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(Ionian-Attic Δημήτηρ; Dēmḗtēr, Doric-Boeotian Δαμάτηρ; Damátēr, Aeolian Δωμάτηρ; Dōmátēr, Attic short form Δηώ; Dēṓ). Goddess of agriculture, especially grain cultivation, womanhood and the Mysteries. [German version] A. Name The name is only partly comprehensible. In the second part of the word ‘mother’ is recognizable, for the first part ancient writers offer two interpretations, a connection with ‘earth’ ( gê/ gâ) or a word for grain (Cretan dēaí, ‘barley’). The first has been in currency since the classical period (Derveni Papyrus, col. 18), the second is…

[German version] A. General Points, Definition Mysteries or rather mystery cults (in order to avoid the misleading term ‘mystery religions’) are cults of the Greek and Roman world which, for classical and modern observers alike, constitute a circumscribed category of cults within Greek and Roman religion.  Their name derives from the Attic celebration of the Mysteria, the festival of Demeter and Kore/Persephone, celebrated annually over a period of days at the shrine of Eleusis, and known since the Ho…

(Ἀστυδάμεια; Astydámeia). [German version] [1] Daughter of the Dolopian king Amyntor Daughter of the Dolopian king Amyntor, by Hercules mother of Tlepolemus (Hes. fr. 232; Pind. Ol. 7,24). In Homer she is Astyocheia (Il. 2,658), in Apollod. 2,149 and Hyg. Fab. 162 Astyoche, daughter of Phylas of Ephyra (Apollod. 1,166). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Wife of  Acastus of Iolcus Wife of  Acastus of Iolcus, who purified Peleus from his accidental killing of  Eurytion. When Peleus rejected her love, she slandered him to his wife  Antigone [2],…

[German version] (Αἰολίδαι; Aiolídai). Not only the sons of Aeolus, such as Sisyphus, Athamas and Cretheus, but also their descendants, e.g. Bellerophontes and Jason in Pindar, Minyas, Phrixus, Idmon in Apoll. Rhod. In Virgil's Aeneid (6,529) Anchises calls Odysseus Aeolides, in accordance with the tradition which makes him the son of Sisyphus (since Soph. Phil. 417). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography M. Scarsi, s. v. Eolide, EV 2,324.

(Ἄλκιμος; Álkimos). [German version] [5] Latinus A. Alethius Rhetorician, writer of panagyrics and poet Appears as a famous rhetorician (probably based on a catalogue of model speeches from Bordeaux) in  Sidonius, where he is praised for his oratorical fortitudo: Epist. 5,10,3 (see Jer. Chron. a. Abr. 2371). Probably also the author of a rhetorical handbook that is otherwise no longer distinguishable (Sid. Apoll. Epist. 8, 11, 2; in the same source: origin in Agen; concerning false identifications, see PLRE 2, Alethius 2, against [3…

(Ἄρτεμις; Ártemis) I. Religion [German version] A. Etymology and Early History Greek goddess; daughter of Zeus and Leto, twin sister of Apollo. Goddess of transitions -- birth and coming-of-age in both sexes -- of female death, hunting and game, as well as, in the Greek East, city goddess. Identified especially with Cybele and Anahita in Asia Minor and the Near East, and with Diana in Rome. Etruscan representations, where she is called artume(s), preserve her character as a figure borrowed from the Greeks. It is a matter of dispute, whether her name, which defies all etymology…

[German version] Hermetic writings (HW; the terminus is modern) are Graeco-Egyptian texts, whose author is supposed to have been the Egyptian god Thot, Greekified as Hermes Trismegistus. His epithet (‘the thrice great H.’), which has only existed since the Imperial period, derives from the thrice repeated call to Hermes-Thot as ‘the greatest’ (which is already documented in Hellenistic Demotic and Greek sources). Clemens [3] of Alexandria (Strom. 6,4,35) describes a procession, in which 42 fundame…

[German version] (Ἀστραῖος; Astraîos). Titan, son of the Titans Creius (Crius) and Eurybia. With Eos he begot the winds ( Astraei fratres, Ov. Met. 14,545) which blow at the first light of dawn, the morning star and the other stars (Hes. Theog. 375-82; Apollod. 1,9). Besides that he is a giant, son of Tartarus and Ge (Hyg. praef. 4). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography E. Simon, s.v. A., LIMC 2. 1, 927.

(Άσκλήπιος; Asklépios) I. Religion [German version] A. Mythology The most important Greek healing hero, son of Apollo and of a mortal woman, in cultic reality he soon became a god, in Rome venerated as Aesculapius. It is hard to interpret the Greek name from an etymological perspective. The usual form of the myth -- and it is not certain that it derives from the Hesiodic ‘Catalogues’ [1; 2] -- makes A. the son of Apollo and of Coronis, the daughter of the Thessalian Phlegyas; in contrast to this, Hesiod calls his mother  Arsinoe, daughter of…

[German version] [I] Office (ἄρχοντες, ἄρχων; árchontes, árchōn). In general, the term applied to all holders of   archai . However, the term was frequently used as the title of a particular office, originally, at least, the highest office of the state. Archontes in this sense of the term are found in most states of central Greece, including Athens, and states dependent on or influenced by Athens. According to Aristot. Ath. Pol. 3, the kings were initially replaced by archons who were initially elected for life, later for a period of ten years, and finally for …

[German version] (Καύκων; Kaúkōn). Eponymous hero of the Peloponnesian people of the  Caucones [1]; his genealogy is dependent on the ancient localization of the people first named in Hom. Od. 3. 366. His grave was shown in Lepreum in Triphylia (Paus. 5,5,5; Str. 8,345), and according to the Triphylian cult centre on Samicon, he is seen as the son of Poseidon (Ael. NA 1,24). Yet as a result of the Arcadian localization, C. is also the son of Arcas (schol. Hom. Od. 3,366) or of Lycaon (Apollod. 3,97…

[German version] (Ἀδράστεια; Adrásteia). Goddess related to the mountain mother of Asia Minor,   Cybele. She had a cult at Cyzicus (actually on the Adrásteia óros outside the city, Str. 12,8,11; 13,1,13) and on the Trojan Mount Ida (Aesch. fr. 158 TGF). A. was compared to Artemis (Demetrius of Scepsis apud Harpocr. 6,9; Solin. 7,26) and revered in Athens in association with Bendis (IG I3 383,142; cf. 369,67). In mythic poetry she was associated with the birth of Zeus: as daughter of Melisseus, sister of Ide and of Curetes, she helps with the care of the chil…

[German version] Named only in Tacitus (hist. 2,3; ann. 3,62,4), founder of the sanctuary of Aphrodite at Paphos, which was called  Aeria [3] after him. Father of Amathus, the founder of the second largest Cypriot Aphrodite sanctuary. Research derives the name partly from Greek ἀήρ, ‘air’, partly from ‘copper’ Latin aes, (Greek κύπρος). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography V. Pirenne-Delforge, L'Aphrodite grecque, 1994, 330-333.

