Ajay Kumar at 22:26, 29 August 2023

2023-08-29T22:26:06Z

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{{Infobox royalty
|name = Hiram I
|title = King of Tyre
|reign = 980–947 BC (?)
|predecessor = [[Abibaal]], ?? – 981 BC (?)
|successor = [[Baal-Eser I]] (Beleazarus I, Ba'l-mazzer I) 946–930 BC (?)
|dynasty = Dynasty of [[Abibaal]] and Hiram I
|father = [[Abibaal]]
|mother = Unknown
|birth_date = 1000 BC (?)
|birth_place = Tyre, presumed
|death_date = 947 or 946 BC, presumed
}}
'''Hiram I''' ([[Phoenician language|Phoenician]]: 𐤇𐤓𐤌 ''Ḥirōm'' "my brother is exalted"; [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]: {{Script/Hebrew|חִירָם}} ''Ḥīrām'', Modern [[Arabic Language|Arabic]]: حيرام, also called ''Hirom'' or ''Huram'')<ref>[http://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/2_samuel/5.htm Ellicott's Commentary for Modern Readers] on 2 Samuel 5, accessed 11 July 2017</ref>
was the [[Phoenicia]]n king of [[Tyre, Lebanon|Tyre]] according to the [[Hebrew Bible]]. His regnal years have been calculated by some as 980 to 947 BC, in succession to his father, [[Abibaal]]. Hiram was succeeded as king of Tyre by his son [[Baal-Eser I]].<ref>Vance, Donald R. (March 1994) "Literary Sources for the History of Palestine and Syria: The Phœnician Inscriptions" ''The Biblical Archaeologist'' 57(1) 2–19.</ref> Hiram is also mentioned in the writings of [[Menander of Ephesus]] (early 2nd century BC), as preserved in [[Josephus|Josephus's]] ''[[Against Apion]]'', which adds to the biblical account. According to Josephus, Hiram lived for 53 years and reigned 34.

==Reign==
During Hiram's reign, Tyre grew from a satellite of [[Sidon]] into the most important of [[Phoenicia]]n cities, and the holder of a large trading empire. He suppressed the rebellion of the first Tyrean colony at [[Utica, Tunisia|Utica]], near the later site of [[Carthage]] (''Against Apion'' i:18).

The [[Hebrew Bible]] says that he allied himself with [[David]], king of [[Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)|the United Kingdom of Israel]] and his artisans built David's palace in [[Jerusalem]] after his capture of the city.<ref>{{bibleverse|2|Samuel|5:11|KJV|}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|1|Kings|5:1|KJV|}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|1|Chronicles|14:1|KJV|}})</ref> The palace was built using [[Lebanon Cedar]]. After David's death, Hiram maintained his alliance with David's son and successor [[Solomon]], again as an equal ("אחי", meaning "my brother")<ref>{{bibleverse|1 Kings|9:13}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|Amos|1:9}}</ref><ref>[[Michael D. Coogan]], ''A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament'' page 213–214, Oxford University Press, 2009</ref> Through the alliance with Solomon, Hiram ensured himself access to the major [[trade route]]s to Egypt, [[Arabia]] and [[Mesopotamia]]. The two kings also jointly opened a trade route over the [[Red Sea]], connecting the Israelite harbour of [[Ezion-Geber]] with a land called [[Ophir]].<ref>{{bibleverse|2 Chronicles 8:16,17|multi=yes}}</ref> Some schools of thought suggest that this land of Ophir was in the port city of [[Sopara]] near modern [[Mumbai]] (Bombay), [[India]].<ref>[[A. L. Basham]], ''[[The Wonder That Was India]]'' page 232, [[Picador (imprint)|Picador]] India</ref>

According to the Bible, both kings grew rich through this trade, and Hiram sent Solomon architects, workmen, cedar wood, and gold to build the [[Solomon's Temple|First Temple]] in [[Jerusalem]]. Josephus says that he also extended the Tyrean harbour, enlarged the city by joining the two islands on which it was built, and constructed a royal palace and a temple for [[Melqart]] (''Against Apion'' i:17). [[Modern archaeology]], however, has found no evidence for these expansions.<ref>{{cite book|last=Demand |first=Nancy H. |title=The Mediterranean Context of Early Greek History |year=2011 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-1405155519 |page=230}}</ref>

