| Britomartis | |
|---|---|
Goddess of mountains, fishing nets, and hunting | |
 The Drowning of Britomartis tapestry, probably designed byJean Cousin the Elder | |
| Other names | Dictynna, Dictymna, Dicte |
| Major cult centre | Crete |
| Symbols | Mountains, fishing nets, the moon |
| Temple | Diktynnaion |
| Festivals | Britomarpeia |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents | |
| Equivalents | |
| Aeginian | Aphaea |
| Greek deities series |
|---|
| Nymphs |
Britomartis (/brɪtoʊˈmɑːrtɪs/;[1]Ancient Greek:Βριτόμαρτις) was aGreek goddess of mountains, nets, and hunting who was primarily worshipped on the island ofCrete. She was sometimes described as anymph, but she was more commonly conflated or syncretized with the goddessesArtemis,Athena, andAphaea. She is also known asDictynna,Dicte,Dictymna, or as a daughter of Dictynna (Δίκτυννα).[2]
In the 16th century,Edmund Spencer named a character identified withEnglish military prowess as "Britomart" in his knightlyepicThe Faerie Queene. This subsequently led to a number of appearances of "Britomart" figures in British art and literature.
According toSolinus, the name 'Britomartis' is from a Cretan dialect. He also says that her name meansvirgo dulcis, or "sweet virgin".[3] It is possible that her name also means "sweet" or "blessing" (βριτύς) "maiden," withHesychius of Alexandria equating the Cretan βριτύ (britý) with the Greek word γλυκύ (glyký) 'sweet'.[2][4] Other scholars have argued that Britomartis is anepithet that does not reveal the goddess's name or character,[5] instead arguing that it may be anoa-name.[6]
The goddess was frequently portrayed on Cretan coinage, either as herself or as Diktynna, the goddess ofMount Dikte,Zeus' birthplace. As Diktynna, she was depicted as a winged goddess with a human face, standing atop the mountain and grasping an animal in each hand. This imagery is directly related to thePotnia Theronmotif, also known as the mistress of animals. She also occasionally appeared on coinage with a crescent moon, likely due to her close relationship with Artemis, goddess of the moon.[7]
ByHellenistic and Roman times, Britomartis was given a genealogical setting that cast her into a Classical context:
Britomartis, who is also called Dictynna, the myths relate, was born at Caeno in Crete of Zeus andCarmê, the daughter ofEubulus who was the son ofDemeter; she invented the nets (dictya) which are used in hunting.[8]
One of the mainmyths surrounding Britomartis concerns her being pursued byKing Minos. According toDiodorus, Britomartis was a nymph and huntress much beloved by Artemis. Minos took interest in her and pursued her for nine months. She continually fled his advances, and to escape, she at last leapt into the sea (possibly from Mount Dikte) and landed in fishermen's nets. She became entangled but was rescued by Artemis, who thenmade her a goddess.[8] In his third hymn to Artemis,Callimachus tells a similar tale, and claims it is the source of the name and title Diktynna, "Lady of the Nets." Some tellings instead claim that she was taken by fishermen to mainland Greece, therefore explaining the spread of her cult to Greece.Diodorus Siculus found it less than credible:
But those men who tell the tale that she has been named Dictynna because she fled into some fishermen's nets when she was pursued by Minos, who would have ravished her, have missed the truth; for it is not a probable story that the goddess should ever have got into so helpless a state that she would have required the aid that men can give, being as she is the daughter of the greatest one of the gods.[8]
Another version of the myth claims Britomartis vowed to live inperpetual maidenhood, and that she was a frequent wanderer before eventually settling in Crete. It claims she was born inPhoenicia, travelled toArgos and visited the daughters of the river godErasinos, went toCephalonia and was worshiped under the nameLaphria, and then finally arrived in Crete and was pursued by Minos. This version of the myth additionally has her flee onto the island of Aegina, where she was then built a temple and worshipped as a goddess.[9]
Strabo notes she was venerated as Diktynna primarily in western Crete, in the regions ofCydonia and Lysos, where there was aDiktynnaion, ortemple of Diktynna. Occasionally she was conflated with Artemis or Athena as the same goddess, with Solinus explicitly identifying her as the Cretan Artemis.[10] Diodorus suggests that since "she passed her time in the company of Artemis," that this was the "reason why some men think Diktynna and Artemis are one and the same goddess."[8] She has also been associated withHecate.[11]
Axoanon, a wooden cult statue, of Britomartis, allegedly carved byDaedalus, sat in the temple ofOlous. InChersonesos andOlous, she was often portrayed on coins and celebrated during the festival Britomarpeia, showing that she was worshipped in those cities. As Diktynna, her face was pictured onCretan coins ofKydonia,Polyrrhenia andPhalasarna as the nurse of Zeus. On some early Britomartis coins produced in Kydonia, the coin was manufactured as anoverstrike of specimens manufactured byAegina.[12]
Temples dedicated to her existed inAthens,Sparta,Massalia and between Ambrosus andAnticyra in Phocis,[13] where, as Artemis Diktynna, her cult object was a black stone worked byAeginetans.[14] One temple dedicated to the goddess was located onMount Tityros near Cydonia.[12] Her temples were said to be guarded by vicious dogs stronger than bears.[15]
Another name, Pipituna, found inLinear B scripts, may be another form of Diktynna.[16]
In the second century CE, the Greek writerPausanias describes Britomartis saying, "She was made a goddess by Artemis, and she is worshipped, not only by the Cretans, but also by theAiginetans."[17] The myths surrounding the Aeginian version of Britomartis differ slightly.Antoninus Liberalis wrote that after escaping Minos, she arrived atAegina, but a local fisherman named Andromedes attempted to assault her, so she jumped off the boat and fled onto the island, where she became known asAphaea, the "invisible" patroness of the island.[18] Antoninus interprets the name Aphaea as 'she who disappeared'. Aphaea was primarily worshiped at the temple of "Athena Aphaea," where she had a statue.[9][17] A temple dedicated to her also existed atAspropyrgos on the outskirts ofAthens.
Like Britomartis and Artemis, Aphaea was associated with the moon.[7]
Britomart figures inEdmund Spenser's knightlyepicThe Faerie Queene, where she is anallegorical figure of the virgin Knight ofChastity, representingEnglish virtue—in particular, English military power—through a folketymology that associatedBrit-, as inBriton, withMartis, here thought of as "ofMars", the Roman war god.
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