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[German version] [1] Deity of the inlet of the same name into Lake Nemi near Aricia Deity (‘Nymph’) of the inlet of the same name into Lake Nemi near Aricia, related to the sanctuary of  Diana there (Str. 5,3,12; Verg. Aen. 7,761-777; Schol. Juv. 3,17). Wife or lover of the Roman king  Numa [1], whom she advised with respect to his cultic arrangements (Dion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 2,60; Ov. Fast. 3,273-299; Plut. Numa 4,2). Ennius already reports that she gave him the ancilia (Ann. 114). A rationalizing reading makes this myth an invention with which Numa legitimized his religious re…

(Ἀρσινόη; Arsinóē). I. Myth [German version] [I 1] Daughter of Leukippos Daughter of Leucippus, sister of the Leucippids, who were abducted by the Dioscuri, she was the mother by Apollo of the Messenian Asclepius (Hes. fr. 50; Apollod. 3,117f.; Paus. 2,26,7; 4,3,2). In Sparta A. had a shrine (Paus. 3,12,8); on the agora of Messene there was an A. spring (Paus. 4,31,6), in the Messenian Asclepieum there was, amongst other things, a painting of A. (Paus. 4,31,11f.). The relationship of the Messenian to the …

This item can be found on the following maps: Theatre | Dark Ages | Oracles | Persian Wars | Aegean Koine | Education / Culture (Δωδώνη; Dōdṓnē). [German version] I. Topography, historical development Sanctuary and settlement in Epirus, 22 km south-west of today's Ioannina in the 640 m high plain of Hellopia beneath the Tomarus [1. 85-87, 92]. D. is the oldest oracle site in Greece attested in literature (myth of its founding in Hdt. 2,54f. [2. 51-54]), already known to the Homeric epics (Il. 16,233-235; Od. 19,296-301). The or…

(Ἀργιόπη; Argiópē). [German version] [1] Nymph Nymph. Rejected by her lover Philammon, she journeys from Parnassus to the Odrysae in Thrace and there gives birth to the singer  Thamyris (Apollod. 1,16; Paus. 4,33,3) [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Thracian wife of Orpheus Thracian wife of Orpheus, for whose sake he enters the Underworld (Hermesianax fr. 7,1-14 Powell). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [3] Daughter of Teuthras Daughter of Teuthras, the king of Mysia, wife of  Telephus (Diod. Sic. 4,33). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [4] D…

[German version] (Ἄμυνος; Ámynos). Athenian god of healing. His domain (Amyneion) with a fountain lay at the southern slope of the Areopagus; the earliest finds date to the 6th cent. According to inscriptional evidence, Asclepius and Hygiea were also venerated in this domain. A cultic organization to venerate ( orgeones) A., Asclepius and Dexion is likewise attested; located nearby was the domain of this hero (under whose name Sophocles was revered due to his reception of Asclepius). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography Kearns, 14-21.

[German version] The autumn; evidence exists for him personified in illustrative art and poetry from the Augustan era onwards, yet without any proven cult. He is usually associated with the  Horae and therefore often represented as feminine. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography L. A. Casal, s.v. A., LIMC 5.1, 819f.

(Ἀπελλῆς; Apellês). [German version] [1] Macedonian Politician, died 218 BC Macedonian, influential confidant of  Antigonus [3] Doson, from 222 BC guardian of  Philippus V. In 219/8, as ‘ traditionalist’, he criticized the Adriatic policy of the king and his pro-Achaean leanings under the influence of  Aratus, against whom he intrigued together with  Leontius and  Megaleas (Pol. 4,76; 82-87). In 218 their plot against Philip V was discovered and A. was executed in Corinth (Pol. 5,2,8; 16; 26-28; Plut. Arat. 48) [1. 167-170]. Günther, Linda-Marie (Munich) [German version] [2] Mace…

[German version] (Λαόγονος/ Laógonos, ‘who grew out of the people's army’). Descriptive name of two Trojan warriors in the Iliad (Hom. Il. 16,303 and 20,460). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] (Ἀγλαονίκη; Agolaoníkē). Daughter of Hegetor (Plut. Coniugalia praecepta 48,145c; de def. or. 13,417a), a Thessalian, who as witch was not only able to draw down the moon (schol. Apoll. Rhod. 4,59), but was also able ritually to purify the moon when a lunar eclipse occurred (Plut. loc. cit. credits her with rationalizing astronomical knowledge). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] (Ἀστεροπαῖος; Asteropaîos). Son of Pelegon, grandson of the river god Axius, leader of the Paeonians who were allies of Troy, killed by Achilles. Physically he was the tallest of the Trojans and Achaeans (Hom. Il. 21,140-83; Philost. Heroicus 48,14-22). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography A. Kossatz-Deissmann, LIMC 1. 1, 132, no. 556.

