Numina Magna. Roma e il culto dei Grandi Dei di Samotracia

This volume underlines the main aspects of the cult of the Great Gods of Samothrace in light of the influences of Roman cultural and mythological substratum. The cult of the Great Gods of Samothrace, which became popular starting as early as the 7th century BC in the eastern Mediterranean, is characterised by regional differences concerning cultural manifestations and relationships with local deities. Confused and identified with the so-called Cabiri, these deities had their main sanctuaries on the islands of Samothrace and Lemnos and in Thebes, in Boeotia. The connection between these deities and others like Dioscuri, Penates and Lares and their protective function seem to be a key to understanding the complex syncretism that characterises the cult of the Great Gods from the period of Roman conquests in the Eastern world. The literary sources seem to highlight, in fact, in the period in which the interests in the Eastern world are crucial to the foreign policy of Rome, an evident attempt to identify the Kabiroi of Samothrace with typically Roman gods like Lares and Penates. The aim of this book is to underline the main aspects of the cult in light of the influences of Roman cultural and mythological substratum