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81-532: They are mentioned in the founding myth of Massalia , recounted by the Greek philosopher Aristotle and by Pompeius Trogus , a Gallo-Roman writer who lived among the nearby Vocontii in the 1st century BC. Built around the historical founding of the city by Greek settlers ca. 600 BC, the legend tells how the daughter of the Segobrigian king Nannus chose a Phocaean sailor as her husband during her own wedding,

162-457: A Celtic wall from the end from the 7th century BC. In this view, this oppidum could be interpreted as the place where the Greeks and locals met before the foundation of Massalia further south. Around 600 BC, Greek settlers from the city of Phocaea , in western Anatolia , founded the colony of Massalia at the site of Lacydon, corresponding to the present-day Old Port of Marseille . According to

243-539: A bowl filled with water or wine. This motif, comparable to the Indic svayamvara ('personal choice'), is probably of Indo-European origin. Euxenus happened to be visiting when this Nanos was celebrating his daughter's wedding, and he was invited to the feast. The wedding was organized as follows: After the meal, the girl had to come in and offer a bowl full of wine mixed with water to whichever suitor there she wanted, and whoever she gave it to would be her bridegroom. When

324-446: A chance to take back her challenge and ask forgiveness. When Arachne refused, Minerva rid herself of her disguise and took Arachne up on her challenge. Arachne began to weave a tapestry that showed the shortcomings of the gods, while Minerva depicted her competition with Neptune and the gods looking down with disgust on mortals who would dare to challenge them. Minerva's weaving was meant as a final warning to her foe to back down. Minerva

405-605: A city and allow him to preserve his 'Hellenicity'. After the capture of Phocaea by the Persians in 545 BC, a new wave of settlers fled towards Massalia, which could explain the presence of the two chiefs ( duces classis ), Simos and Protis, in Trogus' version, as well as Strabo's account of the Ephesian Artemis . According to historian Henri Tréziny, the creation of the single founder, Protis, could even be posterior to

486-535: A city instead ("Protis ... was given the site for founding the city by his father-in-law"). This may suggest that Nannus controlled other territories near the coast, or that he had subjugated neighbouring tribes. Historian Dominique Garcia  [ fr ] has proposed to interpret the Segobrigii as a "chieftaincy governed centrally (from the village of Nannus) by a hereditary authority (Nannus' lineage) extending matrilineally and matrilocally by swarming, with

567-513: A cow being sacrificed to Minerva among the many sacrifices made as a part of the New Year vows. In Fasti III, Ovid called her the "goddess of a thousand works" due to all of the things she was associated with. Minerva was worshipped throughout Italy, and when she eventually became equated with the Greek goddess Athena, she also became a goddess of battle. Unlike Mars, god of war, she was sometimes portrayed with sword lowered, in sympathy for

648-855: A dream in the Mahābhārata , and as Tyndareus lets Helen choose her own husband in Euripides ' Iphigenia in Aulis . Additionally, both Penelope in Homer 's Odyssey and Draupadī in the Mahābhārata make their choice in the form of an archery competition between their suitors. Athenaeus compared the Phocaean version with an Oriental tale found in Chares of Mytilene 's "Stories about Alexander" ( Perì Aléxandron historíai ). The princess Odatis, daughter of

729-459: A greater amount of protection from the goddess of crafts. Some women would also have images of her on accessories such as hairpins or jewellery. She was even featured on some funerary art on coffins and signet rings. During Roman rule, Minerva became equated with the Celtic goddess Sulis , to the degree where their names were used both together and interchangeably. She was believed to preside over

810-417: A hooked nose or a simian face. According to Pralon, in the Greek tradition, "the defect condemns anyone who suffers from it to exclusion, but can also qualify them for the greatest feats". The Phocaean foundation myth revolves around the idea of a peaceful relationship between the natives and the settlers, which contrasted with historical situations where territories could be seized by force or trickery during

