shrine or temple located on aterrace north of the acropolis. This structure may have been rebuilt in the Gabinianperiod (mid-first century B.C.E.). After 30 B.C.E., Herod the Great erected a newtemple on this spot, which he dedicated to the goddess Kore, the Greco-Romanequivalent of Isis. The architectural elements associated with the Hellenistic shrine

1I am grateful to Kenneth G. Holum, Peter Richardson, and Hanan Eshel for their adviceand comments on portions of this paper. I ass ume sole responsibility for its contents. I would

like to thank the Palestine Exploration Fund for their permiss ion to reproduce the illustrationsin Figures 13.


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160 HA RVAR D TH EO LOG IC AL REVIEW

of Isis and Herods temple of Kore were incorporated in the foundations of a thirdcentury C.E. temple of Kore, which was the last in the series of cultic buildingsconstructed on this spot.

The Temple of KoreThe 193135 Harvard University excavations at Samaria-Sebaste, directed by JohnW. Crowfoot, revealed the remains of a third century C.E. temple of Kore.2Thetemple was located on a terrace now called Karm el-Tuteh (Arabic for the mul-berry orchard; the excavations Area T), below and to the north of Samariasacropolis (see Fig. 1, no. 8). It sat in the middle of the western part of a walledtemenos. The building measured about 36 meters long and 15.5 meters wide, andwas divided internally into a small eastern room or porch (probably a pronaos) and

a longer western room (apparently the naos or cella). Only the foundations of thetemple, which were carried down to bedrock, have survived. On the east and souththe bedrock lies close to the modern surface, but on the north and west it is verydeep.3A large number of reused stones and architectural elements were built intothe west side of the foundations, especially at the northwest corner. The stones thatmade up the faces of these walls had Herodian style comb-dressed margins andchiseled bosses, with the plaster from the original building still adhering to many.The fill of the stylobate yielded five Ionic capitals, several bases, column drums,cornice blocks, two stones decorated with the caps of the Dioscuri, and a numberof crenellated stones.4Another stone, carved in relief with a double-ax, was foundin a cistern to the south of the temple.5The foundations of a small building just tothe east of the temple contained a reused pilaster base, column drums, Ionic capi-

tals, and other architectural elements.6

Finally, a Greek dedicatory inscription toIsis and Sarapis was found near a channel cut into the bedrock in the vicinity of thesmall building, to the northeast of the temple of Kore.7

These reused building stones and architectural elements presumably originatedin one or more earlier buildings that stood in the vicinity of the temple of Kore.The Greek inscription provides the only definite piece of evidence for the cult ofIsis and Sarapis at Samaria. It is carefully carved on a large slab of black limestone

2The final publications of the Harvard excavations at Samaria cited in this paper a re: JohnW. Crowfoot, Kathleen M. Kenyon, and Eleazar L. Sukenik, The Buildings at Samaria(Lon-don: Palestine Exploration Fund, 1942); John W. Crowfoot, Grace M. Crowfoot, and KathleenM. Kenyon, The Objects from Samaria(London: Palestine Exploration Fund, 1957).

3Eleazar L. Sukenik, Temple of the Kore, in Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik,Bui ldings

at Samaria, 62.4Ibid., 6466.5Ibid., 64 (cistern no. 3).6Ibid., 6465.7Ibid., 65.


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and reads, Hegesandros, Xenarchis and their children to Sarapis Isis.8

The exca-vators suggested that it came from a Ptolemaic temple to Sarapis and Isis, whichstood in Area T.9The only other objects described as being made of the same blacklimestone are two fragments of a rosette from an unspecified location in Area T.10

Hellenistic and early Roman period ceramic bowls stamped with Isis crowns orheaddresses from the Samaria excavations provide additional, indirect evidencefor the existence of this cult.11

The rest of the reused architectural fragments and building stones from Area Tcan be divided into two groups on the basis of the type of stone. The majority are ofhard, grey limestone. They include the two blocks carved in high relief, with theconical caps of the Dioscuri wreathed with laurel and crowned with eight-pointedstars (see Fig. 2:2). Each is about a half a meter high.12The large Ionic capitals aremade of hard limestone covered with stucco, as are the Attic bases. The cornicemouldings of hard limestone are described as having a fascia or fillet and a cymatium.Finally, the reused, stuccoed, Herodian style building stones are apparently made ofthis same hard limestone.13A smaller number of reused architectural elements aremade of soft limestone. These include sixteen crenellated stones, including a fewhalf blocks from corners, which were covered with a thick coat of stucco painted invarious shades of yellow, green, pink, red, and brown (see Fig. 2:1).14Anothercrenellated stone was found built into the walls of a fourth century Roman house onthe summit east of the Augusteum court.15Although these stones could have comefrom a building on the acropolis,16their concentration in Area T suggests that theyoriginated here. Other reused architectural fragments of soft limestone from Area Tinclude cornice mouldings with a narrow fascia and a plain cavetto (that is, an Egyp-tian cavetto), and the block from the cistern that was carved in relief with a double-ax.

The last was comb-picked all over as if to receive a coat of stucco (see Fig. 2:3).17

8Silva Lake, Greco-Roman Inscriptions, in Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Kenyon, Objectsfrom Samaria,37; Pl. V:1.

9Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Kenyon, Objects from Samaria, 4.10Sukenik, Temple of the Kore, 66.11Grace M. Crowfoot, Terra Sigillata General List, in Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Kenyon,

Objects from Samaria, 31724. The fact that 14 of the 37 examples of these stamps cited byCrowfoot come from Samaria (Antioch, with 11 specimens, was in second place) hints at thepopularity of the cult of Isis at the site. Crowfoot sugges ted that these symbols were stampe don the pottery as signs of good omen.

