[b]Ancient[/b]
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In the mid-first century, Palmyra, a wealthy and elegant city located along the caravan routes linking [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persia]Persia[/url] with the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean]Mediterranean[/url] ports of Roman Syria and [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenicia]Phoenicia[/url], came under Roman control. During the following period of great prosperity, the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramaeans]Aramaean[/url] and [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab]Arab[/url] inhabitants of Palmyra adopted customs and modes of dress from both the Parthian world to the east and the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graeco-Roman]Graeco-Roman[/url] west.
Tadmor is mentioned in the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_Bible]Hebrew Bible[/url] ([url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Books_of_Chronicles]Second Book of Chronicles[/url] 8:4) as a desert city built (or fortified) by the King [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon]Solomon[/url] of [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judea]Judea[/url], the son of [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_%28biblical_king%29]David[/url].
In the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Books_of_Kings]First Book of Kings[/url] (9:18) is mentioned the city of תמר Tamor or Tamar, also built by [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon]Solomon[/url]. But it is traditionally read (see [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qere]Qere[/url]) as [i]Tadmor[/i], and several citations in the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tract_%28literature%29]tractates[/url] of the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talmud]Talmud[/url] and of the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midrash]Midrash[/url]
refer to that city in the Syrian desert (sometimes interchanging the
letters "d" and "t" - "Tatmor" instead of "Tadmor"). Some modern
scholars wrote that it could refer to a place near the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Sea]Dead Sea[/url].[sup][[i][url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed]citation needed[/url][/i]][/sup]
Tadmor is also mentioned as built by Solomon in [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavius_Josephus]Flavius Josephus[/url] [i]Antiquities of the Jews[/i] - Book VIII, along with the Greek name of Palmyra.
[i]Tadmor[/i] is the name of Palmyra in modern Hebrew. The exact
etymology of the name "Palmyra" in this case is unknown, although some
scholars believe it was related to the palm trees in the area. Others,
however, believe it may have come out of an incorrect translation of
the name "Tadmor" (cf. Colledge, Seyrig, Starcky, and others).
The city was first mentioned in the archives of [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mari,_Syria]Mari[/url]
in the 2nd millennium BC. It was another trading city in the extensive
trade network that linked Mesopotamia and northern Syria. Palmyra is
also mentioned in 2 Chronicles (8:4):
<blockquote class="templatequote">
There had been a temple at Palmyra for 2000 years before the Romans
ever saw it. Its form, a large stone-walled chamber with columns
outside, is much closer to the sort of thing attributed to Solomon than
to anything Roman. It is mentioned in the Bible as part of Solomon's
Kingdom. In fact, it says he built it.
</blockquote>
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