Slab B-23 of the throne room of Ashurnasirpal II (British Museum)
The Asherah mentioned in scripture is generally understood to correspond to the Canaanite goddess Athirat (Goddess of the Depths) the consort of El (God of Time and Creation) by whom she bore the 70 sons of El who rule the 70 nations. Her cult was associated with the adoration of a stylized wooden pole representing a tree, perhaps the sacred tree of Assyrian iconography. These poles may originally have been cropped trunks which sprouted new growth, a phenomenon not uncommon with untreated lumber in the deep South. What is astonishing is that there was an Asherah pole in the Temple throughout most of Israel's history up until the exile to Babylon despite reforms by several kings of Judah.
