Tarshish [key], in the Bible. 1 Eponym of a country distant from Palestine which cannot be accurately identified; Cyprus, Spain, and Tarsus (S Asia Minor) have been suggested. Traditionally, Tarshish is identified with Spain—with the region and city of Tartessus, a Phoenician settlement of S Spain. Scholars suggest that the biblical “ships of Tarshish” held cargo for metal-manufacturing centers on the Mediterranean coast. 2 Counselor of Ahasuerus in the Book of Esther. 3 Benjamite in First Chronicles.
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