Apollo
From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia
This article is about the Greek
and Roman god. For other uses, see Apollo (disambiguation) and Phoebus (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Phobos (mythology).
Apollo
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Piraeus Apollo.Archaic-type bronze (530-520 BC), one of the very few surviving.Archaeological Museum of Piraeus (Athens). |
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God of music, poetry, plague, oracles,
sun, medicine, light and knowledge
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Abode
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Symbol
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Parents
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Siblings
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Children
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Roman equivalent
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Apollo
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Features[show]
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Doctrines[show]
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Practices[show]
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Deities[show]
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Texts[show]
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See also[show]
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 Marcus
Aurelius (head covered)sacrificing at the |
Practices
and beliefs
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Priesthoods
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Other
deities
Janus · Quirinus · Saturn ·
Hercules · Faunus · Priapus Liber · Bona Dea · Ops Chthonic deities: Proserpina · Dis Pater · Orcus · Di Manes Domestic and local deities: Lares · Di Penates · Genius Hellenistic deities: Sol Invictus ·Magna Mater · Isis · Mithras Deified emperors: Divus Julius · Divus Augustus See also List of Roman deities |
Related
topics
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Apollo (Attic, Ionic,
and Homeric Greek:
Ἀπόλλων, Apollōn (gen.: Ἀπόλλωνος); Doric:
Ἀπέλλων, Apellōn; Arcadocypriot: Ἀπείλων, Apeilōn; Aeolic:
Ἄπλουν, Aploun;Latin: Apollō) is one of the most important and diverse
of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology.
The ideal of the kouros (a beardless, athletic youth), Apollo
has been variously recognized as a god of light and the sun, truth and
prophecy, medicine, healing, plague, music, poetry, arts, archery, and more.
Apollo is the son of Zeus and Leto, and has a twin sister, the chaste huntress Artemis.
Apollo is known in Greek-influenced Etruscan mythology as Apulu.
Apollo was worshiped in both ancient Greek and Roman religion, and in the modern Greco–Roman Neopaganism.
As the patron of Delphi (Pythian Apollo), Apollo was an oracular god—the prophetic deity of the Delphic Oracle.
Medicine and healing were associated with Apollo, whether through the god
himself or mediated through his son Asclepius,
yet Apollo was also seen as a god who could bring ill-health and deadly plague.
Amongst the god's custodial charges, Apollo became associated with dominion
over colonists, and as the patron defender of herds
and flocks. As the leader of the Muses (Apollon Musegetes) and
director of their choir, Apollo functioned as the patron god of music and poetry. Hermes created the lyre for him, and the instrument became a
commonattribute of
Apollo. Hymns sung to Apollo were called paeans.
In Hellenistic times, especially during the 3rd
century BCE, as Apollo Helios he became identified among Greeks with Helios, Titan god of the sun,
and his sister Artemis similarly equated with Selene, Titan goddess of the
moon.[1] In Latin texts, on the other hand,
Joseph Fontenrose declared himself unable to find any conflation of Apollo with Sol among the Augustan poets of the 1st century, not even in the
conjurations of Aeneas and Latinus in Aeneid XII (161–215).[2] Apollo and Helios/Sol remained
separate beings in literary and mythological texts until the 3rd century CE.
Contents
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11 Notes
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[edit]Etymology
The etymology of Apollo is uncertain. The spelling Ἀπόλλων
had almost superseded all other forms by the beginning of the common era, but
the Doric form Απέλλων is more archaic, derived from an earlier *Απέλjων. The
name is certainly cognate with the Doric month name Απέλλαιος and the Doric
festival απελλαι.[3]
Several instances of popular
etymology are attested
from ancient authors. Thus, the Greeks most often associated Apollo's name with
the Greek verb ἀπόλλυμι (apollymi), "to
destroy".[4] Plato in Cratylus connects the name with ἀπόλυσις (apolysis), "redeem",
with ἀπόλουσις (apolousis),
"purification", and with ἁπλοῦν (aploun), "simple",[5] in particular in reference to the
Thessalian form of the name, Ἄπλουν,
and finally with Ἀει-βάλλων (aeiballon),
"ever-shooting". Hesychius connects the name Apollo with the
Doric απέλλα (apella), which means "assembly", so that Apollo
would be the god of political life, and he also gives the explanation σηκός (sekos),
"fold", in which case Apollo would be the god of flocks and herds.
Following the tradition of these Ancient Greek
folk etymologies, in the Doric dialect the word απέλλα originally meant wall, fence from
animals and later assembly within the agora. In the Ancient Macedonian language πέλλα (pella) means stone, and some toponyms are derived from this word: Πέλλα (Pella:capital of Ancient Macedonia), Πελλήνη(Pellini-Pallini).
A number of non-Greek etymologies have been
suggested for the name,[6] The form Apaliunas (x-ap-pa-li-u-na-aš) is
attested as a god of Wilusa[7] in a treaty between Alaksanduof
Wilusa and the Hittite great king Muwatalli II ca 1280 BCE.Alaksandu could be Paris-Alexander of Ilion",[8] whose name is Greek.[9] The Hittite testimony reflects an early form*Apeljōn,
which may also be surmised from comparison of Cypriot Απειλων with Doric
Απελλων.[10] A Luwian etymology suggested for Apaliunas makes Apollo "The One of
Entrapment", perhaps in the sense of "Hunter".[11]
Among the proposed etymologies is the Hurrian and Hittite divinity, Aplu, who was widely invoked
during the "plague years". Aplu, it is suggested, comes from the Akkadian Aplu Enlil, meaning "the
son of Enlil", a title that was given to the god Nergal, who was
linked to Shamash,
Babylonian god of the sun.[12]
[edit]Greco-Roman epithets
A statue
of Apollo Lykeios type,withPython.Roman copy of a Greek original.Louvre
Apollo, like other Greek deities, had a number of epithets applied to him, reflecting the variety
of roles, duties, and aspects ascribed to the god. However, while Apollo has a
great number of appellations in Greek myth, only a few occur in Latin literature,
chief among them Phoebus (
/ˈfiːbəs/fee-bəs;
Φοίβος, Phoibos, literally
"radiant"), which was very commonly used by both the Greeks and
Romans in Apollo's role as the god of light.
/ˈfiːbəs/fee-bəs;
Φοίβος, Phoibos, literally
"radiant"), which was very commonly used by both the Greeks and
Romans in Apollo's role as the god of light.
