Editing Europa (consort of Zeus) (section)

=== Astarte and Europa ===
In the territory of Phoenician [[Sidon]], [[Lucian of Samosata]] (2nd century AD) was informed that the temple of [[Astarte]], whom Lucian equated with the moon goddess, was sacred to Europa:

: There is likewise in Phœnicia a temple of great size owned by the Sidonians. They call it the temple of Astarte. I hold this Astarte to be no other than the moon-goddess. But according to the story of one of the priests this temple is sacred to Europa, the sister of Cadmus. She was the daughter of Agenor, and on her disappearance from Earth the Phœnicians honoured her with a temple and told a sacred legend about her; how that Zeus was enamoured of her for her beauty, and changing his form into that of a bull carried her off into Crete. This legend I heard from other Phœnicians as well; and the coinage current among the Sidonians bears upon it the effigy of Europa sitting upon a bull, none other than Zeus. Thus they do not agree that the temple in question is sacred to Europa.<ref name="encarta2008" /> {{verify source|date=February 2023}}

The paradox, as it seemed to Lucian, would be solved if Europa ''is'' Astarte in her guise as the full, "broad-faced" moon.