NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Priapus

In Greek mythology, Priapus (Ancient Greek: Πρίαπος) was a minor rustic fertility god, protector of livestock, fruit plants, gardens and male genitalia. His Roman equivalent was Mutinus Mutunus. He was best noted for his huge, permanently erect penis, which gave rise to the medical term priapism. For other uses, see Pompeii (disambiguation). ... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... Beginning of Homers Odyssey The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage of the Greek language[1] as it existed during the Archaic (9thâ€“6th centuries BC) and Classical (5thâ€“4th centuries BC) periods in Ancient Greece. ... Sheep are commonly bred as livestock. ... A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, narrowly defined, is any of those parts of the body (which are not always bodily organs according to the strict definition) which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute the reproductive system in an complex organism; namely: Male: penis (notably the glans penis... A head of Minerva found in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath Roman mythology, the mythological beliefs of the people of Ancient Rome, can be considered as having two parts. ... The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... Priapism (Ancient Greek: ) is a potentially harmful medical condition in which the erect penis does not return to its flaccid state (despite the absence of both physical and psychological stimulation) within about four hours. ...

Relationship with other deities

He was described as the son of Aphrodite by Dionysus, Hermes, Zeus or Pan, depending on the source.^[1] According to legend, Hera cursed him with impotence, ugliness and foul-mindedness while he was still in Aphrodite's womb, in revenge for the hero Paris having the temerity to judge Aphrodite more beautiful than Hera. The other gods refused to allow him to live on Mount Olympus and threw him down to Earth, where he was brought up by shepherds. The Birth of Venus, (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1485 For other uses, see Aphrodite (disambiguation). ... This article is about the ancient deity. ... For other uses, see Hermes (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Zeus (disambiguation). ... // Look up pan, pan-, Pan, PAN in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Hera (disambiguation). ... See List of King Priams children Statue of Paris in the British Museum This article is about the prince of Troy. ... This article is about the Greek mountain. ...

Priapus joined Pan and the satyrs as a spirit of fertility and growth, though he was perennially frustrated by his impotence. He attempted to rape the nymph Lotis but was thwarted by an ass, whose braying caused him to lose his erection at the critical moment and woke Lotis. He pursued the nymph until the gods took pity on her and turned her into a lotus plant. The episode gave him a lasting hatred of asses and a willingness to see them killed in his honour. ^[2] In the end, his lust gave him a permanent erection and his penis grew so large that he was unable to move.^[3] A bald, bearded, horse-tailed satyr balances a winecup on his erect penis, a trick worthy of note, on an Attic red-figured psykter, ca. ... In Greek mythology, Lotis was a nymph, daughter of Poseidon or Nereus. ... Binomial name Linnaeus, 1758 For other uses, see Donkey (disambiguation). ... The lotus tree (Greek lÃ´tos) was a plant in Greek mythology bearing a fruit that caused a pleasant drowsiness and growing in North Africa. ... This article is about human physiological erection. ...

Worship and attributes

The first extant mention of Priapus is in the eponymous comedy Priapus, written in the fourth century BC by Xenarchus. Originally worshipped by Greek colonists in Lampsacus in Asia Minor, the cult of Priapus spread to mainland Greece and eventually to Italy during the third century BC.^[4] Lucian (De saltatione) tells that in Bithynia Priapus was accounted as a warlike god, a rustic tutor to the infant Ares. Arnobius is aware of the importance accorded Priapus in this region near the Hellespont.^[5] Also, Pausanias notes: Lampsacus was an ancient Greek city strategically located on the eastern side of the Hellespont in the northern Troad. ... Anatolia (Greek: ανατολη anatole, rising of the sun or East; compare Orient and Levant, by popular etymology Turkish Anadolu to ana mother and dolu filled), also called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, is a region of Southwest Asia which corresponds today to the Asian portion of Turkey. ... For other uses, see Lucian (disambiguation). ... Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine (today Black Sea). ... This article is about the ancient Greek god; for other uses, see Ares (disambiguation). ... Arnobius of Sicca (died c. ... The Helespont/Dardanelles, a long narrow strait dividing the Balkans (Europe) along the Gallipoli peninsula from Asia Anatolia (Asia Minor). ...