As sun-god and god of light, Apollo was also
known by the epithets Aegletes (/əˈɡliːtiːz/ ə-glee-teez; Αἰγλήτης, Aiglētēs, from αἴγλη,
"light of the sun"),[13] Helius (/ˈhiːliəs/ hee-lee-əs; Ἥλιος, Helios,
literally "sun"),[14] Phanaeus (/fəˈniːəs/ fə-nee-əs; Φαναῖος, Phanaios, literally
"giving or bringing light"), and Lyceus (/laɪˈsiːəs/ ly-see-əs; Λύκειος, Lukeios, from Proto-Greek *λύκη,
"light"). The meaning of the epithet "Lyceus" later became
associated Apollo's mother Leto, who was the patron
goddes of Lycia (Λυκία) and who was identified with
the wolf (λύκος),[15] earning him the epithets Lycegenes (/laɪˈsɛdʒəniːz/ ly-sej-ə-neez;
Λυκηγενής, Lukēgenēs,
literally "born of a wolf" or "born of Lycia") and Lycoctonus(/laɪˈkɒktənəs/ ly-kok-tə-nəs;
Λυκοκτόνος, Lukoktonos,
from λύκος, "wolf", and κτείνειν, "to kill"). As god of the
sun, the Romans referred to Apollo as Sol (/ˈsɒl/ sol;
literally "sun" in Latin).
In association with his birthplace, Mount Cynthus on the island of Delos, Apollo was called Cynthius (/ˈsɪnθiəs/ sin-thee-əs;
Κύνθιος, Kunthios,
literally "Cynthian"), Cynthogenes (/sɪnˈθɒdʒɨniːz/ sin-thoj-i-neez;
Κύνθογενης, Kunthogenēs,
literally "born of Cynthus"), and Delius (/ˈdiːliəs/dee-lee-əs;
Δήλιος, Delios, literally
"Delian"). As Artemis's
twin, Apollo had the epithet Didymaeus (/dɪdɨˈmiːəs/ did-i-mee-əs; Διδυμαιος,Didumaios,
from δίδυμος, "twin").
Partial
view of the temple of Apollo
Epikurios (healer)
at Bassae in southern Greece
Apollo was worshipped as Actiacus (/ækˈtaɪ.əkəs/ ak-ty-ə-kəs; Ἄκτιακός, Aktiakos, literally
"Actian"), Delphinius (/dɛlˈfɪniəs/ del-fin-ee-əs; Δελφίνιος, Delphinios, literally
"Delphic"), and Pythius (/ˈpɪθiəs/ pith-ee-əs;
Πύθιος, Puthios, from
Πυθώ, Pūthō, the area
around Delphi), afterActium (Ἄκτιον)
and Delphi (Δελφοί) respectively, two of his
principal places of worship.[16][17] An etiology in the Homeric hymns associated the epithet
"Delphinius" with dolphins.
He was worshipped as Acraephius (/əˈkriːfiəs/ ə-kree-fee-əs; Ἀκραιφιος, Akraiphios, literally
"Acraephian") or Acraephiaeus (/əˌkriːfiˈiːəs/ ə-kree-fee-ee-əs; Ἀκραιφιαίος, Akraiphiaios, literally
"Acraephian") in the Boeotian town of Acraephia (Ἀκραιφία),
reputedly founded by his son Acraepheus;
and as Smintheus (/ˈsmɪnθjuːs/ smin-thews;
Σμινθεύς, Smintheus,
"Sminthian"—that is, "of the town of Sminthos or Sminthe")[18] near the Troad town of Hamaxitus.
The epithet "Smintheus" has historically been confused with σμίνθος,
"mouse", in association with Apollo's role as a god of disease. For
this he was also known as Parnopius(/pɑrˈnoʊpiəs/ par-noh-pee-əs;
Παρνόπιος, Parnopios, from
πάρνοψ, "locust") and to the Romans as Culicarius (/ˌkjuːlɨˈkæriəs/ kew-li-karr-ee-əs; from Latinculicārius,
"of midges").
Temple
of the Delians atDelos,dedicated to Apollo
(478 BC).19th century pen-and-wash restoration
In Apollo's role as a healer, his appellations
included Acesius (/əˈsiːʒəs/ ə-see-zhəs; Ἀκέσιος, Akesios, from ἄκεσις,
"healing"), Acestor (/əˈsɛstər/ ə-ses-tər; Ἀκέστωρ, Akestōr, literally
"healer"), Paean (/ˈpiːən/ pee-ən; Παιάν, Paiān, from παίειν, "to
touch"), and Iatrus (/aɪˈætrəs/ eye-at-rəs; Ἰατρός, Iātros, literally
"physician").[19] Acesius was the epithet of Apollo
worshipped in Elis, where he had a
temple in the agora.[20] The Romans referred to Apollo as Medicus (/ˈmɛdɨkəs/med-i-kəs;
literally "physician" in Latin) in this respect. A temple was dedicated to Apollo Medicus at Rome ,
probably next to the temple
of Bellona.
As a protector and founder, Apollo had the
epithets Alexicacus (/əˌlɛksɨˈkeɪkəs/ ə-lek-si-kay-kəs; Ἀλεξίκακος, Alexikakos, literally
"warding off evil"), Apotropaeus(/əˌpɒtrəˈpiːəs/ ə-pot-rə-pee-əs; Ἀποτρόπαιος, Apotropaios, from ὰποτρέπειν,
"to avert"), and Epicurius (/ˌɛpɨˈkjʊriəs/ ep-i-kewr-ee-əs; Ἐπικούριος, Epikourios, from ἐπικουρέειν,
"to aid"),[14] and Archegetes (/ɑrˈkɛdʒətiːz/ ar-kej-ə-teez; Ἀρχηγέτης, Arkhēgetēs, literally
"founder"), Clarius (/ˈklæriəs/ klarr-ee-əs;
Κλάριος,Klārios, from Doric κλάρος, "allotted lot"), and Genetor (/ˈdʒɛnɨtər/ jen-i-tər;
Γενέτωρ, Genetōr,
literally "ancestor").[14] To the Romans, he was known in this
capacity as Averruncus (/ˌævəˈrʌŋkəs/ av-ər-rung-kəs; from Latin āverruncare, "to
avert"). He was also called Agyieus (/əˈdʒaɪ.ɨjuːs/ ə-JY-i-ews; Ἀγυιεύς, Aguīeus, from ὰγυιά,
"street") for his role in protecting roads and homes; and as Nomius (/ˈnoʊmiəs/ noh-mee-əs;
Νόμιος, Nomios, literally
"pastoral") and Nymphegetes(/nɪmˈfɛdʒɨtiːz/ nim-fej-i-teez;
Νυμφηγέτης, Numphēgetēs,
from Νύμφη, "Nymph", and ἡγέτης,
"leader") in his role as a protector of shepherds and pastoral life.