==Hypotheses regarding chronology of reign==
[[File:The struggle of the nations - Egypt, Syria, and Assyria (1896) (14591864250).jpg|thumb|left|The [[Baal Lebanon inscription]] is thought to mention Hiram.]]
The beginning date of Hiram's reign is derived from a statement by [[Josephus]] by citing both Tyrian court records and the writings of [[Menander of Ephesus|Menander]],<ref>''[[Against Apion]]'' i:17,18.</ref> relating that 143 years passed between the start of construction of [[Solomon]]'s Temple until the founding of [[Carthage]] (or until [[Dido (Queen of Carthage)|Dido]]'s flight that led to its founding). Josephus also related that Hiram's reign began 155 years and 8 months before that event and that construction of Solomon's Temple began in the twelfth year of Hiram's reign, which would be 143 years before the building of Carthage.

As pointed out by [[William Barnes]] (1801–1886), the date for the start of Temple construction using the Tyrian data is derived "wholly independently" of the way that date is derived by using the Scriptural data.<ref>William H. Barnes, ''Studies in the Chronology of the Divided Monarchy of Israel'' (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1991) 31.</ref>

=="Tomb of Hiram"==
{{main| Hiram's Tomb}}
[[File:KingHiramTombTyreLebanon.jpg|thumb|The "[[Tomb of Hiram]]", as seen in 2009]]
The "Tomb of Hiram" (Qabr Hiram) dates from the [[Achaemenid Empire|Persian period]], four to six centuries after the presumed time of Hiram.<ref name="Livius">[https://www.livius.org/articles/place/hannaouiye-tomb-of-hiram/ Livius.org, ''The "Tomb of Hiram" at Hannaouiye''], accessed 06 October 2021</ref> It is built 6 km southeast of Tyre, near the village of [[Hanaouay]], on the road to [[Qana]]<ref name="Livius"/> and has the form of a colossal limestone sarcophagus on a pedestal.<ref name="Livius"/>

==In modern fiction==
King Hiram is a character in the [[time travel]] story ''Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks'' (1983) by [[Poul Anderson]].

== Namesakes ==
In 1829, the [[Tyre, New York|Town of Tyre]] was formed in [[Seneca County, New York|Seneca County]] in the [[New York (state)|state of New York]] and the choice of its name was presumably inspired by ancient Tyre, according to the Town Historian. Likewise, its [[Hiram Lay Cobblestone Farmhouse]], which is on the [[National Register of Historic Places]], was apparently named after the Phoenician king.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2019|title=A Brief History of Tyre|url=https://tyreny.com/history/|access-date=26 August 2020|website=Town of Tyre}}</ref>

In the [[Southern Lebanon|Southern Lebanese]] city of Tyre there is a neighbourhood called Hay Hiram, located in Tyre's northern municipality of [[Aabbassiyeh|Abassiyat]]. Hiram [[Hospital]] is based in that neighbourhood and nearby there is a Hiram [[Pharmacy]]. In the centre of Tyre's Sour municipality main street is named after Hiram (spelled ''Hyram'' on [[Google Maps]]). Hiram Street suffers from high [[traffic congestion]], [[Air pollution|air]] and [[noise pollution]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Maguire|first=Suzanne|last2=Majzoub|first2=Maya|date=2016|editor-last=Osseiran|editor-first=Tarek|title=TYRE CITY PROFILE|url=https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/UN-Habitat_2017.05.22_CP_Tyre_web.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/UN-Habitat_2017.05.22_CP_Tyre_web.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live|access-date=26 August 2020|website=reliefweb|publisher=UN HABITAT Lebanon|pages=15, 89, 94–95|format=PDF}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of kings of Tyre]]
* [[Pygmalion of Tyre|Pygmalion]] for discussion of date of founding of Carthage used by Menander

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Monarchs in the Hebrew Bible]]
[[Category:Kings of Tyre]]
[[Category:10th-century BC monarchs]]
[[Category:People from Tyre, Lebanon]]
[[Category:1000 BC births]]
[[Category:940s BC deaths]]
[[Category:10th-century BC Phoenician people]]
[[Category:Ophir]]

Hiram I - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 22:26, 29 August 2023