12Sukenik, Temple of the Kore, 66; Pl. LX:2.13Ibid., 64, 66; Fig. 31.

14Ibid., 65; Pl. LX:1.15Kathleen M. Kenyon, The Summit Buildings and Constructions, in Crowfoot, Kenyon,and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria , 137.

16Suggested in Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria, 34.17Ibid., 66; for the block with the double-ax see Pl. LX:3.


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The fact that two types of limestone are represented, as well as the fact that thecornice mouldings differ in profile according to the type of limestone used, suggestthat these reused stones originated in at least two different buildings which precededthe temple of Kore in Area T. Before examining the nature and date of these earlierbuildings, it is necessary to review the evidence for the cult of Kore in the stadium.

The StadiumSamaria-Sebastes stadium is located in a depression at the foot of the northernslope of the city (see Fig. 1, no. 22). It was enclosed within Herods city wall,which stood at its north end. The stadium consisted of a large rectangular enclo-sure with a peristyle encircling the arena. The excavators distinguished two mainphases in the stadiums history. During the first phase, the columns were in the

Doric order. The columns and the walls behind them were made of soft limestonecovered with a thick coat of painted plaster. Large panels painted in red and yel-low were preserved on the west wall. They were scored with crude figures andinscriptions, some referring to the matches that took place in the arena. Becausethe stadium was enclosed within Herods city wall, the excavators assumed that itdid not antedate Herods time, although they could not ascertain its exact date. Atthe end of the second century C.E., the stadium was rebuilt along somewhat differ-ent lines, with a peristyle of Corinthian columns.18

Evidence for the cult of Kore was found relating to both phases of the stadium.It includes a number of Greek graffiti and dipinti on the painted plaster of theearlier Doric stadium. One reads, May the learned master Martialis and his friendsbe remembered by the Kore, and another says, To Pomponius Rufus,hieroktistes

(the founder of the shrine or rites).19

A small statue of Kore that was broken intopieces was associated with the second phase of the stadium. The head and part ofthe torch were found in a cistern against the western enclosure wall, while otherfragments came from the stadiums west side. Kore is veiled and holds a torch inher right hand; a pomegranate and ears of wheat in her left hand (see Fig. 3). Theexcavators dated the statue to the second century C.E., noting that Kore is depictedin a similar pose and with the same attributes on coins of Sebaste minted duringthe reign of Commodus.20The same cistern yielded a marble fragment with an

18Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria , 4144.19Lake, Greco-Roman Inscriptions, 41, nos. 4748.20Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria , 48; John W. Crowfoot, Sculp-

tural Work, in Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Ke nyon, Objects from Samaria, 73; Pl. VIII:1. Forthe depiction of Kore on the city coins of Samaria-Sebaste, see Ya`a kov Meshorer, City-Coinsof Eretz-Israel and the Decapolis in the Roman Period(Jerusalem: Israel Museum, 1985) 4445; idem, The Cista Mystica and Worship of Kore-Persephone at Samaria, Ere tz- Israel 15(1981) 35657 (Hebrew).


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acclamation painted in red letters that reads: One god/ of all/ the ruler/ greatKore/ the invincible.21Two more fragmentary marble statues were found in thiscistern: one is the nude body of a youthful Dionysos and the other is a headlessdraped female figure that the excavators identified tentatively as Demeter.22 Amarble statuette of Apollo, whose pose recalls that of Praxiteless ApolloSauroktonos, was found to the west of the temple of Kore after the end of theexcavations. The rough treatment of its back surface suggests that it stood in aniche.23Other finds from the stadium relating to the cult of Kore include an altarfrom the middle of the arena dating to the third century C.E. bearing the inscrip-tion, Calpurnianus, son of Gaianus, high priest to the Lady Kore.24Three morealtars were found in the arena; two are uninscribed and the third bears an illegibleinscription.25The excavators noted that all of the names mentioned in these in-

scriptions are transliterations of Latin, reflecting the fact that at least part of thepopulation was composed of Roman military veterans. The oldest reference toKore appears to be the inscription referring to the learned master Martialis, whichwas inscribed on the wall of the Doric stadium and is dated on the basis of letterstyles to between 50150 C.E. The dipinto referring to Pomponius Rufus,hieroktistes was located nearby.26The evidence from the stadium indicates thatthe cult of Kore was established at Samaria-Sebaste by the first to second centuriesC.E. The inscriptions, statue, and the goddesss depiction on the citys coins attestto the popularity of this cult among the citys population during the second andthird centuries. Who was Kore, and how does her cult relate to that of Isis and theother cultic symbols found at Samaria-Sebaste?

The Cults and Cultic Symbols at Samaria-SebasteIsis was an ancient Egyptian goddess who represented life. According to mythol-ogy, she restored life annually to her brother-husband Osiris, the god of the Nileriver, who in turn inundated the land, renewing its fertility.27In the Greco-Romanworld, Isis became a universalized goddess, worshiped as a dispenser of life, pro-

21Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria, 48; Lake, Greco-Roman In-scriptions, 37, no. 12; David Flusser, The Great Goddess of Samaria, Israel Exploration

Journal25 (1975) 1320.22Crowfoot, Sculptural Work, 7374; Pls. VIII:23; IX:23; Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and

Kenyon, Objects from Samaria, 7.23Crowfoot, Sculptural Work, 74; Pl. X.24Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria, 48; Lake, Greco-Roman In-

scriptions, 36, no. 9.25Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria , 48.26Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Kenyon, Objects from Samaria, 6.27Sharon K. Heyob, The Cult of Isis Among Women in the Graeco-Roman World(Leiden:

Brill, 1975) 1.


