Yarhibol Solar Nimbus and Spring Yarhibol was an Aramean deity venerated chiefly in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, depicted with a solar nimbus and styled lord of the spring. He appeared alongside two other major Palmyrene gods, Bel, with whom he shared co-supreme status, and the moon god Aglibol. Scholars believe Yarhibol began as the protective spirit of Palmyra's Efqa spring, and his own name, meaning the moon of Bel, suggests earlier lunar associations even though he came to carry solar characteristics and functions of a divine judge and prophetic authority, a role that reflects theological blending with the worship of the Greek god Apollo.
Facts
Attestation
Era of Attestation Veneration TodayHistorically attested; no continuous cult 1 HistoricityNot a historical person: a divine or other-than-human being 1 Belief
TheologyPolytheistic: many gods 1 Function
Domain / Function Sources
1. The Facts on File Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend
Anthony S. Mercatante, revised and expanded by James R. Dow, Facts on File
2. Yarhibol, Structured Record (Wikidata Q)
3. The Religious Life of Palmyra: A Study of the Social Patterns of Worship in the Roman Period
Ted Kaizer, Franz Steiner Verlag, 2002Yarhibol, Palmyrene inscriptions
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