Apollo
Belvedere (Pythian Apollo).Roman
copy of a Greek bronze-original ca.350BC,byLeochares.Vatican Museum
In his role as god of prophecy and truth, Apollo
had the epithets Manticus (/ˈmæntɨkəs/ man-ti-kəs;
Μαντικός, Mantikos,
literally "prophetic"), Leschenorius (/ˌlɛskɨˈnɔəriəs/ les-ki-nohr-ee-əs; Λεσχηνόριος, Leskhēnorios, from λεσχήνωρ,
"converser"), andLoxias (/ˈlɒksiəs/ lok-see-əs;
Λοξίας, Loxias, from
λέγειν, "to say").[14] The epithet "Loxias" has
historically been associated with λοξός, "ambiguous". In this
respect, the Romans called him Coelispex (/ˈsɛlɨspɛks/ sel-i-speks; from
Latin coelum,
"sky", andspecere, "to look at"). The epithet Iatromantis (/aɪˌætrəˈmæntɪs/ eye-at-rə-man-tis; Ἰατρομάντις, Iātromantis, from ὶατρός,
"physician", and μάντις, "prophet") refers to both his role
as a god of healing and of prophecy. As god of music and arts, Apollo had the
epithet Musagetes (/mjuːˈsædʒɨtiːz/ mew-saj-i-teez; Doric Μουσαγέτας, Mousāgetās)[21] or Musegetes (/mjuːˈsɛdʒɨtiːz/mew-sej-i-teez; Μουσηγέτης, Mousēgetēs, from Μούσα, "Muse", and ἡγέτης,
"leader").
As a god of archery, Apollo was known as Aphetor (/əˈfiːtər/ ə-fee-tər; Ἀφήτωρ, Aphētōr, from ὰφίημι,
"to let loose") or Aphetorus(/əˈfɛtərəs/ ə-fet-ər-əs; Ἀφητόρος, Aphētoros, of the same origin), Argyrotoxus (/ˌɑrdʒɨrəˈtɒksəs/ ar-ji-rə-tok-səs; Ἀργυρότοξος, Argurotoxos, literally
"with silver bow"), Hecaërgus (/ˌhɛkiˈɜrɡəs/ hek-ee-ur-gəs; Ἑκάεργος, Hekaergos, literally
"far-shooting"), and Hecebolus (/hɨˈsɛbələs/ hi-seb-ə-ləs; Ἑκηβόλος, Hekēbolos, literally
"far-shooting"). The Romans referred to Apollo as Articenens (/ɑrˈtɪsɨnənz/ ar-tiss-i-nənz;
"bow-carrying"). Apollo was called Ismenius (/ɪzˈmiːniəs/ iz-mee-nee-əs; Ἰσμηνιός, Ismēnios, literally "of
Ismenus") after Ismenus, the son of Amphion and Niobe, whom he struck with
an arrow.
[edit]Celtic epithets and cult titles
Apollo was worshipped throughout the Roman Empire.
In the traditionally Celtic lands he was most often seen as a
healing and sun god. He was often equated with Celtic godsof similar character.[22]
§
Apollo
Atepomarus ("the
great horseman" or "possessing a great horse"). Apollo was
worshipped at Mauvières (Indre). Horses were, in
the Celtic world, closely linked to the sun.[23]
§
Apollo Belenus ('bright' or 'brilliant'). This
epithet was given to Apollo in parts of Gaul, Northern Italy and Noricum (part of modern Austria
§
Apollo
Cunomaglus ('hound
lord'). A title given to Apollo at a shrine in Wiltshire.
Apollo Cunomaglus may have been a god of healing. Cunomaglus himself may
originally have been an independent healing god.[25]
§
Apollo Grannus.
Grannus was a healing spring god, later equated with Apollo.[26][27][28]
§
Apollo Maponus. A god
known from inscriptions in Britain
§
Apollo
Moritasgus ('masses
of sea water'). An epithet for Apollo at Alesia, where he was worshipped as god
of healing and, possibly, of physicians.[29]
§
Apollo Vindonnus ('clear light'). Apollo
Vindonnus had a temple at Essarois,
near Châtillon-sur-Seine in Burgundy.
He was a god of healing, especially of the eyes.[27]
§
Apollo Virotutis ('benefactor of mankind?').
Apollo Virotutis was worshipped, among other places, at Fins d'Annecy (Haute-Savoie)
and at Jublains (Maine-et-Loire).[28][30]
[edit]Origins
The
Omphalos in the Museum
of Delphi
The cult centers of Apollo in Greece , Delphi and Delos, date from the 8th
century BCE. The Delos sanctuary was primarily
dedicated to Artemis,
Apollo's twin sister. At Delphi , Apollo was
venerated as the slayer of Pytho. For the Greeks,
Apollo was all the Gods in one and through the centuries he acquired different
functions which could originate from different gods. In archaic Greece he was the "prophet", the
oracular god who in older times was connected with "healing". In classical Greece he was the god of light and of music,
but in popular religion he had a strong function to keep away evil.[31]Walter Burkert[32] discerned three components in the
prehistory of Apollo worship, which he termed "a Dorian-northwest Greek
component, a Cretan-Minoan component, and a Syro-Hittite component."