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tector, healer, deliverer, and mistress of the universe.28

Although originally con-nected with Osiris, in the Hellenistic period Isis quickly became associated withSarapis, who was worshiped with her as supreme lord. Sarapis, who was also ofEgyptian origin, derived his name and character from Osiris-Apis, the deified bullor series of bulls from Memphis.29Isis and Sarapis became inseparable in the Greco-Roman world, and their cult was spread quickly and widely by merchants,mercenaries, travelers, sailors, and priests.30Because Isis was worshiped as a sav-ior and protector of sailors, by the Hellenistic period she was sometimes associatedwith the Dioscuri, as was Demeter.31The Dioscuri (Castor and Pollux) were thesons of Zeus, as well as the sons of Tyndareos and the brothers of Helen. Theyshared immortality by living half their lives below ground and the other half on topof Olympus. They were worshiped as savior gods by soldiers and sailors.32AsIsiss agents, the Dioscuri were responsible for the deliverance of sailors.33Theirattributes included pointed conical caps calledpiloi, often depicted with a starabove.34These ovoid caps symbolized the two hemispheres of the world, alludingto the cosmic egg whose two halves corresponded to the heavens and the earth.Because of their association with death and immortality, the Dioscuri, like Demeterand Kore, were associated with cyclical renewal.35

By the fifth century B.C.E., Isis had been assimilated with the Greek goddessDemeter, as indicated by Herodotuss statement that Demeter is Isis in Egyptian.36

Persephone, or Kore, was Demeters daughter by Zeus. She was also the wife ofHades and was queen of the underworld. According to mythology, Persephonewas carried off to the underworld by her uncle, Hades. When Demeter causedcrops to fail because she could not find her daughter, Zeus had Hermes persuadeHades to release Persephone. Before releasing her, however, Hades had Persephone

28Isis, The Oxford Classical Dictionary, (ed. Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth;New York: Oxford University Press, 1996) 768.

29Heyob, Cult of Isis, 3.30Ibid., 810.31Robert Turcan, The Cults of the Roman Empire(Cambridge: Harvard University, 1996)

25; Fernand Chapouthier,Les Dioscures au serv ice dune d esse(Paris: E. de Boccard, 1935)17, 24862.

32Dioscuri, Oxford Classical Dictionary, Hornblower and Spawforth, 484.33Reginald E. Witt, Isi s in the Ancien t World(Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 1997) 126.34Dioscuri, Oxford Classical Dictionary, Hornblower and Spawforth, 484.35Turcan, Cults, 162. As the sister of the Dioscuri, Helen of Troy was some times associated

with Kore/Demeter, Isis, and Selene. S imon Magus (a native of Samaria) identified his wife,Helene, with Helen of Troy and Selene; see Flusser, The Great Goddess of Samaria, 19;

Louis-Hughes Vincent, Le culte dHlne Samarie, RB 45 (1936) 22732.36His tories 2.59; 156.5. Also see Flusser, The Great Goddes s, 14: Kore (maiden) is the

common designation of Persephone and an epithet of Isis, who might be identified with oneanother. . . . It has also been noted that the marble statue of Kore from Samaria resembles astatus of Isis from Delos.


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eat some pomegranate seeds, which meant that she had to continue to spend part ofeach year in the underworld.37By Roman times she was generally referred to asKore rather than Persephone.38This emphasizes her identity as Demeters daugh-ter, with whom she was often worshiped. Kore is usually represented as a youngwoman, with her attributes including a torch (to light the underworld), stalks ofgrain, and poppies.39Both Isis and Demeter were maternal goddesses associatedwith life, fertility, and crops, and both were protective deities of travelers on earthand to the underworld.40Like Kore, Isis was the wife of the king of the Dead.41

The double-ax has a long Anatolian ancestry, and is represented on cylinder sealsfrom ancient Syria in the hands of a storm god (a Baal). Thus, in the Near East thisattribute was associated with a celestial deity. The double-ax was also an attribute ofJupiter Dolichenus.42This cult, which originated at Doliche in Commagene, spreadthroughout the Roman empire by the second and third centuries. On Roman culticreliefs, Dolichenian Jupiter and Juno are often depicted with the sun and the moon,Isis and Sarapis, and the Dioscuri.43This means that the relief with a double-ax fromSamaria-Sebaste could refer to a local celestial Baal, or represents an attribute ofSarapis, perhaps identified with Jupiter or a Baal.44

37C. Sourvinou-Inwood, Persephone/Kore, OCD , 1142.38Persephone [Kult], PW19:969.39OCD , 1142; Walter Burkert, Anc ient Mys tery Cult s (Cambridge: Harvard University,

1987) 108. According to Carl Kerenyi, Eleusis (New York: Schocken, 1967) 142, the poppymight be a substitute for the mystic pomegranate.

40Witt, Isi s, 127.41Turcan, Cults, 79.42Ibid., 159.43Ibid., 161. The lower register of a relief from the Temple of Jupiter Dolichenus on the

Aventine in Rome shows Isis and Sarapis between Jupiter Dolichenus and Juno Dolichena. Inthe upper register the Dioscuri are represented between the sun and the moon. Two votivebronze tablets from Heddernheim in Germany also depict these de ities. On the first, the bustsof the sun and the moon are shown in the lower register, springing from the heads of theDioscuri. They flank Juno Dolichena, who has the attributes of Isis a nd is standing on a calf.Jupiter Dolichenus, holding a double-ax and a thunderbolt, stands on a bull in the middle ofthe tablet, with a bust of the sun god above. The second tablet shows the sun and moon godswith a bust of Sarapis on a globe above. Just as Juno Dolichena was identified with Isis in thefirst tablet, here Jupiter Dolichenus is identified with Sarapis. See Michael P. Speidel, The

Rel igion of Iuppite r Dolichenus in the Roman Army (Leiden: Brill, 1978) 2628; Pls. III, VIVII. Flusser, The Great Goddess, 1619, noted that just as Kore could be identified withIsis, Sarapis was sometimes identified with Zeus and Helios. He suggested that the epithetinvincible given to Kore in the Samaria a cclamation indicates that the author also identifiedher with Selene, the moon goddessthe companion of Sarapis/Zeus/Helios. Flusser con-

cluded that the hierophant from Samaria thought that He lios and the great Kore representedtwo aspects or manifestations of one god, the lord of the universe, 18.

