The Eumolpidae (, ''Eumolpidai'') were a family of priests at
Eleusis
Elefsina () or Eleusis ( ; ) is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in Athens metropolitan area. It belongs to West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is located in the Thriasio Plain, at the northernmost ...
who maintained the
Eleusinian Mysteries
The Eleusinian Mysteries () were initiations held every year for the Cult (religious practice), cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Eleusis in ancient Greece. They are considered the "most famous of the secret rel ...
during the
Hellenic era. As
hierophants, they popularized the cult and allowed many more to be initiated into the secrets of
Demeter
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Demeter (; Attic Greek, Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric Greek, Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Twelve Olympians, Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over cro ...
and
Persephone
In ancient Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion, Persephone ( ; , classical pronunciation: ), also called Kore ( ; ) or Cora, is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the Greek underworld, underworld afte ...
.
The legendary genealogy of the Eumolpidae cast them as descendants of
Eumolpus, one of the first priests of
Demeter
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Demeter (; Attic Greek, Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric Greek, Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Twelve Olympians, Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over cro ...
at Eleusis, through his second son,
Herald-Keryx. 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 (; ) is one of the twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and mythology, presiding over the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 He was the protector of seafarers and the guardian of many Hellenic cit ...
or
Hermes
Hermes (; ) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology considered the herald of the gods. He is also widely considered the protector of human heralds, travelers, thieves, merchants, and orators. He is able to move quic ...
. The last legitimate
hierophant 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' 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.
See also
*
List of Greek deities
In ancient Greece, deities were regarded as immortal, anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, and powerful. They were conceived of as individual persons, rather than abstract concepts or notions, and were described as being similar to humans in appear ...
References
Further reading
* Jon D. Mikalson, ''Ancient Greek Religion'' (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010), p. 8
online.* Bill Thayer has republished many entries from ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'' (Smith, William, ed. 1875) online, includin
Eleusinian hierophants
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