[edit]Healer god-Protector from evil
The function of Apollo as a "healer" is
connected with Paean (Παιών-Παιήων) the physician of the
Gods in Iliad,who seems to come
from a more primitive religion.Paeοn is probably connected with the Mycenean Pa-ja-wo,but the etymology is the only
evidence.He did not have a separate cult,but he was the personification of the
holy magic-song sang by the magicians that was supposed to cure the
diseases.Later the Greeks knew the original meaning of the relevant song
"paeαn" (παιάν).The magicians were also called
"seer-doctors" (ιατρομάντεις) and they used an exstatic prophetic art
which was used exactly by the god Apollo at the oracles.[33] In Ilias Apollo is the healer under the
gods,but he is also the bringer of the diseases and of death with his arrows,in
a similar way with the function of the Vedic terrible god of diseases Rudra.[34] He sends a terrible plague (λοιμός) to
theAchaeans.The god who sends a disease can also
prevent from it, therefore when it stops they make a purifying ceremony and
they offer him an "hecatomb" to keep away the evil. When the oath of
his priest appeases, they pray and with a song they call their own god,the
beautiful Paean.[35] Some common epithets of Apollo as a
healer are "paion"(παιών:touching), "epikourios"
(επικουρώ:help), "oulios" (ουλή:cured wound) and "loimios"
(λοiμός:plague). In classical times his srong function in popular religion was
to keep away the evil, therefore he was called "apotropaios" (αποτρέπω:to
divert) and "alexikakos" (αλέξω-κακό:defend,throw away the evil)[36] In later writers, the word, usually
spelled "Paean", becomes a mere epithet of Apollo in his capacity as a
god of healing,[37]
Homer illustrated Paeon the god, and the song
both of apotropaic thanksgiving or triumph.[38][citation needed] Such songs were originally addressed
to Apollo, and afterwards to other gods: to Dionysus,
to ApolloHelios,
to Apollo's son Asclepius the healer. About the 4th century BCE,
the paean became merely a formula of adulation; its object was either to
implore protection against disease and misfortune, or to offer thanks after
such protection had been rendered. It was in this way that Apollo had become
recognised as the god of music. Apollo's role as the slayer of the Python led
to his association with battle and victory; hence it became the Roman custom
for a paean to be sung by an army on the march and before entering into
battle, when a fleet left the harbour, and also after a victory had been won
[edit]Dorian origin
The connection with Dorians and their initiation
festival apellai is reinforced by the month Apellaios in northwest Greek calendars,[39] but it can explain only the Doric type
of the name, which is connected with theAncient Macedonian word "pella" (Pella), stone. The stones
played an important part in the cult of the god,especially in the oracular
shrine of Delphi (Omphalos).[40][41] The "Homeric hymn"
represents Apollo as a Northern intruder. His arrival must have occurred during
the "dark ages" that followed the destruction of the Mycenaean
civilization and his
conflict with Gaia (mother earth) was represented under
the legend of his slaying of her daughter, the serpent Python.[42]
The earth deity had power over the ghostly world
and it is believed that she was the deity behind the oracle.[43] The older tales mentioned two dragons
who were perhaps intentionally conflated. A female dragon named Delphyne (δελφύς:womb) who is obviously
connected with Delphi and Apollo
Delphinios and a male serpent Typhon (τύφειν:smoke), the adversary of Zeus in the Titanomachy,
who the narrators confused with Python.[44][45] Python was the good daemon (αγαθός
δαίμων) of the temple as it appears in Minoan religion,[46] but she was represented as a dragon as
it often happens in Northern European folklore and also in the East.[47]
[edit]Minoan origin
It seems that an oracular cult existed in Delphi from the Mycenaean ages.[48] In historical times the priests of
Delphi were called Labryaden,"the
double axe-men" which indicates Minoan origin.The
double-axe (λάβρυς:labrys)
was the holy symbol of the Cretan labyrinth[49][50] and it was probably the symbol of the
beginning of the creation (Mater-Arche).[51] In the Homeric hymn is added that
Apollo appeared as a dolphin and carried Cretan priests in
Delphi,where they evidently transferred they religious practices.Apollo
Delphinios was a sea-god
especially worshipped in Crete and in the islands and his name indicates his
connection with Delphi[52] and the holy serpentDelphyne (womb).
The old oracles in Delphi seem to be connected
with a local tradition of the priesthood and there is not clear evidence that a
kind of inspiration -prophecy existed in the temple.This led some scholars to
the conclusion that Pythia carried on the rituals in a constant procedure
through many centuries,according to the local tradition.In that regard the mythical
seeress Sibyl of Anatolian origin with her exstatic art,looks
unrelated with the oracle itself.[53] However the Greek tradition is
referring to the existence of vapours and chewing of laurel-leaves which seem
to be confirmed by recent studies.[54] Plato describes the priestesses of
Delphi and Dodona like frenzied-women,obsessed by
"mania" (μανία:frenzy),a Greek word connected with "mantis"
(μάντις:prophet).Frenzied women like Sibyls from whose lips the god speaks are
recorded in the Near-East as Mari in the second milemnium BC.[55] Although Crete had contacts with Mari
from 2000 BC,[56] there is not any evidence that the
exstatic prophetic-art existed during the Minoan and Mycenean ages.It is more
possible that this art was introduced later from Anatolia and regenerated an existing
oracular-cult which was local in Delphi and dormant in several areas of Greece.[57]
[edit]Anatolian origin
Illustration
of a coin of Apollo Agyieus fromAmbracia
A non-Greek origin of the name of Apollo has long
been assumed in scholarship.[3] Homer pictures Apollo on the side of the Trojans, fighting against
the Achaeans,
during the Trojan War.
He is pictured like a terrible god who the Greeks don't trust like the other
gods.The god seems to be related with Appaliunas a tutelary god of Wilusa,but the
word is not complete.[58] The stones which were found in front
of the gates of Homeric Troy were the symbols of Apollo.The
Greeks gave to him the name αγυιεύς agyieus as the protector god of public places
and houses who wards off evil and his symbol was a tapered stone or column.[59] However while usually the Greek fests
were celebrated at full-moon,all the fests of Apollo were celebrated at the
seventh day and the emphasis given to that day of the month (sibutu),indicates Babylonian origin.[60]
The Late Bronze Age (from 1700–1200 BCE) Hittite and Hurrian Aplu, was a god of plagues,who
was invoked during the plague years.Here we have an apotropaic situation, where a god originally
bringing the plague was invoked to end it.Aplu (the son of) was a title given
to the god Nergal who was linked to the Babylonian god of the sun Shamash.[12] Homer interprets Apollo as a terrible
god (δεινός θεός) who brings death and diseases with his arrows,but who can
also heal,possessing a magic art which separates him from the other Greek gods.[61] InIlias his priest is praying to Apollo Smintheus,[62] the mouse-god who keeps an older
agricultural function as the protector from the field-rats.[63][64] All these functions including the
function of the healer-god Paean who seems to have Mycenean origin, are
fused in the cult of Apollo.
