The Jewish presence in the Iberian Peninsula dates back to very remote times, although we can only confirm it with certainty from Roman times (1st century AD). However, there is some evidence that has led various authors throughout history to push the arrival of the first Hebrew communities back even further in time. To do so, they rely primarily on the biblical mentions of “Tarshish”, which a good part of historiography has identified with Tartessos, a culture developed mainly in the southwest of the peninsula between approximately the 12th and 11th centuries BC.
The Tartessian world was the result of the evolution of local peoples with a strong influence from the Phoenicians, who were a nation of sailors and merchants from the Near East. These Phoenicians were also a Semitic people, with a close relationship with the Hebrew world and hence it is not unreasonable to think of an early relationship, at least commercial, between Tartessos and the kingdom of Israel. In relation to this possibility, perhaps the most famous passage is the one that appears in the Book of Kings, which, in praising the reign of Solomon (10th century BC), says:
Stamp issued by the Israel Postal Company in reference to the "ships of Solomon". The illustration depicts the products imported from Tarshish that are mentioned in the Book of Kings.
The king had the fleet of Tarshish at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of Tarshish arrived bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks. (1 Kings 10:22)
Authors such as Adolf Shulten, Antonio García y Bellido or Ángel Montenegro, considered that the mentions of Tarshish do indeed allude to Tartessos and its commercial relationship with the Near East. However, from these mentions it cannot be deduced that there were Jewish communities living in Spanish cities before the Roman era.