44See Turcan, Cults, 161: This representation implies the similarity of Sarapis andJupiter; also see 192. Since the relief from Samaria-Sebaste apparently antedates the thirdcentury (and might even antedate the Herodian period), it is probably not associated with


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Since Sarapis shared with Isis the task of curing the sick, he was also frequentlyidentified in the Greco-Roman world with Aesclepius or Apollo.45Because of this,votive feet were commonly offered to Sarapis.46As Herodotus attests, Osiris wasidentified early on with the Greek Dionysos.47 Dionysos was associated withDemeter and Kore in Greek mythology and through the Eleusinian Mysteries.48Insummary, representations of or references to the following deities are attested atSamaria-Sebaste: Isis=Kore and Demeter, and perhaps Selene and Helen;Sarapis=Apollo and a local Baal or Jupiter and perhaps Helios; the Dioscuri (whocould be associated with Isis and Demeter/Kore and Helen); and Dionysos=perhapsOsiris (who is not otherwise attested).

The only direct evidence for the cult of Isis and Sarapis at Samaria-Sebaste isthe Ptolemaic dedicatory inscription. The relief with the double-ax might refer toSarapis, while the Dioscuri, represented by the panels with the conical caps, couldbe associated with either Isis or Demeter. The bowls stamped with Isis crowns orheaddresses provide indirect evidence for her cult in the Hellenistic and early Ro-man periods. Although this evidence is slim, I believe, based on the followingconsiderations, that an earlier shrine or temple to Isis and Sarapis existed in thevicinity of the Roman temple of Kore.49

First, the reused architectural elements built into the foundations of the templeof Kore appear to have originated in at least two different buildings, one made ofsoft limestone and the other of hard, grey limestone. The hard limestone blocksapparently come from a temple of Herodian date (see below). Thus, the soft lime-stone blocks, which include the painted and stuccoed crenellations, and thedouble-ax, probably originated in a pre-Herodian structure. The two fragments ofa rosette made of black limestone could also be associated with this building.

Jupiter Dolichenus.45Witt, Isi s in the Anc ient World, 54, 192; also see Burkert, Anc ient Mys tery Cult s, 15;

Ramsay MacMullen, Paganism in the Roman Empire (New Haven: Yale University, 1981) 52.46Turcan, Cults, 109. Four right feet made of marble from a cultic vault in Herods

amphitheater at Caesarea Maritima are suggestive of a c ult of Sarapis; see Yosef Porath, TheCaesarea Excavation ProjectMarch 1992June 1994, Expedition of the Israel AntiquitiesAuthority,Excavations and Surveys in Israel 17 (1998) 41; Fig. 3. A dedicatory inscriptionto Zeus (Jupiter) Dolichenus on an unprovenienced altar attests to the existence of that cultat Caesarea in the second to third century; see Clayton M. Lehmann and Kenneth G. Holum,The Greek and Latin Inscriptions of Caesarea Maritima(Atlanta: Scholars Press, 2000), no.124; I am grateful to Professor Holum for providing this refere nce before it appeared in print.

47Burkert,Anc ient Mystery C ults , 6; see n. 26 for referenc es to Herodotus; Witt,Isi s, 125.48Kernyi, Eleusis, 140; idem, Dionysos (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1976)

11011; this was also noted by Crowfoot, Sculptural Work, 73.49I disagree with Franoise Dunand,Le culte dIsis dans le bassin orienta l de la Mditerrane(Leiden: Brill, 1973) 13233, who doubted that the cult of Isis became established at Helle-nistic Samaria.

50Yaakov Meshorer,Ancient Jewish Coinage,vol. 2: Herod the Great through Bar Cochba


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Second, the concentration of large numbers of these reused blocks in Area T,most of which appear to be intact, indicates that they came from buildings thatwere located in the immediate vicinity of the later temple of Kore. The carefulmanner in which they were incorporated into the foundations of the temple sug-gests a reverence on the part of the later builders for these pieces.

Third, the principle of continuity of cult suggests that the terrace on which thetemple of Kore stood was the site of earlier temples or shrines. The cult of Isis andSarapis was apparently established in the Hellenistic period. By the second cen-tury C.E., it had been replaced by the cult of Kore. The latter was so important atSebaste that Kore and her attributes were represented on the citys second andthird century coins. However, the numismatic evidence reviewed below indicatesthat this cult was established by the time of Herod the Great.

The Coins of Herod the GreatMost of the coins minted by Herod the Great consist of undated, low-value bronzedenominations. These are believed to have been struck in Jerusalem, and they aredecorated with symbols related to Jewish art and to the Temple, such as the cornuco-pia, table, wreath, and palm branch.50Herod, however, issued one series of datedbronze coins that was minted at Samaria-Sebaste. The association of these coinswith Samaria is indicated by the symbols they bear, and by the fact that they havebeen found in much greater numbers at Samaria than elsewhere.51On the obversethey are encircled by the inscription of Herod the King (HRODOU BASILEOS).All of the dated coins are inscribed with the Greek letters lambda gamma, meaningyear 3, and the monogram (which consists of the letters T and P, and is hence-

forth referred to as TP). The symbols are clearly pagan and Roman in character,unlike those on Herods undated coins. They consist of the following: the conicalcap of the Dioscuri with a star above, flanked by two palm branches (see Fig. 4); atripod; a shield; a winged caduceus; a pomegranate or poppy; an aphlaston; and alaurel branch tied with a fillet.52The dated coins are of much higher quality than theundated ones, and include some larger bronze denominations.53

