Bronze Sea

The above image appears in Martin Luther’s (1483-1546) Biblia das ist, die gantze heylige Schrifft and is courtesy of Pitt’s Theological library.

It seems that almost every mention of the number twelve was connected during history to the zodiac signs (including, so it seems, Scorpio).

1 Kings 7:23 tells about the molten sea made by King Solomon and in verse 7:25 we find:

 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.

Morris Jastrow Jr., Ira Maurice Price, Marcus Jastrow and Louis Ginzberg in their entry Brazen Sea which was published in the Jewish Encyclopedia wrote that Midrash Tadshe says that the twelve oxen on which the sea rested represented the zodiac ("mazzalot"). As you may know the zodiac is divided to four groups according to the elements: earth, water fire and air.

Solomon’s temple functioned from the 10th century B.C.E until the 6^th century B.C.E.