Arsu
Arsu is a deity mentioned on a monument from Jebel al-Abiad (153AD) together with other deities. Representations of such deities (also Arsu, Asar, and Azizu) as armed and mounted men in statuary in a pair together was common across the desert regions of Syria/Mesopotamia.
↻ synthesized from 6 sources
When
- First attested
- 113 BCE
- Attested period
- -113 – 2020
- Historical notes
- Mentioned on a monument from 153 AD.
Relationships
- sibling of
- Azizos
Mentioned by
Sources
Source passages
“A monument from Jebel al-Abiad (153AD) mentions him together with the deities Bel, Baalshamin, Aglibol, Malakbel, Astarte, Nemesis, and Arsu, though according to Teixidor 1979 he was a god of nomads, and usually mentioned in association with nomadic gods such as Azizos, Maan, Ashar, or Shalman.”
#3622 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Arsu was a god worshipped in Palmyra, Syria. A deity known from Syrian and northern Arabian lands, being represented as either male or female (most often). Arsu was connected with the evening star. Frequently portrayed as riding a camel and accompanied by his twin brother Azizos”
#3660 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5
“He is portrayed as riding a camel with his twin brother Arsu, although one source says that "Azizos is depicted as a horseman, whereas Arşu is a cameleer."”
#3666 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Monimos is identified with the Palmyrene god Arsu.”
#3728 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Yarhibol also had his own triad, in which he is shown with various deities: above all with Aglibol (always standing at his right hand) and with the goddess Arsu, thus creating the symbolic Sun-Moon-Earth cosmic group.”
#17635 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5