Dhu Shanatir | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Man with Earrings | |||||
Reign | 490–517[1] | ||||
Predecessor | Sharhabil Yafar | ||||
Successor | Dhu Nuwas | ||||
Died | c. 517 | ||||
| |||||
Religion | South Arabian polytheism |
Dhu Shanatir (Arabic: لحيعة ينوف ذو شناتر, romanized: Lakhniʿah Yanuf Dhu Shanatir), was a legendary Himyarite king, who usurped the throne from the royal family and supposedly ruled Yemen for a period of 27 years.[2] He also received the title "The Man with Earrings" due to his appearance.[3]
He is known as one of the first recorded serial killers.[4] He lured young boys from the royal family into his home with the promise of food or money,[5] but then stripped them naked before he sodomized them. He then killed them by throwing them naked out of an upper-story window of his home. He was only stopped when his would-be victim, Zur'ah ibn Sharhabil, managed to overpower and stab him to death.[6] stabbed him.[7] Following his assassination, Zur'ah displayed his severed head at the palace window, and was accepted by his people as the new ruler of Himyar, taking the title of Dhu Nuwas.[8][9][10]
Dhu Shanatir does not appear in any of the Himyarite archaeological inscriptions. Instead, a king by the name of Ma'dikarib Ya'fur precedes Dhu Nuwas, and he was a Christian. This contradicts the traditional account which states that Dhu Shanatir adhered to South Arabian polytheism. Some scholars have suggested that Dhu Shanatir took up the throne name of Ma'dikarib Ya'fur to explain why his name is not present in the inscriptions.