Shrines of Dionysus at Pergamon

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The Temple of Dionysus is the lower building on the left at the end of the long theater terrace. The Attaleion is located directly to the right of the theater, also on the theater terrace
Temple of Dionysus at the north end of the theater terrace
Temple of Dionysus from the theater terrace

The Dionysus sanctuaries of Pergamon are at least two buildings from the Hellenistic period in Pergamon , which were dedicated to the cult of the Greek god Dionysus . They were uncovered by German archaeologists when excavating the theater terrace at the end of the 19th century . Since then there have been several excavations that have deepened the knowledge of the sanctuaries and the cult of Dionysus in Pergamon.

The cult of Dionysus in Pergamon

Origin of the cult

The beginnings of the Dionysus cult in Pergamon are not tangible. It is possible that the god who was nicknamed Kathegemon , the “leader” in Pergamon , was built up as the supreme god of the royal family under the Pergamene king Attalus I (241 - 197 BC). The close connection between the cult of Dionysus and the royal family was shown by the fact that the king was determined by a priest of Dionysus, who had to be a man of the king's closest relatives, and not by the demos . The priest made the sacrifices together with the king. Based on these and other peculiarities that are recorded in connection with the Dionysus cult of Pergamon, it can be concluded that the bond between the royal family and Dionysus Kathegemon must have been particularly close. However, the Attalids did not see a genealogical connection with the god and he did not play a major role in their ruler's cult , although the Dionysian technites Pergamons cultivated the Attalid cult. But there is no question that Dionysus played a certain role in the myth about the legendary founder of Pergamons, Telephos . In addition to the important position that he occupied as god of the house and family of the Pergamene kings, he was above all a god of the theater and the entertainment arts, the god of the musically cheerful culture of life.

The attalists

The Attalists were an artists' guild that originally had their headquarters as Dionysian Technites in the city of Teos . There was also a large Dionysus shrine there. These technites came under Pergamon's rule after Eumenes II. After the peace of Apamea in 188 BC. Was also awarded that area on the west coast of Asia Minor, in which the city of Teos was located. In Pergamon, one of the technites called Kraton founded a branch of this association, which was initially named Eumenists, later the Attalists (Attalai). The Attalists were probably court actors and musicians, but their main task was to carry out the ruler's cult. Inscriptions that give more detailed information about their tasks were found in Teos, but it is assumed that their content relates to Pergamon. The inscriptions in Teos are probably duplicates of ordinances, decisions and the like, the originals of which have not survived and were placed in Pergamon. A niche building next to the theater in Pergamon, the so-called Attaleion , perhaps served the Attalists as a club house to practice their cult, but this interpretation is also contested.

Sanctuaries

The Temple of Dionysus

Originally, the excavators thought that a temple in the upper town market of the castle complex was the temple of Dionysus. It was not until the end of the 19th century that the cult building of Dionysus was recognized in the temple remains at the northern end of the theater terrace . It was probably made in the 2nd century BC. Under Eumenes II. The temple rose above a flight of 25 steps and was 4.5 m above the level of the theater terrace. It was made of marble and measured 21 × 12 m in plan. It was designed as an Ionic prostyle with four front pillars and two pillars deep vestibule. Taking advantage of the site, it was built as a podium temple pushed into a rock niche . The altar was on the theater terrace in front of the temple. Only a few remains of the original temple from the Hellenistic era have survived. Traces of fire on the marble ashlars of the interior cellar walls suggest that the building was largely destroyed by fire. During the Roman Empire - probably under Emperor Caracalla (198-217), perhaps already under Hadrian (117-138) - the temple was renewed on the old floor plan and some of the remaining components were reused. Ernst-Ludwig Schwandner has recently shown that the Roman reconstruction of the temple was far less oriented towards the Hellenistic building than previously assumed .

The attaleion

A so-called niche building due to its location immediately south of the theater can possibly be interpreted as the Attaleion , the clubhouse of the Attalists, based on inscriptions , even if this interpretation is controversial. The building is a three-tier terrace system. It could be entered from the theater terrace via a staircase that led into the 9.5 m wide and 7.5 m deep hall. The middle step of the building was possibly a kind of foyer, from which an entrance staircase led to the main hall, which was about 1.5 m higher and was 10.32 m wide and 8.74 m deep. Behind the main room, which was probably a banquet room with clines and drainage channels for wine donations , was a square niche that tapered towards the rear. Perhaps Dionysus was worshiped in the room together with the ruling ruler, which suggests the main purpose of the Attalist Association - the practice of the ruler's cult. Immediately to the south of the alcove was a door that led into an adjoining room. The back wall of the room formed the bare rock. It is assumed that this room could have been a subordinate room, such as a device depot. A use of the room in connection with the Dionysus Mysteries is also considered possible. No clarity can be gained from the remains of the external appearance of the attaleion, such as whether all the rooms were under one roof.

