Ba‘alat Gebal, the Lady of Byblos
The goddess of Gubla, ancient Byblos was Astarte, the Phoenician derivative of Ishtar. She was known as the Ba‘alat Gebal, the Lady of Byblos. A beautiful temple overlooking the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea was built in Her honor around 2700 BCE.
As the main Goddess of Gubla, Ba'alat watched over and protected the city and its royal family. Her shrine in Gubla, close to the Sea, is the oldest, dating way back to 2700 BCE.
Ba‘alat Gebal was also patroness of the shipmasters, which was appropriate for such an important shipping port as Byblos.
Here's Ishtar's throne in Sidon, a neighboring coastal village north of Byblos.
Here's her throne in Tyre, a city south of Byblos
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Ba‘alat Gebal, the Lady of Byblos: Chapter 5
