Belus (2)
Belus (Βηλεύς), called also Pagqida by Pliny (v. 19), a small river of Palestine, described by Pliny as taking its rise from a lake called Cendevia, at the roots of Mount Carmel, which, after running five miles, enters the sea near Ptolemais (36:26), or two stadia from the city according to Josephus (War, 10, 2). It is chiefly celebrated among the ancients for its vitreous sand; and the accidental discovery of the manufacture of glass (q.v.) is ascribed by Pliny to the banks of this river, which he describes as a sluggish stream of unwholesome water, but consecrated to religious ceremonies (comp. Tacitus, Hist. 5, 7). It is now called Nahr Naaman, but the Lake Cendevia has disappeared. It is an ingenious conjecture of Reland (Palest. p. 290) that its ancient appellation may be connected with the Greek name for glass (ὑελός or ὑαλός), and it is possible that the name appears in the Scriptural one, Bealoth (q.v.), incorrectly rendered "in Aloth" (1Ki 4:16). For the temple of Belus, see BABEL.