The meaning of the TP monogram on these coins is disputed. Baruch Kanaelsuggested that the monogram TP represented the Greek word tritoi(etei) (in thethird year), and that it and the inscription year 3 refer to 37 B.C.E., three years

(New York: Amphora, 1982) 2223. His recent volume doe s not contain any new suggestionsregarding the coin types discussed here; see idem, A Treasury of Jew ish Coins From the

Persian Period to Bar-Kochba(Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi, 1997) (Hebrew).51Meshorer, Anc ient Jew ish Coinage , 1112.52Ibid., 18.53Ibid., 11.54Baruch Kanael, The Coins of King Herod of the Third Year, JQR 42 (195152) 261


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after Herod was appointed king of Judea by the Romans. Year 3 marks the datewhen Herod defeated Mattathias Antigonus and was able to start ruling the king-dom he was granted by the Romans. According to Kanael, the double reference toyear 3 in the form of a date and a monogram was intended to emphasize theimportance of this date in Herods reign.54Josef Meyshan argued that the mono-gram and date cannot say the same thing, and suggested instead that TP refers tothe minting authority of Tyre.55

Yaakov Meshorer noted that Jerusalem came under Herods control in 37B.C.E., which was four years (not three) after he received the title of king.56

Meshorer has therefore proposed that Herods dated coins were minted in 40 B.C.E.,three years after he was appointed tetrarch by Marc Antony in 42. Year 3 wouldthus mark Herods appointment to the kingship, which occurred in the third yearof his tetrarchy.57Meshorer has also suggested that the monogram TP representedthe Greek word tetrarches (TETRARXHS), which is encircled by his new titleof king (BASILEUS). According to Meshorer, Herod struck his year 3 coinsduring the entire period between 40 and 37 B.C.E., to commemorate his appoint-ment to the kingship. He stopped minting the dated coins after 37 B.C.E., when hetook Jerusalem and began to issue the undated series of coins. Meshorer suggestedthat until 37 B.C.E., while Mattathias Antigonus was minting coins in Jerusalem,Herod was forced to produce competitive currency. After Herod took Jerusalem,he was no longer concerned with the quality of his coinage.58Peter Richardsondisagrees with Meshorer, noting that Herod may have been appointed tetrarch in

64; also see idem, Ancient Jewish Coins and Their Historical Importance,BA26 (1963) 48.55Josef Meyshan, The Symbols on the Coinage of He rod the Great and Their Meanings,

PEQ 91 (1959) 115. For Louis-Felicien de Saulcys suggestion that TP is an abbreviation oftria&jor tri/alkon, referring to the denomination of the coin, see Frederic W. Madden, Coinsof the Jews (London: Trubner, 1881) 108. This was refuted by George F. Hill, Catalogue ofthe Greek Coins of Palestine (Galilee, Samaria, and Judaea) (London: British Museum, 1914)xcvi, who pointed out that the symbol appears on coins of various sizes and weights. MordecaiNarkiss, Notes on the Coins of the Herodian Dynasty, Bul let in of the Jewish Palest ine

Exploration Society I (1934) 814 (Hebrew), interpreted the monogram as the initials forTrachonitis in northern Transjordan, a region that was granted to Herod by Augustus. Hesuggested that this event occurred in the third year after Herod was reconfirmed as king ofJudea by Augustusthat is, in 28 B.C.E. However, Trachonitis was apparently granted toHerod in 23 B.C.E., and would not have been significant enough to have been c ommemoratedon a special series of coins; see Kanael, The Coins of King Herod, 26263; Meyshan, T heSymbols on the Coinage of Herod, 11314.

56For the argument that according to the calendar used, Herod took Jerusalem in the third

year of his reign, see Uriel Rapaport, Note sur la chronologie des monnaies hrodiennes,Revue numi smatique10 (1968) 6475.

57Meshorer, Anc ient Jew ish Coinage , 10.58Ibid., 1011.59Peter Richardson, Herod, King of the Jew s and Fri end of the Romans (Minneapolis:


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41 B.C.E., and that he was appointed jointly with his brother Phasael, who is notmentioned on these coins. Herod would have offended the Senate by claimingauthority earlier than that. In addition, Herod could only have begun minting coinsin 39 B.C.E., when he arrived in his domain.59

Because Meshorer believes that Herods year 3 coins were minted between4037 B.C.E., he has compared the pagan Roman symbols depicted on them withthose on contemporary late Republican coins. For example, the cap of the Dioscuri,the tripod, winged caduceus, aphlaston, and laurel branch tied with a fillet appearon coins struck in Rome between 44 and 40 B.C.E.60Meshorer also noted that thesymbol of the poppy or pomegranate (which he identifies as a poppy) does notappear on Roman coins of the late Republic, but is associated with the cult ofDemeter and Kore.61This refers to the cult of Kore at Samaria, where these coinswere minted. According to Meshorer, however, this cult already existed at Samariabefore Herods time as a popular local religion. In his opinion, Herod acknowl-edged the importance of the cult by constructing an addition to the local temple,which he dedicated to Augustus.62

