Anytos or Anytus () was one of the

Titans In Greek mythology, the Titans ( ; ) were the pre-Twelve Olympians, Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Sky) and Gaia (Earth). The six male ...

Greek mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

. He was supposed to have raised

Despoina Despoina or Despoena (; ) was the epithet of a goddess worshipped by the Eleusinian Mysteries in Ancient Greece as the daughter of Demeter and Poseidon and the sister of Arion. Surviving sources refer to her exclusively under the title ''Des ...

, and in Arcadia during Pausanias' time the two were represented by statues in a temple near Acacesium.

The Lycosoura Anytos (NAMA 1736)

The cult of Anytos is prominent in the city of

Lycosura Lycosura () was a city in the ancient Parrhasia (Arcadia), Parrhasia region of south Arcadia (ancient region), Arcadia said by Pausanias (geographer), Pausanias to be the oldest city in the world, although there is no evidence for its existence b ...

, home to the Temple of Despoina, a temple dedicated to the

Chthonic In Greek mythology, deities referred to as chthonic () or chthonian () were gods or spirits who inhabited the underworld or existed in or under the earth, and were typically associated with death or fertility. The terms "chthonic" and "chthonian" ...

pantheon consisting of

Artemis In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Artemis (; ) is the goddess of the hunting, hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, transitions, nature, vegetation, childbirth, Kourotrophos, care of children, and chastity. In later tim ...

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 Despoina. Currently housed in the

National Archaeological Museum of Athens The National Archaeological Museum () in Athens houses some of the most important artifacts from a variety of archaeological locations around Greece from prehistory to late antiquity. It is considered one of the greatest museums in the world and ...

, the bust of Anytos was discovered in excavations during the Summer of 1889. Measuring 74 cm, the bust alongside the bust of

and

, was carved by the artist

Damophon Damophon (; fl. 2nd century BC) was an ancient Greek sculptor of the Hellenistic period from Messene, known for his many acroliths found in Messene, Megalopolis, Aegium, Lycosura and other cities of the Peloponnesus. Other cities beyond the Pelop ...

in 180 BC, is also considered an acrolith, a composite of many different materials with the head and limbs made of local marble, while the body portion made of wood. Based upon the descriptions of the historian Pausanias in his text ''

Description of Greece ''Description of Greece'' () is the only surviving work by the ancient "geographer" or tourist Pausanias (geographer), Pausanias (c. 110 – c. 180). Pausanias' ''Description of Greece'' comprises ten books, each of them dedicated to some ...

'', written in the 2nd century, the statue of Artemis would stand alongside the statue of Demeter, while Anytos would stand right beside that of Despoina, dressed in warriors garb. The statue is the most fragmented out of those who exist on the pantheon but fragments of the god's garb were found in addition to fragments of his limbs. The remnants has since then been part of the display at the National Archaeological Museum, under the designation NAMA 1736.

Notes

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References

* Pausanias, ''Pausanias Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes.'' Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Smith, William; ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' is a biographical dictionary of classical antiquity, edited by William Smith (lexicographer), William Smith and originally published in London by John Taylor (English publisher), Tayl ...

'', London (1873)
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
Titans (mythology) Greek gods Mythological Greek tutors of gods Marble sculptures in Greece Sculptures of men in Greece Sculptures in Athens National Archaeological Museum, Athens Archaeological discoveries in the Peloponnese