[edit]Oracular cult
Columns
of the temple of Apollo
at Delphi ,Greece
Unusually among the Olympic deities, Apollo had
two cult sites that had widespread influence: Delos and Delphi. In cult
practice, Delian Apollo and Pythian Apollo(the
Apollo of Delphi) were so distinct that they might both have shrines in the
same locality.[65] Apollo's cult was already fully established when
written sources commenced, about 650 BCE. Apollo became extremely important to
the Greek world as an oracular deity in the archaic period,
and the frequency of theophoric names such as Apollodorus or Apollonios and cities named Apollonia testify to his popularity. Oracular
sanctuaries to Apollo were established in other sites. In the 2nd and 3rd
century CE, those at Didyma and Clarus pronounced the so-called
"theological oracles", in which Apollo confirms that all deities are
aspects or servants of an all-encompassing, highest deity. "In the 3rd century,
Apollo fell silent. Julian the Apostate (359 - 61) tried to revive the Delphic
oracle, but failed."[3]
[edit]Oracular shrines
Delo's
lions
Apollo had a famous oracle in Delphi ,
and other notable ones in Clarus and Branchidae.
His oracular shrine in Abaein Phocis, where he
bore the toponymic epithet Abaeus (Ἀπόλλων Ἀβαῖος, Apollon Abaios) was important
enough to be consulted by Croesus (Herodotus,
1.46). His oracular shrines include:
§
Bassae in the Peloponnese
§
At Clarus, on the
west coast of Asia Minor;
as at Delphi a holy spring which gave off a pneuma, from which the priests
drank.
§
In Corinth,
the Oracle of Corinth came from the town of Tenea, from prisoners
supposedly taken in the Trojan War.
§
In Delos, there was an oracle
to the Delian Apollo, during summer. The Hieron (Sanctuary) of Apollo adjacent
to the Sacred Lake
§
In Delphi, the Pythia became filled with the pneuma of Apollo, said to come from a spring
inside the Adyton.
§
In Didyma, an oracle
on the coast of Anatolia,
south west of Lydian (Luwian) Sardis, in which
priests from the lineage of the Branchidae received inspiration by drinking
from a healing spring located in the temple. Was believed to have been founded
by Branchus,
son or lover of Apollo.
§
In Hierapolis Bambyce,
Syria (modern Manbij),
according to the treatise De Dea Syria,
the sanctuary of the Syrian Goddess contained a robed and bearded image of
Apollo. Divination was based on spontaneous movements of this image.[66]
§
At Patara,
in Lycia, there was a
seasonal winter oracle of Apollo, said to have been the place where the god
went from Delos . As at Delphi
the oracle at Patara was a woman.
Oracles were also given by sons of Apollo.
§
In Oropus, north of Athens, the oracle Amphiaraus,
was said to be the son of Apollo; Oropus also had a sacred spring.
§
in Labadea, 20 miles (32 km) east of Delphi , Trophonius,
another son of Apollo, killed his brother and fled to the cave where he was
also afterwards consulted as an oracle
[edit]Mythology
[edit]Birth
When Zeus' wife Hera discovered that Leto was pregnant and
that he was the father, she banned Leto from giving birth on "terra
firma". In her wanderings, Leto found the newly created floating island of
Delos , which was neither mainland nor a real
island, so she gave birth there, where she was accepted by the people, offering
them her promise that her son will be always favourable toward the city.
Afterwards, Zeus secured Delos to the bottom
of the ocean. This island later became sacred to Apollo.
It is also stated that Hera kidnapped Ilithyia,
the goddess of childbirth, to prevent Leto from going into labor. The other
gods tricked Hera into letting her go by offering her a necklace, nine yards (8
m) long, of amber. Mythographers agree that Artemis was born first and then assisted with
the birth of Apollo, or that Artemis was born one day before Apollo, on the island of Ortygia and that she helped Leto cross the sea
to Delos the next day to give birth to Apollo.
Apollo was born on the seventh day (ἑβδομαγενής)[67] of the month Thargelion —according to
Delian tradition—or of the month Bysios—according to Delphian tradition. The
seventh and twentieth, the days of the new and full moon, were ever afterwards
held sacred to him.
[edit]Youth
Four days after his birth, Apollo killed the chthonic dragon Python, which lived in Delphi beside the Castalian Spring.
This was the spring which emitted vapors that caused the oracle at Delphi to give her prophecies. Hera sent the serpent to
hunt Leto to her death across the world. To protect his mother, Apollo begged Hephaestus for a bow and arrows. After receiving
them, Apollo cornered Python in the sacred cave at Delphi .[68] Apollo killed Python but had to be
punished for it, since Python was a child ofGaia.
Hera then sent the giant Tityos to kill Leto. This time Apollo was
aided by his sister Artemis in protecting their mother. During the battle Zeus
finally relented his aid and hurled Tityos down to Tartarus.
There he was pegged to the rock floor, covering an area of 9 acres (36,000 m2),
where a pair of vultures feasted daily on his liver.
[edit]Trojan War
Apollo shot arrows infected with the plague into
the Greek encampment during the Trojan War in retribution for Agamemnon's
insult to Chryses,
a priest of Apollo whose daughter Chryseis had been captured. He demanded her
return, and the Achaeans complied, indirectly causing the anger of Achilles,
which is the theme of the Iliad.
In the Iliad, when Diomedes injured Aeneas, Apollo
rescued him. First, Aphrodite tried to rescue Aeneas but Diomedes
injured her as well. Aeneas was then enveloped in a cloud by Apollo, who took
him to Pergamos, a sacred spot in Troy.
Apollo aided Paris in the killing of Achilles by guiding the arrow of his bow into Achilles'
heel. One interpretation of his motive is that it was in revenge for Achilles'
sacrilege in murdering Troilus,
the god's own son byHecuba,
on the very altar of the god's own temple.
[edit]Admetus
When Zeus struck down Apollo's son Asclepius with
a lightning bolt for resurrecting Hippolytus from
the dead (transgressing Themis by stealing Hades's subjects), Apollo
in revenge killed the Cyclopes,
who had fashioned the bolt for Zeus.[69] Apollo would have been banished to Tartarus forever, but was instead sentenced to
one year of hard labor as punishment, due to the intercession
of his mother, Leto. During this time he
served as shepherd for King Admetus of Pherae in Thessaly.
Admetus treated Apollo well, and, in return, the god conferred great benefits
on Admetus.
Apollo helped Admetus win Alcestis,
the daughter of King Pelias and later convinced the Fates to let Admetus live past his time, if
another took his place. But when it came time for Admetus to die, his parents,
whom he had assumed would gladly die for him, refused to cooperate. Instead,
Alcestis took his place, but Heracles managed to "persuade" Thanatos,
the god of death, to return her to the world of the living.