Outside his "home" region in Asia Minor, Priapus was regarded as something of a joke by urban dwellers. However, he played a more important role in the countryside, where he was seen as a guardian deity. He was regarded as the patron god of sailors and fishermen and others in need of good luck, and his presence was believed to avert the evil eye.^[7] John Phillip, The Evil Eye (1859), a self-portrait depicting the artist sketching a Spanish gypsy who thinks she is being given the evil eye The evil eye is a folklore belief that the envy elicited by the good luck of fortunate people may result in their misfortune, whether it...

Priapus does not appear to have had an organised cult and was mostly worshipped in gardens or homes, though there are attestations of temples dedicated to the god. His sacrificial animal was the ass, reflecting his lustful nature, but agricultural offerings (such as fruit, flowers, vegetables and fish) were also very common.^[4] Ass may refer to: Look up ass in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Long after the fall of Rome and the rise of Christianity, Priapus continued to be used as a symbol of health and fertility. The 13th century Lanercost Chronicle, a history of northern England and Scotland, records a "lay Cistercian brother" erecting a statue of Priapus (simulacrum Priapi statuere) in a bid to end an outbreak of cattle disease.^[8] Topics in Christianity Movements Â· Denominations Â· Other religions Ecumenism Â· Preaching Â· Prayer Music Â· Liturgy Â· Calendar Symbols Â· Art Â· Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul Â· Church Fathers Constantine Â· Athanasius Â· Augustine Anselm Â· Aquinas Â· Palamas Â· Luther Calvin Â· Wesley Arius Â· Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury Â· Catholic Pope Coptic Pope Â· Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box: Christianity is... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... The Lanercost Chronicle is a northern English and Scottish history covering the years 1201 to 1346. ... The Order of Cistercians (OCist) (Latin Cistercenses), otherwise Gimey or White Monks (from the colour of the habit, over which is worn a black scapular or apron) are a Catholic order of monks. ...

Depictions

Priapus' iconic attribute was his ithyphallicism (permanently erect penis); he probably absorbed some pre-existing ithyphallic deities as his cult developed. He was represented in a variety of ways, most commonly as a misshapen gnome-like figure with an enormous erect phallus. Statues of Priapus were common in ancient Greece and Rome, standing in gardens or at doorways and crossroads. To propitiate Priapus, the traveller would stroke the statue's penis as he passed by. The Athenians often conflated Priapus with Hermes, the god of boundaries, and depicted a hybrid deity with a winged helmet, sandals and huge erection.^[3] The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... For other uses, see Hermes (disambiguation). ...

Statues of Priapus were often hung with signs bearing epigrams, collected in Priapeia (treated below), which threatened sexual violence towards transgressors of the boundaries that he protected: An epigram is a short poem with a clever twist at the end or a concise and witty statement. ... Fresco of Priapus, House of the Vettii, Pompeii. ...

Another example comes from the works of Martial: Marcus Valerius Martialis, known in English as Martial, was a Latin poet from Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula) best known for his twelve books of Epigrams, published in Rome between AD 86 and 103, during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan. ...

A number of Roman paintings of Priapus have survived from ancient times. One of the most famous such images of Priapus is that from the House of the Vettii in Pompeii. A fresco depicts the god weighing his phallus against a bag full of money; it appears that his phallus is heavier. In nearby Herculaneum, an excavated snack bar has a painting of Priapus behind the bar, apparently as a good-luck symbol for the customers. Species See Elm species, varieties, cultivars and hybrids Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees making up the genus Ulmus, family Ulmaceae, found throughout the Northern Hemisphere from Siberia to Indonesia, Mexico to Japan. ... Monterey Cypresses (Cupressus macrocarpa) planted in Melbourne, Australia Cypress is the name applied to many plants in the conifer family Cupressaceae (cypress family). ... In Pompeii one of the most famous of the luxurious residences is the so-called House of the Vettii, preserved, like the rest of the Roman city, by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE. The house is named for its owners, two successful freedmen: Aulus Vettius Conviva and Aulus... For other uses, see Pompeii (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Fresco (disambiguation). ... Herculaneum (in modern Italian Ercolano) is an ancient Roman town, located in the territory of the current commune of Ercolano. ...

In literature

Priapus gave rise to a genre of poetry collectively termed Priapeia. The genre shows how Roman poets in particular invented comic and obscene situations for him, giving him more literary prominence than he enjoyed in rites or cult, though masked phallic figures were prominent on many festive occasions, both in Greece and in the wider Roman world. The Priapeia is a collection of poems (about eighty in number) in various metres on the subject of Priapus. ...