[German version] (Λεύκασπις; Leúkaspis, ‘the one with the white shield’). Repeatedly used name of Greek heroes. L. especially refers to one of the five commanders of the Sicani, who are killed by Heracles and who are honoured cultically (Diod. Sic. 4,23,5); he is portrayed on Syracusan coins from the 5th cent. onwards [1]. The cult of a hero L. is also attested for the Attic deme of Erchia [2], while Virgil uses the name for a drowned Trojan (Verg. Aen. 6,334). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 HN 175 2 LSCG 18 G 50.

(Λάδων; Ládōn). [German version] [1] Dragon The dragon referred to in Apoll. Rhod. 4,1396, elsewhere referred to only as a ‘serpent’ ( óphis, drákōn), who guards the apples of the Hesperides (as also mentioned on Probus in Verg. G. 1,244); he has a hundred heads and many voices. Mythographers have him either be descended directly (as a chthonic beast) from Gaia (as is Typhon) or from related monsters (Phorcys and Ceto, the parents of Echidna and grandparents of the Lernean Hydra in Hes. Theog. 333-335; Echidna and…

[German version] (Ἐλαφηβόλος; Elaphēbólos, ‘Stag Slayer’). Poetic (Anac. fr. 1 Calame; Soph. Trach. 213) and cultic epiclesis of  Artemis. Her feast of Elaphebolia (with characteristic ritual destruction in the Phocian federal sanctuary of Hyampolis, Plut. Mor. 244 BD; Paus. 10,1,6; [1; 2; 3]) and the Athenian month name  Elaphebolion derived from the festival attest to the significance of the association of the goddess with her quarry. The association has been attested in literature since Homer (O…

[German version] (Ἀναιδεία; Anaideía). ‘Indecency’, divine power (Xen. Symp. 8,35; Men. Fr. 223 K., perhaps Soph. fr. 269 = TGF 4,291). According to Theophrastus she had altars in Athens, together with Hybris (Zenob. 43,6, cf. Cic. Leg. 2,28 Contumeliae et Impudentiae fanum): meant are the ‘stone of indecency’ (λίθος Ἀναιδείας, líthos anaideías) and the ‘stone of temerity’ ( líthos Hýbreos) on the Athenian Areopagus, where accusers and the accused (Paus. 1,28,5) gathered. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography C. E. of Erfa, ΑΙΔΩΣ und verwandte Begriffe in ihrer Entwickl…

[German version] (Ἄσκιοι; Áskioi). The ‘shadowless ones’ is the name given to the inhabitants of those zones of the earth, within which the sun on certain days of the year is at its zenith so that the  gnomon does not cast a shadow, such as on the day of the summer solstice in Syene (Poseidon. fr. 115 Edelstein-Kidd); Onesicritus (FGrH 134 F 10) told of such ascia loca in India. In the system formulated by Posidonius (fr. 208 Edelstein-Kidd) the people between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn are called ἀμφίσκιοι ( amphískioi), whereas those between the polar circle and the tropics …

[German version] The Roman goddess of war (from bellum, old form Duellona from duellum; cf. Varro, Ling. 5,73; Ant. rer. div. fr. 189 Cardauns), who stands beside Mars and is relatively independent of him: the devotional formula of P. Decius Mus names her directly after  Ianus who is invoked at each new beginning and the triad of old Roman state gods Jupiter, Mars and Quirinus -- no doubt as the actual female ruler of war (Liv. 8,9,6). In Latium her cult is attested in a 5th-cent. inscription (CIL I2 441) [1], whilst an urban Roman temple to her was vowed by Appius Claudius Caecus …

[German version] [1] Amphinomus and Anapias Pious pair of brothers from Catana (Ἀμφίνομος and Ἀναπίας, Ἄναπις; Amphínomos and Anapías/ Ánapis). Pious pair of brothers from Catana, who during a volcanic eruption of Etna carried their parents from the flames; the lava stream divided in a miraculous manner before them. They were still cultically venerated in the imperial period (Paus. 10,28,4); their statutes stood at the place of this rescue, the ‘Place of the Pious’, eusebōn chṓros. The event is first mentioned by Lycurg. Or. in Leocratem 95, which only mentions a youth…

