Reshef was a known God in the 3rd and 2 Millennium BC - especially in Syria - but during the first Millennium BC, the cult disappeared around him. Only in a few isolated outlying areas such as the oasis of Palmyra and Cyprus he remained. Maciej M. Munnich presents the written sources that mention Reshef, and examines the characteristics of this cult. He emphasizes that there is no evidence for the previously accepted theory that Reshef the god of the underworld was. Reshef was a belligerent, aggressive God, the people with diseases struck, but also could heal. Because of the long period and the geographical reach of the cult exercise, local characteristics reveal: In Egypt, Reshef was worshiped as a deity who assisted the pharaoh in battle, was finally summoned mainly to cure diseases.
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