Tyche (;

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

: Τύχη ''Túkhē'', 'Luck', , ; Roman equivalent:

Fortuna Fortuna ( la, Fortūna, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche) is the goddess of fortune and the personification of luck in Roman religion who, largely thanks to the Late Antique author Boethius, remained popular through the Middle Ages until at ...

) was the presiding

tutelary deity A tutelary () (also tutelar) is a deity or a spirit who is a guardian, patron, or protector of a particular place, geographic feature, person, lineage, nation, culture, or occupation. The etymology of "tutelary" expresses the concept of safety an ...

who governed the fortune and prosperity of a city, its

destiny Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often ...

. In Classical

Greek mythology 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 ...

, she is the daughter of

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...

and

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...

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

, and at this time served to bring positive messages to people, relating to external events outside their control. During the

Hellenistic period In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

, with dramatic socio-political changes starting with

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

, Tyche increasingly embodied the whims of fate (both negative and positive), eclipsing the role of the Olympic gods. The Greek historian Polybius believed that when no cause can be discovered to events such as floods, droughts, frosts, or even in politics, then the cause of these events may be fairly attributed to Tyche. Other ancient Greek sources corroborate Polybius, such as

Pindar Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar ...

who claims Tyche could hand victory to a lesser athlete. This "Hellenistic Tyche" is often featured on coins such as those minted by Demetrius I Soter. Further, Tyche comes to represent not only personal fate, but the fate of communities. Cities venerated their own Tychai, specific iconic versions of the original Tyche. This practice was continued in the iconography of

Roman art The art of Ancient Rome, and the territories of its Republic and later Empire, includes architecture, painting, sculpture and mosaic work. Luxury objects in metal-work, gem engraving, ivory carvings, and glass are sometimes considered to be min ...

, even into the Christian period, often as sets of the greatest cities of the empire. Tyche was further absorbed into the

Parthian Empire The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...

, who frequently depicted Tyche in their coins, as well as in imagery bestowing legitimacy to Parthian kings.

Mythology

Family

In literature, Tyche might be given various genealogies, as a daughter of Hermes and Aphrodite, or considered one of the

Oceanids In Greek mythology, the Oceanids or Oceanides (; grc, Ὠκεανίδες, Ōkeanídes, pl. of grc, Ὠκεανίς, Ōkeanís, label=none) are the nymphs who were the three thousand (a number interpreted as meaning "innumerable") daughters o ...

, daughters of Oceanus, and Tethys, or of Zeus. She was connected with Nemesis and Agathos Daimon ("good spirit"). She is sometimes named as the mother of

Plutus In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Plutus (; grc-gre, Πλοῦτος, Ploûtos, wealth) is the god and the personification of wealth, and the son of the goddess of agriculture Demeter and the mortal Iasion. Family Plutus is most common ...

, the god of wealth; usually, however, he is the son of Demeter and Iasion.

Hero Myths

According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, Palamedes created the first pair of dice and gave them as an offering to Tyche.

Worship

Tyche was uniquely venerated at Itanos in

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

, as ''Tyche Protogeneia'', linked with the Athenian

Protogeneia Protogeneia (; Ancient Greek: means "the firstborn"), in Greek mythology, may refer to: *Protogeneia, a Phthian princess as the daughter of King Deucalion of Thessaly and Pyrrha, mythological progenitors of the Hellenes. She was the sister of ...

("firstborn"), daughter of

Erechtheus Erechtheus (; grc, Ἐρεχθεύς) in Greek mythology was the name of an archaic king of Athens, the founder of the ''polis'' and, in his role as god, attached to Poseidon, as "Poseidon Erechtheus". The mythic Erechtheus and the historical Ere ...

, whose self-sacrifice saved the city. In

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

the ''Tychaeon'', the Greek temple of Tyche, was described by

Libanius Libanius ( grc-gre, Λιβάνιος, Libanios; ) was a teacher of rhetoric of the Sophist school in the Eastern Roman Empire. His prolific writings make him one of the best documented teachers of higher education in the ancient world and a criti ...

as one of the most magnificent of the entire Hellenistic world. Stylianos Spyridacis concisely expressed Tyche's appeal in a Hellenistic world of arbitrary violence and unmeaning reverses: "In the turbulent years of the Epigoni of Alexander, an awareness of the instability of human affairs led people to believe that Tyche, the blind mistress of Fortune, governed mankind with an inconstancy which explained the vicissitudes of the time." According to Matheson, the Goddess Tyche was often worshipped as the personification of a city and its fortune. Matheson also states that there were cults to Tyche all over the Mediterranean. In

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

for instance, citizens would give tribute to ''Agathe Tyche'' alongside other gods. Other gods seem to also be presented alongside Tyche including

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Roma ...

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government refor ...