891-616: A posterity abroad. The founding myth of Massalia also shares similarities with other tales from Greek mythology . In the Homeric tradition, such myths generally involve aristocratic heroes and indigenous kings who came to follow a Greek way of life via the practice of hospitality by exchanging feasts and presents, with a union eventually sealed by dowry and political alliance. For instance, Alcinous offers Odysseus to marry Nausicaa and to settle in Scheria , just as Gyptis offered herself to

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972-420: A son-in-law chosen at a banquet. So since all the suitors had been invited to the wedding, the Greek guests too were asked to the feast. Then the girl was brought in, and when she was asked by her father to offer water to the man she chose as her husband, she passed them all over and, turning to the Greeks, gave the water to Protis; and he, thus changed from a guest into a son-in-law, was given the site for founding

1053-693: A tribute to them. The subsequent disappearance of the Segobrigii from historical records is generally associated with the gradual incorporation of their territory into the Massaliote khôra , the territory outside the city proper. According to Javier de Hoz , it is possible that the Comani , who inhabited the inland territory to the north of Massalia, were the descendants of the Segobrigii, or else that they were another tribe that supplanted them in this area. The Sebrobriges were identified as Ligurians by

1134-507: Is archaeological evidence to suggest that Minerva was worshipped not only in a formal civic fashion, but also by individuals on a more personal level. Minerva is featured on the coinage of different Roman emperors . She often is represented on the reverse side of a coin holding an owl and a spear among her attributes. During the Roman occupation of Britain , it was common for carpenters to own tools ornamented with images of Minerva to invoke

1215-550: Is furious with Aglauros. She seeks the assistance of Envy , who fills Aglauros with so much envy for the good fortune of others that she turns to stone . Mercury fails to seduce Herse. Minerva assisted the hero Hercules . In Hyginus ' Fabulae she is said to have helped him kill the Hydra (30.3). Minerva assisted the hero Ulysses . Hyginus describes in his work Fabulae that Minerva changes Odysseus' appearance in order to protect and assist him multiple times (126). Minerva

1296-496: Is reproduced in Athenaeus ' Deipnosophistae , and the version told by Gallo-Roman historian Pompeius Trogus in his Philippic Histories , now lost but later summarized by the Roman historian Justin . The Roman historian Livy also alludes to the myth in his Ab Urbe Condita . The motif of the princess choosing her future husband in a group of suitors during her wedding is found in other Indo-European myths , notably in

1377-410: Is thought to have invented the flute by piercing holes into boxwood. She enjoyed the music, but became embarrassed by how it made her face look when her cheeks puffed out to play. Because of this she threw it away and it landed on a riverbank where it was found by a satyr . The Romans celebrated her festival from March 19 to March 23 during the day that is called, in the neuter plural, Quinquatria ,

1458-469: The Acta Arvalia , a cow was sacrificed to Minerva on October 13 58 AD along with many other sacrifices to celebrate the anniversary of Nero coming to power. On January 3 81 AD, as a part of the New Year vows, two cows were sacrificed to Minerva (among many others) to secure the well-being of the emperor Titus, Domitian Caesar, Julia Augusta, and their children. On January 3 87 AD there is again record of

1539-556: The Aventine Hill . Among others, its members included Livius Andronicus . The Aventine sanctuary of Minerva continued to be an important center of the arts for much of the middle Roman Republic . As Minerva Medica , she was the goddess of medicine and physicians. As Minerva Achaea , she was worshipped at Lucera in Apulia where votive gifts and arms said to be those of Diomedes were preserved in her temple. According to

1620-467: The Greek colonial expansion . Mixed marriages were a necessary and common practice in the early period of colonization, and such myths probably helped the descendants of both settlers and natives symbolically share a common origin in their collective memory. In Trogus' version, Protis does not integrate the Segobrigii into the new colony. Instead, the king Nannus provides him with a piece of land to found

1701-511: The Protiadae ; because Protis was the son of Euxenus and Aristoxene. The version of Pompeius Trogus , a Gallo-Roman writer from the nearby Vocontian tribe, is now lost, but was summarized in the 3rd–4th century AD by the Roman historian Justin in his Epitoma Historiarum Philippicarum . Trogus was presumably repeating the version that was current in Massalia in the 1st century BC. In

