Latobius

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Sanctuary of Mars-Latobius near Sankt Margarethen in Lavanttal
Stairway to the holy well

Latobius , also Latovius, is the name of a Celtic deity named Noricum on some inscriptions from the Roman province . In the Interpretatio Romana he is usually equated with Mars and invoked as Mars Latobius . He is a god of salvation, shepherds and the dead.

etymology

The name Latobius / Latovius has not been etymologically clear. In the case of Helmut Birkhan , attempts to translate some specialist authors are cited: "the widely striking one", "the racket of anger", "the widely powerful one", "the one who is powerful on the plane". The latter does not entirely agree with the sites that are on mountain peaks and pass crossings.

presentation

In St. Margarethen near Sankt Paul im Lavanttal , the cult image of the god held the Celtic pedum , the shepherd's staff, instead of a spear . This bronze statue from St. Margarethen was type-defining for the representation of Mars Latobius in Roman times, as its numerous replicas on tombstones prove.

Lore

A sanctuary of Latobius has been excavated on a hill near Sankt Margarethen in Lavanttal. It is a typical Celtic temple . A corridor (16 × 17.10 m side length) winds around the almost square cella (three sides measure 9.80 m, one 9.60 m), whereby the corridor on the east side is somewhat wider, just like with other corresponding finds in the Eastern Alps is. A walled courtyard surrounded the temple, but it has not been completely excavated. The holy well was accessible via a steep staircase.

Latobius is mentioned in four dedicatory inscriptions from Noricum, two of them from Seggauberg (Roman Flavia Solva , Styria ) and two more in Sankt Paul im Lavanttal ( Carinthia ). In the inscriptions from Seggauberg the god Mars Latobius is mentioned, a colossal statue is in the monastery museum of Sankt Paul .

A rock inscription for Mars Latobius was found in the Kienbachklamm near Bad Ischl in the Salzkammergut .

Other sites are listed in Lendorf ( Spittal an der Drau district ) in a Martian sanctuary, the so-called Römerklause from the 2nd century AD, near the parish church of Saint Peter, and in Spielberg near Knittelfeld . The traditional four-mountain run over four Carinthian mountains starts at a church that was built over a Latobius shrine in the city ​​on the Magdalensberg .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hildegard Temporini: Political History: (Provinces and marginal peoples: Latin Danube-Balkan area) , 1977, pp. 343–344; Model of the temple precinct .
  2. ↑ CIL III, 5320 Marti / Latobio / Marmogio / Toutati / Sinati Mog / [e] tio C (aius) Val (erius) / [V] alerinus / ex voto . See Manfred Hainzmann: Notes on the Mars-Latobius Dedication (CIL III 5320 and 11721) from Flavia Solva . In: Scripta classica Radu Ardevan sexagenario dedicata . Cluj-Napoca 2011, pp. 289-297 ( digitized version ).
  3. ↑ CIL III, 5321 [Marti] / [La] tobi [o] / [Q (uintus?)] Morsius / Q (uinti) f (ilius) / Titianus / v (otum) s (olvit)
  4. ↑ CIL III, 5097 Latobio / Aug (usto) sac (rum) / L (ucius) Caeserni / us Avitus / v (otum) s (olvit) l (ibens) m (erito)
  5. ↑ CIL III, 5098 Latobio / Aug (usto) sac (rum) / pro salute / Nam (moniae?) Sabinae / et Iuliae Bassillae / Vindonia Vera mat (er) / v (otum) s (olvit) l (ibens) m (erito)
  6. ^ Bernhard Maier: Lexicon of the Celtic religion and culture . P. 203.
  7. ↑ Klemens M. Mayr: An important event in rock art research in Upper Austria. Dedicatory inscriptions to Mars Latobius. In: Upper Austrian homeland sheets . 20, 3/4, 1966, pp. 65–67, online (PDF) in the forum OoeGeschichte.at; Helmut Birkhan: Celts. Attempt at a complete representation of their culture. P. 639, note 7, p. 684.