literature

  • Richard Bohn : Antiquities of Pergamon . Volume 4: The theater terrace . Berlin 1896.
  • Erwin Ohlemutz : The cults and sanctuaries of the gods in Pergamon . Würzburg 1940, pp. 80-122. (2nd, unchanged edition. Reprographic reprint of the 1st edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1968)
  • Martin P. Nilsson : The Dionysiac Mysteries of The Roman and the Hellenistic Age . Gleerup, Lund 1957 (Skrifter utgivna av Svenska institutet i Athens. Vol. 8o, 5).
  • Wolfgang Radt : Pergamon: History and Buildings of an Ancient Metropolis . Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1999, ISBN 3-89678-116-2 , pp. 189-199.
  • Tanja Scheer : Mythical forefathers. On the importance of Greek hero myths in the self-image of cities in Asia Minor. Editio Maris, Munich 1993, ISBN 3-925801-13-8 . (Munich works on ancient history, vol. 7)
  • Ernst-Ludwig Schwandner: Observations on the Hellenistic temple architecture in Pergamon . In: Wolfram Hoepfner , Ernst-Ludwig Schwandner (ed.): Hermogenes and the high-Hellenistic architecture. International colloquium in Berlin from July 28 to 29, 1988 as part of the XIII. International Congress of Classical Archeology. Mainz 1990, ISBN 3-8053-1122-2 , pp. 85-102.

Web links

Commons : Shrines of Dionysus at Pergamon  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Helmut Müller : A new Hellenistic consecration pigram from Pergamon . In: Chiron 1989, pp. 539-553.
  2. ↑ a b Wolfgang Radt: Pergamon: History and Buildings of an Ancient Metropolis . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1999, p. 188.
  3. ↑ Erwin Ohlemutz: The cults and sanctuaries of the gods in Pergamon . Würzburg 1940, p. 92.
  4. ↑ Sophia Aneziri: The clubs in the Dionysian Techniten in the context of Hellenistic society: studies on the history, organization and action of the Hellenistic Technitenvereine . F. Steiner, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-51-50812-67 , pp. 105-106 ( Historia. Einzelschriften . Vol. 163); Holger Schwarzer: Club bars in the Hellenistic and Roman Pergamon . In: Ulrike Egelhaaf-Gaiser , Alfred Schäfer (Hrsg.): Religious associations in Roman antiquity. Studies on organization, ritual and spatial planning . Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2002, ISBN 3-16-14777-15 , pp. 221-225 ( studies and texts on antiquity and Christianity . Vol. 13).
  5. ↑ Erwin Ohlemutz: The cults and sanctuaries of the gods in Pergamon . Würzburg 1940, p. 96.
  6. ↑ a b Wolfgang Radt: Pergamon: History and Buildings of an Ancient Metropolis . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1999, p. 189.
  7. ^ Totally negative: Holger Schwarzer: Club bars in the Hellenistic and Roman Pergamon . In: Ulrike Egelhaaf-Gaiser , Alfred Schäfer (Hrsg.): Religious associations in Roman antiquity. Studies on organization, ritual and spatial planning . Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2002, ISBN 3-16-14777-15 , pp. 221-225 ( studies and texts on antiquity and Christianity . Vol. 13).
  8. ↑ Wolfgang Radt: Pergamon: History and Buildings of an Ancient Metropolis . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1999, p. 190.
  9. ↑ Ernst-Ludwig Schwandner: Observations on the Hellenistic temple architecture in Pergamon . In: Wolfram Hoepfner - Ernst-Ludwig Schwandner (Hrsg.): Hermogenes and the high Hellenistic architecture. International colloquium in Berlin from July 28 to 29, 1988 as part of the XIII. International Congress of Classical Archeology. Mainz 1990, p. 101.
  10. ↑ Erwin Ohlemutz: The cults and sanctuaries of the gods in Pergamon . Würzburg 1940, p. 101.
  11. ^ Holger Schwarzer: Club bars in the Hellenistic and Roman Pergamon . In: Ulrike Egelhaaf-Gaiser , Alfred Schäfer (Hrsg.): Religious associations in Roman antiquity. Studies on organization, ritual and spatial planning . Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2002, ISBN 3-16-14777-15 , pp. 224-225 ( studies and texts on antiquity and Christianity . Vol. 13).
  12. ↑ a b Wolfgang Radt: Pergamon: History and Buildings of an Ancient Metropolis . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1999, p. 195.