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1782-605: The Quinquatria by appointing a college of priests who were to stage plays and animal games in addition to poetry and oratory competitions. A lesser version, the Minusculae Quinquatria , was held on the Ides of June, June 13, by the flute-players , as Minerva was thought to have invented the flute. In 207 BC, a guild of poets and actors was formed to meet and make votive offerings at the temple of Minerva on

1863-492: The crafts . Minerva is often depicted with her sacred creature, an owl usually named the " owl of Minerva ". which symbolised her association with wisdom and knowledge, as well as, less frequently, the snake and the olive tree . Minerva is commonly depicted as tall with an athletic and muscular build. She is often wearing armour and carrying a spear. As an important Roman goddess, she is highly revered, honored, and respected. Marcus Terentius Varro considered her to be ideal and

1944-533: The 'Phocaeans' (French: Phocéens ). Aristotle 's "Constitution of the Massaliotes", written in the 4th century BC and later reproduced by Athenaeus in his Deipnosophistae , is a brief and elliptic summary of the foundation myth. The text is poorly transmitted and, according to philologist Didier Pralon, "the story looks more like a working note than a composed narrative". The Phocaeans who inhabit Ionia were traders and founded Massalia. Euxenus of Phocaea

2025-501: The Celtic tribes that had reached the Mediterranean shore of France at the end of the 7th century. According to Javier de Hoz , the Segobrigii were actually "primitive Celts" that were later assimilated into Gallic populations. Both Trogus' and Aristotle's accounts of the legendary foundation of Massalia mention a peculiar custom whereby the daughter of the local king chooses her husband during her own wedding, by presenting him

2106-499: The Gauls; and they did mighty deeds, whether in protecting themselves against the savagery of the Gauls or in provoking them to fight—having themselves first been provoked. Although Trogus believed both Ligurians and Gauls to be in occupation at the time of the foundation, and Livy said that Gauls helped the Massaliotes found they colony against the hostile Celto-Ligurian Salyes , it is chronologically difficult to classify as 'Gauls'

2187-402: The Greek guests too were asked to the feast. Then the girl was brought in, and when she was asked by her father to offer water to the man she chose as her husband, she passed them all over and, turning to the Greeks, gave the water to Protis... In Trogus' version, the Phocaean settlers do not integrate the Segobrigii into the Greek colony; the king Nannus provides him with a piece of land to found

2268-432: The Greeks in the aftermath of this defeat. After the capture of Phocaea by the Persians in 545 BC, a new wave of settlers fled towards the colony, which probably changed the demographic balance between the Greeks and natives. Just before ca. 390–387 BC, a Segobrigian prince named Catumandus besieged the city, then reportedly abandoned his project after seeing the goddess Minerva in a dream and decided to make peace with

2349-558: The Massaliotes. In the aftermath of this event, learning that Rome had been seized by the Gauls at the Battle of the Allia , the Greeks gathered their possessions to help the Romans pay the ransom. Jean Brunel proposed that this tale, with the divine intervention and the parallel with the sack of Rome, may have created to hide the fact that Massalia had been taken by the Segobrigii and had to pay

2430-545: The Phocaean boats to the Old Port . The 26th centenary was celebrated in 1999, and marked by the creation of a public park named Parc du 26e Centenaire . The ancient myth inspired Guillaume Apollinaire 's La Fin de Babylone , published in 1914. Minerva Minerva ( / m ə ˈ n ɜːr v ə / ; Latin: [mɪˈnɛru̯ä] ; Etruscan : Menrva ) is the Roman goddess of wisdom , justice, law, victory, and

2511-414: The Phocaean founder himself. After their wedding, Eúxenos (Εὔξενος) changes Pétta's name to Aristoxénē (Ἀριστοξένη), literally 'Best Guest/Host', thus matching his own name, which means 'Hospitable'. The verb used to designate their alliance, sunṓͅkei (συνῴκει; 'to live with', also 'founding with'), connotes the cohabitation of both the couple and the two groups. The changing of the name may thus describe

