Asbamaeus (Ancient Greek: Ἀσβαμαῖος) was an epithet of the Greek god Zeus, in his persona as the protector of the sanctity of oaths.
The name was derived from a well, Asbamaeon, near Tyana, in Cappadocia, and indeed the cult of Asbamaeus was central to the identity of Tyana. There was said to be a great temple to Asbamaeon in the city.[1] Some ancient sources describe the mythical Asbamaeus as being the father of some of the city's prominent residents, such as Apollonius of Tyana.[2][3]
The water of this well was said to be beneficial and pleasant to honest people, but pestilential to those who were guilty of perjury. When perjured persons drank of the water, it was said to produce a disease of the eyes, edema, and other forms of physical disability, so that the guilty person would be unable to walk away from the well, and were obliged to admit their crime.[4][5][6] The well itself does not survive, but writers in the 19th century reported seeing a brackish pool, 30 to 40 feet in diameter, that was believed to be its remnants, and where travelers were still said to seek out to be cured of skin diseases.[7][8]
We have inscriptions mentioning this epithet in other sites in Asia Minor, such as in Amastris in Paphlagonia. Some scholars surmise that Asbamaeus was the name of a local god of Asia Minor later identified with Zeus.[9]
References
edit- ^ Jones, A. H. M. (2004). The Cities of the Eastern Roman Provinces (2 ed.). Wipf & Stock Publishers. p. 182. ISBN 9781592447480. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ Flinterman, Jaap-Jan (2009). "Apollonius's Ascension". In Praet, Danny; Demoen, Kristoffel (eds.). Theios Sophistes: Essays on Flavius Philostratus' Vita Apollonii. Brill Publishers. p. 246. ISBN 9789004171091. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ Berges, Dietrich; Nollé, Johannes (2000). "Tyana. Archäologisch-historische Untersuchungen zum südwestlichen Kappadokien". Inschriften griechischer Städte aus Kleinasien. 55. ISBN 3-7749-2959-9.
- ^ Philostratus, Life of Apollonius of Tyana 1.6.
- ^ Pseudo-Aristotle, On Marvellous Things Heard 163
- ^ Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae 23.6
- ^ Murray, John (1895). Handbook for Travellers in Asia Minor, Transcaucasia, Persia, Etc. Murray's Handbooks for Travellers. John Murray. p. 166. ISBN 9780524062142. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ Hogarth, D.G. (1882). "Modern and Ancient Roads in Eastern Asia Minor". Supplementary papers. Royal Geographical Society. p. 656. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ Hengel, Martin; Schwemer, Anna Maria (1997). Paul Between Damascus and Antioch: The Unknown Years. Translated by Bowden, John. Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. p. 163. ISBN 9780664257361. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Schmitz, Leonhard (1870). "Asbamaeus". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. p. 378.