. There was a Temple of Tyche that contained a figure called Nemesis-Tyche, an aspect of Tyche. According to Edwards Nemesis and Tyche begin to share cults in the Roman period. The

mural crown A mural crown ( la, corona muralis) is a crown or headpiece representing city walls, towers, or fortresses. In classical antiquity, it was an emblem of tutelary deities who watched over a city, and among the Romans a military decoration. Later ...

of Tyche of

Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...

depicts the Spartans soldiers repelling Amazons. Palagia argues that this depiction is important to Spartan mythology.

Depictions

Tyche appears on many

coins A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

of the Hellenistic period in the three centuries before the Christian era, especially from cities in the Aegean. Unpredictable turns of fortune drive the complicated plotlines of

Hellenistic romance Five ancient Greek novels survive complete from antiquity: Chariton's '' Callirhoe'' (mid 1st century), Achilles Tatius' ''Leucippe and Clitophon'' (early 2nd century), Longus' ''Daphnis and Chloe'' (2nd century), Xenophon of Ephesus' '' Ephesian ...

s, such as, ''

Leucippe and Clitophon ''The Adventures of Leucippe and Clitophon'' ( grc, τὰ κατὰ Λευκίππην καὶ Kλειτoφῶντα, ''ta kata Leukippēn kai Kleitophōnta''), written by Achilles Tatius, is one of the five surviving Ancient Greek romances, not ...

'' or ''

Daphnis and Chloe ''Daphnis and Chloe'' ( el, Δάφνις καὶ Χλόη, ''Daphnis kai Chloē'') is an ancient Greek novel written in the Roman Empire, the only known work of the second-century AD Greek novelist and Hellenistic romance, romance writer Longus ...

''. She experienced a resurgence in another era of uneasy change, the final days of publicly sanctioned Paganism, between the late-fourth-century emperors Julian and

Theodosius I Theodosius I ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two ...

, who definitively closed the temples. The effectiveness of her capricious power even achieved respectability in philosophical circles during that generation, although among poets it was a commonplace to revile her for a fickle harlot. The constellation of

Virgo Virgo may refer to: *Virgo (astrology), the sixth astrological sign of the zodiac * Virgo (constellation), a constellation *Virgo Cluster, a cluster of galaxies in the constellation Virgo *Virgo Stellar Stream, remains of a dwarf galaxy * Virgo Su ...

is sometimes identified as the heavenly figure of Tyche,DK Multimedia: Eyewitness Encyclopedia, ''Stardome, Virgo: miscellaneous section'' as well as other goddesses such as Demeter and

Astraea Astraea, Astrea or Astria ( grc, Ἀστραία, Astraía; "star-maiden" or "starry night"), in ancient Greek religion, is a daughter of Astraeus and Eos. She is the virgin goddess of justice, innocence, purity and precision. She is closely as ...

Tyche in Art

In Greco-Roman and medieval art Tyche was depicted as wearing a

, and carrying a

cornucopia In classical antiquity, the cornucopia (), from Latin ''cornu'' (horn) and ''copia'' (abundance), also called the horn of plenty, was a symbol of abundance and nourishment, commonly a large horn-shaped container overflowing with produce, flowers ...

(horn of plenty), an

emblem An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often us ...

atic gubernaculum (ship's rudder), and the wheel of fortune, or she may stand on the wheel, presiding over the entire circle of fate. The mural crown's significance is that it identifies her as the goddess of the city, and in the case of Sparta her mural crown depicted a part of their foundation myth of their city. The mural crown is often used by archeologists and historians to identify a figure in art as Tyche. According to Matheson the Goddess Tyche, being one of the Oceanids, is considered to be an ocean goddess of some kind. Citing how Pindar refers to her in his poems, "he implores her to keep watch around Himera, a port" and how she is often depicted holding a ship's rudder.

Tyche in Theatre

The play writer Euripides used Tyche as a literary device and personification.

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...

is said to direct Tyche and even the god's plans can be influenced by the concept of Tyche.

Tyche in Poetry

The poet Pindar alludes to Tyche as a goddess of fate who can control the outcome of athletic contests, according to Giannopoulou.

Greco-Roman Tyche

In late Roman sets the figures, usually four, represented the Tychai of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, and either

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

(more usual, as in the

Esquiline Treasure The Esquiline Treasure is an ancient Roman silver treasure that was found in 1793 on the Esquiline Hill in Rome. The hoard is considered an important example of late antique silver work from the 4th century AD, probably about 380 for the major pi ...

of about 380 AD) or

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

, as in the Calendar of 354. The Tychai may be seen wearing a

(a crown like the walls of the city). Another common depiction of Tyche in the Greco-Roman period was Nemesis-Tyche.

Tyche of Rome

The Tyche of Rome was represented "in military costume" according to Amin.Amin, O. S. M. (29 September 2016). Tyche Furniture Ornaments. ''World History Encyclopedia''. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/image/5748/tyche-furniture-ornaments/ In Rome and the other parts of the Western Roman Empire she was referred to as Fortuna. File:Tyche of Rome - Esquiline Treasure.jpg, Tyche from the

File:Personification of the city of Rome - Chronography of 354.png, Tyche of the city of Rome - Chronography of 354, unknown author.