[German version] Cyprus [3] The island was incorporated into Roman possessions in 58 BC and remained part of the province of Cilicia until 48/47 BC. It was returned to the Ptolemaic kingdom by Caesar and Antony, and came permanently into Roman possession from 30 BC. As a province in its own rights, it was initially administered by a legatus, then from 22 BC by the Senate through an annually appointed procurator; following Diocletian's reorganization of the provinces, it was placed under the administration of the consularis of the dioecesis Oriens in Antioch [1] . After the initial f…

[German version] I. Ancient Orient In Mesopotamia, the ecstatic state is described as maḫû, ‘to be outside of oneself, to be crazy, to rave’. It is possible that the verb tebû, ‘to elevate oneself’, used in the Mari-Letters already points to the special mental state of a  prophet. The term maḫḫû, ‘ecstatic’, is documented again and again since the 24th cent. BC [1]. Ecstasy occurs primarily in the context of delivering oracles at the temple and is therefore controllable. Ecstasy is a method of legitimizing divine communication ( Divination). Fo…

(Αἴπυτος; Aípytos). [German version] [1] Arcadian hero Arcadian hero, son of Elatus, father of Peirithous (Hes. fr. 166). His grave, known already to Homer (Il. 2,604) was displayed on Mount Sepia at Cyllene, where he had been bitten by a snake. Pindar (O. 6,30) gives his residence as Phaesane at Alpheius; Pitane promises him her daughter by Poseidon, Evadne, who, by Apollo, will become mother of the seer Iamus. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] King of Arcadian Trapezus King of Arcadian Trapezus, son of Hippothous, father of Cypselus. He went blind because he…

[German version] (Ἀδμήτη; Ádmḗtē). Daughter of Eurystheus, Hera priestess in Argus, for whom Hercules secured the belt of Hippolyte, the queen of the Amazons (Apollod. 2,99). She fled with the cult image to Samos and there became a priestess of Hera; the cultic aetiology of the Samian festival of the Tonaia (Ath. 15,672) is dependent on this.  Hera. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography M. Schmidt, s. v. A., LIMC 1.1, 216-218.

[German version] (Ἡρόδωρος; Heródōros) from Heraclea on the Pontus. Mythographer, father of  Bryson of the Megarian School, wrote in Ionian dialect around 400 BC, often cited in the MSS as  Herodotus. Monographs on individual mythical figures (Heracles in at least 17 bks., Pelops, Oedipus) or groups ( Argonaútai, Orphéōs kaì Musaíou historía = ‘Orpheus and Musaeus’), of which a few fragments are extant (FGrH 31), are conceivable in the titles. Accordingly H. adopted the mythical traditions especially of  Hellanicus and  Pherecydes of Athens. The…

[German version] (Caca). In the mythology of the Augustan authors (Verg. Aen. 8,190-279; Liv. 1,7,3-15; Prop. 4,9; Ov. Fast. 1,543-586), the battle of Hercules with the cave-dwelling monster C. on the Palatine (where the scala Caci lies [1]) or Aventine (according to Verg.) is important: it had stolen Hercules' cattle and was punished accordingly. The myth provides the aetiology for the cult of Hercules in the Ara Maxima on the Forum Boarium, it also takes up -- with its basic theme of the triumph over the monster -- themes of Au…

[German version] (Ἀλήθεια), ‘Truth’. Personified as daughter of Zeus (Pind. Ol. 10,4 and fr. 205) and wet nurse of Apollo (Plut. Symp. 3,9 657e); her throne is made of iron (Them. Or. 22,281c Hercher). To the Romans, daughter of Kronos (Saturnus) (Plut. qu. R.11,267e) or Tempus, ‘Time’, which presupposes the Greek understanding of Kronos as Chronos (Gell. NA 12,11,7, after a vetus poeta); the nuda Veritas in Hor. (Carm. 1,24,7) is probably an ad hoc idea. Represented as an image on the famous painting of the slander of  Apelles (Lucian. Cal. 5), imitated by Botticelli's…

[German version] (Δελφίνιος; Delphínios, in Crete also Delphidios). Epiclesis of Apollo, attested in both Ionic and Doric (Crete) territory and often linked in antiquity, after the Homeric hymn to Apollo, to Delphi and the  dolphin: he is said to have led his priests to Delphi as a dolphin. Many academics adopted this etymology, even though the cults could not confirm it; there the god is thoroughly bound up in the concerns of the young citizens of the polis. In Miletus (then in  Olbia) he is the g…

[German version] (Ἵμερος; Hímeros, ‘desire’). The personification of affectionate longing. Together with  Eros [1], he accompanies Aphrodite (since Hes. Theog. 201); with the  Charites (the goddesses of ‘grace’), he lives close to the Muses (Hes. Theog. 64, a poetological statement). Later he was firmly associated with Aphrodite and Eros, pictorially also with  Dionysus and  Pothos; he is indistinguishable iconographically from Eros and Pothos. A statue of H. by  Scopas used to stand in the temple of Aphrodite at Megara (Paus. 1,43,6). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography A. H…

(Ἀντίνοος; Antínoos). [German version] [1] Most unrestrained of the suitor From Ithaca, son of Eupeithes, the most unrestrained of the suitors. He perpetrated numerous futile attacks on Telemachus (Hom. Od. 4,660-73; 16,364-92), threw the stool at Odysseus transformed into a beggar (17,462-5) and brought about the competition with Irus (18,434-39). Odysseus' first arrow hit him (22,8) [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 O. Touchefeu-Meynier, LIMC 6.1, 632, no. 3. [German version] [2] Favourite of Hadrian Born in Bithynion-Claudioupolis in the province of Bi…

(Etruscan  Uni). [German version] I. Cult and Myth J. is an important Latin goddess and besides  Minerva the most significant goddess of the Roman pantheon; while myth makes her the wife of  Jupiter, according to the Greek model, in the cult - in spite of her association with Jupiter (and Minerva) in the Capitoline triad - she is a significant figure in her own right, embodying the same tensions as with  Hera. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] A. Name The name of J. is not related to that of Jupiter: the initial sound is always / i-/, never / di-/, and the / ū/ is monophthongal ( Iunone Louc…

(Ἀμαρυγκεύς; Amarynkeús). [German version] [1] King of the Epeians King of the Epeians, for whom his sons organize splendid commemorative games after his death. In all competitions, except in chariot racing, Nestor wins (Hom. Il. 23,629 ff.). His son Diores dies at Troy (Hom. Il. 2,622. 4,517) [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Thessalian ally of king Augeias Thessalian ally of king Augeias in the fight against Hercules (Paus. 5,1,10). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 R. Hampe, LIMC 1.1, 584 f.

