Phoencian version of Egyptian Ishtar. Some believe that she became Aphrodite in Greek myth. She was a Moon goddess associated with love and sex, but also war. Symbols of Astarte include the sphinx and the horse, the lion and the dove. Graphically, she was symbolized as a star within a circle a symbol believed to be a representation of the planet Venus.
In Jewish myth she is called Ashtoreth and is considered a female demon of lust. This may be due to the policy of one religion turning the deities of other religions into representatives of evil.