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In Gallo-Roman religion
Gallo-Roman religion is a fusion of the traditional religious practices of the Gauls, who were originally Celtic speakers, and the Roman and Hellenistic religions introduced to the region under Roman Imperial rule. It was the result of selective ...
, Ancamna was a goddess worshipped particularly in the valley of the river Moselle
The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A ...
. She was commemorated at 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 ...
and Ripsdorf as the consort of Lenus Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
, and at Möhn as the consort of Mars Smertulitanus.Nicole Jufer & Thierry Luginbühl. 2001. ''Les dieux gaulois : répertoire des noms de divinités celtiques connus par l'épigraphie, les textes antiques et la toponymie.'' Editions Errance, Paris. pp.14, 21. At Trier, altars were set up in honour of Lenus Mars, Ancamna and the '' genii'' of various '' pagi'' of the Treveri
The Trēverī (Gaulish: *''Trēueroi'') were a Celtic tribe of the Belgae group who inhabited the lower valley of the Moselle from around 150 BCE, if not earlier, until their displacement by the Franks. Their domain lay within the southern fring ...
, giving the impression of Lenus Mars and Ancamna as tribal protectors honoured in an officially organized cult.Two such surviving inscriptions were published in Finke (1927) "Neue Inschriften," ''Bericht der Römisch-Germanischen Kommission'' 17: inscriptions 12 and 13. Among the few statuettes left as votive offering
A votive offering or votive deposit is one or more objects displayed or deposited, without the intention of recovery or use, in a sacred place for religious purposes. Such items are a feature of modern and ancient societies and are generally ...
s at the sanctuary of Mars Smertulitanus and Ancamna at Möhn is one of a '' genius cucullatus'' like those offered to the Xulsigiae at the Lenus Mars temple complex in Trier.
Inciona is also apparently invoked along with Lenus Mars Veraudunus on a bronze ''ex voto'' from Luxembourg;Musée d'histoire et d'art, Luxembourg. 1974. ''Pierres sculptées et inscriptions de l'époque romaine'', catalogued by Eugénie Wilhelm, p.71. it is unclear what connection, if any, exists between Inciona and Ancamna. Jufer and Luginbühl link Ancamna with two other consorts of the Gaulish Mars, Litavis and Nemetona, noting that none of these appear to be warrior goddesses themselves; instead, they suggest that Ancamna might have been associated with a spring
Spring(s) may refer to:
Common uses
* Spring (season), a season of the year
* Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy
* Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water
* Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a h ...
. Edith Wightman considers the couple Mars Loucetius
In Gallo-Roman religion, Loucetios (Latinized as Leucetius) was a Gallic god known from the Rhine-Moselle region, where he was identified with the Roman Mars. Scholars have interpreted his name to mean ‘lightning’. Mars Loucetius was worship ...
and Nemetona to be "closely similar to if not identical with, Lenus and Ancamna".
Works cited
Further reading
* Ellis, Peter Berresford (1994). ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology'' (Oxford Paperback Reference), Oxford University Press, Oxford. * MacKillop, James (1998). ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford. . * * Wood, Juliette (2002). ''The Celts: Life, Myth, and Art.'' Thorsons Publishers.External links
* {{Celtic mythology (ancient) Gaulish goddesses Sea and river goddesses Treveri