ASTARTE or ASTORETH

 is also known as Astarat and Astoreth. She is an incarnation of Ishtar and Inanna. This Semitic Goddess was worshipped by the Syrians, Canaanites (today called Palestinians), Phoenicians, Egyptians and other Semitic Tribes.

King Solomon built a Temple to Her as Astoreth, near Jerusalem. Astarte was worshipped as many things. To the Egyptians, She was honored as a Goddess of war and tenacity; to the Semites, She was a Goddess of Love and Fertility; among the Greeks, She was transposed into the Goddess of Love Aphrodite.

In the Bible, She is referred to as "the abomination". The bountiful qualities of the Great Goddess are reflected in all the principle Goddesses of the Meditteranean and Middle-East. The Egg is a sacred symbol of Astarte, representing fecundity, new life and the powers of the Goddess. The Pomegranate, the "fruit bearing eggs" is an important part of Her sacred rites.

The worship of Astarte spread far and wide, and in time, She was worshipped by the Phillistines, the Greeks, the Romans, the Sicilians, and in many parts of Europe and Africa.