(Ἄμπελος; Ámpelos). [German version] [1] Cape on the south-eastern coast of  Crete Cape on the south-eastern coast of  Crete (Ptol. 3,17,4), according to Plin. HN 4,59 also one of the oppida insignia. The town is to be localized close to the modern town of Xerokampos. Graves and ceramics (i.a. of Rhodian origin) from the Hellenistic-Roman period. Sonnabend, Holger (Stuttgart) Bibliography C. Bursian, Geogr. von Griechenland 2, 1972, 577 f. I. F. Sanders, Roman Crete, 1982, 137. [German version] [2] Cape on the south-western tip of the island of  Samos Cape on the south-western …

[German version] [1] Achaemenid satrapy in the region of Herat Old Persian Haraiva, Achaemenid  satrapy in the region of Herat ( Alexandria [6], at the Hari Rud, Afghanistan). First mentioned in the Behistun inscription [1], later also in Herodotus (3,93), Polybius (10,49; 11,39), Pliny (HN 6,21), and Ammianus Marcellinus (23,6,69). In the 3rd cent. BC, Areia belonged to the Seleucid empire, later to the Graeco-Bactrian kingdom, and was finally incorporated into the Parthian empire. The river valley was particularly suited to viticulture (Str. 11,10,1-2). Kuhrt, Amélie (London) S…

[German version] [1] see Dice (game) see  Dice (game) Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Epiclesis of Athena in Arcadia (Ἀλέα; Aléa). Epiclesis of Athena in Arcadia, where Pausanias gives evidence of it for Alea (8,23,1), Mantinea (8,9,6), and above all Tegea (8,45,4-47,3), also a xóanon in Amyclae (3,19,7). The Tegeate sanctuary enjoyed the highest respect and held the right to grant asylum (Paus. 3,5,6); a boy administered the service. Scopas constructed the classical temple, which was the largest and most beautiful one on th…

(Ἀργεία [ Argeía], Argia). Appears as the ‘wife of Argus’ in a supporting role in various myths concerning Argus. [German version] [1] Daughter of Oceanus Daughter of Oceanus, sister and wife of Inachus, mother of the early Argive king Phoroneus and Io (Hyg. Fab. 143). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Older daughter of Adrastus and Amphithea Older daughter of Adrastus and Amphithea, wife of Polynices (Hyg. Fab. 69,5). She participated in Oedipus' burial (Hes. fr. 192) and helped Antigone to guard the dead Polynices, but fled before Creon…

[German version] (Κομβάβος; Kombábos) in the aetiological myth recounted by Lucian (De Dea Syria 17-27) is the founder of the temple of Atargatis in Hierapolis who introduced self-castration and women's clothing for the eunuchs ( gálloi); for the motivation the author himself draws an analogy with the story of Phaedra and Hippolytus. Certainly the name C. suggests Cybebe ( Cybele), a term for the Great Mother (Hdt. 5,102) cognate with the Hittite Kubaba, and kýbēbos, a term for the gállos (Semonides fr. 36 West); however, it is unclear here, as in other unrelated details,…

[German version] Healing heroes in a sanctuary in Messenian Pharae. They are regarded as the sons of  Machaon and Anticlea, the daughter of king Diocles (Paus. 4,30,3). Their sanctuary was donated by Isthmius, son of the Glaucus who initiated the cultic worship of Machaon (Paus. 4,3,10). Through these myths, an independent healing cult is obviously incorporated into the cult of  Asclepius so central to Messenia. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] I. Botanical Ivy (κισσός/ kissós, ἕλιξ/ hélix, Latin hedera) represents the only European genus of Araliaceae. English ‘ivy’ as well as German Efeu and Eppich (another word for ivy;  Celery) are derived from Old High German ebihouui or eboue. Because of confusion with the rock-rose mentioned in Theophrastus (κίσθος/ kísthos, Hist. pl. 6,2,1), Pliny (HN 16,145) distinguishes between a male ( hedera mas) and a somewhat smaller female form ( h. femina). In his further statements on ivy, he also follows Theophrastus who in turn regards the ivy as being r…

[German version] (Εύγνωστος; Eúgnōstos) The name of the author of a letter (‘The blessed E. to his people’) that has twice been passed down to us in the Coptic library of Nağ Ḥammādī (III 70,1-90,13 and, in a much worse condition, V 1-17). The letter, which was probably written in the late 1st or in the early 2nd cent. AD, contains ─ following the rejection of the philosophical teachings regarding the rulership of the world ─ a cosmogony described as a revelation of the ‘God of Truth’ that consider…

[German version] (Ἵπτα; Hípta) Goddess of western Asia Minor, probably developed out of the old Anatolian Ḫepat, a form of the Great Goddess. Mentioned on inscriptions only in Lydia as Mḗtēr H. and apparently related to  Sabazius. In the Orphic myths, she appears as a wet-nurse, to whom Zeus hands the new-born Dionysus. On her head is a basket entwined with snakes ( líknon) (Orph. fr. 199). She is addressed by the so-called Orphic hymns as the wet-nurse of Dionysus - son of Sabazius or the same - who resides on the Tmolus or the Ida Mountains ( Orphism) (Or…

(Αἴθων; Aíthōn), ‘the fiery one’. [German version] [1] Great-grandfather of Odysseus Great-grandfather of Odysseus, under whose name Odysseus appeared unrecognized before Penelope (Hom. Od. 19,183). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Epithet of  Erysichthon, also son of Helios After the ‘burning hunger’ epithet of  Erysichthon (since Hellanicus FGrH 4 F 7). Suidas (s. v.) makes him a son of Helios. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [3] Epic horse name Epic horse name (‘fire fox’) after Hector's horse (Hom. Il. 8,185); later poets gave this na…

[German version] (ὕψιστος; hýpsistos, ‘the highest’) can be conferred as an adjective on every god, but, since later Hellenism, is above all the epigraphically attested epiclesis of  Zeus as mountain god or high god, and the name of a god ( theòs hýpsistos) who can be identical to Zeus H., but can also indicate the Jewish or Christian God; a distinct differentiation is often difficult. A complete study of the material which has grown enormously since the first analyses, and which L. Robert has announced on numerous occasions, has still not appeared [1]. Zeus is consistently identified a…

I. Ancient Orient [German version] A. General The magic of the ancient Orient and of Egypt is based on a view of the world that runs counter to that of religion. In the world-view of magic, men, gods and demons are tied to each other and to the cosmos by sympathies and antipathies, whereas in the religious world view everything is created by the gods for their own purposes; the relations between men and the cosmos are the result of deliberate actions of the gods. In the practice of religion, however, b…

