the visit of queen of sheba king solomon , oil on canvas painting edward poynter, 1890
renaissance relief of queen of sheba meeting solomon – ghiberti s gates of paradise @ florence baptistry
in brief, unelaborated, , enigmatic passage, hebrew bible describes how fame of solomon s wisdom , wealth spread far , wide, so queen of sheba decided should meet him. queen described visiting number of gifts including gold, spices , precious stones. when solomon gave desire, whatsoever asked, left satisfied (1 kings 10:10).
whether passage provide brief token, foreign witness of solomon s wealth , wisdom, or whether there meant more significant queen s visit unknown; nevertheless visit of queen of sheba has become subject of numerous stories.
sheba typically identified saba, nation once spanning red sea on coasts of eritrea, somalia, ethiopia , yemen, in arabia felix. in rabbinical account (e.g. targum sheni), solomon accustomed ordering living creatures of world dance before him (rabbinical accounts solomon had been given control on living things yahweh), 1 day upon discovering mountain-cock or hoopoe (aramaic name: nagar tura) absent, summoned him, , bird told him had been searching somewhere new (see: colloquy of queen of sheba).
the bird had discovered land in east, exceedingly rich in gold, silver, , plants, capital called kitor , ruler queen of sheba, , bird, on own advice, sent solomon request queen s immediate attendance @ solomon s court.
an ethiopian account 14th century (kebra nagast) maintains queen of sheba had sexual relations king solomon , gave birth mai bella stream in province of hamasien, eritrea. ethiopian tradition has detailed account of affair. child son went on become menelik i, king of axum, , founded dynasty reign first jewish, christian empire of ethiopia 2,900+ years (less 1 usurpation episode, interval of c. 133 years until legitimate male heir regained crown) until haile selassie overthrown in 1974. menelik said practicing jew given replica of ark of covenant king solomon; and, moreover, original switched , went axum him , mother, , still there, guarded single priest charged caring artifact life s task.
the claim of such lineage , of possession of ark has been important source of legitimacy , prestige ethiopian monarchy throughout many centuries of existence, , had important , lasting effects on ethiopian culture whole. ethiopian government , church deny requests view alleged ark.
some classical-era rabbis, attacking solomon s moral character, have claimed instead child ancestor of nebuchadnezzar ii, destroyed solomon s temple 300 years later.
cite error: there <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on page, references not show without {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see page).
Comments
Post a Comment