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July 21

Attestations of Ishtar in later eras

I've been under the impression that the goddess Ishtar is not much attested after the bronze collapse. Not necessarily that the goddess disappeared, but that the name went out of vogue. What late inscriptions are there?

Temerarius (talk) 15:02, 21 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If she is considered the same goddess as ʿAštart, she was worshipped into the 2nd century CE. --Lambiam 20:31, 21 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I'm looking specifically for the latest attestations of the spelling Ishtar.

Temerarius (talk) 00:09, 26 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

In ancient times, each relevant language had its own adapted version of the deity name (Greek Astarte, Hebrew `Ashtarot, etc). The alphabetic spelling "Ishtar" didn't exist until the 19th-century decipherment of Cuneiform script by modern European scholars. The cuneiform spelling of Ishtar could not have continued in use longer than cuneiform script itself did; according to our article, "The last known cuneiform inscription, an astronomical text, was written in 75 AD. The ability to read cuneiform may have persisted until the third century AD." -- AnonMoos (talk) 19:16, 26 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

How am I supposed to respond to this comment? I still don't know.

Temerarius (talk) 01:56, 6 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]