Agathodaemon
An agathodaemon (Ancient Greek: ἀγαθοδαίμων, agathodaímōn) or agathos daemon (ἀγαθός δαίμων, agathós daímōn, lit. 'noble spirit') was a spirit (daemon) of the vineyards and grainfields in ancient Greek religion. They were personal companion spirits,[2][3] comparable to the Roman genii, who ensured good luck, health, and wisdom.
During the classical period[edit]
Though little noted in Greek mythology (Pausanias conjectured that the name was merely an epithet of Zeus),[4] he was prominent in Greek folk religion;[5] it was customary to drink or pour out a few drops of unmixed wine to honor him in every symposium or formal banquet. In Aristophanes' Peace, when War has trapped Peace (Εἰρήνη Eirene) in a deep pit, Hermes comes to give aid: "Now, oh Greeks! is the moment when, freed of quarrels and fighting, we should rescue sweet Eirene and draw her out of this pit... This is the moment to drain a cup in honor of the Agathos Daimon." A temple dedicated to them was situated on the road from Megalopolis to Maenalus in Arcadia.[6]
An Agathos Daimon was the spouse or companion of Tyche Agathe (Τύχη Ἀγαθή, "Good Fortune"; Latin: Agatha). "Tyche we know at Lebadeia as the wife of the Agathos Daimon, the Good or Rich Spirit".[7][8] Their numinous presence could be represented in art as a serpent or more concretely as a young man bearing a cornucopia and a bowl in one hand, and a poppy and an ear of grain in the other.[7] The agathodaemon was later adapted into a general daemon of fortuna, particularly of the continued abundance of a family's good food and drink.[citation needed]
During late antiquity[edit]
In the syncretic atmosphere of Late Antiquity, agathodaemons could be bound up with Egyptian bringers of security and good fortune: a gem carved with magic emblems bears the images of Serapis with crocodile, sun-lion and Osiris mummy surrounded by the lion-headed snake Chnum–Agathodaemon–Aion, with Harpocrates on the reverse.[9]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ The torso of an Apollo was found in the Tiber at Rome and was restored as an Antinous with a head found separately; it was purchased through Giovanni Ludovico Bianconi, about 1760; formerly exhibited in the Neues Palais, Potsdam (Arachne Projekt[permanent dead link]); noted in Karl Otfried Müller, Nouveau manuel complet d'archéologie ou traité sur les antiquités grecques... (1841:vol. I:298) and in Bouillon II:51.
- ^ Hor. Ep. ll, 2, 187.
- ^ Tibull. IV, 8
- ^ Pausanias, Description of Greece, viii. 36. § 3
- ^ Martin P. Nilsson, Greek Folk Religion. (Columbia University Press), 1981:33, 70, 73.
- ^ Schmitz, Leonhard (1867), "Agathodaemon", in Smith, William (ed.), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, 1, Boston, p. 65
- ^ a b Chisholm 1911, p. 371.
- ^ Harrison 1922, pp. 355–ff, 543.
- ^ Illustrated in W. Fauth, Helios Megistos: zur synkretistischen Theologie der Spätantike (Leiden: Brill) 1995:85.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Agathodaemon". Encyclopædia Britannica. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 371.
Bibliography[edit]
- Harrison, Jane Ellen (1922). Prolegomena to the Study of Greek Religion (3rd ed.). pp. 355–ff, 543.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
External links[edit]
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- Theoi.com: Greek and Latin sources in translation
