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OphirOphir (Hebrew אוֹפִיר, Standard Hebrew Ofir, Tiberian Hebrew ʾp̄r) is a port or region mentioned in the Bible that was famous for its wealth. King Solomon is supposed to have received a cargo of gold, silver, sandalwood, precious stones, ivory, apes and peacocks from Ophir, every three years. Biblical scholars, archeologists and various other people have tried to determine the exact location of Ophir. Most modern scholars assume that it must have been somewhere in southwest Arabia in the region of modern Yemen. This is also the assumed location of Sheba. Another possibility is the African shore of the Red Sea, with the name perhaps being derived from the Afar people of Ethiopia. Other assumptions vary as widely as theoretical locations of Atlantis. Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897) mentions the connection to "Sofir," the Coptic name for India and a possible connection to Abhira, at the mouth of the Indus River. Josephus connected it with "Cophen, an Indian river, and in part of Asia adjoining to it." (Antiquities of the Jews I:6), sometimes associated with a part of Afghanistan. Proponents of pre-Columbian connections between Eurasia and the Americas have also made their own suggestions including places like modern-day Peru. On a side note,Ophir is the subject of H. Rider Haggard's novel "King Solomon's Mines" which places its location in South Africa. Biblical references to Ophir: 1 Kings 9:28; 10:11; 22:48; 1 Chronicles 29:4; 2 Chronicles 8:18; Job 22:24; 28:16; Psalms 45:9; Isaiah 13:12. -
- Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir,
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- Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine,
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- With a cargo of ivory,
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- And apes and peacocks,
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- Sandalwood, cedarwood, and sweet white wine.
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- —John Masefield, "Cargoes"
In Genesis 10:29, Ophir was one of the sons of Joktan.
Ophir is a locality in New South Wales where gold was first discovered in Australia in 1851.
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