Artemis
and Apollo Piercing Niobe’s Children with their Arrows by Jacques-Louis David.Dallas Museum of Art
.
[edit]Niobe
Niobe, the queen of Thebes and wife of Amphion,
boasted of her superiority to Leto because she had fourteen children (Niobids),
seven male and seven female, while Leto had only two. Apollo killed her sons as
they practiced athletics, with the last begging for his life, and Artemis her
daughters. Apollo and Artemis used poisoned arrows to kill them, though
according to some versions of the myth, a number of the Niobids were spared (Chloris,
usually). Amphion, at the sight of his dead sons, either killed himself or was
killed by Apollo after swearing revenge. A devastated Niobe fled to Mount Sipylos in Asia Minor and turned into stone as she wept. Her
tears formed the river Achelous.
Zeus had turned all the people of Thebes
[edit]Consorts and children
Love affairs ascribed to Apollo are a late
development in Greek mythology.[70] Their vivid anecdotal qualities have
made favorites some of them of painters since the Renaissance, so that they
stand out more prominently in the modern imagination.
[edit]Female lovers
Main article: Apollo and
Daphne
Apollo
and Daphne by Bernini in the Galleria Borghese
In explanation of the connection of Apollo with
δάφνη (daphnē), the laurel whose leaves his priestess employed at Delphi, it is told[71] that Apollo chased a nymph, Daphne, daughter
of the river god Peneus, who had
scorned him. In Ovid's telling for a Roman
audience, Phoebus Apollo chaffs Cupid for toying with a weapon more suited to a
man, whereupon Cupid wounds him with a golden dart; simultaneously, however,
Cupid shoots a leaden arrow into Daphne, causing her to be repulsed by Apollo.
Following a spirited chase by Apollo, Daphne prays to her father, Peneus, for
help, and he changes her into the laurel tree, sacred to Apollo.
Apollo had an affair with a human princess named Leucothea,
daughter of Orchamus and sister of Clytia. Leucothea
loved Apollo who disguised himself as Leucothea's mother to gain entrance to
her chambers. Clytia, jealous of her sister because she wanted Apollo for
herself, told Orchamus the truth, betraying her sister's trust and confidence
in her. Enraged, Orchamus ordered Leucothea to be buried alive. Apollo refused
to forgive Clytia for betraying his beloved, and a grieving Clytia wilted and
slowly died. Apollo changed her into an incense plant, either heliotrope or
sunflower, which follows the sun every day.
Marpessa was
kidnapped by Idas but was loved by Apollo as well. Zeus made her choose between them, and she
chose Idas on the grounds that Apollo, being immortal, would tire of her when
she grew old.
Castalia was a nymph whom Apollo loved. She fled from him
and dove into the spring at Delphi, at the base of Mt. Parnassos,
which was then named after her. Water from this spring was sacred; it was used
to clean the Delphian temples and inspire poets.
By Cyrene, Apollo had a son named Aristaeus,
who became the patron god of cattle, fruit trees,
hunting, husbandry and bee-keeping.
He was also a culture-hero and taught humanity dairy skills, the
use of nets and traps in hunting, and how to cultivate olives.
With Hecuba, wife of
King Priam of Troy, Apollo had a son
named Troilus.
An oracle prophesied that Troy
Apollo also fell in love with Cassandra,
daughter of Hecuba and Priam, and Troilus' half-sister. He promised Cassandra
the gift of prophecy to seduce her, but she rejected him afterwards. Enraged,
Apollo indeed gifted her with the ability to know the future, with a curse that
she could only see the future tragedies and that no one would ever believe her.
Coronis, daughter of Phlegyas,
King of the Lapiths,
was another of Apollo's liaisons. Pregnant with Asclepius,
Coronis fell in love with Ischys, son of Elatus. A crow
informed Apollo of the affair. When first informed he disbelieved the crow and
turned all crows black (where they were previously white) as a punishment for
spreading untruths. When he found out the truth he sent his sister, Artemis, to
kill Coronis (in other stories, Apollo himself had killed Coronis). As a result
he also made the crow sacred and gave them the task of announcing important
deaths. Apollo rescued the baby and gave it to the centaur Chiron to raise. Phlegyas was irate after the
death of his daughter and burned the Temple
of Apollo at Delphi .
Apollo then killed him for what he did.
In Euripides'
play Ion,
Apollo fathered Ion by Creusa, wife of Xuthus. Creusa
left Ion to die in the wild, but Apollo asked Hermes to save the child and bring him to the
oracle at Delphi, where he
was raised by a priestess.
Apollo
and Hyacinthus
Jacopo Caraglio; 16th c. Italian engraving
Jacopo Caraglio; 16th c. Italian engraving
One of his other liaisons was with Acantha,
the spirit of the acanthus tree. Upon her death, Apollo
transformed her into a sun-loving herb.
According to the Biblioteca, the "library" of
mythology mis-attributed to Apollodorus, he fathered the Corybantes on the Muse Thalia.[72]
[edit]Male lovers
Hyacinth or
Hyacinthus was one of Apollo's male lovers. He was a Spartan prince, beautiful and athletic. The
pair was practicing throwing the discus when a discus thrown by Apollo was blown
off course by the jealous Zephyrus and struck Hyacinthus in the head,
killing him instantly. Apollo is said to be filled with grief: out of
Hyacinthus' blood, Apollo created a flower named after him as a memorial to his
death, and his tears stained the flower petals with άί άί, meaning alas. The Festival
of Hyacinthus was a celebration of Sparta.
Another male lover was Cyparissus,
a descendant of Heracles.
Apollo gave him a tame deer as a companion but Cyparissus accidentally killed
it with a javelin as it lay asleep in the undergrowth.
Cyparissus asked Apollo to let his tears fall forever. Apollo granted the
request by turning him into the Cypress named after him, which was said to be
a sad tree because the sap forms droplets like tears on the trunk.
