Abstract
In the Iron Age II (ca. 1000–500 BCE), the region around Amman, Jordan, was home to a sociopolitical group known as the Ammonites (literally, “the sons of Ammon”). This paper investigates the religious traditions of the Ammonites through an analysis of the extant archaeological and textual sources. The analysis leads to the conclusion that the religious tradition of the Ammonites is a specimen of the broader religious tradition of the Iron Age II Levant. One distinguishing feature of Ammonite religion is the state god Milkom, whose name is probably an epithet for the god ʾEl, and who appears to be represented in a tradition of stone sculptures that have been found in the vicinity of Amman. The rest of the non-physical realm was understood to be inhabited by gods, goddesses, a variety of other non-human beings, and dead ancestors. Also visible in the extant evidence is a blending of local and foreign elements, especially those from Mesopotamia. Unique in this respect is the probable temple to the moon-god at Rujm al-Kursi, which most likely reflects a local tradition of lunar worship influenced by the iconography of the Mesopotamian moon-god Sîn.
Highlights
For the purposes of this paper, I divide spaces used for relating to the nonphysical world into two broad categories: public cultic space and private or domestic cultic space
By the term “public cultic space” I mean only that the space seems to be intended to be used by a group that is most likely larger than a single family
By “private or domestic cultic space”, I designate those spaces which appear to have some cultic or religious significance, but which are contained within a house, or in the case of tombs, relate to individuals or individual families
Summary
Received: 7 January 2019; Accepted: 26 February 2t0h1e9;IProunbliAshgeedI:I2(Mcaa. r1c0h0200–15900 BCE), and especially in the latter half of this Abstract: In the Iron Age II (cai.ts10cu00lt–u5r0e0, ABCmEm),otnhieterreegliiognioanroshuanrdesAmmumchanin, Jcoormdamno, nwawsithhotmhe toothaer c
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