Der friends of ancient Mythology! In addition to the well-known Roman gods, especially the Olympic ones, which are part of our educational heritage, there were a multitude of "lesser gods" that are not generally known. It is with these that I wish to deal here. Coin: Roman Republic, Q. Titius Mutto, gens. Titia AR - Denarius, 19mm, 4.08g Rome, 90 BC Obv. Head of a bearded man (Mutinus Titinus?) with winged diadem r. Rev. Pegasus leaping r., on a base with inscription Q.TIT Ref. Crawford 341/1; Sydenham 691; Albert 1180; Sear 238; Titia 1 Rev. Somewhat eccentric RE Pauly (Titius 33): This representation does not point to the gentile name Titius, as was previously thought, but to the byname of Q. Titius, who was called Mutto, according to Cichorius. So Q. Titius Mutto! It is known of him that he was accused by L. Aelius in 100 BC and was Sulla's mint master as a partisan in 87 BC. The head of Mutinus is modelled on the head of Priapus on the coins of Lampsakos in Mysia. Lampsakos was the centre of Priapos worship. Coin #2 Mysia, Lampsakos, pseudo-autonomous, 190-85 BC. AE - AE 20, 7.90g Obv. Bearded head of Priapos r., wreathed with ivy. Rev. Forepart of Pegasos r. Above and below ΛAMΨA - KHNΩN. Ref. BMC 69; SNG France 1245-2248; SNG Copenhagen 224-226; Bompois coll. 1396; SNG von Aulock 7405; Lindgren III, 259; SNG Tübingen 2311. Mutinus Titinus Also known as Mutunus, Tutunus, singly or as a double name. Etymologically, Mutinus comes from Latin mutto (= male limb, occasionally also the female equivalent), Titinus from *tou (= to swell). Thus it is also related to muttonium, the name for a phallic amulet. This was used as a fascinum to protect against evil, e.g. on houses and paths. Stone block with the image of a fascinum from Burgos/Spain Varro compared Mutinus to the Greek Priapos. According to Augustine, the ithyphallic image of Mutinus was used at the wedding (confarreatio) to break the taboo of the beginning, in that the bride had to sit on the phallus and thus symbolically deflower herself. However, the ritual could only be served by the image, which was kept in a shrine (sacellum) at the Velia in the temple of the Vesta. The women with veiled heads also sacrificed there. The fate of the shrine is unclear. It is likely that this venerable shrine was torn down by Gnaeus Domitius Calvinus in the time of Augustus and a bath complex was built in its place (Wikipedia). Indigetes Dii Mutinus belonged to the so-called Indigetes Dii, a controversial collective name used by the Romans from antiquity to the present day for a group of gods under which heroes such as Aeneas and Romulus were classified, however misleadingly. Actually, Indiges was the name of every god who had become a man (Serv. ad Virg.). In particular, it was Aeneas who received the honour of being called Iupiter Indiges or Pater Indiges. This was worshipped in a grove by the river Numicus. Since Aeneas had been carried away on the Numicus, he was identified with Jupiter Indiges. However, this identification took place only later, in Augustan times. Later, all the gods were improperly called Indigetes. Actually, only the native, old Roman gods were to be called so (from Latin Indiges = native, old Roman). What is meant by Di Indigetes, however, was already unclear in antiquity. An etymological connection to the Indigitamenta is more than problematic (Pauly). The Indigitamenta Etymologically, "Indigitamenta" comes from Latin indigitare (= to point to something, to invoke). These were lists of divinities kept by the college of pontifices to ensure that the correct divine names were invoked for public prayers and that their correct order was observed. Given the fearful conscientiousness with which the Romans confronted the gods, they were not allowed to make the slightest mistake in doing so. Like many other Roman rites, they were attributed to Numa Pompilius, the pious 2nd king of Rome. The modern standard list has been compiled by W. H. Roscher, although some scholars differ from him on some points. It contains over 150 names of deities, many of whom were responsible for conception, birth and child development, e.g. Vagitanus gave the first cry (vagitus) to the newborn. Others were agricultural gods. In this sense they would have been ancient special gods. But it may also be that they were only epithets for greater gods for certain functions. Some of these deities were already unknown in antiquity or their function was unclear. Unfortunately, the Church Fathers, e.g. Augustine and Tertullian, had no historical or scientific interest, but made fun of these deities and corrupted the original list by reversing their meaning or making silly additions. Notes: (1) Conrad Antonius Cichorius (1863-1932), German ancient historian, last at the University of Bonn. Was the first German historian to publish the reliefs of Trajan's Column (1896). (2) Marcus Terentius Varro (116-27 BC), from Rieti, important Roman polyhistor. He is quoted so often by Augustine that his theological writings could be partially reconstructed. From him comes the calculation of the year of the legendary foundation of the city of Rome ("Varronian count"). (3) Maurus Servius Honoratius, a late Roman grammarian from the 4th century who wrote, among other things, commentaries on Virgil. (4) Ferd. Bompois, Medailles Grecques Autonomes Bas-relief of the Arch of Marcus Aurelius, today in the Capitoline Museum in Rome. "Marcus Aurelius (161-180) and members of the imperial family offer a sacrifice in gratitude for the success against the Germanic tribes. In the background, the temple of Jupiter on the Capitol." Sources (1) Plinius, naturalis historia (2) Varro, Antiquitates rerum divinarum (3) Catull, Carmina (4) Augustinus, De Civitate Dei (5) Tertullian, Ad Nationes Secondary literature (1) Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher, Ausführliches Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie (auch online) (2) Benjamin Hederich, Gründliches mythologisches Lexikon, Leipzig 1770 (auch online) (3) Paulys Realenzyklopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft (RE) (4) Der Kleine Pauly, dtv (5) Der kleine Stowasser, Lateinisch-deutsches Schulwörterbuch Online Sources (1) Wikipedia Best regards Jochen
Good information @Jochen1 Q TITIUS ROMAN REPUBLIC; GENS TITIA AR Denarius OBVERSE: Head of Mutinus Titinus (Priapus) right, wearing winged diadem REVERSE: The Pegasus springing right, Q TITI on base Struck at Rome 90 BC 3.8g, 18mm Cr341/1, Syd 691; Titia 1
4.04g Head of Mutinus Titinus right, hair in a winged diadem Pegasus springing from a platform inscribed "Q TITI" Titia 1
Now I have to add: To be more correct, I should have written "head of a bearded man (Mutinus Titunus?)" in the description of the coin. Best regards Jochen
I have extended your editing privilege on the original post for a little while, if you would like to change it.