In Ovid's Fasti,^[11] the nymph Lotis fell into a drunk slumber at a feast, and Priapus seized this opportunity to advance upon her. With stealth he approached, and just before he could embrace her, Silenus's donkey alerted the party with "raucous braying". Lotis awoke and pushed Priapus away, but her only true escape was to be transformed into the lotus tree. To punish the donkey for spoiling his opportunity, Priapus bludgeoned it to death with his gargantuan phallus. In later versions of the story, Lotis is replaced with the virginal goddess Hestia. Ovid's anecdote served to explain why donkeys were sacrificed to Priapus in the city of Lampsacus on the Hellespont, where he was worshipped among the offspring of Hermes.^[12] For other uses, see Ovid (disambiguation) Publius Ovidius Naso (March 20, 43 BC â€“ 17 AD) was a Roman poet known to the English-speaking world as Ovid who wrote on topics of love, abandoned women and mythological transformations. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In Greek mythology, a nymph is any member of a large class of female nature entities, either bound to a particular location or landform or joining the retinue of a god or goddess. ... In Greek mythology, Lotis was a nymph, daughter of Poseidon or Nereus. ... In Greek mythology, sileni were a race of half-horse, half-humans, unlike the satyrs, who were half-goat. ... The lotus tree (Greek lÃ´tos) was a plant in Greek mythology bearing a fruit that caused a pleasant drowsiness and growing in North Africa. ... For other uses, see Hestia (disambiguation). ... Lampsacus was an ancient Greek city strategically located on the eastern side of the Hellespont in the northern Troad. ... For other uses, see Hermes (disambiguation). ...

Priapus is mentioned in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Merchant's Tale, part of the Canterbury Tales. Canterbury Tales Woodcut 1484 The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century (two of them in prose, the rest in verse). ...

During a description of a garden that the protagonist, Januarie, creates, Priapus is invoked in his form as God of gardens:

Priapus serves to remind the reader, or listening audience, that Januarie's intentions are driven by lust and not love.

Modern derivations

Medical terminology

The medical condition priapism derives its name from Priapus, alluding to the god's permanently engorged penis. Priapism (Ancient Greek: ) is a potentially harmful medical condition in which the erect penis does not return to its flaccid state (despite the absence of both physical and psychological stimulation) within about four hours. ...

Natural history

The group of worm-like marine burrowing animals known as the Priapulidea, literally "penis worms", also derives its name from Priapus. Priapulida (priapulid worms or penis worms, from Gr. ...

Popular Culture

It has been suggested by some scholars that the modern popular garden gnome is a descendant of Priapus. ^[14] This article is about the mythical creatures. ...

References

^ "Priapus". The Oxford Companion to World Mythology. David Leeming. Oxford University Press, 2004.
^ "Priapus." Who's Who in Classical Mythology, Routledge. 2002.
^ ^a ^b "Priapus." Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth. 1996.
^ ^a ^b Robert Christopher Towneley Parker. "Priapus". The Oxford Classical Dictionary. Ed. Simon Hornblower and Anthony Spawforth. Oxford University Press 2003.
^ In ridiculing the literal aspects of pagan gods given human form, he mentions "the Hellespontian Priapus bearing about among the goddesses, virgin and matron, those parts ever prepared for encounter." (Arnobius, Seven Books against the Heathen III.10 (on-line text).
^ Pausanias, Description of Greece IX.312.
^ "Priapus." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007
^ Yves Bonnefoy, Roman and European Mythologies, pp. 139-142. University of Chicago Press, 1992. ISBN 0226064557
^ Craig A. Williams, Roman Homosexuality: Ideologies of Masculinity in Classical Antiquity, p. 21. Oxford University Press US, 1999. ISBN 0195125053
^ Quoted in Eric Csapo, Theories of Mythology, p. 168. Blackwell Publishing, 2005. ISBN 0631232486
^ Fasti, 6.319ff.
^ Hyginus, Fabulae, 160.
^ G. Chaucer, The Merchant's Prologue and Tale, (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2006), p63
^ Peter D. Arnott, An Introduction to the Roman World. London: MacMillan, 1970.

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