Cook, Arthur B.: Zeus: a study in ancient religion (Band 2,2): Zeus god of the dark sky (thunder and lightning): Appendixes and index (Cambridge, 1925)

972

Appendix B

Mount Olympos (P)1.

Pisidia

Prostanna (?)2.

justly cp. Plout. de def. or. 21 (quoted by Theodoret. Gr. off. cur. p. 129 Gaisford) ewel
Kal HoXv/xovs TrvvQ6.vop.ai Toil's Avk'lwv irpoao'iKovs ev rots p.dXiaTa tl/jlcLv tov YLpbvov eirel Se
airoKTeivas tovs dpxovras avru>v," ApaaXov Kal Ap-vov ("Apvov Theodoret.) Kal T6o-o(3iv, 'i(pvye
Kal /j.erexupr]0~ev oTroiSviroTe (tovto yap ovk e'xov<TLV ei-rreiv), eneivov jj.ev dfieXrid^vai, tovs Se
irepl rbv "ApaaXov aKXrjpovs {(TKippovs Theodoret.) deolis irpoaayopeveadaL, Kal ras Kardpas
eirl tovtwv TroLeiadai hrjixoo-'ia Kal ibia Avk'lovs.

It would seem, then, that Kragos and his relatives were, not only heroified, but actually
deified. More than that. Kragos was eventually identified with Zeus himself. For Lyk.
Al. 541 f. 'iv t€ dairl Kal daXvffioLs | Aoi/Scucri jxeiXLo-o-wcnv dffTepyr) Kpdyov is thus expounded
by Tzetz. ad loc. : dcrTepyr) Se Kpdyov tov Ala Xeyei eirel fir] faTep^e tt\v dvfflav uvtwv.
Xiyovrai Se dvovTes toIs A'XXois 6eois eTriKadeadai tov Atos, odev (piXoveiKiav ai/TOis eve(3a\e.
KpctYos Se 6 Zeus ev AvKLa tl/xdrai.

1 Supra i. 100 n. ri. Methodios, bishop of the Lycian town Olympos at the beginning
of s. iv. a.d., claims to have seen on the summit of this mountain agnus cashes growing,
quite unharmed, round a fire that sprang from the earth (Method, ap. Phot. bibl. p. 298 b
23 ff. Bekker ideacrdfj.r)v ev '0\v/j.Trop eyw (6pos Se eaTiv 6 "OXvfiiros tt)s AvKias) irvp avTO-
fxaTws Kara tt\v aKpupeiav tov 'opovs Karudev e/c rrji yrjs dvaSiSop-evov, irepl 6 irvp dyvos (pvTbv
ecFTiv, aiirw fiev evdaXes Kal %Xoep6i', outw Se ovgkiov, us vtto Trrjyrjs p.a\\ov avTO SoKe?v
/3ej3\ao-TrjKevaL. k.t.X.) The good bishop describes the phaenomenon in terms reminiscent
of Moses and the burning bush ; and it is noteworthy that Mt Olympos, otherwise called
Phoinikous (Strab. 666), is nowadays named Musa Dagh, the 'mountain of Moses.' This
mountain rises to a height of c. iooom due south of the town Olympos on the eastern coast
of Lykia. But the perpetual fire is commonly associated with Mt Chimaira ( Yanar-tash),
a height of some 250111 due north of the same town. Here in fact it is still to be seen—a
strong jet of flaming gas that leaps up like a fountain from crevices in the rock. The im-
mediate neighbourhood of the vent is bare of vegetation, but all around, a few paces off,
is greenery in abundance. For classical references see W. Ruge in Pauly—Wissowa Rtal-
Enc. iii. 2281 ; and for modern description and discussion, E. Petersen—F. von Luschan
Reisen in Lykien Milyas rind Kibyratis Wien 1889 pp. 138—142 (' Die Chimaira') with
fig. 65 and pi. 17. In antiquity several such fiery jets were known and the site was called
Hephaistion (Sen. epist. 79. 3. Plin. not. hist. 5. 100), Hephaistia (Solin. 39. 1), or the
mountains of Hephaistos (Plin. nat, hist. 2. 236). Skyl.^r. 100 speaks of a sanctuary of
Hephaistos above the harbour Siderous : vTrep tovtov earlv lepdv'HqbalaTov ev tu opet Kal
irvp ttoXv avrofxaTov ek Trjs yrjs Kaierai Kal ovSeivoTe afievvvTai. Hence Hephaistos appears,
forging the shield of Achilles, on a copper of Olympos struck by Gordianus iii Pius
(Imhoof-Blumer Monn. gr. p. 326 f. no. 10 pi. F, 14).

It was, however, only natural that in this town, which lay between Mt Olympos and
Hephaistion, there should have been a joint recognition of Zeus and Hephaistos. R.
Heberdey—E. Kalinka BericJit iiber zwei Reisen in S.JV. Kleinasien Wien 1896 p. 34
no. 42 publish an inscription, in which mention is made of a fine payable deots 'OXv/j-tt'lois
Ad Kal 'H(paiaTU!. G. F. Hill in the Brit. Mus. Cat. Coins Lycia, etc. p. Ixvi compares
with it a bronze coin of Olympos at Paris with obv. head of Athena to right, rev. the
ethnic and a thunderbolt.

2 Prostanna {Egherdir) was situated on the shore of Limnai, at the foot of Mt Viarus
(Sir W. M. Ramsay The Historical Geography of Asia Minor London 1890 p. 407).
Imperial coppers of the town have obv. Mt Viarus, rev. TTP OC a tree {Brit. Mus. Cat.
Coins Lycia, etc. pp. cvi, 238 pi. 37, 9, Imhoof-Blumer Gr. Munzen p. £75 no. 502
pi. 10, 27), and rev. TT POCTA N NGfl N Mt Viarus with three trees growing on it and
OYIAPOC below {Brit. Mus. Cat. Coins Lycia, etc. p. 239 pi. 37, 13 Claudius ii) or
Mt Viarus with a pine-tree on its summit and B IAPOC below (Imhoof-Blumer Kleinas.