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2592-636: The Phocaean journey to the foundation site and focuses on the introduction of the cult of Artemis of Ephesus to Massalia. Strabo tells of an oracle biding the Phocaean colonists to stop in Ephesus , where Artemis appeared to the local Aristarche in a dream. They built a temple to Artemis after arriving in Massalia, making the Ephesian woman the priestess. Plutarch also mentions the legendary founder Protis in his Life of Solon (2, 7) : "Some merchants were actually founders of great cities, as Protis, who

2673-613: The Phocaeans were forced by the meanness and poverty of their soil to pay more attention to the sea than to the land: they eked out an existence by fishing, by trading, and largely by piracy, which in those days was reckoned honourable. So they dared to sail to the furthest shore of the ocean and came to the Gallic gulf, by the mouth of the Rhone. Taken by the pleasantness of the place, they returned home to report what they had seen and enlisted

2754-518: The ancient Indian svayamvara tales and in Chares of Mytilene 's "Stories about Alexander". The background of the Phocaean version was probably influenced by the actual founding of the colony of Massalia around 600 BC by Greek settlers from the Ionian city of Phocaea , although earlier prototypes may have existed already in Phocaea. The modern inhabitants of Marseille are still colloquially called

2835-491: The city by his father-in-law. So Massilia was founded near the mouths of the river Rhone, in a deep inlet, as it were in a corner of the sea. In his recounting of the legendary Celtic invasion of Italy said to have been led by Bellovesus around 600 BC, Livy alludes to the founding of Massalia by the Phocaeans. In his version, the latter were facing opposition from the Saluvii , a Celto-Lugurian tribe dwelling further north in

2916-417: The creation of small village units consisting of a few dozen people placed under the authority of 'big men' (the kinglets of the text)." This tradition could have survived until the second part of the 6th century BC, when the coming of new settlers from Phocaea, including whole families, changed the demographic balance between settlers and natives, leading ultimately to the extinction of Nannus' descent-group and

2997-500: The decision, and the frustrated Zariadre decides to kidnap the young princess. According to Athenaeus, the tale was so popular among "barbarians" that many nobles gave their daughters the name of Odatis. The story is also reminiscent of Ctesias ' tale of Stryangaius and Zarinaia . In the Massaliot myth, the princess' choice is actually placed under divine control, or tyche ('chance', 'fate'). Both Aristotle and Trogus agree that

3078-516: The disappearance of the Segobrigii from historical records. Founding myth of Marseille The founding myth of Marseille is an ancient creation myth telling the legendary foundation of the colony of Massalia (modern Marseille ), on the Mediterranean coast of what was later known as southern Gaul , by Greek settlers from Phocaea , a city in western Anatolia . Although the attested versions differ on some details, they all recount

3159-409: The dominant tribe but ruled by local 'big men'. The local king's name, Nannus or Nános (Νάνος), means 'dwarf' in Greek, which seems to have surprised Aristotle, who insists that this was "actually his name". It could be interpreted as meaning 'chieftain, kinglet' (i.e. 'little king'). The name of the second Phocaean commander, Simos , is only given by Trogus and refers to a physical disgrace:

3240-641: The face of a quarry next to the River Dee . Stemming from an Italic moon goddess * Meneswā ('She who measures'), the Etruscans adopted the inherited Old Latin name, * Menerwā , thereby calling her Menrva . It is presumed that her Roman name, Minerva, is based on this Etruscan mythology . Minerva was the goddess of wisdom, war, art, schools, justice and commerce. She was the Etruscan counterpart to Greek Athena . Like Athena, Minerva burst from

3321-419: The fall of Phocaea in 494 BC. Scholar Bertrand Westphal argues that some archetypes of the foundation myth may have already existed on the shores of Anatolia before 600 BC: in the eyes of Phocaean settlers leaving their Hellenic homeland for the unknown lands of the " Barbarians ", such myths could have served as an encouragement to set sail for foreign shores, with the promise of marrying a princess and leaving

