Matrona (goddess)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Matrona or Dea Matrona is the name of a river goddess who is understood as the personification of the Marne River . Their veneration is attested by an inscription found in 1831 in the headwaters of the river ("La Marnotte") near Bellesmes ( Haute-Marne department ) near Langres ( Andemantunnum in Gallia Belgica ):

" Successus / Natalis l (ibertus) / maceriem / caementiciam / circa hoc tem / plum de sua pe / cunia Matro / nae ex voto sus / cepto v (otum) s (olvit) l (ibens) m (erito) "

"Successus, [as a slave] released by Natalis, had this outer wall of rubble stones built around this temple at his own expense in honor of the Matrona, according to his vow , which he gladly and meritoriously fulfilled."

The Roman general Gaius Iulius Caesar mentioned in his report De bello Gallico (1st book, 1) about the Gallic War (58 to 51/50 BC) Matrona as the name of the river Marne, which together with the lower reaches of the Sequana ( Seine) formed the border between the heartland of Gaul and the Roman province of Belgica in the north. The name of the goddess is seen in connection with the river, especially its headwaters.

The name Matrona is of Celtic origin , derived from the Gallic mātīr (mother) and the old Irish máthair (mother), both go back to the Indo-European * mātēr (mother). As the “divine mother”, Matrona is the singular form of Matronae . Over 800 dedicatory inscriptions have been preserved for these mother goddesses, some with three-dimensional reliefs (see matrons ).

In 1805 the remains of a large Gallo-Roman building had already been found in La Marnotte . Some of the twelve rooms had hot baths, marble countertops and frescoes . The initials of the builder (TI. CL. ATT. F.) and some coins from the time of the emperors Titus (79–81 AD) and Nero (54–68) were also found. The temple of Matrona mentioned in the inscription is understood as part of this building, which was probably built in the 1st century.

The name of Modron , a mother goddess and legendary figure from the Celtic mythology of Wales in western Great Britain , is also associated with Matrona .

literature

Individual evidence

  1. Bernhard Maier : Small lexicon of names and words of Celtic origin. 3. Edition. Beck, Munich 2010, ISBN 978-3-406-60179-8 , p. 91 ( page preview in the Google book search)
  2. ^ A b c Noemie Beck: Water-Goddesses - The River Marne: Matrona. Chapter 4 in: The Same: Goddesses in Celtic Religion. Université Lumière Lyon 2, 2009 (doctoral thesis, without page numbers; preview on theses.univ-lyon2.fr).
  3. CIL XIII, 5674 ; Illustration ( Clauss-Slaby epigraphic database ).
  4. ^ Noemie Beck: The Matres and Matronae: Etymology of their generic name. Chapter 1 in: The Same: Goddesses in Celtic Religion. Doctoral thesis Université Lumière Lyon 2, 2009 (English, without page numbers; preview on theses.univ-lyon2.fr).
  5. ^ Noemie Beck: The Matres and Matronae: The Nursing Mothers or Nutrices. Chapter 1 in: The Same: Goddesses in Celtic Religion. Doctoral thesis Université Lumière Lyon 2, 2009 (English, without page numbers; preview on theses.univ-lyon2.fr).