[edit]Apollo's lyre
Apollo
with his lyre.Statue from
Berlin.Pergamon Museum
Hermes was born
on Mount Cyllene in Arcadia. The story is told in the Homeric Hymn to Hermes. His
mother, Maia,
had been secretly impregnated by Zeus. Maia wrapped the infant
in blankets but Hermes escaped while she was asleep. Hermes ran to Thessaly,
where Apollo was grazing his cattle. The infant Hermes stole a number of his
cows and took them to a cave in the woods near Pylos, covering their
tracks. In the cave, he found a tortoise and killed it, then removed the
insides. He used one of the cow's intestines and the tortoise shell and made
the first lyre. Apollo complained to
Maia that her son had stolen his cattle, but Hermes had already replaced
himself in the blankets she had wrapped him in, so Maia refused to believe
Apollo's claim. Zeus intervened and, claiming to have seen the events, sided
with Apollo. Hermes then began to play music on the lyre he had invented.
Apollo, a god of music, fell in love with the instrument and offered to allow
exchange of the cattle for the lyre. Hence, Apollo then became a master of the
lyre.
[edit]Apollo in the Oresteia
In Aeschylus' Oresteia trilogy, Clytemnestra kills her husband, King Agamemnon because he had sacrificed their
daughter Iphigenia to proceed forward with the Trojan
war, andCassandra,
a prophetess of Apollo. Apollo gives an order through the Oracle at Delphi that
Agamemnon's son, Orestes,
is to kill Clytemnestra and Aegisthus,
her lover. Orestes and Pylades carry out the revenge, and consequently Orestes
is pursued by the Erinyes (Furies, female personifications of vengeance).
Apollo and the Furies argue about whether thematricide was justified; Apollo holds that the
bond of marriage is sacred and Orestes was avenging his father, whereas the
Erinyes say that the bond of blood between mother and son is more meaningful
than the bond of marriage. They invade his temple, and he says that the matter
should be brought before Athena. Apollo promises to protect Orestes, as Orestes
has become Apollo's supplicant. Apollo advocates Orestes at the trial, and
ultimately Athena rules with Apollo.
[edit]Other stories
Apollo killed the Aloadae when they attempted to storm Mt. Olympus.
Callimachus sang[73] that Apollo rode on the back of a swan
to the land of the Hyperboreans during the winter months.
Apollo turned Cephissus into a sea monster.
Another contender for the birthplace of Apollo is
the Cretan islands of Paximadia.
[edit]Musical contests
[edit]Pan
Once Pan had the audacity to compare his music
with that of Apollo, and to challenge Apollo, the god of the kithara,
to a trial of skill. Tmolus, the
mountain-god, was chosen to umpire. Pan blew on his pipes, and with his rustic
melody gave great satisfaction to himself and his faithful follower, Midas, who happened to be
present. Then Apollo struck the strings of his lyre. Tmolus at once awarded the
victory to Apollo, and all but Midas agreed with the judgment. He dissented,
and questioned the justice of the award. Apollo would not suffer such a
depraved pair of ears any longer, and caused them to become the ears of a donkey.
[edit]Marsyas
Marsyas
under Apollo's punishment;İstanbul Archaeology Museum.
Apollo has ominous aspects aside from his
plague-bringing, death-dealing arrows: Marsyas was a satyr who challenged Apollo to a contest of
music. He had found an aulos on the ground, tossed away after being
invented by Athena because it made her cheeks puffy. The
contest was judged by the Muses. After they each
performed, both were deemed equal until Apollo decreed they play and sing at
the same time. As Apollo played the lyre, this was easy to do.
Marsyas could not do this as he only knew how to use the flute and could not
sing at the same time. Apollo was declared the winner because of this. Apollo flayed Marsyas alive in a cave near Celaenae in Phrygia for his hubris to challenge a god. He then nailed
Marsyas' shaggy skin to a nearby pine-tree. Marsyas' blood turned into the
river Marsyas.
Another variation is that Apollo played his
instrument (the lyre) upside down. Marsyas could not do this with his
instrument (the flute), and so Apollo hung
him from a tree and flayed him alive.[74]
[edit]Cinyras
Head of
Apollo. Marble, Roman copy of a Greek original of the 4th century BCE, from the
collection ofCardinal Albani
[edit]Roman Apollo
The Roman worship of Apollo was adopted from the
Greeks. As a quintessentially Greek god, Apollo had no
direct Roman equivalent, although later Roman poets often referred to him as Phoebus.[75] There was a tradition that the Delphic
oracle was consulted as early as the period of the kings of Rome during the reign of Tarquinius Superbus.[76] On the occasion of a pestilence in the
430s BCE, Apollo's first temple at Rome was established in the
Flaminian fields, replacing an older cult site there known as the
"Apollinare".[77] During the Second Punic War in 212 BCE, the Ludi Apollinares ("Apollonian Games") were
instituted in his honor, on the instructions of a prophecy attributed to one
Marcius.[78] In the time of Augustus,
who considered himself under the special protection of Apollo and was even said
to be his son, his worship developed and he became one of the chief gods of
Rome.[79] After the battle of Actium,
which was fought near a sanctuary of Apollo, Augustus enlarged Apollo's temple,
dedicated a portion of the spoils to him, and instituted quinquennial games in his honour.[80] He also erected a new temple to the god on the Palatine hill.[81] Sacrifices and prayers on the Palatine
to Apollo and Diana formed the culmination of the Secular Games,
held in 17 BCE to celebrate the dawn of a new era.[82]
[edit]Festivals
The chief Apollonian festivals were the Boedromia, Carneia,
Carpiae, Daphnephoria, Delia, Hyacinthia, Metageitnia, Pyanepsia, Pythia and Thargelia.
[edit]Attributes and symbols
Gold
stater of the Seleucid kingAntiochus I
Soter (reigned 281-261
BCE) showing on the reverse a nude Apollo holding his key attributes: two
arrows and leaning on a bow.
Apollo's most common attributes were the bow and arrow. Other attributes of
his included the kithara (an advanced version of the common lyre), the plectrum and the sword. Another common emblem
was the sacrificial tripod, representing his prophetic
powers. The Pythian Games were held in Apollo's honor every four
years at Delphi. The bay laurel plant was used in expiatory sacrifices
and in making the crown of victory at these games. The palm was also sacred to Apollo because he
had been born under one in Delos. Animals sacred to
Apollo included wolves, dolphins, roe deer, swans, cicadas (symbolizing music and song), hawks, ravens, crows, snakes (referencing Apollo's function as the
god of prophecy), mice and griffins,
mythical eagle–lion hybrids of Eastern origin.
