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Baalshillem II
Baalshillem II was a Phoenician King of Sidon (reigned c. 401 – c. 366 BC), and the great-grandson of Baalshillem I who founded the namesake dynasty. He succeeded Baana to the throne of Sidon, and was succeeded by his son Abdashtart I. The name Baalshillem means "recompense of Baal" in Phoenician.
During Baalshillem II's reign, Sidon was a Persian vassal kingdom, part of the Achaemenid Empire's dominion over Phoenicia. Under Achaemenid hegemony, Sidon resurged as a prominent city-state among its neighbors. The transition of the Sidonian monarchy from Eshmunazar I's dynasty to that of Baalshillem I coincided with Sidon independently issuing its coinage, featuring the likenesses of its reigning kings. Notably, Baalshillem II's coins, the first to bear minting dates corresponding to a Sidonian king's regnal year, have been instrumental in reconstructing the chronology of Sidonian kings. Baalshillem II's historical presence is substantiated by inscriptions, including one found on a votive statue depicting his son Abdashtart I.
The name Baalshillem (also Baalchillem) is the Romanized form of the Phoenician 𐤁𐤏𐤋𐤔𐤋𐤌 (bʿlšlm), meaning "recompense of Baal".
The absolute chronology of the kings of Sidon from the dynasty of Eshmunazar I onward has been much discussed in the literature; traditionally placed in the course of the fifth century BC, inscriptions of this dynasty have been dated back to an earlier period on the basis of numismatic, historical and archaeological evidence. The most complete work addressing the dates of the reigns of these Sidonian kings is by the French historian Josette Elayi, who shifted away from the use of biblical chronology. Elayi used all available documentation of the time, including inscribed Tyrian seals and stamps excavated by the Lebanese archaeologist Maurice Chehab in 1972 from Jal el-Bahr, a neighborhood in the north of Tyre. She also used Phoenician inscriptions discovered by the French archaeologist Maurice Dunand in Sidon in 1965, and conducted a systematic study of Sidonian coins, the first coins to bear minting dates representing the years of Sidonian kings’ reigns.
Baalshillem II was the first among Sidonian monarchs to mint coins bearing issuing dates that correspond with his regnal year. Elayi established that Baalshillem II's year of accession was 401 BC and that he reigned until 366 BC. Baalshillem’s extant coins were issued in the thirtieth year of his reign. The dating of these coins is of considerable importance to scholars, since the subsequent reigns are dated yearly until Alexander's conquest of the Levant in 333 BC; this helped scholars to establish the chronology of Sidonian kings in retrospect.
In 539 BC, the Achaemenid Empire conquered Phoenicia, resulting in Sidon, Tyre, Byblos and Arwad becoming Persian vassal kingdoms. Eshmunazar I, a priest of Astarte and the founder of his namesake dynasty was enthroned King of Sidon around the time of the Achaemenid conquest of the Levant. During the first phase of Achaemenid rule, Sidon flourished and reclaimed its former standing as Phoenicia's chief city. In the mid 5th century BC, Eshmunazar's dynasty was succeeded by that of Baalshillem I; this dynastic change coincided with the time by which Sidon began to independently mint its own coinage bearing the images of its reigning kings.
The name of Baalshillem II is known from a votive statue offered to Eshmun, the Phoenician god of healing, by the king himself. The base of the Baalshillem temple boy statue bears a Phoenician inscription known as KAI 281; it reads:
This (is the) statue that Baalshillem, son of King Ba'na, king of the Sidonians, son of King Abdamun, king of the Sidonians, son of King Baalshillem, king of the Sidonians, gave to his lord Eshmun at the "Ydll" Spring. May he bless him.
Baalshillem II
Baalshillem II was a Phoenician King of Sidon (reigned c. 401 – c. 366 BC), and the great-grandson of Baalshillem I who founded the namesake dynasty. He succeeded Baana to the throne of Sidon, and was succeeded by his son Abdashtart I. The name Baalshillem means "recompense of Baal" in Phoenician.
During Baalshillem II's reign, Sidon was a Persian vassal kingdom, part of the Achaemenid Empire's dominion over Phoenicia. Under Achaemenid hegemony, Sidon resurged as a prominent city-state among its neighbors. The transition of the Sidonian monarchy from Eshmunazar I's dynasty to that of Baalshillem I coincided with Sidon independently issuing its coinage, featuring the likenesses of its reigning kings. Notably, Baalshillem II's coins, the first to bear minting dates corresponding to a Sidonian king's regnal year, have been instrumental in reconstructing the chronology of Sidonian kings. Baalshillem II's historical presence is substantiated by inscriptions, including one found on a votive statue depicting his son Abdashtart I.
The name Baalshillem (also Baalchillem) is the Romanized form of the Phoenician 𐤁𐤏𐤋𐤔𐤋𐤌 (bʿlšlm), meaning "recompense of Baal".
The absolute chronology of the kings of Sidon from the dynasty of Eshmunazar I onward has been much discussed in the literature; traditionally placed in the course of the fifth century BC, inscriptions of this dynasty have been dated back to an earlier period on the basis of numismatic, historical and archaeological evidence. The most complete work addressing the dates of the reigns of these Sidonian kings is by the French historian Josette Elayi, who shifted away from the use of biblical chronology. Elayi used all available documentation of the time, including inscribed Tyrian seals and stamps excavated by the Lebanese archaeologist Maurice Chehab in 1972 from Jal el-Bahr, a neighborhood in the north of Tyre. She also used Phoenician inscriptions discovered by the French archaeologist Maurice Dunand in Sidon in 1965, and conducted a systematic study of Sidonian coins, the first coins to bear minting dates representing the years of Sidonian kings’ reigns.
Baalshillem II was the first among Sidonian monarchs to mint coins bearing issuing dates that correspond with his regnal year. Elayi established that Baalshillem II's year of accession was 401 BC and that he reigned until 366 BC. Baalshillem’s extant coins were issued in the thirtieth year of his reign. The dating of these coins is of considerable importance to scholars, since the subsequent reigns are dated yearly until Alexander's conquest of the Levant in 333 BC; this helped scholars to establish the chronology of Sidonian kings in retrospect.
In 539 BC, the Achaemenid Empire conquered Phoenicia, resulting in Sidon, Tyre, Byblos and Arwad becoming Persian vassal kingdoms. Eshmunazar I, a priest of Astarte and the founder of his namesake dynasty was enthroned King of Sidon around the time of the Achaemenid conquest of the Levant. During the first phase of Achaemenid rule, Sidon flourished and reclaimed its former standing as Phoenicia's chief city. In the mid 5th century BC, Eshmunazar's dynasty was succeeded by that of Baalshillem I; this dynastic change coincided with the time by which Sidon began to independently mint its own coinage bearing the images of its reigning kings.
The name of Baalshillem II is known from a votive statue offered to Eshmun, the Phoenician god of healing, by the king himself. The base of the Baalshillem temple boy statue bears a Phoenician inscription known as KAI 281; it reads:
This (is the) statue that Baalshillem, son of King Ba'na, king of the Sidonians, son of King Abdamun, king of the Sidonians, son of King Baalshillem, king of the Sidonians, gave to his lord Eshmun at the "Ydll" Spring. May he bless him.