[German version] (Ἀστραία; Astraía, Latin: Astraea). In the Myth of the Ages in Hes. Op. 197-200, Aidos and Nemesis desert humanity in the Iron Age; in Arat. Phaen. 105 it is Dike, and Ovid Met. 1,149f. calls the constellation Virgo Astraea (cf. Fast. 1,249: Iustitia), as Juv. 6,19f. later also does when he calls A. the sister of Pudicitia (Αἰδώς). Verg. Ecl. 34,6 had imagined the return of Virgo at the beginning of the new Golden Age. All the Roman representations are based on Arat. Phaen. 96-98 which equates Dike with the constellation of Virgo (Parthe…

[German version] (ᾈδωνεύς; Aidōneús). Another name of   Hades. In a rationalistic interpretation of the myth of how Theseus and Peirithous descend into the underworld, in order to steal Persephone, and in so doing were overcome and chained, he is the king of the Molossians, whose wife the two heroes wanted to abduct (Plut. Theseus 31,4. 35, according to an Atthidographer [1]). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 C. Ampolo, in: Id, M. Manfredini, Plutarco. Le vite di Teseo e di Romolo, 1988, 252.

(Δῖα, Δία; Dîa, Día). [German version] [1] Female equivalent of Zeus The female equivalent of  Zeus, as Diwiya on the Linear B inscriptions from Pylos and Knossos, with her own sanctuary, just as  Poseidon also has his female counterpart in the Mycenaean pantheon [1]. In the post-Mycenaean period the three heroines who can be linked with the Mycenaean goddess by name, are all linked with Zeus, but the individual derivation is problematical. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Heroine in the local cults of Phlius and Sicyon The heroine is most likely D. in the local cult…

[German version] (αἶσα; aîsa), ‘Share’, ‘Portion’ (in the language of epic and in border dialects): the destiny allotted by the deity (Hom. Il. 9,608 Diós aísa); therefore synonymous with  Moira. From Homer on, she is personified as spinner of the threads of destiny (Il. 20,127 f.; in Od. 7,196 f. connected to the Clothes, the ‘Spinners’), but differentiated from the Moira Clotho, ‘Spinner’ (Hes. Theog. 905). In Aeschylus she is connected as ‘Bearer of the (avenging) sword’ with Dike and Erinys (Choeph. 647 ff.). From t…

(Αὐτόλυκος; Autólykos). [German version] [1] Son of Hermes and Chione Son of Hermes and Chione (or Philonis, who also bore the singer  Philammon to Apollo, Hes. fr. 64,14). He was included in various mythical family circles, as the father of  Odysseus' mother Anticlea (Hom. Od. 11,85), of  Jason's mother Polymede (Apollod. 1,107) and of Aesimus, the father of  Sinon. He gives the newborn Odysseus his name, and it is whilst hunting with his sons on Mount Parnassus that Odysseus receives the wound in his th…

[German version] Festival of the city of Rome, celebrated on July 7 ( Nonae), a festival of ritual reversal resembling the Saturnalia; its main characteristics were sacrifices by women (Varro, Ling. 6,18), a festive meal under a wild fig-tree, and by the major role of female slaves in begging processions and mock battles (Plut. Camillus 33; Romulus 29,9; Macrob. Sat. 1,11,36-40) [1]. The aitia in Plutarch and Macrobius link the festival to an attack by the Latin towns immediately after the departure of the G…

I. Law [German version] A. Concept Interpretatio is interpretation, not only of texts but also of oral declarations and other matters of legal import. The topos of simple truth requiring no mediator (Petron. Sat. 107,15) does not apply to the specialist knowledge of astrologers (cf.  Divination), philologists (on both: Cic. Div. 1,34; 2,92) and jurists (Cic. Leg. 2,59). At the end of the Republic, the words interpres (‘interpreter’) and interpretari (‘to interpret’) become conflated into the abstract interpretatio [3. 80ff., 91ff.]; this is already true of legal interpre…

[German version] Italian goddess whose worship in places other than Rome is attested to in various towns in central Italy (Agnone, Amiternum, Furfo, Pompeii). The blossom ( flos) to which her name refers is related by the ancient sources to grain (Aug. Civ. 4,8), wine (Lactant. Div. inst. 1,20,7) or any flowering (Fast. Praenestini on 28th April). It is not just in Rome that she is closely connected to  Ceres: in Agnone she is called F. Cerialis (dat. Fluusaí Kerríiai), in Rome her main temple is situated directly with those of Ceres and Liber [1]. She is connected with  R…

(Ἄγρων; Ágrōn). [German version] [1] Mythical figure: inhabitant of Cos Lived with his father Eumelus and his two sisters Meropis and Byssa on the island of Cos. They worshipped only Gaia, rejected the cult of the other gods and scorned Hermes as a thief, Athena as owl-eyed and Artemis as a moth, even when the deities appeared to them in human form. As punishment, they were transformed into birds, A. into a plover (Ant. Lib. 15 according to Boeus, ‘Ornithogony’). Hyginus (Astron. 2,16) adds the mother Echedemeia. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Legendary Lydian king Legendar…

[German version] (Ἀμφιτρίτη; Amphitrítē). Sea goddess and ruler of the aquatic creatures (Hom. Od. 3,91 and passim), daughter of Nereus and the Oceanid Doris (Hes. Theog. 243). By Poseidon, mother of Triton (Hes. Theog. 930-933; daughter Rhode: Apollod. 1,28; daughter Benthesicyme: Apollod. 3,201); later she is regarded, more in line with her importance, as mother of the Nereids (Ps.-Arion 21 = PMG 939,11). The local myth tells that Poseidon kidnapped her when he saw her dance on Naxos with the oth…

I. Ancient Orient [German version] A. General remarks Several hundred prayers have been preserved from the ancient Orient, dating from as far back as the 3rd millennium BC. In some cases, the history of their texts can be traced back for several centuries. A variety of genres usually classified as lamentations, hymns, etc., are actually prayers, since lamentations or hymns of praise to a deity simply represent the occasion for a following prayer, which constitutes the underlying reason for that hymn or lamentation. Renger, Johannes (Berlin) [German version] B. Egypt Invocations of th…

[German version] (Ἀστράβακος; Astrábakos). Spartan hero, Agiad, son of Irbus, brother of Alopecus. His shrine was situated next to the house of king Ariston; according to the Spartan tradition, modelled on Pharaonic myth, A. was the real father of Ariston's son  Demaratus (Hdt. 6,68f.). According to the Hellenistic aition for the flagellation ritual for Artemis Orthia, A. and Alopecus had found the Taurian cult image of Artemis (Paus. 3,16,3-9). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography W. Burkert, Demaratos, A. und Herakles. Königsmythos und Politik zur Zeit der Perser…

