MOUNTAIN OF THE GODS

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1079, 18 March 1911, Page 6

MOUNTAIN OF THE GODS

"THE GREATEST ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERY." LIGHT OX ANCIENT GREEK MYTHOLOGY. The London "Daily Mail" gives (lie following description of the discovery of "a real Mount Olympus'' in Cyprus:— Everyone has heard of famous Mount Olympus, (he hill upon which Greek poetry located the Home of tho Gods. It was a poetic creation, but it has been suspected that it may have borno some relation to a real mountain where the worship of the various gods and goddesses was carried oil; or that it was, at nil events, typical of such sacred hills in various parts. We are able to make the very important announcement that such a hill appears to have been discovered in Cyprus uy the distinguished German archaeologist, Dr. ]\lax Ohnei'alsch-liieh-ter. On July 27, 1010, Br. liichter described the discovery near a place called Rantidi of a very ancient shrine, probably the most ancient yet unearthed, of tho goddess known to (he ■ Greeks as Aphrodite. Now, after some months' excavation, Dr. Richtcr is able to announce that his find is much more important than he at first imagined. The hill where he is digging appears to have been sacred to the worship of other Greek deities besides Aphrodite, Zeus (or Jupiter), and Apollo being among them. In fact, Dr. Richtcr believes that lie has como upon a real. Mount Olympus, where all. the gods were supposed to dwell and had altars erected to them. - Dr. Richter's Narrative. "I am consecrated to Zeus."—lnscription. on ail altar, discovered at Rantidi. The words were engraved on a wide stone ledge.. On it wo could see in imagination gifts of honour placed for the Thunderer God. "I am consecrated to Zeus." This was one revelation made to us on tho Hill of Rantidi, in Cyprus—the Mountain of tho Gods. There exist also, as inscriptions prove, two ancient incense altar basins to the l'ap'uian Aphrodite, one to Apollo, and one to .tho god Philos. The ground plan of our excavations does not claim to bo exact, but gives a good idea of the ruins, which consist chiefly of foundation walls. It shows only the three most important ruins, which were laid bare about seventy yards below the hill-top on tho western slope. Tho principal ruin, nearly thirty yards long and about six to seven yards wide, is a primitive sanctuary with about seven rooms. It is built round a holy-water pool, cut out nf the. surface rock, in which during tho rainy season the rain water was gathered, and which was used for ritual purposes. Here could be worshipped not only the foam-born Aphrodite, the goddess of moisture, but also Zeus, the. Rain Maker, or both together, daughter and father, tho supreme pair of the Cyprian Heaven of Divinities. A little westwards and lower.down the lull lies another riiin, consisting of a large hall-like' room, which served most likely for meetings and festivals. It had stone seats. Then to tho north of the principal Pool-Sanctuary was a five-cham-bered temple, hewn in the rock, with an altar. The three larger chambers aro open to the air, and in them was discovered a layer of ashes about one hand high, evidently tho remains of burnt offerings. The two smaller chambers were roofed and cut entirely in the rock. The innermost has a bed-like resting-place. Theso grottoes also served for the worship of the Paphian divinity venerated here. The Pool-Sanctuary, The inscriptions found at theso diggings were mostly discovered in or round about the three ruins just described; they were nearly all on the western side of tho Pool-Sanctuary in n kind of inscription wall,. each -third stone being inscribed. Professor Meister, when ho has deciphered these inscriptions, as well as all placed ~l'Ound,the. holy-water spool, lhai' discover'pfo&fs.of the existence of an extensive pure Greek oracle worship going a very long way back. We know from ancient writers that the consultation of "oracles" was practised near the shrine of the Paphi,an Aphrodite, and also at a shrine of Zeus Epikoinois. This latter fact was proved by Professor it eistcr deciphering the Syllabaric inscriptions written on a Hie, now among the treasures of tho British Museum. In 1896 MY. A. S. Murray, tho keeper, and Messrs. 11. S. Smith and 11. B. Walters, the assistantkeepers of Greek, and Roman antiquities, found this wonderful relic in Eastern Cyprus. It was lying near a late Cyprian Mycenaean tomb, 1200-1100 i.e., belonging to an extensive and extremely rich necropolis of this period, laid bare most successfully by these three eminent British scholars. Until mv discovery of this Mount of Divinities at Rantidi the dwelling-place of die Greek divinities existed only in tho fantasies of poets. Th 6 most, celebrated of them was supposed to be on tho ridge between Thessaty and Macedonia; from this the name of Olvmpus originated. Now wo see for the first time that tho poets represented something which really (lid exist. On this liantidi Hill a number of exclusively Greek divinities had, so to say, their proper habitations. Hero tlicy were venerated, sometimes separately, sometimes jointly, on altars, in burn-ing-places, and in different sanctuaries. If the deciphering of six hieratic inscriptions has already proved the worship of four divinities, it is certain that further deciphering must bring (o our knowledge a great deal more about Greek deities, habits of worship, and institutions. It rill also tell us the names of Paphian high priests and kings. What the Discovery Means. This is so far the only ancient Greek Mount of Divinities of tnis kind verified by numbers of inscriptions. And I believe it will remain .tlie only one. I am therefore perfectly justified in declaring that this is the greatest archaeological and epigraphical discovery hitherto made. Not only will it enlighten us as to the general ancient Greek mythology, but it may inform us of ■'hitherto unknown puro Greek eults and habits of worship, which may perhaps be pursued into the Homeric era', and beyond this backward into the second millennium B.C. Further systematic excavations on a large scale will bring to light at Rantidi hundreds of inscriptions more, so that the Rantidi inscriptions may overpass in number anil in importance all the Syllabaric, Greek. Cyprian inscriptions which are accumulated up to date in all tho collections and museums of the world. Further, all tho Syllabaric inscriptions known to us are written on small stones or small (ablets of slone, marble, bronze, or clay, on the pedestals of statues, on gems and coins. Theso most archaic. Ranlidi inscriptions, on the other hand, are chiselled upon largo blocks of slone. Thus the "Corpus" of Cyprian Syllabric inscriptions may lie extended more than was thought possible., I am proud. Id have saved this treasure from further destruction at the impious hands of illicit diggers. ' Seldom if ever havo I realised the alniightiness of Mother Nature, the ■ almightiness of Goil, the almightiness of (he Thunderer, Zeus, the originator of storms and fertilising rain, so vividly as I did during one of the nights I spent on tho Mount of Divinities at Rantidi. Showers of rain came and went. Now the full moon would break victoriously through the black clouds. Now heavy showers, like cloud-bursts, were crackling down while tho thunder rolled and the lightning flashed al! round the mount. The Greek tragedian, Euripides, living in the fifth ceiiturv 8.C., mentioned in Cyprus, close to Papho.-, an "Olvmnns" with a Sanctuary of Aphrr.iHle. Perhaps further readings of the Rantidi inscriptions may also confirm the exactness of this reference, and identify the Rantidi Altar Hill of the Homeric Anhroditp with the Mount of Divinities of Euripides.