Her symbol:
Tanit, also spelled TINITH, TINNIT, or TINT, chief goddess of
Carthage, equivalent of Astarte. Although she seems to have had some
connection with the heavens, she was also a mother goddess, and
fertility symbols often accompany representations of her. She was
probably the consort of Baal Hammon (or Amon), the chief god of
Carthage, and was often given the attribute "face of Baal." Although
Tanit did not appear at Carthage before the 5th century BC, she soon
eclipsed the more established cult of Baal Hammon and, in the
Carthaginian area at least, was frequently listed before him on the
monuments. In the worship of Tanit and Baal Hammon, children, probably
firstborn, were sacrificed. Ample evidence of the practice has been
found west of Carthage in the precinct of Tanit, where a tofet (a
sanctuary for the sacrifice of children) was discovered. Tanit was also
worshiped on Malta, Sardinia, and in Spain.
For the rest, see HERE
For the rest, see HERE
Tanit was worshiped in Punic contexts in the Western Mediterranean,
from Malta to Gades into Hellenistic times. From the fifth century BCE
onwards Tanit is associated with that of Ba`al Hammon. She is given the
epithet pene baal ("face of Baal") and the title rabat, the female form
of rab (chief).[3] In North Africa, where the inscriptions and material
remains are more plentiful, she was, as well as a consort of Baal
Hammon, a heavenly goddess of war, a virginal (not married) mother
goddess and nurse, and, less specifically, a symbol of fertility, as are
most female forms. Several of the major Greek goddesses were identified
with Tanit by the syncretic interpretatio graeca, which recognized as Greek deities in foreign guise the gods of most of the surrounding non-Hellene cultures.
Her shrine excavated at Sarepta in southern Phoenicia revealed an inscription that identified her for the first time in her homeland and related her securely to the Phoenician goddess Astarte (Ishtar).[4] One site where Tanit is uncovered is at Kerkouane, in the Cap Bon peninsula in Tunisia.
The origins of Tanit are to be found in the pantheon of Ugarit, especially in the Ugaritic goddess Anat (Hvidberg-Hansen 1982), a consumer of blood and flesh. There is significant, albeit disputed, evidence, both archaeological and within ancient written sources, pointing towards child sacrifice forming part of the worship of Tanit and Baal Hammon.[5]
Tanit is also a goddess among the ancient Berber people.
Her symbol, found on many ancient stone carvings, appears as a trapezoid/trapezium closed by a horizontal line at the top and surmounted in the middle by a circle: the horizontal arm is often terminated either by two short upright lines at right angles to it or by hooks. Later, the trapezoid/trapezium is frequently replaced by an isosceles triangle. The symbol is interpreted by Hvidberg-Hansen as a woman raising her hands.
In Egyptian, her name means Land of Neith, Neith being a war goddess.
Long after the fall of Carthage, Tanit is still venerated in North Africa under the Latin name of Juno Caelestis, for her identification with the Roman goddess Juno.[6]
From: Wiki
Her shrine excavated at Sarepta in southern Phoenicia revealed an inscription that identified her for the first time in her homeland and related her securely to the Phoenician goddess Astarte (Ishtar).[4] One site where Tanit is uncovered is at Kerkouane, in the Cap Bon peninsula in Tunisia.
The origins of Tanit are to be found in the pantheon of Ugarit, especially in the Ugaritic goddess Anat (Hvidberg-Hansen 1982), a consumer of blood and flesh. There is significant, albeit disputed, evidence, both archaeological and within ancient written sources, pointing towards child sacrifice forming part of the worship of Tanit and Baal Hammon.[5]
Tanit is also a goddess among the ancient Berber people.
Her symbol, found on many ancient stone carvings, appears as a trapezoid/trapezium closed by a horizontal line at the top and surmounted in the middle by a circle: the horizontal arm is often terminated either by two short upright lines at right angles to it or by hooks. Later, the trapezoid/trapezium is frequently replaced by an isosceles triangle. The symbol is interpreted by Hvidberg-Hansen as a woman raising her hands.
In Egyptian, her name means Land of Neith, Neith being a war goddess.
Long after the fall of Carthage, Tanit is still venerated in North Africa under the Latin name of Juno Caelestis, for her identification with the Roman goddess Juno.[6]
From: Wiki
Tanit, or Tanith, is the Great Goddess of Carthage, worshipped there
as its chief Deity. She is a Sky Goddess who ruled over the Sun, Stars,
and Moon; and as a Mother Goddess She was invoked for fertility. The
palm tree is Hers, as the desert version of the Tree of Life; and as
symbolic of the life-force of the Earth the serpent is Hers as well—in
fact Her name means "Serpent Lady". She is identified with both Ashtart
(Astarte) and Athirat, and Her other symbols include the dove, grapes
and the pomegranate (both symbolic of fruitfulness and fertility), the
crescent moon, and, like Ashtart, the lion.
Carthage was a city of the Phoenician colony in northern Africa, not far from the modern city of Tunis in Tunisia. Carthage, the Roman rendition of the Phoenician name Karthadasht, which means "New Town", was founded in around the 9th century BCE, by Dido ("Giver" or "Grantor [of prayers]", or alternately "Wanderer") or Elissa (from the Phoenician Elishat), the daughter of the King of Tyre in Roman legend. Dido, however, being also used as an epithet of the Phoenician Moon-Goddess, is probably to be considered an aspect of or alternate name for Tanit, the patron Goddess of Carthage. Worship of Tanit dates to the 5th century BCE, and it is unsure whether Tanit was a local deity adapted by the Phoenician colonists or a version of Ashtart/Athirat they had brought with them from Phoenicia.