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3402-533: The fifth day after the Ides of March, the nineteenth, an artisans ' holiday. This festival was of deepest importance to artists and craftsmen as she was the patron goddess of crafting and arts. According to Ovid ( Fasti 3.809) the festival was 5 days long, and the first day was said to be the anniversary of Minerva's birth, so no blood was to be shed. The following four days were full of games of "drawn swords" in honour of Minerva's military association. Suetonius tells us (Life of Domitian 4.4) that Domitian celebrated

3483-599: The fight. In order to do this he slept in Minerva's temple, and she came to him with a golden bridle. When Pegasus saw Bellerophon with the bridle the horse immediately allowed Bellerophon to mount, and they defeated the Chimera. Metamorphoses by Ovid tell the story of Minerva and Aglauros . When Mercury comes to seduce mortal virgin Herse , her sister Aglauros is driven by her greed to help him. Minerva discovers this and

3564-565: The foreigner in order to found the colony in the Phocaean version. Several Indo-European myths from the Indic, Greek, and possibly the Iranian tradition, recount similar stories of princesses who choose their future husband during their own wedding or via a competition between the suitors. The Indic tradition codified this peculiar form of marriage and called it svayamvara ('personal choice'). In Rāmāya , Sita chooses Rama as her husband, as Damayanti chooses Nala after she saw him in

3645-438: The foundation myth of the city, the princess of the Segobrigii, daughter of the king Nannus, chose to marry a Greek settler from Phocaea. At the invitation of Nannus, the two of them established the colony of Massalia, near or within the territory of the Segobrigii. Massalia was initially limited to a trading post lacking inland possessions ( locus condendae urbis ). They were respected as foreigners bound by ties of hospitality with

3726-460: The gift had been made in accord with the god’s will". According to Aristotle, a family named Protiadae lived at his time in Massalia, and probably claimed descent from the legendary Prō̃tis (Πρῶτις), whom he portrays as the son of Euxenus and Aristoxene. The 25th centenary of the city foundation was celebrated in 1899 in Marseille, with a popular feast and the reconstruction of the coming of

3807-408: The girl entered the room, she gave the bowl, either by accident or for some other reason, to Euxenus; her name was Petta. It so happened that on that day the king was engaged in arranging the marriage of his daughter Gyptis: in accordance with the custom of the tribe, he was preparing to give her to be married to a son-in-law chosen at a banquet. So since all the suitors had been invited to the wedding,

3888-423: The girl entered the room, she gave the bowl, either by accident or for some other reason, to Euxenus; her name was Petta. After this happened, and her father decided that the gift had been made in accord with the god’s will, so that he ought to have her, Euxenus married and set up housekeeping with her, although he changed her name to Aristoxene. There is still a family in Massalia today descended from her and known as

3969-485: The gods. This story also acted as a warning to mortals not to challenge the gods. Medusa was once a beautiful human girl with magnificent hair, she was also a priestess of Minerva. Neptune was obsessed with her and lusted after her. One day Neptune was watching her pray in the Temple of Minerva and decided to act upon his lustful obsession. He forced himself on Medusa but she was not strong enough to fight him off. Minerva

4050-856: The head of her father, Jupiter (Greek Zeus ), who had devoured her mother (Metis) in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent her birth. By a process of folk etymology , the Romans could have linked her foreign name to the root men- in Latin words such as mens meaning "mind", perhaps because one of her aspects as goddess pertained to the intellectual. The word mens is built from the Proto-Indo-European root *men- 'mind' (linked with memory as in Greek Mnemosyne /μνημοσύνη and mnestis /μνῆστις: memory, remembrance, recollection, manush in Sanskrit meaning mind). The Etruscan Menrva