[German version] (Γενετυλλίς; Genetyllís). The Genetyllides (pl.) were Attic goddesses, linked, as their name indicates, to birth and fertility. Their sanctuary was situated on Cape Colias. They were venerated by women in an exuberant celebration and received the sacrifice of a dog. Closely related in function were the Phocaean Gennaides (Paus. 1,1,5), and in particular  Eileithyia, who also received canine sacrifices. Documentary evidence: Aristoph. Lys. 2; Aristoph. Nub. 52; Aristoph. Thesm. 130 with schol.; Paus. 1,1,5 with schol.; Hsch., Suda s.v. G. Graf, Fritz (Columbus…

[German version] (Ἄργυννος; Árgynnos). Beautiful Boeotian youth. Agamemnon fell in love with him in Aulis and forgot his army. When A. drowned in the Boeotian Cephisus, Agamemnon established an Aphrodite Argynnis cult (Phanocles fr. 5 Powell, cf. Prop. 3,7,22). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] ‘Luring the water’ (also aquilicium), is the general term for a Roman ritual for calling rain during periods of drought (Fest. s. v. Aquaelicium 2,24). Festus links this to a ritual that had become obsolete by his time, in which a lapis manalis (for manare, to flow, cf. Fest. 146,17) which otherwise lay outside the Porta Capena near the Temple of Mars, was brought into the town (Fest. 115,8). More lively are the petitioning processions to Jupiter the weather god, which are carried out with bare feet ( Nudipedalia) and hair …

[German version] (Ἀντιφάτης; Antiphátēs). King of the Laestrygones (Od. 10,100-132). Odysseus' three scouts are shown the way to the palace by A.'s daughter at the spring of Artacia. There the enormous queen calls her husband from the marketplace, who immediately devours one of the scouts; the other two escape. Behind the story of the cannibal and his wife there is probably a firm narrative tradition [1]. Later A. becomes a metaphor of the cruel household tyrant (Ov. Pont. 2,2,114; Juv. 14,20). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 U. Hölscher, Die Odyssee. Epos zw. Märchen u…

(Κύριος; Kýrios, ‘lord’). I. Religion [German version] A. Pagan Addressing a deity felt to be powerful with ‘lord’ is widespread in Greek religious language. Since Homer, gods (especially Apollo and Zeus) can be addressed by the Mycenaean royal title anax (Ἄναξ), ‘king, lord’ [1]. A number of powerful goddesses (Cybele, Aphrodite, Artemis, Demeter and Persephone, Hecate, Isis) are since archaic times invoked as déspoina (Δέσποινα), ‘mistress’, and, somewhat more rarely, male gods as despótes (Δεσπότης) [2; 3]. Even though the archaic word anax is used only in epic and prayer …

(Ἀχέρων; Achérōn). [German version] [1] River in Epirus River in  Epirus, rising from the slopes of Tomarus [2. 166] (in the 4th cent. BC territory of the Molossi: Liv. 8,24,2), flows through the narrow gorges of Thesprotia (Thuc. 1,46,3); when it entered the plain its sluggish meanders formed in antiquity the swamp-like lake Ἀχερουσία λίμνη ( Acherousía límnē, today dried up). According to Str. 7,7,5 (as in Thuc. 1,46,3 based on Hecataeus [2. 443-469, 478]), it entered the sea near the γλυκὺς λιμήν ( glykỳs limḗn ‘Sweet-water harbour’, a station on the Roman   cursus publicus …

[German version] (Ἰσχύς; Ischys). Husband (Hes. Fr. 30) or lover of Apollo's lover  Coronis. Apollo, who learns of the relationship through a raven, interprets it as adultery ( adulterium, Ov. Met. 2,545) and kills Coronis, who is pregnant with  Asclepius, but rescues the unborn child from the funeral pyre. (Pind. Pyth. 3,31-46; Apollod. 3,118). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

(Ἀναξίλαος; Anaxílaos). [German version] [1] Tyrant of Rhegium (494-476 BC) Of Rhegium. Belonged to a family which emigrated from Messene to  Rhegium after the second Messenian War at the end of the 7th cent. BC. In 494 BC A. deposed the oligarchy of the 1,000 richest citizens in Rhegium (Aristot. fr. 611,55; Pol. 6,1316 a 38) and established there a personal rulership. A short while later he convinced the Samians and Milesians, who during their flight from the Persians were invited by the Zanclaeans to s…

[German version] (Ἴδας; Ídas). Son of  Aphareus [1], king of Messene, and brother of  Lynceus. The Messenian pair of brothers is juxtaposed with the Spartan pair of brothers of the  Dioscuri as Apharetidai, reflecting the rivalries and disputes between Sparta and Messene. I. is characterized throughout as superhumanly strong (since Hom. Il. 9, 556) and quarrelsome, and is also regarded as son of Poseidon (Apollod. 3,117). While courting  Marpessa, the daughter of the river god Evenus at the same ti…

(Ἀμφιθέα; Amphithéa). [German version] [1] Wife of  Autolycus Wife of  Autolycus, mother of Anticlea, grandmother of Odysseus (Hom. Od. 11,85; 19,416). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Wife of the Tyrrhenian king  Aeolus Wife of the Tyrrhenian king  Aeolus [3]. Her children Macareus and Canace live in an incestuous relationship (Eur. Aeolus 14-41 TGF) [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [3] Wife of Lycurgus Wife of Lycurgus, the son of Pheres, mother of Opheltes-Archemorus of Nemea (Apollod. 1,404), who is otherwise called Eurydice. Graf, Fritz (Colum…

[German version] (Ἀσκάλαβος; Askálabos). Son of Misme from Eleusis. When Misme gave Demeter the kykeon to drink while she was in search of her daughter, A. mocked the goddess who was drinking voraciously. She poured the rest of the drink over him and changed him into a spotted lizard ( askálabos; Nic. Ther. 486 ff.; Ov. Met. 5,446-61; Ant. Lib. 24). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography M. Forbes Irving, Metamorphosis in Greek Myth, 1990, 309f.

