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Re: orion Palmyra

Irene,
  About a year ago I read a few differnt books about Palmyra in the THIRD century
ce, which won't help much. For the 3rd c. ce, one of the ways we know there was
a Jewish population was through inscription(s) at Bet She'an, in the Land. 
  It would also help if you listed the books you read that did not provide any
data to back up the claim of a Jewish population in Palmyra. The one book that
would, I'm fairly sure, provide any literary references, would be Jacob Neusner's
five-volume HISTORY OF THE JEWS OF BABYLONIA, the first or second volume. It's
older than 15 years; the dates of publication are 1970 to 1975 or so. Where
evidence beyond the classical Jewish works is involved, Neusner includes it if
his secondary sources have noted it.
  Regarding Nabataean and Palmyran Aramaic inscriptions in Palmyra that I went
through, once upon a time, a number of them are taken from tombs that are figured
in Hellenistic style, so that it seems unlikely that the inscriptions memorialized
Jews. Since many of the names were theophoric, however, it seems possible to find
a "servant of YHWH", or similar name, among them somewhere.
  
  Good luck.

Sigrid Peterson  UPenn  petersig@ccat.sas.upenn.edu

 According to Irene Riegner:
> 
> Dear List People,
> 
> I have read in several histories of Palmyra, Syria---or histories of
> that section of the world---that during the 1st century c.e., Palmyra
> had a large Jewish population.   These books were  fairly
> recent histories---perhaps written within the past 15 yrs.  None of
> these books provided data to back up this claim.  I have checked several
> books on Palmyrean temple excavations but have not found any evidence of
> a synagogue---of course, in the 1st century a synagogue would be
> usual.
> Nor have I found evidence of Jewish sarcaphagi.
> 
> I think Aharoni, in his atlas, lists Palmyra as a Jewish population
> center.
> 
> My question:  What evidence do we have that Palymyra had a Jewish
> population in the 1st. cent. c.e?
> 
> Regards,
> irene