baetyl

Also bae·tu·lus

[beet-l]

noun

Classical Antiquity.

1. a meteorite or stone held sacred or believed to be of divine origin.

Other Word Forms

• baetylic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of baetyl¹

1850–55; < Latin baetulus < Greek baítȳlos meteoric stone

Example Sentences

This pillar can hardly be anything but a baetyl, or sacred stone.

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At the foot of one of the trilithons was found a baetyl 51 inches in height, now in the museum at Valletta.

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This latter was an aneiconic worship developed out of the cult of the dead; in it the deity or hero was represented by a baetyl, i.e. a tree or pillar sometimes standing free, sometimes placed in a 'dolmen-like' cell or shrine, in which latter case the pillar often served to support the roof of the shrine.

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If the pillar which supports the slab is, like the free-standing pillars, a baetyl, the slab is probably a mere roof to cover and protect it; if not, the slab is almost certainly a table.

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It has been suggested that this pit was made to hold the base of the cult-object, whether it was a baetyl or an idol.

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