[German version] I. General Cult encompasses the entirety of ritual tradition in the context of religious practise. Via Christian usage, the term derives from the cultus deorum (‘divine worship’) named already in Cicero, and corresponds to the Greek thrēskeía; like the latter (and the Latin caerimonia, ‘rites’), it can in pagan language stand simply for ‘religion’ in general and thus refer to the absolute predominance in pagan Greek and Roman religion of ritual actions over faith. There, as in the religious cultures of the ancient Mediterr…

[German version] (ἡ λάβρυς; he lábrys) refers to the double-headed axe (Latin bipennis), which has two blades opposite each other; it is a tool as well as a ritual device and religious symbol. The expression, known in Greek only as a Lydian word in a gloss (Plut. Mor. 45,302a), was introduced into scholarly language in the late 19th cent. to refer to the Minoan ritual symbol as well as to indicate its Anatolian origin. In Minoan but more especially in Greek ritual, there is good evidence for the double-head…

[German version] I. Cult and myth J. (rarely Iupiter, archaic Diovis, Umbrian Iupater) is the supreme god of the Roman and Latin pantheon; while in iconography and myth he is identified completely with the Greek  Zeus, he exists in his own right in the cult. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] A. Etymology and origin The derivation from * Dieu-pater, i.e. Indo-European * dieu-/ diu- and the invoking pater, is undisputed; it connects him with Greek Zeus (* dieus, vocative Ζεῦ πάτερ) and Old Indo-Aryan Dyaus, and actually denotes the deity of the bright day sky (cf. Latin dies), indica…

[German version] (Λήϊτος; Lḗïtos). Son of Alector [4], a Boeotian hero; he has a tomb and cult in Plataeae (Paus. 9,4,3). He is integrated into several Panhellenic narrative cycles: he is one of the leaders of the Boeotians outside Troy, distinguishes himself occasionally and is wounded slightly - in the battle for the corpse of Patroclus - by Hector, returns to his homeland; he wooes Helene [1] and takes part in the expedition of the Argonauts (Hom. Il. 2,494; 17,601; Eur. IA 259; Catalogues: Apollod. 1,113; 3,130). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography W. Kullmann, Die Quellen der I…

[German version] Descendant of the Athenian king Codrus. Was brought to the city of Phocaea, together with the Codrideans Deoites and Periclus, from Erythrae and Teos, because the Ionians did not want to accept Phocaea in the Ionian league until it had Codrians as kings (Paus. 7,3,10). The myth legitimated the claim of Athens to hegemony over Ionia. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography A. Sakellariou, La migration grecque en Ionie, 1958, 238, n. 3.

[German version] (Ἄλκανδρος; Álkandros). Suggestive name (‘strong man’), which was given to various historical and mythical persons. Important points are: a) in the Lycurgus myth he strikes out an eye of Lycurgus in anger (aition for the cult of Athena Opilletis, Plut. Lycurgus 11,2-8; Paus. 3,18,2); b) in Lebadeia he is venerated as the son of Trophonius and as a saving hero, to whom one sacrifices before the katabasis (Paus. 9,39,5). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] I. Ancient Orient, Egypt, Old Testament In the ancient Orient, the curse is considered to be a magically effective utterance by which the speaker destroys enemies or objects of their sphere, excludes them from the community or at the very least reduces their vitality. How effective this is depends upon the status of the speaker, the social context and the use of set phrases. There is no evidence of colloquial curses in the Near East and hardly any from Egypt. In the Near East set curse phrases are preserved from the mid 3rd millennium onward i…

[German version] (Ἀστυάναξ; Astyánax). Son of  Hector and  Andromache; called Scamandrius by his parents, and A. (‘lord of the town’) by the Trojans in honour of Hector (Hom. Il. 6,402f., 22,506f.). According to the Ilioupersis, the young A. was hurled from the walls of Troy -- the Achaeans making the decision to do this (Paus. 10. 25) -- to ensure that he could not grow up to take revenge on the conquerors (Clem. Al. Strom. 6,2,19); Stesichorus recounts the same story (fr. 25 PMG). The tragic poet used by Accius in his A. has the seer Calchas give the order to murder A. in order to g…

