Legge sacra da Smirne dal santuario di un’ignota divinità femminile

Abstract

The stele (2nd-1st century BCE), found in Smyrna, presents a sacred law concerning the cult of an unknown goddess. The first section prohibits a hurting of the sacred fishes and the sanctuary goods, and it is followed by a course against those who disobey. The mention of the sacred fishes may suggest that the Goddess associated with these animals may be the Syrian goddess Atargatis. It is possible that, in the late Hellenistic period, a community of Syrians settled in Smyrna, founding the sanctuary of its local deity and promoting her cult, as happened in Delos and other Greek ports.