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 - Yes, date unknown
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| Name |
Belus |
| Suffix |
king of Egypt |
| Gender |
Male |
| Death |
Yes, date unknown |
| Notes |
- «b»http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belus_(Egyptian)
«/b»In «u»Greek mythology «/u», «b»Belus«/b» («u»Greek «/u»: was the son of «u»Poseidon «/u» and «u»Libya «/u». He was a king of «u»Egypt «/u» and father of «u»Aegyptus «/u» and «u»Danaus «/u»and (usually) brother to «u»Agenor «/u». The wife of Belus has been named as Anchirrhoe, Achiroe, or Side (eponym of the Phoenician city of Sidon).
«b»
Genealogy
«u»«/b»Apollodorus «/u»claims that Aegyptus and Danaus were twins and that their mother was «u»Achiroe «/u», daughter of the river-god «u»Nilus [1]«/u» He says that it was «u»Euripides «/u» who added «u»Cepheus «/u» and «u»Phineus «/u» as additional sons of Belus. Belus ruled in «u»Egypt «/u», and «u»Agenor «/u» ruled over «u»Sidon «/u» and «u»Tyre «/u» in «u»Phoenicia «/u». Aegyptus ruled over «u»Egypt «/u»and «u»Arabia «/u», and Danaus ruled over «u»Libya «/u». Apollodorus also claims that Agenor was Belus' twin brother.
According to Pherycides (3F21), Belus also had daughter named Damno who married her uncle (Belus' brother) Agenor and bore to him «u»Phoenix «/u» and two daughters named Isaie, and Melia, these becoming wives respectively to their cousins Aegyptus and Danaus sons of Belus.
In the «i»Eoiae«/i» of «u»Hesiod «/u», Belus was also the father of a daughter named Thronia on whom Hermaon, that is «u»Hermes «/u», fathered Arabus, presumably the eponym of «u»Arabia «/u». Some sources make Belus the father of «u»Lamia «/u».
«b»Alternate traditions
«u»«/b»Nonnus [2]«/u» makes Belus the father of "as many as five", namely Phineus, Phoenix, Agenor (identified as the father of «u»Cadmus «/u»), Aegyptus, and Danaus, though Nonnus elsewhere«u»[3]«/u» makes Phineus to be Cadmus' brother. Nonnus has Cadmus identify Belus as "the Libyan Zeus" and refer to the "new voice of Zeus Asbystes", meaning the oracle of Zeus «u»Ammon «/u» at Asbystes.
«b»Belus and Bel Marduk
«u»«/b»Diodorus Siculus [4]«/u» claims that Belus founded a colony on the river «u»Euphrates «/u» and appointed the priests whom the Bablyonians call «u»Chaldeans «/u» who like the priests of Egypt are exempt from taxation and other service to the state and who practice astrology. «u»Pausanias [5]«/u» in speaking of «u»Heracles «/u» Manticulus being so called because a certain Manticlus founded a temple of Heracles for the «u»Messenians «/u», cites as similar cases that Zeus Ammon in «u»Libya «/u» and Zeus Belus in «u»Babylon «/u» are named respectively from a shepherd-founder named Ammon and from Belus son of Libya. This supposed connection between Belus of Egypt and Zeus Belus (the god «u»Marduk «/u») is likely to be more learned speculation than genuine tradition. Pausanias seems to know nothing of supposed connection between Belus son of Libya and Zeus Ammon that Nonnus will later put forth as presented just above.
«b»Belus and Ba'al
«/b»Modern writers speculate on a possible connection between Belus and one or another god who bore the common northwest «u»Semitic «/u» title «u»Ba'al «/u».
«b»References
«u»1. ^«/u»«/b» «u»Apollodorus «/u», 2.1.4.
«u»«b»2. ^«/u»«/b» Nonnus. «i»Dionysiaca«/i», 3.287f.
«u»«b»3. ^«/u»«/b» Nonnus. «i»Dionysiaca«/i», 2.686.
«u»«b»4. ^«/u»«/b» Diodorus Siculus, 1.27.28.
«u»«b»5. ^«/u»«/b» Pausanias. «i»Description of Greece«/i», 4.23.10.
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| Person ID |
I61424 |
Glenn Cook Family |
| Last Modified |
19 Jun 2013 |
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