(Ἥφαιστος; Hḗphaistos). [German version] I. Myth H., the son of  Hera, is the Greek god of fire, the smithy and of craftsmen; the name's etymology is unknown. H. is not documented in the Minoan-Mycenaean texts, even if a theophoric name appears in Mycenaean Knossos ( apaitijo, KN L 588; [1. 34f.]). In Homer, H. is closely connected with his element,  fire. He possesses fire, which is stereotyped as φλὸξ Ἡφαιστοίο (‘flame of H.’; Hom. Il. 9,468 etc.), and his name is used as a metonym for fire (Hom. Il. 2,426 etc., formula); at Hera's reque…

[German version] (Ἀγαύη; Agaúe). Daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, spouse of Echion, mother of  Pentheus. She chides her sister  Semele, who had conceived Dionysus by Zeus and was consumed by lightning. Dionysus takes revenge on A., through getting her and her sisters to tear Pentheus, who opposes Dionysus, into pieces in a frenzy. Triumphantly A. carries the head of her son, whom she had thought to be a wild animal, to her home. A. is already a tragic figure in Aeschylus, but especially so in Eur. Bacchae (cf. also Ov. Met. 3,701 ff.). The artistic tradition also knows her in the…

[German version] (Ἡμιθέα; Hēmithéa, ‘demigoddess’). Name of a healing goddess in Castabus on the Carian Chersonnese. Her sanctuary, whose archaeological traces go back to the late 7th cent. BC at the earliest, was expanded under Rhodian hegemony and achieved more than regional fame until the decline of Rhodes after 167 BC. In the sanctuary, patients received healing dreams through  incubation ( klísis, ‘incubation (room)’ in an inscription from c. 150 BC, SEG 14,690); H. also aided women in childbirth (Diod. Sic. 5,63). The cult forbade the use of wine and the …

(stone) denotes various stones used for ritual purposes in Roman cult worship. [German version] [1] Silex kept in the sanctuary of Iuppiter on the Capitol A silex which was kept in the sanctuary of Iuppiter Feretrius on the Capitol (Fest. 81,18 L.) was of particular significance in some ancient oath ceremonies, which ran according to the principle, common in the swearing of oaths, of analogy in action [1]: a) The Fetiales concluded international treaties by killing a pig with the silex from the sanctuary of Iuppiter Feretrius, thereby calling down the same death upon themse…

[German version] is the study of the motif understood as the 'smallest unit of content' within traditional narratives (myth, legend, folktale [1]). Such a unit might be a plot (the burning of an object which is connected to a person's life will kill that person: Meleager [1]) or a characteristic person (the youngest son is the cleverest: Zeus). Motif research has long dominated the study of folk-tales and myths. However, a precise and standard definition of ‘motif’ and its distinction from related…

[German version] Deity with scarcely any attestation, who wards off evil ( deus, in Varro, Ling. 7,102, hence θεὸς ἀποτρόπαιος Gloss. 3,290,31). The name also exists in the form Auruncus (Gell. NA 5,12,14). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] One of the Latin terms for sanctuary. Modern and to some extent ancient thinking has the term deriving from the Latin deluere (‘to wash off’, ‘to soak’) (Serv. Aen. 2,225, cf. ThLL, 471 s.v.); the connecting link is to be found in the watering-points at sanctuaries or temple sites where ritual washing took place before performing the sacrifice. The oldest epigraphical evidence is CIL I 1291 (3rd cent. BC ?) from Amiternum, where delubrum refers to the sacred grove of Feronia. In the constitution of Urso from the 1st cent. BC ( magistri ad fana templa delubra [1. 415], l. 6f.) de…

[German version] Goddess, mentioned by Plutarch (Quaest. Rom. 52,277a) and Pliny (HN 29,14,58) in conjunction with a canine sacrifice. According to Plutarch, the prayer during the sacrifice was for ‘none of the house slaves to become good (χρηστός, chrēstós)’, interpreted as a euphemism for ‘dead’. Plutarch links the name of the goddess to childbirth. Modern interpretations proceed hardly any further [1; 2]. A Diva Geneta appears in Agnone (mid-3rd cent. BC [3]), whereas Mana is referred to as a deity of the Underworld in Mart. Cap.…

[German version] (Ἐναγώνιος; Enagṓnios). Epiclesis of the deities responsible for the Gymnasium, the athletic exercises and the young men engaging in them there; it was especially widespread from the Hellenistic period onwards.  Hermes in particular bears this epithet in many Greek cities but it is also found with Apollo (in various cities), Aphrodite (Athens) and even Dionysus (Magnesia on the Maeandrus). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] (Βάκις; Bákis). Ecstatic seer from Boeotia, supposed author of hexametric oracles, which have been in circulation since the Persian Wars (Hdt. 7,20; 77; 96; 9,43). Other oracles refer to the reconstruction of Messene (Paus. 4,27,4) or to Theban rites (ibid., 9,15,7; 10,32,8-11); Athenian inscriptions possibly attest to an oracle (IG II4968; SEG.10,175) [1]. The nymphs had driven B. to madness (Paus. 4,27,4; 20,12,11), supposedly those of the Corycian grotto (Schol. Aristoph. Pax 1279). B. also cures madness, like the seer  Melamp…

(Δίκη; Díkē). [German version] [1] Personification of human law made concrete in legal pronouncements (Religion). Personification of human law made concrete in legal pronouncements (as opposed to  Themis, the divine order): the legal order breaks down if it is eroded by corrupt judges (Hes. Op. 220). She is a central figure of mythological and poetic reflection on the foundation of social existence in the archaic and classical period. The genealogies incorporate D. in a value system. She is the daughter of Ze…

[German version] Each descendant of  Abas [1], such as Acrisius (Ov. Met. 4,607), Canethus (Apoll. Rhod. 1,78), Idmon (Apoll. Rhod. 2,815) and Perseus, the great-grandson of Abas (Ov. Met. 4,673 and passim). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

(Ἀγανίππη; Aganíppē). [German version] [1] A spring on Mount Helicon, sacred to the muses A spring on Mount Helicon, sacred to the muses, at Thespia in Boeotia; whoever drank from it, was drawn into poetic ecstasy (Verg. Ecl. 10,12; Paus. 9,29,5;  Hippocrene). The spring nymph of the same name is the daughter of the river god Termessus (Paus. 9,29,5) [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Mythical person, also known as Eurydice Wife of  Acrisius, mother of Danae (Hyg. Fab. 63). Otherwise, she is called Eurydice (Apollod. 2,26). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 P. F…

[German version] (ἀλάστωρ, also ἐλάστωρ; alástōr, elástōr). Spirit of vengeance, who especially compels atonement for blood guilt; also epithet of avenging deities who thereby re-establish order, like the Erinnyes or Zeus Alastor (Orph. h. 73,3) or Alasterus/Elasterus (Athens, Thasos, Paros). In Athens he is god of a phratria (Demosth. or. 43,57), in Thasus of an aristocratic group; both these carry out murder atonement [1]. The alastor is credited with the sending of illness (Hippoc. De morbo Sacro 1; Soph. Trach. 1235). From Cyrene and Sel…

[German version] (Γολγοί; Golgoí). Town on Cyprus that is considered by the scholarly Alexandrian writers to be one of the main cult centres of  Aphrodite (Theoc. 15,100 and Lycophr. 589; Catull. 36,14; 64,69); its eponymous hero Golgus is considered to be the son of Aphrodite and  Adonis (Schol. Theoc. 15,100). According to Paus. 8,15,2, the sanctuary was the oldest on Cyprus; it was founded long before the establishment of the sanctuary in Paphus by Agapenor; the town itself was regarded as a col…

(Ἀκραία; Akraía). [German version] [1] Rock hill in Argolis Rock hill in Argolis, whose name in the saga is derived from Acraea, a daughter of the river god Asterion (Paus. 2,17,1); Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Also Acraeus: epiclesis of goddesses (also Acraeus, Ἀκραῖος) epiclesis of goddesses (Aphrodite, Artemis, Athens, Hera, the Phrygian Meter [1]) and gods (Zeus [2]; Men) whose sanctuaries were located on a hill. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 Denkschriften der Akad. Wien 80, 1962, 5 no. 2 2 H. Schwabl, s. v. Acraea, RE X A, 265 f.

