264 



LIEUT.-COL. G. MACKINLAY, R.A., ON 



is the same as Istar (and we find the form Ashtara in the Babylonian 

 tablets at the beginning of tlie second millennium before Christ, as a 

 kind of intermediate form), I think there is no doubt that originally 

 it must have meant the planet Venus ; but I cannot bring forward 

 any proof that the general opinion that Ashtaroth was the moon- 

 goddess is wrong. We can only saj^ that, at least in the Babylonian 

 records, there is no proof that Istar (who is the prototype of 

 Ashtaroth) was the moon-goddess. But in one case — perhaps more 

 than one— the descent of Istar into Hades, as it is called — she is 

 described as the daughter of Sin; that is, the daughter of the Moon, 

 one of the great gods of the Babylonians. Sin was the light-giver. 

 But in the descent of the Istar into Hades we have to bear in mind 

 the purpose for which she went down to Hades. It was to seek 

 Tammuz, her husband. Now Tammuz is regarded as a Sun-god, 

 and she, therefore, went as his attendant. Descending to the under- 

 world as the winter-sun, she went down to Hades with him accom- 

 panying him on his return as the sun renewing its strength at 

 spring-time. It is on this account that she was regarded as the 

 attendant of the sun. I do not know whether there is any bearing, 

 in that view of the planet Venus and the goddess who was identified 

 with her, upon the theory advanced by Colonel Mackinlay, but 

 perhaps he will give us his views when he replies to the remarks 

 which have been made. I am sure we are all most thankful to him 

 for this very interesting paper. 



Lieut.-Colonel Mackinlay. — I thank all the speakers in the 

 discussion for their kind appreciation of the paper, and in addition 

 I am much obliged to Commander Caborne for his interesting infor- 

 mation about the origin of the Turkish crescent. 



Mr. Kouse asks what is the line of inference in connection with 

 the Sabbatic year ; briefly it is this — there are historical reasons 

 for believing that the year beginning at the Feast of the Tal)ernacles 

 (Deut. xxxi, 10), was a Sabl)atic year. Some twelve probable 

 references to facts (such as cessation from sowing, etc.) connected 

 with the Sabbatic year can be detected in the Gospels ; e.g., if a.d. 29 

 was the date of the Crucifixion the four parables a])out sowing, 

 Matt, xiii, 3-23, 24-30, 31-32, Mark iv, 26-29, were uttered soon 

 after the end of the Sabbatic year. The resumption of sowing, 

 which had not taken place for two years, would then arouse more 

 than ordinary interest, and therefore the subject of sowing would 



