Etruscan religion Etruscan religion comprises a set of stories, beliefs, and religious practices of the Etruscan civilization, heavily influenced by the mythology of ancient Greece, and sharing similarities with concurrent Roman mythology and Religion in ancient ...

, Hercle (also ''Heracle'' or ''Hercl''), the son of Tinia and

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, was a version of the Greek Heracles, depicted as a muscular figure often carrying a club and wearing a lionskin. He is a popular subject in Etruscan art, particularly bronze mirrors, which show him engaged in adventures not known from the

Greek myths A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities of de ...

of Heracles or the Roman and later classical myths of Hercules. In the Etruscan tradition,

(Roman

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) grants Hercle access to a life among the immortals by offering her breast milk to him.De Grummond, ''Etruscan Myth'', pp. 83–84. Hercle was the first man elevated to a godhood through his deeds and Etruscan aristocrats tried to identify with this ascension, as reflected in artwork and literature. Hercle differed in many aspects from the Greek Heracles. He seems to have enjoyed a special status in Italy in general. In art, he is shown to be a defender of an unknown goddess against creatures on the other side of a human border, showing his status as a Liminal deity. In Etruria, he was also associated with running water. He was also the master of animals, the protector of flocks and herds, and of herdsmen.

Worship

Hercle was more of an

oracular An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word ''or ...

god in Etruria than in Greece. Several inscriptions have come to light from 1970 that show evidence of cult worship. Particularly, a sanctuary at Caere preserved many inscriptions of dedications to the god. In Toledo, a bronze weight and an attic red-figured cup created by Euphronios testify an important cult to Hercle.

Scenes from Etruscan art

Hercle can be recognized in Etruscan art from his attributes, or is sometimes identified by name. Since Etruscan literature has not survived, the meaning of the scenes in which he appears can only be interpreted by comparison to Greek and Roman myths, through information about Etruscan myths preserved by Greek and Latin literature, or through conjectural reconstructions based on other Etruscan representations.

References

Etruscan gods Etruscan religion Etruscan mythology Heracles {{deity-stub

Worship

Scenes from Etruscan art

See also

References