My interest in Phoenician language ignited again and looked into the vocabulary surrounding the pillars of Hercules, since the location of which was occupied by them. The common belief today identifies them with Gibraltar, but in Strabo, the whereabouts was debated and they may have been temple pillars.
Strabo 3.5.5For nothing else resembles pillars around the strait. But those eight-cubit bronze pillars in the temple of Heracles in Gadeira.
οὐδὲν γὰρ ἐοικέναι
στήλαις τὰ περὶ τὸν
πορθμόν. οἱ δὲ τὰς ἐν τῷ Ἡρακλείῳ τῷ ἐν Γαδείροις χαλκᾶς ὀκταπήχεις
στήλαις pillars
πορθμόν strait
Strabo states that nothing resembles pillars except for two pillars in the temple of Heracles (Melqart) in Gaderia, which seem to be common feature among which.
Herodotus 2.44I took ship for
Tyre in Phoenicia, where I had learned by inquiry that there was a holy temple of Heracles. There I saw it, richly equipped with many other offerings, besides two pillars (
στῆλαι δύο), one of refined
gold, one of
emerald.
This two-pillar temple may also be "Pillars of Hercules", the eastern counterpart.
Appian, Wars in Spain 11.65He (Fabius) .. sailed through the straits of Gadeira offering sacrifice to Hercules
ἐς Γάδειρα διέπλευσε τὸν πορθμόν, Ἡρακλεῖ θύσων
There is interesting lore regarding this mysterious temple
Temple_of_Hercules_Gaditanus (wiki)
The sanctuary was likely a complex of buildings where the main structure could be accessed through a gateway flanked by two large columns. As described by Silius Italicus in the 1st century BC
According to the Latin historian Pomponius Mela, the temple housed the remains of Hercules, contributing to its immense fame. Moreover, the temple held renowned relics such as the belt of Teucer, a Greek hero and son of Telamon, and the tree of Pygmalion, whose fruits were said to be emeralds.
An important note here is "remains of Hercules", so this particular Hercules, is the dead hero distinct from the Olympian Hercules.
Herodotus 2.44two worships of Heracles, sacrificing to one Heracles as to an immortal, and calling him the Olympian, but to the other bringing offerings as to a dead hero.
This dead-Hercules is alluded in Homer's Odyssey 11.601 where Odysseus met the phantom of Hercules beyond the gates of Hades (
Πύλαι Ἀΐδαο), compare with (gates of Gadeira )
Πύλαι Γαδειρίδες , another phrase for the pillars of Hercules.
Another word for "straits or gates" is
Κληῖδες.
Herodotus 5.108The Phoenicians were sailing around the headland which is called the keys of Cyprus. Φοίνικες περιέπλεον τὴν ἄκρην αἳ καλεῦνται
Κληῖδες τῆς Κύπρου.
κλεῖς; of promontories, straits, etc., Κληῗδες or “Κληΐδες (LSJ)Πύλαι Ἀΐδαο "gates of Hades" appear in Isaiah 38:10 under שערי שאול and another synonym in Psalm 116:3 מצרי שאול (Στένον Ἀΐδαο) "Straits of Hades" and in Revelations 1:18 κλεις αδου (Κληῗδες Ἀΐδαο) "Keys of Hades". Gadeira is called Gādēs in Latin. cf.Hades.
In Plato, Critias 113 it writes that the namesake of Gadeira is "
Gadeirus Eumelos", the son of Cleito (
Κλειτὼ), the twin brother of Atlas.
Κλειτὼ means renowned and is the same as קרית that resembles the קרת in Melqart and Carthage. cf. Ἡρα
κλῆς as if his name means "Keys of Hera". (Gadeira also known as Island of Hera). cf.
Γαδειρίδες Κληῖδες.
Gadeira is said to be the location of the golden apples, compare with Eumelos (εὖ μῆλον) "rich in fruit", the epithet of Gadeira. I also figured that these were not apples, but
Pears confirmed by Arabic كمثرى (kumthar) i.e. σκάμανδρος (סמדר) golden yellow fruit. One of the epithets of Gadeira is "Island of Hera (Juno)" and her sacred fruit is the pear.
The word Emerald in the ancient Greek is σμάραγδος (smaragdos) which was borrowed into the Arabic زمرد (zumurrud) and is found in Hebrew under ברקת. ἀμάρυγμα (amarugma) means sparkle, twinkle, radiant, of light, of gems and σμαραγέω (smarageo) in Homer is the crashing of thunder. cf. φλόξ > ברק > σμάραγδος, ἀμάρυγμα, σμαραγέω.
Now the Latin historian Pomponius Mela, mentions the tree of
Pygmalion, whose fruits were said to be
emeralds (
σμάραγδος, ברקת), but is it describing the fruit as golden yellow, hence a pear tree.
στήλη block of stone used as a prop or buttress to a wall (LSJ)
- Ezekiel 41:6 צלעות בקיר στῆλαι ἐπὶ οἴκῳ "supports towards the walls"
In this context צלע is a buttress, confirming its homologue with στήλη, a synonym of this word is κίων that is ציון a columnar gravestone. In fact temple buttresses resemble ribs cf. צלע πλευρόν.
Στῆλαι Ἡρακλήϊαι צלעות מלקרות "pillars of Hercules". This phrase maybe interpreted as "ribs of Hercules". Hades, also written Ἀϊδωνεύς (Aïdōneús) is the meaning Eden (עדן) so that its two trees (ξύλοιν) are also "pillars of Hercules" and its fruit also the pear, which means Gadeira is also Eden.
It would also seem that the dead hero Hercules is also identified with
Pygmalion, the mysterious and legendary King of Tyre, could he be the builder of the pillars of Hercules and its temple and be his burial site.
This dead hero Hercules seem to function similar to Davy Jones' Locker.
This is a whole Phoenician language word puzzle here.