Abstract
This PhD thesis, entitled “Nemesis in the Greco-Roman East” collects, describes and comments on different kinds of sources (literary, epigraphical, artistic and archaeological) attesting the cult of Nemesis in the Hellenophone part of the Roman Empire. The majority of the sources belongs to the 2nd-3rd c. A.D., but the spread of Nemesis’ tradition is much older. The dissertation is divided in two volumes, the first consisting of the text and the second of a catalogue with all the findings (inscriptions, statues and reliefs, coinage) related to Nemesis in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. An introduction on the concept represented by Nemesis throughout centuries is displayed in the first introductory chapter, starting from the concept of “nemesis” in the Homeric poems and analysing the figure of the goddess in Greek mythology: she was considered as mother of Helen, and generally as punisher of the hubris and the arrogant behaviours, considered as violation of the cosmic order a ...
This PhD thesis, entitled “Nemesis in the Greco-Roman East” collects, describes and comments on different kinds of sources (literary, epigraphical, artistic and archaeological) attesting the cult of Nemesis in the Hellenophone part of the Roman Empire. The majority of the sources belongs to the 2nd-3rd c. A.D., but the spread of Nemesis’ tradition is much older. The dissertation is divided in two volumes, the first consisting of the text and the second of a catalogue with all the findings (inscriptions, statues and reliefs, coinage) related to Nemesis in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. An introduction on the concept represented by Nemesis throughout centuries is displayed in the first introductory chapter, starting from the concept of “nemesis” in the Homeric poems and analysing the figure of the goddess in Greek mythology: she was considered as mother of Helen, and generally as punisher of the hubris and the arrogant behaviours, considered as violation of the cosmic order and harmony. Moreover, the two major sanctuaries of Rhamnous and Smyrna are taken into account, where we can see the Greeks – and later the Romans – connecting the cult of Nemesis to important historical events and characters (the victory at Marathon and Alexander the Great respectively). An important aim of this research is to define the weight of the Roman influence in the development and spread of Nemesis’ cult in the eastern provinces; even if it is hard to define a line between traditions and various forms of religious dialectic, the collection and comparison of sources of different character helped define a certain Roman “ingredient” in the worship of Nemesis in the Greek areas of the Roman Empire. This “ingredient” is visible in different fields of research, such as the iconography of the goddess, with attributes imported and reinterpreted in the Roman times (chapt. 2), and the places where she was worshipped with small temples or aediculae. Indeed, what came out is a preponderant presence of Nemesis in the Roman amphitheatres and theatre-arenas (chapt. 4); in these places, the Greek society could venerate the goddess in the occasion of the spectacles, as protectress of the participants in the games (including the editores, the persons who financed them), but also as a special protectress of these areas. This is clearly demonstrated in the relief of the theatre of Hierapolis, where Nemesis is represented in the last section of the ornament of the proscenium, in a scene of sacrifice at her altar that stands out from the general decorative narration. In the Greco-Roman society of 2nd- 3rd c. A. D., Nemesis was also worshipped as the protectress of public associations (chapt. 4) in which the urban population assembled with different social and economic goals. The present research collected and commented for the first time on all the different sources focusing on those relating to the cult of Nemesis. The comparison of the evidence underlined the basic character of Nemesis as the goddess of the theatre-arenas, the places of gathering of people around the Roman games. A great variety of associations stood out. For instance, the “synethia tes Nemeseos” of Thessalonica seems to be very similar to a collegium funeraticium; the “Nemesiastai” of Nicaea seems to be fans of the Roman games, as well as the “friends of hunting” of Philippi and the “friends of weapons”, attested on the small bronze statue of Nemesis of uncertain origin. However, the goddess was also at the centre of youth associations attested in Egypt, Gallia Narbonensis, Lusitania and Italy.The absorption of Nemesis’ cult in the people’s beliefs finds a place also in the funerary sources, where we could find many attestations of Nemesis as protectress of the deceased people, and a goddess linked to the idea of justice and life beyond death. Indeed, the present research collected for the first time all the sources with a funerary character worshipping Nemesis (chapt. 4). What came out is a many-sided profile of the goddess, which connects her to the traditional chthonian gods of the Greco-Roman world. The insertion and absorption of Nemesis’ cult in the Greco-Roman society is analyzed also in the political use of the goddess both by the central power, the provincial governors and the citizens (chap. 3). The comparison of various epigraphic sources, indeed, demonstrated how the goddess was at the centre of a dialectic between the central power and the provincial societies.In the fifth and last chapter all the various aspects of the research have been eventually compared and commented, with some new perspectives for the further investigation.
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