Cook, Arthur B.: Zeus: a study in ancient religion (Band 1): Zeus god of the bright sky (Cambridge, 1914)

542 Marriage of the Sun and Moon in Crete

elsewhere1, she is assimilated to the huntress Artemis—an assimila-
tion'which in literature can be traced back to the time of Euripides2.
Britomartis too, a goddess closely related to Diktynna3, was readily
equated with Artemis4. A silver coin of Chersonesos to the north
of the Dikte range has for its obverse a noble head of Zeus
wearing a bay-wreath and for its reverse a goddess sitting on a
decorated throne with a hind erect upon her outstretched palm
(fig. 413)5. There can be little doubt that the die-sinker has

Fig- 4i3-

copied the actual cult-statue of Britomartis, who is known to
have had a temple at Chersonesos6. Nor is the combination
of Zeus with Britomartis meaningless: the two were linked

fig. 412) and 24, Brit. Mus. Cat. Coins Crete etc. p. 3 pi. 1, 9, Head Hist, num.1
p. 384, F. Imhoof-Blumer in the Journ. Intern, d'Arch. Nu?n. 1908 xi. 142 ff. pi. 9, 8.

1 A copper of Domitian shows AI KTYN N A j 2EBA2TH as Artemis the huntress
with bow and hound (Svoronos op. cit. i. 343 pi. 33, 17, Head Hist, num.'1 p. 479).

2 Eur. /. T. 126 (5 7rcu rds Aarovs, A'lktvvv'1 ovpeia, Aristoph. ran. 1359 f. a/ua 8e
Alktvpvcl irais "Apre/xis koXo, | rds KvviaKas '^ova' eXderoi /c.r.X.

3 K. Wernicke in Pauly—Wissowa Real-Enc. ii. 13706°., K. Tiimpel ib. iii. 880 f.,
929, O. Jessen ib. v. 585 ff., Farnell Cults of Gk. States ii. 476, Gruppe Gr. Myth. Rel.
p. 254 f.

If we may trust Solin. ir. 8 Cretes Dianam religiosissime venerantur, Britomartem
gentiliter nominantes, quod sermone nostro sonat virginem dulcem (cp. Hesych. (3piT<!> ;
y\vK6. Kprjres repeated in Favorin. lex. p. 391, 11 ; Steph. Byz. s.v. Tafa' ...rds irapdevovs
yap ovtw KprjTes irpoaayopeijovai pLapvavs, supra p. 149 n. 1), B/otro^aprts was probably
a cult-epithet of Diktynna.

4 Schol. Kallim. h. Artetn. 190 BpirofxapTLS 6vop.a nvpiov tt)s vvp-cpr]^, a<p' 97s /cat i)
"AprefiLs kv KpTjr^ UpLrofxapTis rt^arat, ws Aioyeviavos, Hesych. Hpiro/xapTis ' ev T&.pi]Tri
t) "KprepLLS. In Delos the festival of Britomartis followed immediately upon that of
Artemis (Nilsson Gr. Feste p. 209 citing Bull. Corr. Hell. 1882 vi. 23 line 186
'Apre/xiaioLS UpLTafxaprioLs).

5 Drawn from a specimen in my collection. The only other specimen of this fine coin
known to me is that in the British Museum, which owing to its poor state of preservation
was wrongly described by W. Wroth in the Num. Chron. Third Series 1895 xv. 96 f.
pi. 5, 11. Mr E. J. Seltman, from whom I procured my coin, points out that 'The seated
Artemis with the deer on her hand forms an interesting pendant to the standing Apollo
with the deer by Canachus' (Plin. nat. hist. 34. 75, alib.; Brit. Mus. Cat. Coins Ionia
p. 197 ff. pi. 22, 9 f.).

6 Strab. 479 Kirrov d£...eirLveibv ianv i] Xeyofxevr] Xepp6vr)(ros, ev y to tt}s BpiTop.dp-
Tews lepbv. According to Solin. 11, 8 aedem numinis (sc. Britomartis) praeterquam
nudus vestigia nullus licito ingreditur. ea aedes ostentat manus Daedali.