4131-565: The healing hot springs located in Bath . Though Minerva is not a water deity, her association with intellectual professions as Minerva Medica she could also be thought of as a healing goddess, the epigraphic evidence present makes it clear that this is how Minerva was thought of in Bath. Some of the archaeological evidence present in Bath leads scholars to believe that it was thought Minerva could provide full healing from things such as rheumatism via

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4212-474: The hellenization of the natives, who came to live with the Phocaeans, as well as the inauguration of a new patrilineal descent-group, the Protiadae, that broke off from Nannus' native descent-group. However, Aristotle mentions that the Protiadae "descended from her" rather than from Protis, perhaps alluding to the semi- matrilineal system of the Segobrigii, where small groups were likely founded by women from

4293-517: The hot springs if she was given full credit for the healing. The temple of Sulis Minerva was known for having a miraculous altar-fire that burned coal as opposed to the traditional wood. There is evidence of worship of Minerva Medica in Carrawburgh due to archaeological evidence such as a relief depicting her and Aesculapius . There is a shrine dedicated to Minerva in Edgar's Field built in

4374-475: The inlands, near present-day Aix-en-Provence . This passage could actually refer to a conflict with Nannos' son Comanus that occurred ca. 580, or else be part of another ancient tradition telling a less peaceful story of the Phocaean initial coming ca. 600. While [the Gauls] were there fenced in as it were by the lofty mountains, and were looking about to discover where they might cross, over heights that reached

4455-487: The king Homartes, sees in her dream Zariadres , the king of Sophene , a land near the Caspian Sea . Zariadres thereafter dreams of Odatis and proposes to her, but she refuses. Shortly afterwards, Homartes summons the lords of his kingdom and a wedding is organized. Odatis is supposed to look at them all, then take a golden cup, fill it and give it to the one with whom she consents to be married, but she delays once again

4536-417: The local ruler, which implied that these indigenous people had freedom of movement within the colony and were welcomed during some religious festivals. Nannus was succeeded by his son Comanus who, fearing the expansionist policy of the Phocaeans, gave up the hospitality relation established by his father and waged war on the Greek colony ca. 580 BC. According to a story recounted by Trogus, probably inspired by

4617-566: The middle of the 2nd century BC, Polybius travelled to the region and wrote that the tribes dwelling in the Provençal inlands were Celtic. In the time of King Tarquin a party of young Phocaean warriors, sailing to the mouth of the Tiber, entered into an alliance with the Romans. From there, sailing into the distant bays of Gaul, they founded Massilia among the Ligurians and the fierce tribes of

4698-519: The mighty/victorious hill-fort', or as 'Strong and exalted people'. In the 6th century BC, the territory of the Segobrigii stretched from the Massif de l'Étoile to the Mediterranean coastline, south of the Salyes . It was gradually absorbed by the Greek colony of Massalia . The only site testifying to a pre-600 BC occupation in Marseille is the oppidum of Baou de Saint-Marcel  [ fr ] , at

4779-399: The oldest texts about the foundation of Massalia, but their ethnonym and the names of their chiefs are undoubtedly Celtic. It is possible that ancient authors such as Hecataeus of Miletus (6th c. BC) and Apollonios Rhodios (3rd c. BC) used 'Ligurian' as a generic term for such distant and partially known tribes, or merely as a geographic reference that had no relevance to their ethnicity. By

4860-450: The olive tree. Arachne was a mortal highly proficient in weaving and embroidery. Not only were her finished works beautiful, but also her process, so much so that nymphs would come out of their natural environments to watch her work. Arachne boasted that her skills could beat those of Minerva, and if she were wrong she would pay the price for it. This angered Minerva, and she took the form of an old woman to approach Arachne, offering her

4941-461: The outlet of the Huveaune valley, 7 km east of the Old Port of Marseille . The hills of the Marseille basin were also occupied during this period. Some scholars have proposed to identify the oppidum of Saint-Blaise  [ fr ] ( Saint-Mitre-les-Remparts ) with the chief town of the Segobrigii. Although it is located 36 km north of Marseille, the settlement shows the presence of