Apollo Citharoedus ("Apollo with a
kithara"), Musei Capitolini,
Rome
As god of colonization, Apollo gave oracular
guidance on colonies, especially during the height of colonization, 750–550
BCE. According to Greek tradition, he helped Cretan or Arcadian colonists found the city of Troy. However, this story
may reflect a cultural influence which had the reverse direction: Hittite cuneiform texts mention a Minor Asian god called Appaliunas or Apalunas in connection with the city of Wilusaattested in
Hittite inscriptions, which is now generally regarded as being identical with
the Greek Ilion by most scholars. In this
interpretation, Apollo's title of Lykegenes can simply be read as "born in
Lycia", which effectively severs the god's supposed link with wolves
(possibly a folk etymology).
In literary contexts, Apollo represents harmony,
order, and reason—characteristics contrasted with those of Dionysus,
god of wine, who represents ecstasy and disorder. The contrast between the
roles of these gods is reflected in the adjectives Apollonian and Dionysian. However, the
Greeks thought of the two qualities as complementary: the two gods are
brothers, and when Apollo at winter left for Hyperborea,
he would leave the Delphic oracle to Dionysus. This contrast appears to be
shown on the two sides of theBorghese Vase.
Apollo is often associated with the Golden Mean. This is the Greek ideal of moderation and a virtue that opposes gluttony.
[edit]Apollo in the arts
Sacred
Gate Kouros.Marble 620-610 BC.Kerameikos.Archaeological Museum of Athens
The
Louvre Apollo Sauroctonos by Praxiteles (360 BC).Louvre
Apollo is a common theme in Greek and
Roman art and also in the art of Rennaisance.The
evolution of the Greek sculpture can be observed in his depictions from the
almost static formal Kouros type in early archaic period to the representation of motion in a
relative harmonious whole in late archaic period.In classical Greece the emphasis is not given to the
illusive imaginative reality represented by the ideal forms,but to the
analogies and the interaction of the members in the whole,a method created by Polykleitos.Finally Praxitelesseems
to be released from any art and religious conformities and his masterpieces are
a mixture of naturalism with stylization.
This evolution seems to go parallel with the
Greek philosophical conceptions which changed from the natural-philosophy of Thales who searched a simple material-form
behind the appearances of things,also related to the older animism,to
the metaphysical theory of Pythagoras who believed that behind every object
there was a mathematical relation which led to the order.Finally in classical
Greece the new theories asserted that a divine reason (mind) gave order to the
seeds of the universe,and Plato extended the Greek belief of ideal forms to his metaphysical theory of forms (ideai:ideas).
Kouros (male
youth) is the modern term given to those representations of standing male
youths which first appear in the archaic period in Greece.This type served
certain religious needs and was first proposed for what was previously thought
to be depictions of Apollo.[83][84] The adoptation of a standard
recognizable type for a long time,is probably because nature gives preference
in survival of a type which has long be adopted by the climatic conditions[85] and also due to the general Greek
belief that nature expresses itself in ideal
forms that can be imagined
and represented.[86] These forms expressed
immortality.Apollo was the immortal god of ideal
balance and order as it was
written on his shrine inDelphi:"Nothing in excess".
Apollo,West
Pediment Olympia.Munich,copy from original, 460 BC at the Temple of Zeus, Olympia, Greece
Apollo
of the Mantoua type.Marble
Roman copy after a 5th cent.BC Greek original attributed to Polykleitos.Louvre
In the first large-scale depictions during the
early archaic period (640-580 BC),the artists tried to draw the attention of
someone to look into the interior of the face and the body which were not
represented as a lifeless-masses,but like something full of life.The Greeks
maintained to a late day an early almost animistic idea that the statues are in some
sense alive.[87] A fine example is the statue of the Sacred gate Kouros which was found at the cemetery of Dipylon in Athens. ( Dipylon Kouros).His
slender face and the deep eyes express an intellectual eternity.These free
standing statues were usually marble,but also the form rendered in
limestone,bronze,ivory and terraccotta.
The earliest examples of life-sized statues of
Apollo,may be two figures from the Ionic sanctuary on the island of Delos.Such statues were
found across the Greek speaking world,the prepoderance of these were found at
the sanctuaries of Apollo with more than one hundred from the sanctuary of Apollo Ptoios, Boeotia alone.[88] The last stage in the developement of
the Kouros type is the late archaic period (520-485
BC),in which the Greek sculpture attained a full knowledge of human anatomy and
used to create an harmonious,proportionate whole.Ranking from the very few
bronzes survived to us is the masterpiece bronze Piraeus Apollo.It
was found in Piraeus,the
harbour of Athens.
In the archaic pediments and friezes of the
temples,the artists had a problem to fit a group of figures into an isoskeles
triangle with acute angles at the base.The Siphnian
Treasury in Delphi was one of the first Greek buildings
utilizing the solution to put the dominating form in the middle and to complete
the descending scale of height with other figures sitting or kneeling.The
pediment shows the story of Herakles stealing Apollo's tripod that was
strongly asocciated with his oracular inspiration.Their two figures hold the
centre.In the pediment of the temple of Zeus in Olympia,the
single figure of Apollo is dominating the scene.[89] These representations rely on
presenting scenes directly to the eye for their own visible sake.They care for
the scematic arrangements of bodies in space,but only as parts in a larger
whole.[90]
Apollo as a handsome beardless young man,is
oftently depicted with a kithara (as Apollo Citharoedus) or bow in his hand, or
reclining on a tree (theApollo Lykeios and Apollo Sauroctonos types).The Apollo Belvedere is a marble sculpture that was rediscovered in the late 15th
century; for centuries it epitomized the ideals of Classical Antiquity for Europeans, from the Renaissance through the 19th century. The marble
is a Hellenistic or
Roman copy of a bronze original by the Greek sculptor Leochares,
made between 350 and 325 BCE.
The lifesize so-called "Adonis" found
in 1780 on the site of a villa suburbana near the Via Labicana in the Roman suburb of Centocelle is
identified as an Apollo by modern scholars.In the late 2nd century CE floor
mosaic from El Djem,
Roman Thysdrus, he is
identifiable as Apollo Helios by his effulgent halo, though now even a god's divine nakedness is concealed by his cloak, a mark of
increasing conventions of modesty in the laterEmpire.
Another haloed Apollo in mosaic, from Hadrumentum,
is in the museum at Sousse.[91] The conventions of this
representation, head tilted, lips slightly parted, large-eyed, curling hair cut in locks grazing the neck, were
developed in the 3rd century BCE to depict Alexander the Great (Bieber 1964, Yalouris 1980). Some
time after this mosaic was executed.
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