The architectural remains from the Samaria excavations provide evidence for aconnection with Herods coins. As noted earlier in this paper, the reused architec-tural blocks in the foundations of the third century C.E. temple of Kore indicatethat at least two earlier temple buildings preceded it. In other words, any temple toKore from Herods time should be sought here, not in the area of the Augusteumabove. This is indicated by two kinds of evidence. First, the reused blocks of hardlimestone, many of which were covered with stucco, apparently come from a templeof Herodian date, as indicated by the fact that they include Herodian-style stoneswith drafted margins and chiselled bosses. This building apparently had Ionic col-

umns with Attic bases and cornice mouldings with a fascia or fillet and a cymatium.The connection of this temple with Herod is confirmed by the two blocks carved inrelief with the caps of the Dioscuri, which are made of the same hard limestone(see Fig. 2:2).63Although Meshorer overlooked these blocks, earlier scholars suchas Mordecai Narkiss and Louis-Hughes Vincent noted that the Dioscuri cap with astar appears on Herods dated coins (see Fig. 4).64In other words, this motif andthe poppy/pomegranate refer not just generally to the cult of Kore at Samaria-

Fortress, 1999) 212.60Meshorer, Anc ient Jew ish Coinage , 1920.61Ibid., 2022.62Ibid.

63Sukenik, Temple of the Kore , 66; Pl. LX:2. Also see Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Kenyon,Objects from Samaria, 8: The stones with the caps of the Dioscuri . . . are probably Herodian.

64See Mordecai Narkiss, A Dioscuri Cult in Sebustiya, PEFQS 64 (1932) 21012; Vincent,Le culte dHlne Samarie, 22126.

65This is claimed, at least, by Meshorer, Anc ient Jew ish Coinage , 1011.


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Sebaste, but specifically to a temple constructed by Herod, apparently in the vicin-ity of the later temple of Kore. The cult of Kore was apparently popular atSamaria-Sebaste from Herods time until the third century or later (see below).

When were Herods dated coins minted? I believe that scholars have made fourincorrect or unfounded assumptions regarding these coins:1) that year 3 refers to a year in Herods reign;2) that year 3 refers to a period of three years;65

3) that the monogram TP is Greek;66

4) that the dated coins are earlier than the undated coins.67

Instead of representing Greek letters, I propose that the monogram TP is anabbreviation of the Latin tribunicia potestas. Augustus assumed the tribunate in23 B.C.E. This appointment was renewed annually for the rest of his life, and itbecame the basis for his rule.68In the early summer of 18 B.C.E., he renewedMarcus Vipsanius Agrippas consular imperium and had the tribunician powerbestowed upon him for a period of five years, effectively making Agrippa hisco-regent.69The fact that the tribunate served as the legal basis of power is indi-cated by the many coins issued by Augustus and his successors bearing theinscription TR POT or TR P (or some other variant) followed by Roman num-bers that refer to the year of the office.70Furthermore, many of Augustuss coinsfrom 23 B.C.E. on are decorated with the same symbols that appear on Herodsdated coins, including the shield, caduceus, laurel trees or branches, and theaphlaston.71Some of these symbols are represented on coins throughout Augustussreign and could have had more than one meaning. The shield, for example, couldbe equated with the clipeus virtutisthat was one of Augustuss symbols, or it couldrefer to a specific military victory or honor. Oak wreaths and laurel branches were

also an attribute of victory and were associated with Apollo, whose temple stoodnext to Augustuss house on the Palatine. The aphlaston refers to naval victories,

66See Kanael, The Coins of King Herod, 262: Modern scholars have noted c orrectly thatthe monogram TP is an abbreviation of a Greek word beginning with the letters Tr .

67Ibid. This apparently goes back to Narkisss suggestion that TP refers to an event thatoccurred in the third year of Herods reign.

68See for example Clive Foss, Roman Histori cal Coins(London: Seaby, 1990) 41.69Jean-Michel Roddaz,Marcus Agri ppa (Rome: cole franaise de Rome, 1984) 36465;

638.70For examples of this inscription on the coins of Augustus, s ee Harold Mattingly,Augustu s

to Vitellius (vol. 1 of Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum ; London: British

Museum, 1923) xcv, xcix, civ, cix, cxix.71For examples see Mattingly, Coins of the Roman Empire , Pls. 6:2 (laurel branches andoak wreath); 6:4,1315 (shield); Paul Zanker, The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus(Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 1990) 9293 (Figs. 7576); 96 (Fig. 80); 300 (Fig. 231).

72Zanker, The Power of Images, 8284, 9397.


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such as the battle of Actium.72

All of these symbols are common on Augustusscoins. They could have been employed generically by Herod and/or honored spe-cific exploits of Augustus or Agrippa. Perhaps some of these symbols refer toanother recent event in Romes history. The arrival of a comet in 17 B.C.E. wasbelieved to usher in a new saeculuman aurea aetas, or Golden Age of Rome.That year the Secular Games were celebrated in Rome with great pomp and cer-emony under the direction of Augustus and Agrippa. Coins minted at this timeshow heralds holding an enormous caduceus.73Perhaps the caduceus that appearson Herods dated coins refers to the inauguration of this new age.74

If the year 3 on Herods dated coins refers to a specific year instead of to alonger period, these coins must have been minted to commemorate a special occa-sion or event. Which event relating to Samaria-Sebaste could they commemorate?Since scholars have assumed that year 3 refers to the beginning of Herods reign,no one has considered the possibility that these coins were minted at a later dateand are thus contemporary with some of Herods undated issues. One of the mostimportant events during Herods reign was the visit by his friend Marcus Agrippain 15 B.C.E. After Agrippa was sent to the east by Augustus, Herod met him onLesbos in 16/15 B.C.E. Herod then took Agrippa on a tour of his kingdom, show-ing off his new citiesespecially Samaria-Sebaste and Caesarea Maritima. AsRichardson has noted, This grand tour would have been remarkable. Agrippawould have been impressed by the number of recently completed building projectsand the major ones still under construction.75Therefore, Herods dated coins couldhave been minted on the occasion of Agrippas visit. In this case, TP and year 3would refer to the third year of Agrippas tribunate.76This means that these coinsmust have been minted no later than the summer of 15 B.C.E. This coincides with

the currently accepted chronology, according to which Agrippa is believed to havebeen in Jerusalem and Judea by the fall of that year.77It could even be that Herodordered the minting of these coins when he departed for Lesbos, in advance ofAgrippas arrival at Samaria-Sebaste.