Tyche of Constantinople

Amin mentions that the attributes of the Tyche of Constantinople included a

. Tyche was still a figure in Constantinople was even depicted on coins and well into early Christian Rome. Matheson argues that the Tyche of Constantinople replaced the one of Antioch as the typical representation. File:Tyche of Constantinople - Esquiline Treasure.jpg, Tyche from the Esquiline Treasure File:Porphyrios Hippodrome Istanbul (3).JPG, Base of statue that depicts Tyche holding a cornucopia. Found in Constantinople.

Tyche of Alexandria

The Tyche of Alexandria "hold sheaves of corns and rests her foot on the bow of a ship" as described by Amin. This could be related to how other depictions of Tyche, like the one in Sparta, are seen with ships rudders. This is because she can steer events argues Matheson. Also, Pindar describes her power over ships "At thy bidding, swift ships are steered upon the sea. File:Tyche of Alexandria - Esquiline Treasure.jpg, Tyche from the Esquiline Treasure File:Personification of the city of Alexandria - Chronography of 354.png, Tyche of the city of Alexandria - Chronography of 354, unknown author.

Tyche of Antioch

Tyre-DoubleShekel 104-103BCE BodeMuseumBerlin RomanDeckert10032020

Several artefacts feature the Tyche of Antioch with a male swimmer personifying the Orontes River at her feet according to Amin. Her importance to the river is also strengthened by her being considered an Oceanid, according to Giannopoulou. File:Tyche of Antioch - Esquiline Treasure.jpg, Tyche from the Esquiline Treasure File:Trebonianus Gallus-Tyche, Antioch.JPG, Provincial bronze coin of Trebonianus Gallus (reverse) File:Tyche Antioch Vatican Inv2672.jpg, Roman copy of a bronze by

Eutychides Eutychides ( grc, Εὐτυχίδης, ) of Sicyon in Corinthia, Greek sculptor of the early part of the 3rd century BC, was a pupil of Lysippus.Ogden, ''The Legend of Seleucus'', p. 136. His most noted work was a statue of the Tyche of Antioch ...

, Galleria dei Candelabri,

Vatican Museums The Vatican Museums ( it, Musei Vaticani; la, Musea Vaticana) are the public museums of the Vatican City. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries, including several of ...

Tyche in the Parthian Empire

Silver Tetradrachm of Vologases I Enthroned king Vologases I facing left, receiving diadem from Tyche, standing with sceptre

In the early years of the

, Parthian kings, starting with Mithridates I (165 BC) utilized imagery of the Olympian gods in their coinage, often with the term ΦΙΛΕΛΛΗΝΟΣ (friend of the Greeks) as a conciliatory gesture to subject Greek people living in the former Seleucid Empire lands. However, by the time of

Vologases I Vologases I ( xpr, 𐭅𐭋𐭂𐭔 ''Walagash'') was the King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 51 to 78. He was the son and successor of Vonones II (r. 51). He was succeeded by his younger son Pacorus II, who continued his policies. Name V ...

(51 AD), the only Greek imagery used on coins was the goddess Tyche, who continued to be represented on Parthian coins for the next 200 years. In later imagery, Tyche provides the Khvarenah or projection of divine rulership in

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheisti ...

to the worthy king. It is unclear whether this "Parthian Tyche" simultaneously represented a Zoroastrian goddess such as

Anahita Anahita is the Old Persian form of the name of an Iranian goddess and appears in complete and earlier form as ('), the Avestan name of an Indo-Iranian cosmological figure venerated as the divinity of "the Waters" (Aban) and hence associate ...

Ashi Ashi (Avestan: 𐬀𐬴𐬌 ''aṣ̌i/arti'') is the Avestan language word for the Zoroastrian concept of "that which is attained." As the hypostasis of "reward," "recompense," or "capricious luck," ''Ashi'' is also a divinity in the Zoroastria ...

, or possibly another.

Notes

References

* Diodorus Siculus, ''The Library of History'' translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8
Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site
* Diodorus Siculus, ''Bibliotheca Historica. Vol 1-2''. Immanel Bekker. Ludwig Dindorf. Friedrich Vogel. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Leipzig. 1888-1890
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
* Gaius Julius Hyginus, ''Astronomica from The Myths of Hyginus'' translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
*

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet ...

, ''Theogony'' from ''The Homeric Hymns and Homerica'' with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White, Cambridge, MA.,Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
*

, ''Odes'' translated by Diane Arnson Svarlien. 1990
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
* Pindar, ''The Odes of Pindar'' including the Principal Fragments with an Introduction and an English Translation by Sir John Sandys, Litt.D., FBA. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1937
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library

External links

* {{Authority control Fortune goddesses Time and fate goddesses Tutelary deities Greek goddesses Oceanids Children of Zeus Personifications in Greek mythology Women in Greek mythology Characters in Greek mythology