Glanis was a

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

ish god associated with a healing spring at the town of

Glanum Glanum (Hellenistic ''Γλανόν'', as well as Glano, Calum, Clano, Clanum, Glanu, Glano) was an ancient and wealthy city which still enjoys a magnificent setting below a gorge on the flanks of the Alpilles mountains. It is located about one kil ...

in the

Alpilles The Chaîne des Alpilles is a small range of low mountains in Provence, southern France, located about south of Avignon. Geography The range is an extension of the much larger Luberon range. Although it is not high - some 498 m (1,634 ...

mountains of

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. There are cisterns at the site of the springs where pilgrims may have bathed. Near one of them an altar to Glanis and the Glanicae was set up. The Glanicae were a triad of local mother goddesses associated with the healing springs. The town, where a shrine to Glanis was erected in the 4th century BC, was itself named after the god. When it became a colony of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

, the Romans followed their usual practice by absorbing Glanis into their pantheon in the form of ''Valetudo''. The worship of Glanis/Valetudo ended with the rise of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and the destruction of Glanum in 270 AD.H. Rolland, "Un temple de Valetudo à Glanum", ''Revue Archéologique'' (1955: II. 98-106.)

References

* Green., Miranda. ''Dictionary of Celtic Myth and Legend.'' Thames and Hudson Ltd. London. 1997. Gaulish gods Health gods Water gods {{celt-myth-stub

See also

References