The Eumolpidae ( grc, Εὐμολπίδαι, ''Eumolpidai'') were a family of priests at

Eleusis Elefsina ( el, Ελευσίνα ''Elefsina''), or Eleusis (; Ancient Greek: ''Eleusis'') is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in the West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is situated about northwest ...

who maintained the

Eleusinian Mysteries The Eleusinian Mysteries ( el, Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια, Eleusínia Mystḗria) were initiations held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Elefsina in ancient Greece. They are the " ...

during the Hellenic era. As

hierophant A hierophant ( grc, ἱεροφάντης) is a person who brings religious congregants into the presence of that which is deemed ''holy''. As such, a hierophant is an interpreter of sacred mysteries and wikt:arcane, arcane principles. The word ...

s, they popularized the cult and allowed many more to be initiated into the secrets of

Demeter In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Demeter (; Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over crops, grains, food, and the fertility of the earth. Although s ...

and

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld after ...

. The legendary genealogy of the Eumolpidae cast them as descendants of

Eumolpus In Greek Mythology, Eumolpus (; Ancient Greek: Εὔμολπος ''Eúmolpos'', "good singer" or "sweet singing", derived from εὖ ''eu'' "good" and μολπή ''molpe'' "song", "singing") was a legendary king of Thrace. He was described as hav ...

, one of the first priests of

at Eleusis, through his second son,

Herald-Keryx In Greek mythology, Ceryx ( grc, Κῆρυξ ''Kērux'', literally "herald") was a member of the Athenian royal family as the son of Hermes by either the princesses, Pandrosus or Agraulus. Mythology Ceryx was, like his father, a messenger. Bu ...

. Eumolpus, "untainted by blame" is named among the archaic leaders of Eleusis in the '' Homeric Hymn to Demeter'' 149–156. Through Eumolpus, they were supposedly related to either

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...

. The last legitimate

at Eleusis, just before the extinguishing of the mysteries at the time of Alaric's invasion in 396 CE, traced his descent from Eumolpos.

Eunapios Eunapius ( el, Εὐνάπιος; fl. 4th–5th century AD) was a Greek sophist and historian of the 4th century AD. His principal surviving work is the ''Lives of Philosophers and Sophists'' ( grc-gre, Βίοι Φιλοσόφων καὶ Σο� ...

' biography of Maximos the Neoplatonist is the source, quoted at length by Carl Kerenyi, ''Eleusis: Archetypal Image of Mother and Daughter'' 1967:17. The other family with a hereditary Eleusinian priesthood were the

Kerykes The kerykes or ceryces ( grc, Κήρυκες, pl. of , ''Keryx'') of Bronze Age Pylos 1200 BC, home to the aged Homeric hero Nestor and the Neleides, are listed in the Linear B tablets as ''ka-ru-ke'' serving the ''ra-wa-ko-ri'', the commande ...

See also

References

Further reading