(Ἀντίμαχος; Antímachos). [German version] [1] Trojan, opponent of Antenor Trojan, opponent of  Antenor. When, before the war, Menelaus and Odysseus demanded the return of Helen in Troy, he advised, contrary to custom and tradition, killing the envoys (Hom. Il. 3,205; 11,138). Later, bribed by Paris, he prevented the handing over of Helen, then under consideration by the Trojans (Hom. Il. 11,123 ff.). His three sons were killed by the Greeks (Hom. Il. 12,188). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Two Indo-Greek kings in the 2nd cent. BC Two Indo-Greek kings in the 2nd c…

[German version] In the records of the   Arvales fratres of the year 183 in the lists of sacrifice receivers, Adolena, Commolenda, Deferunda appear twice (8 February, 13 May); in those of the year 224 Admetus and Coinquenda [1]. Each time the sacrifice is a lustrum missum, the one offered in the year 183 is for the removal ( deferre), splitting up ( commolere) and burning ( adolere) of the fig tree growing on the roof of the temple of Dea Dia, which was damaging the roof; the one in the year 224 is for the hacking up ( coinquere) and burning of those trees struck by lightning in the grove. Since Marini […

[German version] (ἱερομνήμονες; hieromnḗmones, singular hieromnḗmōn, ἱερομνήμων). Religious officials with wide-ranging duties. Aristot. Pol. 6,5, 1321b 35 counts them, together with mnḗmones, epistátai et al., as archives officers; Plut. Symp. 8,8,4 attests the title for the priests of  Poseidon Phytalmios in Leptis; this is an isolated instance. The copious epigraphical evidence shows that the hieromnemones in some places really were archivists, frequently organized festivals, conducted temple finances or looked after temple property; prominent hieromnemones were t…

(Ἄγριος; Ágrios), ‘the wild’. [German version] [1] Mythical Calydonian Calydonian, son of Porthaon and Eureite (Hes. fr. 10a 49; Euryte: Apollod. 1,63), brother of Melas and Oeneus (Hom. Il. 14,117; about this Alcathous Hes. fr. 10a 52 f.; cf. Apollod. loc. cit.). He dethrones Oeneus, is expelled by Diomedes and kills himself (Hyg. Fab. 175, 242); after others his sons too are the usurpers and are killed by Diomedes (Apollod. 1,77-8; Ant. Lib. 37) [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Son of Odysseus and Circe Son of Odysseus and Circe, brother of Latinus and toge…

(Ἄτυς; Átys). [German version] [1] Lydian proto-king Lydian proto-king, son of Manes and brother of Cotys. His sons are Lydus and Tyrsenus, the eponyms of the Lydians and Etruscans (Dion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 1,27, cf. Hdt. 1,7; 94). A. is related to the god  Attis of Asia Minor, just as Cotys is with the Thracian goddess Cotys (Kotytto). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Son of the Lydian king Croesus Son of the Lydian king  Croesus. His violent death in the boar hunt on Mysian Olympus is stylized according to the manner of the Attis myth. Hdt. 1,34-45, ho…

[German version] (Ἀδρανός) City deity of the Sicilian city of the same name. Founded by Dionysius I, with temple and dog sacrifice (Diod. Sic. 14,37,5; Ael. NA 11,20). According to coin evidence, A. is a river god [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 B. V. Head, Historia Numorum, 1911, 119.

[German version] (λαμπαδηδρομία/ lampadēdromía, schol. Aristoph. Ran. 131; Ionian λαμπαδηφορίη/ lampadēphoríē, Hdt. 8,98; more commonly λαμπάς/ lampás since Hdt. 6,105; Pl. Resp. 328a and inscriptions) is the cultic agōn (contest) of the torch race, which was mostly performed as a relay race. In addition there were individual races, and in the cult of Bendis at Athens, a spectacular horse race. The ritual goal of the lampadedromía was ultimately the renewal of the fire; for this reason it always began at important altars. In antiquity, this renewal was unders…

[German version] (ἐπιφάνεια; epipháneia, ‘manifestation, appearance’) refers to the manifestation of a deity in a spontaneous vision, or during an actual ritual process ( Ecstasy), as well as in stories; such appearances are the essence of superhuman beings. Because divine existence mainly manifests itself in the active help given to human beings, deities, who had been helpfully present, were from the Hellenistic period onwards denoted with the  epiclesis ‘becoming apparent’ (ἐπιφανής,   epiphanḗs , Lat. praesens). Epiphany seems to have played an important role withi…