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5022-447: The pain, Vulcan used a hammer to split Jupiter's head and, from the cleft, Minerva emerged, whole, adult, and in full battle armour. Minerva is a prominent figure in Roman mythology . She appears in many famous myths. Many of the stories of her Greek counterpart Athena are attributed to Minerva in Roman mythology, such as that of the naming of Athens resulting from a competition between Minerva and Neptune , in which Minerva created

5103-499: The plan for the universe personified. The name Minerva stems from Proto-Italic * meneswo ("intelligent, understanding"), and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (PIE) * menos ("thought"). Helmut Rix (1981) and Gerhard Meiser (1998) have proposed the PIE derivative * menes-ueh₂ ("provided with a mind, intelligent") as the transitional form. The myth of Minerva's birth follows that of Athena. In it, Minerva

5184-424: The presence of Euxenus/Protis at Prottis/Gyptis' wedding was fortunate ("Euxenus happened to be visiting when this Nanos was celebrating his daughter’s wedding" ; "It so happened that on that day the king was engaged in arranging the marriage of his daughter Gyptis"). Aristotle insists that the bowl was given to the Phocaean by the princess "either by accident or for some other reason", and that Nanos "decided that

5265-402: The recent dead, rather than raised in triumph and battle lust. In Rome her bellicose nature was emphasized less than elsewhere. According to Livy 's History of Rome (7.3), the annual nail marking the year, a process where the praetor maximus drove a nail in to formally keep track of the current year, happened in the temple of Minerva because she was thought to have invented numbers. There

5346-574: The severed head to Minerva, who placed its image on her Aegis . When Perseus beheaded Medusa some of the blood spilled onto the ground, and from it came Pegasus . Minerva caught the horse and tamed it before gifting the horse to the Muses . It was a kick from the hoof of Pegasus that opened the fountain Hippocrene . When Bellerophon later went to fight the Chimera he sought to use Pegasus in

5427-588: The sky, into another world, superstition also held them back, because it had been reported to them that some strangers seeking lands were beset by the Salui. These were the Massilians, who had come in ships from Phocaea. The Gauls, regarding this as a good omen of their own success, lent them assistance, so that they fortified, without opposition from the Salui, the spot which they had first seized after landing.... A passage from Strabo 's Geographika tells part of

5508-605: The sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. She is also a goddess of warfare, though with a focus on strategic warfare, rather than the violence of gods such as Mars . Beginning in the second century BC, the Romans equated her with the Greek goddess Athena . Minerva is one of the three Roman deities in the Capitoline Triad , along with Jupiter and Juno . Minerva is a virgin goddess. Her domain includes music, poetry , medicine , wisdom , commerce , weaving , and

5589-418: The story of the marriage of the princess Gyptis (or Petta), the daughter of Nannus, chief of the native Segobrigii , to the Phocaean sailor Protis (or Euxenus). On her wedding day, the princess chooses to marry the foreigner by giving him a bowl filled with wine or water during the feast. Only two extensive sources have survived: the story recounted by Aristotle in "The Constitution of the Massaliotes", which

5670-406: The support of more people. The commanders of the fleet were Simos and Protis. So they came and sought the friendship of the king of the Segobrigii, by name Nannus, in whose territory they desired to found a city. It so happened that on that day the king was engaged in arranging the marriage of his daughter Gyptis: in accordance with the custom of the tribe, he was preparing to give her to be married to

5751-506: The tale of the Trojan Horse and other Greek motifs, Comanus tried to infiltrate Massalia with armed men hidden in carts during the festival of Floralia , but was eventually betrayed by one of his relatives who had fallen in love with a Greek. Comanus and 7,000 Segobrigii were killed, and the rest of the population was probably reduced to slavery or fled towards the hills that surrounded the colony. Segobrigian lands were likely annexed by

5832-433: The time of King Tarquin a party of young Phocaean warriors, sailing to the mouth of the Tiber, entered into an alliance with the Romans. From there, sailing into the distant bays of Gaul, they founded Massilia among the Ligurians and the fierce tribes of the Gauls; and they did mighty deeds, whether in protecting themselves against the savagery of the Gauls or in provoking them to fight—having themselves first been provoked. For

