Anahit
Anahit was the goddess of fertility and birth (analog to Aphrodite), beauty and water in Armenian mythology. In early periods she was the goddess of war. By the 1st century BC she was the main deity in Armenia along with Mithras.
The temple of Eriza was the wealthiest and the noblest in Armenia, according to Plutarch. During the expedition of Mark Antony in Armenia, the statue was broken to pieces by the Roman soldiers. Pliny the Elder gives us the following story about it: The Emperor Augustus, being invited to dinner by one of his generals, asked him if it were true that the wreckers of Anahit's statue had been punished by the wrathful goddess. No! answered the general, on the contrary, I have to‑day the good fortune of treating you with one part of the hip of that gold statue. The Armenians erected a new golden statue of Anahit in Eriza, which was worshiped before the time of St. Gregory Illuminator. Religious prostitution, if it had existed at some previous period, seems to have been suppressed before that date. The annual festivity of the month Navasard, held in honor of Anahit, was the occasion of great gatherings, attended with dance, music, recitals, competitions, etc. The sick went to the temples in pilgrimage, asking for recovery. The symbol of ancient heathen Armenian medicine was the head of the bronze gilded statue of the goddess Anahit, which is nowadays kept in the British Museum.
See also
External links and references
- [1]Vahagni Tsnunde Vishapakax
- [2] Armenian Mythology from the Tour Armenia site.
- [3] Armenian History site.
- This article incorporates text from History of Armenia by Vahan M. Kurkjian, a publication in the public domain.