[German version] (Ἴακχος; Íakchos). One of the deities of the Mysteries of  Eleusis [1]. I. is the personification of the ecstatic cultic cry ( íakchos, onomatopoetic) by the participants in the Mysteries during their procession from Athens to the Eleusinian sanctuary where they underwent initiation into the mysteries (Hdt. 8,65; Aristoph. Ran. 316-353). His image, which was kept in a temple of Demeter, Kore and I. by the Pompeion at the Sacred Gate (Paus. 1,2,4, probably identical with the Iaccheion Plut. Aristides 27,4), was carried ahead of this procession by the iakchagōgós (‘lead…

(Ἀπόλλων [ Apóllōn]; Latin: Apollo). A., the eternally youthful Greek god of healing, divination, music and ephebes, worshipped as A. in Rome since the early 5th cent. BC and referred to as Aplu in Etruscan written records. From the earliest literary sources, he was always referred to as the son of Zeus and Leto, the younger twin brother of Artemis. The very widespread use of theophoric proper names in every era demonstrates his great popularity and the extent to which he was known. [1]. [German version] A. Etymology The etymology of the name -- the search for the origins and prima…

(Ἀρηίθοος; Arēíthoos). [German version] [1] Arcadian hero Arcadian hero whose weapon is an iron club. Nestor tells how he killed the Arcadian  Ereuthalion, who carried A.s' club;  Lycurgus had taken it from A. in a narrow pass and given it to his follower Ereuthalion (Il. 7,137-150). Pausanias saw his grave in a narrow pass near Mantinea (8,11,4). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Club-carrier from Arne Shortly prior to this, but unconnected to Nestor's story, Menesthius is mentioned as son of A. the club-carrier from Arne, who was shot by Paris (…

(Ἀλκαῖος; Alkaîos). The suggestive mythological name ( alkḗ, ‘strength’) is connected with Hercules. [German version] [1] Grandfather of Hercules Grandfather of Hercules, son of Perseus and Andromeda, husband of Astydameia, the daughter of Pelops, father of Amphitryon and Anaxo (Hes. Sc. 26; Schol. Eur. Hec. 886). Also the form of the name Alceus appears to be attested, which is more compatible with the patronymic Alcides. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Original name of Hercules Original name of Hercules, altered at the command of the Delphic Oracle (Di…

[German version] Wife of Latinian king Latinus, mother of Lavinia. She opposes the marriage of her daughter to Aeneas, because she favours her nephew Turnus (Serv. Aen. 7,366), and is thus partly responsible for the war against Aeneas (Dion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 1,64,2; Verg. Aen. 7,56 ff.; Origo gent. Rom. 13,5). Because she prematurely regards Turnus as dead, she commits suicide by hanging (Verg. Aen. 12,595 ff.) or starvation (Fabius Pictor ap. Serv. Aen. 12,603; HRR fr. 1, S. 112 no. 1). She either blinds or kills both her sons, because they supported Aeneas (Serv. Aen. 8,51). So the tra…

(Ἀλκυονεύς; Alkyoneús). [German version] [1] Figure of Greek myth: Giant Giant. He is regarded as the oldest (Lyr. adesp. 985 PGM), is domiciled in Pallene (loc. cit.) and does not die, as long as he remains in contact with his native soil. Thus, in the Gigantomachy, following Athena's suggestion, Hercules has to drag him away so as to be able to kill him (Apollod. 1,35 f.). On the Pergamum altar frieze Athena herself is dragging the winged A. away by the hair. It is said that he is buried under Vesuvius (Claud. Rapt. Pros. 3,185); the Neapolitans displayed his bones (Philostr. heroicus 9,15). I…

[German version] Hymn used by the   Arvales fratres to accompany their dance ( tripudium) for  Dea Dia and  Mars (CLE 1). Whilst its earliest transmission is an inaccurate inscription from AD 218 [1. 644-64], the text does preserve some characteristics of the early language (Lases without changing the intervocalic -s- - > -r-). In its substance, it must precede quite substantially the early Augustan reform of the cult, even if it was developed under Greek influence [2]; in any case, it is unlikely to be an archaistic creation of the middle Impe…

[German version] (Λευκοφρυήνη; Leukophryḗnē). Epiclesis of Artemis of Magnesia on the Maeander, the chief goddess of the city; after an epiphany in the mid 2nd cent. BC, an impressive temple was built for her (Vitr. De arch. 3,2,6), a new cult statue was solemnly erected [1], a trans-regional festival with agon was inaugurated [2] and the sanctuary was given the right to give asylum (Tac. Ann. 3,62,1). At the same time L. is the name of the heroine (thus derived), who (as is often the case) is bur…