5913-535: The two of them eventually founding the colony of Massalia. They are only mentioned once as Segobrigii by Pompeius Trogus (1st c. BC), in a text later summarized by the Roman writer Justin in the 3rd–4th century AD. The ethnonym appears to be a Celtic compound derived from the stem sego - ('victory, force'). However, the meaning of the second element remains unclear. It could stem from brīgo - ('force, vigour'), or else from briga ('hill, hillfort'). The name Segobrigii has thus been translated as 'People of

5994-445: The unattested Gaulish * pettia (cf. French pièce ). All these terms derive ultimately from Proto-Celtic * k ezdi - ('piece, portion'). Alternatively, G. Kaibel proposed to emend the name to Gépta (Γέπτα; perhaps 'the strong'). The name Prō̃tis (Πρῶτις) is close to protos ('the first'), and symbolizes concepts of 'origin' and 'primacy'. In Aristotle's version, he is the son of the Phocaean founder, named Eúxenos, rather than

6075-402: Was a guest-friend of King Nanos—which was actually his name. Euxenus happened to be visiting when this Nanos was celebrating his daughter’s wedding, and he was invited to the feast. The wedding was organized as follows: After the meal, the girl had to come in and offer a bowl full of wine mixed with water to whichever suitor there she wanted, and whoever she gave it to would be her bridegroom. When

6156-587: Was and rule the Heavens in his place, Jupiter swallowed Metis whole after tricking her into turning herself into a fly. The Titaness gave birth to Minerva and forged weapons and armour for her child while within Jupiter's body. In some versions of the story, Metis continued to live inside of Jupiter's mind as the source of his wisdom. Others say she was simply a vessel for the birth of Minerva. The constant pounding and ringing left Jupiter with agonizing pain. To relieve

6237-590: Was beloved by the Gauls along the Rhone, was of Marseille". Scholars have compared the name of the princess in Aristotle's version, Pétta (Πέττα), with the Welsh peth ('thing'), Breton pezh ('thing'), Old Irish cuit ('share, portion'), and Pictish place-names in Pet(t) -, Pit(t) -, which seem to mean 'parcel of land'. The Medieval Latin petia terrae ('piece of land') is also cognate , stemming from

6318-454: Was borne of Metis , who had been swallowed by Jupiter , and burst from her father's head, fully grown and clad in armour. Jupiter had sex with the titaness Metis, which resulted in her attempting to change shape (or shapeshift ) to escape him. Jupiter then recalled the prophecy that his own child would overthrow him, as he had Saturn , and in turn, Saturn had Caelus . Fearing that their child would be male, and would grow stronger than he

6399-510: Was furious this took place in her temple and she turned Medusa into a monster, replacing her hair with hissing snakes and removing her charm. Medusa turned any living creature she looked upon into stone. Neptune was not ever confronted for his wrongdoings to Medusa. When Perseus approached Medusa he used her reflection in his shield to avoid contact with her eyes, and then beheaded her. Medusa’s spilt blood gave birth to Pegasus; which Minerva immediately tamed and gifted to Bellerophon. He delivered

6480-426: Was insulted by the scenes that Arachne was weaving, and destroyed it. She then touched Arachne on the forehead, which made her feel shame for what she had done, leading her to hang herself. Minerva then felt bad for the woman, and brought her back to life. However, Minerva transformed her into a spider as punishment for her actions, and hanging from a web would forever be a reminder to Arachne of her actions that offended

6561-689: Was part of a holy triad with Tinia and Uni , equivalent to the Roman Capitoline Triad of Jupiter-Juno-Minerva. She is remembered in De Mulieribus Claris , a collection of biographies of historical and mythological women by the Florentine author Giovanni Boccaccio , composed in 1361–62. It is notable as the first collection devoted exclusively to biographies of women in Western literature. Poet Elizabeth Carter

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