[German version] (τὰ Γαλάξια; tà Galáxia). Athenian festival in honour of the mother of the gods, named after the milk gruel served on the occasion (Hsch. s.v. G.). The importance of the festival is indicated by the evidence provided by ephebic inscriptions, that in the Hellenistic period the epheboi offered sacrifices for the goddess and dedicated a golden bowl to her (from IG II1 470,13). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

(Ἀνδραίμων; Andraímōn). [German version] [1] Mythical founder of Amphissa Mythical founder of Amphissa in Ozolian Locris (Paus. 10,38,5), husband of Gorge and successor to her father  Oeneus in Calydon (Apollod. 1,64; 78). His son Thoas leads the Aetolians at Troy (Hom. Il.2,638; 7,168; Ov. Met. 13,357). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Son of Oxylus Son of Oxylus, husband of  Dryope; A. is also stepfather of  Amphissus through Apollo (Ant. Lib. 32,3; Ov. Met. 9,333). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [3] Pylian, founding hero of Colophon Pylian, founding …

[German version] (Χίρων; Chírōn or Χείρων; Cheírōn). Centaur; son of the nymph Philyra and  Kronos; for the seduction of Philyra Cronus changed himself into a horse, which explains C.'s likeness to that animal (Apollod. 1,9; Verg. G. 3,92); his poetic name, after his mother, is Phil(l)yrides or Philyreios. Of his daughters, born to him by the nymph Chariclio, Ocyroe is an ecstatic seer (Ov. Met. 2,635-639); Endeis too, wife of  Aeacus and mother of Peleus, is held to be either his daughter (Hyg. Fab. …

(Ἀγχιάλη; Anchiálē). [German version] [1] Cretan nymph Cretan nymph, mother of the Idaan  Daktyloi Tities and Cyllenus (birth myth in Apoll. Rhod. 1,1129-31) and, as lover of Apollo, mother of Oaxes also, the founder of the Cretan city of Oaxus (Serv. ecl. 1,65). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] (Anchialos) City on the western coast of Pontus This item can be found on the following maps: Byzantium | Christianity | Moesi, Moesia (Anchialus; Ἀγχίαλος; Anchíalos) City on the western coast of Pontus, present-day Pomorije, founded by and dependent on  Apollon…

[German version] (Ἀπατούρια; Apatoúria). Attic/Ionian festival of ‘common fathers/progenitors’ ( sṃ-pator-, explained as homopatṓria (Schol. Aristoph. Ach. 146). It was regarded as a feature of all Ionians (Hdt. 1,147) and is also, to judge by the personal name Apaturias, found in all the areas they founded [1]. It was the festival of the tribal associations, the phratries; accordingly, Zeus Phratrios and Athena Phratria (Plat. Euthyd. 302d; Schol. Ar. Ach. 146) are connected with it, and also Hephaestus (Istros FGrH 334 F 2) and perhaps also Apollo …

(Αἰγιμιός; Aigimiós). [German version] [1] Mythical progenitor of the Dorians in the Oete mountains Son (or father) of Dorus, father of Dyman and Pamphilus (Hes. fr. 10a 7). Progenitor of the Dorians in the Oete mountains (Pind. Pyth. 1,64;5,72; Str. 9,427 after Ephoros, FGrH 115 F 15). He adopted Hercules' son Hyllus after the death of his father, in addition to his own sons, to show his appreciation of Hercules' help. The three Dorian phyles were given the names Hylleis, Pamphiloi, Dymanes, after them. Othe…

[German version] (κουροτρόφος; kourotróphos, ‘child nourishing’) is, as the title of a function, the name or epiclesis of numerous Greek gods and goddesses concerned with the growing up of the new generation and its introduction into the world of adults (lists in [1. 189-195]). The epiclesis is used of Artemis (Diod. Sic. 5,73,5), Demeter (Hsch. s.v. kourotrophos), Eileithyia, Ge (Hes. Theog. 479f.) and the nymphs. It is also attested for Hecate in Hes. Theog. 450-452 and, from Hom. Il. 19,142 onwards, for local river gods. A kourotrophos mentioned in an inscription might be a ma…

[German version] (sc. psalmi or hymni). Songs whose verses or stanzas each begin with a letter of the alphabet in sequence. They are documented in Jewish literature from Jer. 1-4 onwards; Ps 145 is a devotional prayer to this day. In pagan literature they are documented for instance in the late hymns to Dionysus (Anth. Pal. 9,524) or Apollo (Anth. Pal. 9,525) and in magical texts (PGM IV 1363). In Christian literature Augustine's Psalm contra partem Donati (PL 43,25-32) is the best known, composed in 393 or 394 for the ‘entirely uneducated to learn by heart’.  Acrostich. Graf, Fritz (Columb…

Suntrup, Rudolf (Münster RWG) I. Linguistics and Literary Studies (CT) [German version] A. Introduction : The Concept (CT) In recent linguistic and literary-historical studies, as in theology, allegorism designates the methodically reflective development of a multiple meaning that goes beyond the literal meaning of religious, poetical, and other normative texts. As a hermeneutic-interpretative procedure, allegorism is to be distinguished from the grammatical, rhetorical, and productive-poetic forms (cf. below, ad finem) of allegory. Like the latter, it proceeds a…

[German version] (Αἰναρέτη). Wife of  Aeolus (Hes. fr. 10a 31; Schol. Pl. Min. 315c), who is called Enarete in Apollod. 1,51. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

(Αἴγλη; Aíglē). Suggestive name (‘glory’, ‘radiance’) for youthful radiant heroines, who can have genealogical connections to Helios: [German version] [1] Naiade, with Helios, mother of the Charites Naiade, with Helios, mother of the Charites (Paus. 9,35,5; Verg. Ecl. 6,20). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Daughter of Helios One of the Heliades, daughter of Helios and Clymene, who was turned into a poplar tree together with her sisters, after the death of her brother Phaethon (Hyg. Fab.154; 156, following Hesiod). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [3] He…