[German version] In the strict sense, this is the ritual driving out of a demon ( Demons), who is causing an illness in the person possessed. The process primarily involves the use of verbal rites (ἐπῳδαί, carmina) (Isid. Orig. 6,19,55: sermo increpationis in diabolum ut excedat): the exorcist makes verbal contact with the demon and forces it to leave the person. The Greek root ἐξορκίζειν ( ex(h)orkízein), which originally merely meant ‘to swear’ (dating from Demosthenes; ἐξορκισμός; ex(h)orkismós, ‘oath’, Pol. 6,21,6), is understood in this context as ‘to conjure out’. In this sens…

[German version] [1] Military see  Ensigns Ego, Beate (Osnabrück) [German version] [2] Science See  Eagle; see  Constellations Ego, Beate (Osnabrück) [German version] [3] Proselyte from Sinope, Bible translator Proselyte from  Sinope, translated the Hebrew Bible into Greek ( c. AD 130). The source language orientation of the work stands in the foreground to the extent that many passages remain incomprehensible without knowledge of the Hebrew original. Specifically Hebraic syntactical structures are imitated, Hebrew concepts are repr…

[German version] (Ἀονίη; Aoníē). Region of Boeotia, site of the Helicon, named after the ancient people of the Aones and their eponym Aon, the son of Poseidon (Schol. Stat. Theb. 134). In Greek-Hellenistic and especially in Roman poetry, derivations from this are used as learned designations for Boeotia (Callim. Fr. 2a 30 with schol.; Verg. Ecl. 6,65), Thebes (Call. h. 4,75 with Schol.), for Helicon (Verg. G. 3,11) and the associated spring of Aganippe (Verg. Ecl. 10,12) and also for the Muses (Ov. Met. 5,333). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] (Αὔσων; Aúsōn). Son of Odysseus (or Atlas) and Circe (or Calypso). First king of the  Ausones (Serv. Aen. 3,171; 8,328 a.o). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] A. Cult in early Italy Italian goddess who was connected especially with grain, as well as with the realm of the dead and who was equated early in Roman history with the Greek Demeter. Numerous inscriptions prove the cult's existence in central and southern Italy from the late 7th cent. BC onwards. Wherever it is possible to ascertain details, she is especially associated with grain (Faliscan inscription from the period about 600 [1. 241; 2. 43], Paelignian inscription from Corfinium [1. 204; 3], Oscan tablet from Agnone c. 250 BC [1. 147; 4], bust from Aricia w…

(Ἰόλαος; Iólaos). [German version] [1] Nephew of Heracles Nephew of  Heracles, son of the latter's half-brother  Iphicles and the (shadowy) Automedusa. He accompanies Heracles on practically all his adventures (mainly as chariot driver), becomes the first Olympic champion (image in Olympia, Paus. 5,17,11), receives  Megara as wife from Heracles and finally kills  Eurystheus in Attica (Paus. 1,44,10, grave), for which he was specially rejuvenated for one day (Eur. Heracl. 843-863, perhaps following Aesch…

(Ἀστερίων; Asteríōn). [German version] [1] Mythical king of Crete Cretan king, who married  Europa and adopted her children by Zeus (Hes. fr. 140; Bacchyl. fr. 10; Apollod. 3,5; 8). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] The Minotaurus Son of Pasiphae with the Cretan bull, thus  Minotaurus (Apollod. 3,11; Paus. 2,31,1). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] (rarely, Larentina). Elusive figure of myth and cult in Rome; whether she is identical with the Mater Larum (also revered by the Arval priests), is disputed [9. 587-595; 10]. Her aetiological myth has come down in two versions and an extension (synthesis in the Fasti Praenestini, cf. Plut. Romulus 4 f.; qu.R. 35,272 ef; [1]): 1. At the time of Ancus Marcius the aedituus of Hercules plays dice with his god for a meal and a woman; the aedituus loses and brings the prostitute Acca La…

[German version] (ἱερόδουλοι; hieródouloi, ἱεροὶ δοῦλοι; hieroì doûloi). Literally, ‘temple slaves’; in ancient life they were, first, persons who (like land) were the property of a temple but not cultic personnel, second, persons who were donated as slaves (and often as cultic personnel) to the temple, and third, slaves who achieved partial or complete freedom through transfer to a deity (sacred  manumission). In modern terminology the holy prostitutes stand in the foreground ( Prostitution), as attes…