It is also possible, however, that Herods dated coins were issued on the occasionof Augustuss visit to Syria in 20 B.C.E. In this case, the date and monogram wouldrefer to the third year of Augustuss tribunate.78Here too the chronology could fit, as

73Ibid., 168; Arnold H.M. Jones, Augustus(New York: W. W. Norton, 1970) 63.74If this is the case, these coins were minted on the occasion of Agrippas visit; see below.75Richardson, Herod, 263.76

For an example of a dedicatory reference dated according to the third year of Agrippastribunate, see Roddaz, Marcus Agrippa, 417 (from Merida).77Ibid., 638.78See for example Mattingly, Coins of the Roman Empire, xcii, cxxvii.79Richardson, Herod, 234, has even suggested that Herod took Augustus to Samaria and


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Augustus was in the third to fourth year of his tribunate when he arrived in Syria. Wehave no direct evidence that Augustus visited Samaria-Sebaste on this occasion,although Richardson has suggested he did.79Perhaps these coins provide evidencefor such a visit. One could argue that Herod would have been more likely to issuecoins referring to Augustuss than to Agrippas tribunate. Either way, at the time ofboth Augustuss and Agrippas visits, the construction of the Augusteum at Samaria-Sebaste apparently had not been completed.80Therefore, Herod decorated his specialcoin series with symbols associated with his temple of Kore, which would have beena known landmark and the site of the popular local cult.

Some of Herods undated coins, which were minted in Jerusalem, are deco-rated with a diadem. As Meshorer has noted, this symbol of royalty was also depictedon the coins of Alexander Jannaeus. A cross (+) or X appears inside or below thediadem on some of these coins. Based on a passage from the Babylonian Talmud,Meshorer has interpreted it as the Greek letter chi, which symbolized the Jewishhigh priest, and it therefore represented the cooperation between the kingship (thediadem) and the priesthood (the chi).81 I prefer Kanaels observation that thissymbol is related to the TP monogram on Herods dated coins.82It is simply notclearly marked on the smaller and lower quality undated coins. The fact that thissymbol appears only on a relatively small number of Herods undated coins sug-gests that they were minted for a limited time and for a special occasion.83It makessense that Herod would have commemorated Agrippas or Augustuss visit byputting the tribunate monogram on the coins minted that year in Jerusalem, inaddition to the special series he issued at Samaria-Sebaste.

Conclusion: Back to SamariaThe evidence for the cults of Isis and Kore at Samaria-Sebaste can be summarizedas follows. The cult of Isis and Sarapis was apparently established at Samariaduring the Hellenistic period (specifically the Ptolemaic period). The dedicatory

Caesarea on this occasion.80According to Richardson, at the time of Agrippas visit, Sebaste and Caesarea were still

under construction; ibid., 263, n. 8; also see Dan Barag, King Herods Royal Castle atSamaria-Sebaste, PEQ 125 (1993) 1315. Work on the Augusteum must have begun afterHerod founded Sebaste on the site of Samaria in 27 B.C.E.

81Meshorer, Anc ient Jew ish Coinage , 25.82Kanael, Ancient Jewish Coins, 49; for references to other proposed interpretations of

this symbol, see Meshorer, Anc ient Je wish Coinage, 24; also see Meyshan, The Symbols on

the Coinage of Herod the Great, 118, for the suggestion that it was a sign of protection againstthe evil eye.83This symbol appears on the following coins published in Meshorer,Ancient Jewish Coinage,

236: nos. 7a, 8, 8a, 8b, 9, 10, 11 (illustrated on Pls. 12).84See Sukenik, Temple of the Kore, 65; Robert Amy, Temples a Escaliers, Syria27


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inscription on black limestone and the black limestone rosette fragments wereassociated with a Hellenistic shrine or temple, which probably stood in the vicinityof the later Kore temple. The soft limestone architectural elements built into thefoundations of the Kore temple might also derive from the Isis shrine. These in-clude the stuccoed and painted crenellation blocks, the cornice mouldings with anEgyptian cavetto, and possibly the soft limestone relief carved with a double-ax.The crenellated stones belong to the parapet of a building that preceded the thirdcentury C.E. Kore temple. As Crowfoot noted, crenellated parapets were a com-mon feature of monumental ancient Near Eastern architecture, especially in Assyriaand Persia. They continued in use for centuries, as attested by the tomb facades atPetra, the temple of Bel at Palmyra, and other ancient Near Eastern temples of theRoman period.84

In the absence of any contextual or inscriptional evidence, the association ofthe soft limestone blocks with a Hellenistic shrine or temple to Isis must remainconjectural. The fact that they were built into the foundations of the temple ofKore only proves that they belong to a building that antedates the third century,which presumably stood in that area. However, since there is good evidence thatthe hard limestone blocks that were also built into the temples foundations belongto a building of Herodian date, it is reasonable to assume that the soft limestoneelements come from an earlier shrine or temple. Although it is likely that theseblocks were associated with a Hellenistic shrine of Isis and Sarapis, there is apossibility that they belonged to a Gabinian period building. Under Gabinius, whowas ruler of the province from 57 to 55 B.C.E., the walls of Samaria were rebuilt,and the citizens even changed the name of the settlement to Gabiniopolis or some-thing similar.85Crowfoots expedition uncovered walls belonging to houses and

shops of the Gabinian period under Herods Augusteum. Interestingly, the archi-tectural elements were made of soft limestone, with many fragments of brightlypainted stucco. These comparatively new houses and shops were demolished tomake way for Herods buildings. Thus, the soft limestone fragments from Area Tcould come from a Gabinian period temple or shrine.86

(1950) 82136 (for examples of crenellations, see the temple at Dmeir in Figs. 23; the templeat Slem in Fig. 6; the temple of Zeus at Kanawat in Fig. 12; the temple of Bel at Palmyra inFig. 17; and a tomb facade at Petra in Fig. 18).

85Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik, Bui ldings at Samaria, 31.86Ibid., 32. If the soft limestone architectural elements are associated with a Gabinian

rather than a Ptolemaic shrine, two possible scenarios can be suggested: 1) although thededicatory inscription indicates that Isis was worshiped at Samaria in the Ptolemaic period,

her cult was not associated with an identifiable building until the Gabinian period; or 2) aPtolemaic period shrine to Isis existed and was rebuilt in the Gabinian period. I prefer thelatter of the two possibilities, although it spreads the meager archaeological evidence eventhinner.

87G.M. Crowfoot, Terra Sigillata, 320.


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Although Isis was frequently identified with Kore in the Greco-Roman world,there are no references to her at Samaria-Sebaste after the first century B.C.E.Even the bowls stamped with Isis crowns or headdresses become less commonafter 30 B.C.E., and they disappear altogether after the Augustan period.87In otherwords, at some point in the history of the city, the cult of Isis seems to have beencompletely superceded and replaced by that of Kore. In fact, after the first centuryB.C.E., there are no references to or depictions of any other Egyptian deities suchas Sarapis and Osiris at Samaria-Sebasteonly Greco-Roman deities: Kore,Demeter, the Dioscuri, Apollo, and Dionysos. When and why was the cult of Isisreplaced by the cult of Kore? The earliest evidence for the cult of Kore and Demeterat Samaria-Sebaste dates to the time of Herod the Great. It includes the caps of theDioscuri carved in relief on the two blocks from Area T, as well as those repre-sented on Herods coins, and the poppy or pomegranate on Herods coins. Thereused architectural elements of hard limestone that were built into the founda-tions of the later Roman temple apparently come from this Herodian temple ofKore. The earliest explicit reference to Kore is the inscription of 50150 C.E. fromthe stadium.

In summary, the cult of Kore seems to have been established at Samaria-Sebasteby the time of Herod, from which point on there are no more depictions of orreferences to Isis and her Egyptian associates. This means that the elimination ofthe cult of Isis at Samaria-Sebaste occurred during Herods reign. The timing sug-gests that Herod was motivated by political considerations, and in particular byCleopatras association with Isis.

Cleopatra VII, of course, was identified as the New Isis by 34 B.C.E., and MarcAntony presented himself as the reincarnation of Osiris or Dionysos.88In 28 B.C.E.,

following the Battle of Actium, Egyptian rites were banned within the pomerium ofRome.89Herod probably built his new temple of Kore at Samaria-Sebaste after 30B.C.E., when he was reconfirmed as king of Judea by Octavian and given new terri-tories which included Samaria.90This temple replaced a Hellenistic shrine dedicated

88See, for example, Michael Grant, Cleopatra(New York: Simon and Schuster, 1972) 120;n. 47; Zanker, The Power of Images, 4546; G. M. Crowfoot, Terra Sigillata, 324.

89Mary Beard, John North, and Simon Price, A History (vol. 1 of Rel igions of Rome:Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) 230, especially n. 65. In 43 B.C.E., the mem-bers of the second triumvirate decreed that a new temple be built for Isis and Sarapis; seeTurcan, Cults of the Roman Empire, 87; Witt, Isi s in the Anc ient Wor ld, 223.

90See Richardson,Herod, 17273. Alternatively, work on the Temple of Kore could have

commenced after 27 B.C.E., when Herod founded Sebaste; see Barag, King Herods RoyalCastle, 13. In either case, the fact that symbols associated with this temple appear on Herodsdated coins indicates that its construction must have been completed by the time the coinswere minted in either 20 or 15 B.C.E.


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to Isis and Sarapis (which may have been rebuilt in the Gabinian period). Because ofits connections with Cleopatra and Antony, Herod replaced the earlier shrine and itscult of Isis with the equivalent but neutral Greco-Roman temple and cult of Kore. Bythe time of Marcus Agrippas visit in 15 B.C.E., or perhaps Augustuss in 20 B.C.E.,the temple of Kore was chosen as the identifiable landmark and site of the cult rep-resented on the coins Herod minted at Samaria-Sebaste. The inscriptions from thestadium attest to the popularity of Kores cult through the Roman period. In the thirdcentury C.E., a new temple of Kore was erected, apparently in the vicinity of theearlier Herodian and Hellenistic or Gabinian buildings. The architectural blocks fromthese earlier structures were incorporated in the foundations of the Roman temple.


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Fig.

1

PlanofSamaria-Sebaste

(fromC

rowfoot,K

enyon,andSukenik,

BuildingsatSam

aria,pl.1)


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Fig. 21. Crenelated stones

2. Stone carved in relief with the cap of the Dioscuri

3. Stone carved in relief with a double ax

(From Crowfoot, Kenyon, and Sukenik,Buildings at Samaria, pl. LX:1-3)


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178 HA RVARD THEO LOG ICA L REVIEW

Fig. 3 Statue of Kore (from Crowfoot, Crowfoot, and Kenyon, Objects fromSamaria, pl. VIII:1)


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Fig. 4. Dated coin of Herod the Great with the cap of the Dioscuri (below)and the symbols (above) (from Meshorer,Ancient Jewish Coinage,pl. 1:1)

cults of isis and kore

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