Ashteroth Karnaim
Appearance
Ashteroth Karnaim was a city in the land of Bashan, east of the Jordan River, mentioned in Genesis 14:5 and Joshua 12:4 (where it is rendered simply as "Ashteroth"). The name translates literally to 'Ashteroth of the Horns', with 'Ashteroth' being a Canaanite fertility goddess, and 'horns' being symbolic of mountain peaks. It is possibly the same as Carnaim in First Maccabees and Carnion in Second Maccabees.
Al-Shaykh Saad is widely seen as the site of Ashteroth-Karnaim. Al Churak is a modern site proposed by Astori, being eight miles northeast of ancient ruins known as 'Draä'. Muzayrib is an ancient fortress town in this area that is supported by other archaeologists as being the ancient site of Ashteroth-Karnaim.
References
- Information from 'Jewish-American History on the Web'. Accessed August 31, 2005.