[German version] (Ἴαμος; Íamos). Forefather of the Elean family of seers named Iamidai, who were active in Olympia alongside the  Clytidae (Hdt. 9,33) up to the fall of the sanctuary. They usually read prophecies in the flames of the sacrificial fire (cf. Pind. Ol. 8,2f.), but Thrasybulus invented divination from the intestines of dogs (Paus. 6,2,4). Their prophecies were also expressed in detailed oracles ( lógia) (Paus. 3,11,6). They were closely connected to Sparta (where the tomb of the Iamidai was located, Paus. 3,12,8), although their service to Messene…

[German version] (Λεπρέος, Λεπρεύς; Lepréos, Lepreús). The son of Pyrgeus or Caucon. He is the founder and eponym of Lepreum ( Triphylia). His grave lay allegedly in Phigalia (this is a reflection of Lepreum's claim to Arcadian). L. advised Augeias to imprison Heracles but Heracles was reconciled with him. He entered into an athletic competition with Heracles (e.g. about who could eat a bull faster) but lost and was killed in the subsequent armed fight. This local legend, the source of which was…

[German version] (Διονύσια; Dionýsia). Term for the festival of  Dionysus, characteristic for the cult of Dionysus in many Greek poleis; the Dionysia often took place in the winter months. (1) In Athens, the Dionysia were a part of a cycle of festivals extending over four winter months, which started with the rural Dionysia (τὰ κατ' ἄγρους Δ., in the month of Poseideon), was followed by the Lenaea (month of Gamelion) and the Anthesteria (month of Anthesterion), and culminated in the urban or Great Dionysia (τά ἐν ἄστει Δ., …

[German version] (Ὑακινθίδες; Hyakinthídes). Name of a group of Athenian goddesses, in whose honour a yearly sacrificial festival with maiden dances was held, and who received wineless offerings prior to an army's march into battle. The mythical reason for these rites can be found in the legend that the H. had been sacrificed by  Erechtheus in order to fend off an invasion. Their names and number vary; certain names indicate a relationship to Artemis (who in Sparta received sacrifices prior to a ba…

(Ἀμφίμαχος; Amphímachos). [German version] [1] Son of Elektryon Son of Electryon, king of Mycenae, brother of  Alcmene (Apollod. 2,52). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Son of Molionic Cteatus Son of Molionic Cteatus, grandson of Actor or of Poseidon. As suitor of Helen (Apollod. 3,129), together with Thalpius he led a section of the Epeians at Troy (Hom. Il. 2,620). He was killed by Hector (Hom. Il. 13,185-205). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [3] Son of Nomion Son of Nomion, brother of Nasturtes, with whom A., as an ally of the Trojans, leads t…

[German version] (Κανηφόροι/ Kanēphóroi, ‘basket-carriers’) were girls carrying the offering basket (κανοῦν, kanoûn ) in Greek offering processions, especially in the great state processions; on illustrations of offering scenes and processions, this basket has three handles and is carried on the top of the girls' heads [1; 2. 10-12]. To be kanephoros was an honour for beautiful freeborn daughters (Aristoph. Lys. 646). In Athens, kanephoroi are mentioned especially for the processions of Panathenaea (IG II2 334; Aristid. or. 18,2), of Dionysia (Syll.2 388,32) and of the pythaḯs se…

[German version] Son of Albanian king Procas, younger brother of Numitor. He forced his brother to abdicate, had his brother's son killed, made his daughter Rhea Silvia a vestal and punished her for her pregnancy. Later Numitor was again restored to his rightful situation by Romulus and Remus, but A. was killed (Liv. 1,4,10-11; Dion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 1,79-83; Origo gen. Rom. 19-21) Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography G. Brugnoli, Reges Albanorum, in: Atti del Convegno Virgiliano di Brindisi nel bimillenario della morte, 1983, 157-190.

[German version] (Καταιβάτης/ Kataibátēs, ‘he who descends’). Epiclesis of Zeus and of Hermes. For Zeus the epiclesis is epigraphically documented numerous times and is applied to the god who manifests himself through the lightning strike (‘who [in lightning] descends’). The piece of ground hit by lightning ( enēlýsion, Poll. 9, cf. the Roman fulmen condere) cannot be walked on ( ábaton), is consecrated to Zeus and is marked by a monument or an altar. The fact that the Athenians consecrated the location where Demetrius [2] Poliorcetes dismounted from his…

[German version] (‘Formation in human shape’, anthrōpophyḗs Hdt. 1,131). A feature of Graeco-Roman representations of deities, not only in external appearance but also in terms of self-definition, which contrasts the Graeco-Roman cult with an absence of images (Hdt. 1,131; Tac. Germ. 9) or with an animal cult (Xen. Mem. 1,1,14 [1]). While animal-headed demons are attested and bird forms are disputed [2] in Minoan-Mycenaean art, Hesiod and Homer make use of a radical anthropomorphism [3]. This applies for instance to the external form, where the …

[German version] (Ἀνταῖος; Antaîos). Libyan giant, son of Poseidon, who forced strangers into a wrestling match and decorated his father's temple with their skulls; he remained unconquered, as long as he remained in contact with the earth (as whose son he was regarded), but finally Hercules conquered him by lifting him up off the ground and strangling him (Pind. Isthm. 3,70; Apollod. 2,115; Aug. civ. 18,12). Attic vase paintings portrayed the battle numerous times [1], and in Plato he is a heroic wrestler together with  Cercyon (leg. 7,796a). Quite separate from him is the A. menti…

[German version] (Ἀνδρεύς; Andreús). Eponymous king of the island of Andros, established by Rhadamanthys (Diod. Sic. 5,79). Son of the son of Apollo and the Delian priest-king Anius (Ov. Met. 13,647-50). The Andrians made a gift of his statue to Delphi (Paus. 10,13,4). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH)

[German version] (Ἀντίλοχος; Antílochos). Oldest son of  Nestor. He is the actual leader of the Pylians at Ilion. Poseidon, the god of Mycenean Pylos, protects him (Hom. Il. 13,554 f.); Achilles loves him as a comrade (Hom. Il. 23,556). Achilles avenges him when he falls by the hand of Memnon (Hom. Od. 4,187), sacrificing himself for Nestor (Pind. Pyth. 6,28). A., Achilles and Patroclus are laid together in a tumulus in Sigeum (Od. 24,71-84); in Hades they and Ajax are together (Od. 11,46 f., cf. 3…

[German version] (ἄγαλμα; ágalma). Derived from the Greek agállein, ‘to praise, honour’ (especially a deity, cf. Hsch. s. v.), is actually everything that adorns, from honour (Hom. Il. 4,144) to weapons (Alc. fr.15) to children (Aesch. Ag. 208). But it is found especially in the religious sphere; here, already in Homer, agalma is the votive offerings, like   anathema (Hom. Od. 3,438; IG I3 552, 617 and passim). More narrowly, agalma designates statues (Hdt. 1,131; Isoc. Or. 9,57), but also sculpture in contrast to painting (Aristot. Pol. 1336 b 15). Later the term agalma could mean th…