Sign of Tanit

{{Short description|Anthropomorphic symbol of Punic goddess Tanit}}

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File:Tanit Symbol.svg

The sign of Tanit or sign of Tinnit is an anthropomorph symbol of the Punic goddess Tanit, present on many archaeological remains of the Carthaginian civilization.

The symbol has many variants, but the basic form consists of a disc on top of a triangle, separated by a horizontal line, like a schematic image of a person.

Punic stele containing the sign of Tannit were uncovered in the hundreds in the site of El-Hofra in Cirta (Constantine, Algeria) and are showcased in the Louvre Museum. {{Citation |title=stèle |date=0225 |url=https://collections.louvre.fr/ark:/53355/cl010121308 |access-date=2024-07-07}}{{Cite journal |last=Bertrandy |first=S. |date=1994-02-01 |title=Cirta |url=https://journals.openedition.org/encyclopedieberbere/2289 |journal=Encyclopédie berbère |language=fr |issue=13 |pages=1964–1977 |doi=10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.2289 |issn=1015-7344}}

A coin with the sign and a legend {{lang|grc|ΦΑΝΗΒΑΛΟΣ}} phanebalos, presumably the Greek form of the Phoenician title of the goddess, i.e. {{script|Phoenician|𐤕𐤍𐤕 𐤐𐤍 𐤁𐤏𐤋}} tnt pn bʿl, "Tanit the face of Baal (Hammon)", was found in Ashkelon.{{Cite journal |last=Yadin |first=Y. |author-link=Yigael Yadin |date=1967 |title=Symbols of Deities at Zinjirli, Carthage and Hazor |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23734250 |journal=Yediot Bahaqirat Eretz-Israel Weatiqoteha |language=Hebrew |volume=31 |issue=1/4 |pages=53 |jstor=23734250 |issn=2312-0061}}{{Cite book |last=Hill |first=George Francis |title=Catalogue of the Greek coins of Palestine |year=1914 |location=London |page=LIX |author-link=George Francis Hill}}

The first report about the representations of the sign was in the beginning of the 19th century, on stele unearthed on the site of Carthage. Archaeological excavations have subsequently uncovered representations on other supports, such as mosaics or even on ceramics.

The excavations of tophet of Carthage, Sousse and Motya have highlighted the particularly important diffusion of the symbol in the western Mediterranean Basin, although the lack of discoveries on primitive Phoenician land may only be due to continued occupation of sites, making searches more difficult.{{cite book|first=Edward|last=Lipinski|title=Dictionnaire de la civilization phénicienne et punique|publisher=Brepols|year=1992|isbn=2503500331}}

Modern scholars associate the symbol with the goddess Tanit, partner of Ba'al Hammon and the most important goddess in the Punic religion. This identification is widely, but not universally, accepted. The motif may have had an apotropaic purpose, intended to offer protection from the evil eye.{{Citation needed|date=February 2023}}

The symbol is used in some contexts in modern Tunisia. For example, it has appeared on the Tanit d'or, the grand prize of the biennial Carthage Film Festival, since its establishment in 1966.[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094229/awards IMDb, awards]