Tanit was the highest Deity of that city, called "the Lady of Carthage". With Her consort Ba'al-Hammon, the God of the Sky, She watched over and protected Carthage. As a protective Deity She had some martial aspects, and like Ashtart could be depicted riding a lion holding a spear or long sceptre. In Carthage She was said to have an Oracle; perhaps this is connected to Her role as Star-Goddess.
Tanit has Her own abstract symbol, peculiarly Hers (and accordingly called the "symbol of Tanit"): a triangle with a circle at the top, with a horizontal line between the two; sometimes two additional vertical bars come from the ends of the horizontal. This has been interpreted as either a stylization of an altar, or a woman or Goddess in a long dress, Her arms upraised in an attitude of worship or blessing. Some stelae do show a more realistic depiction of the Goddess in this attitude, so my money is on it as an abstract depiction of a woman. This symbol is found all over Carthage, though there is only one example of it in Phoenicia itself.
(...)
Tanit's worship was spread from Carthage to Spain, Malta and Sardinia, especially by soldiers. The temple on the acropolis of Selinus in Sicily may be Hers, for examples of Her symbol have been found there. Under Her name Virgo Caelestis, Tanit/Juno had a shrine in Rome on the north side of the Capitoline Hill.
(...)
Also called: Tanith, Tent, Thinit, Tinnit, Rat-tanit; Tanis is the Greek version of Her name. She was called "Lady of Carthage", "Lady of the Sanctuary", and "the Face of Ba'al". The Romans called Her Dea Caelestis, "the Heavenly Goddess", Virgo Caelestis "the Heavenly Virgin", and Caelestis Afrorum Dea, "the African/Carthaginian Heavenly Goddess", as well as the assimilated name Juno Caelestis.
She was identified with Aphrodite, Demeter, and Artemis by the Greeks and with Juno by the Romans, especially their Juno Lucina, Goddess of Light and Childbirth. The Romans also associated Her with the Magna Mater, the Great Mother, Rhea or Kybele.
From: Here
Carthage was a city of the Phoenician colony in northern Africa, not far from the modern city of Tunis in Tunisia. Carthage, the Roman rendition of the Phoenician name Karthadasht, which means "New Town", was founded in around the 9th century BCE, by Dido ("Giver" or "Grantor [of prayers]", or alternately "Wanderer") or Elissa (from the Phoenician Elishat), the daughter of the King of Tyre in Roman legend. Dido, however, being also used as an epithet of the Phoenician Moon-Goddess, is probably to be considered an aspect of or alternate name for Tanit, the patron Goddess of Carthage. Worship of Tanit dates to the 5th century BCE, and it is unsure whether Tanit was a local deity adapted by the Phoenician colonists or a version of Ashtart/Athirat they had brought with them from Phoenicia.
Tanit was the highest Deity of that city, called "the Lady of Carthage". With Her consort Ba'al-Hammon, the God of the Sky, She watched over and protected Carthage. As a protective Deity She had some martial aspects, and like Ashtart could be depicted riding a lion holding a spear or long sceptre. In Carthage She was said to have an Oracle; perhaps this is connected to Her role as Star-Goddess.
Tanit has Her own abstract symbol, peculiarly Hers (and accordingly called the "symbol of Tanit"): a triangle with a circle at the top, with a horizontal line between the two; sometimes two additional vertical bars come from the ends of the horizontal. This has been interpreted as either a stylization of an altar, or a woman or Goddess in a long dress, Her arms upraised in an attitude of worship or blessing. Some stelae do show a more realistic depiction of the Goddess in this attitude, so my money is on it as an abstract depiction of a woman. This symbol is found all over Carthage, though there is only one example of it in Phoenicia itself.
(...)
Tanit's worship was spread from Carthage to Spain, Malta and Sardinia, especially by soldiers. The temple on the acropolis of Selinus in Sicily may be Hers, for examples of Her symbol have been found there. Under Her name Virgo Caelestis, Tanit/Juno had a shrine in Rome on the north side of the Capitoline Hill.
(...)
Also called: Tanith, Tent, Thinit, Tinnit, Rat-tanit; Tanis is the Greek version of Her name. She was called "Lady of Carthage", "Lady of the Sanctuary", and "the Face of Ba'al". The Romans called Her Dea Caelestis, "the Heavenly Goddess", Virgo Caelestis "the Heavenly Virgin", and Caelestis Afrorum Dea, "the African/Carthaginian Heavenly Goddess", as well as the assimilated name Juno Caelestis.
She was identified with Aphrodite, Demeter, and Artemis by the Greeks and with Juno by the Romans, especially their Juno Lucina, Goddess of Light and Childbirth. The Romans also associated Her with the Magna Mater, the Great Mother, Rhea or Kybele.
From: Here
Tanit, also Tenit, a Phoenician and Pontic (Carthaginian) moon
goddess, who was known largely from various inscriptions found along the
North African coast and associated with the goddess Astarte. Her symbol
is the triangular device with horizontal bars supporting a moon disc.
Both deities are described as "ladies of the sanctuary." Tanit was the
the supreme goddess of Carthage, known as the "face of Baal," until she
was usurped by the Roman goddess Juno, and survived as the goddess
Caelestis who also was worshipped in the Carthaginian temple. A.G.H.
From: HERE
From: HERE
Also see:
Article: Tanit of Carthage by Johanna Stuckey
Limestone stela with images of the goddess Tanit
Wiki: Religion in Carthage (briefly goes into the tophet sacrifices associated with her)
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