Sianna or Stanna is a Romano-Celtic goddess from

Roman Gaul Roman Gaul refers to GaulThe territory of Gaul roughly corresponds to modern-day France, Belgium and Luxembourg, and adjacent parts of the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany. under provincial rule in the Roman Empire from the 1st century B ...

, attested epigraphically from Vesunna (present-day

Périgueux Périgueux (, ; or ) is a commune in the Dordogne department, in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. Périgueux is the prefecture of Dordogne, and the capital city of Périgord. It is also the seat of ...

), who is closely related to the Roman goddess

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997), ...

. = ILA-Arve 00043 = CAG-63-02, p 199 province: Aquitani(c)a, place: Le Mont-Dore / Arverni: ''Iulia Seve/ra Siann e/ v(otum) s(olvit) (ibens) m(erito) inscription genus / personal status: tituli sacri''

Inscriptions

The goddess Sianna is attested by an inscription composed of five fragments discovered in the buildings of the ''Vieilles Casernes'' or ‘old barracks’ in Périgueux (

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; ) is a large rural departments of France, department in south west France, with its Prefectures in France, prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and ...

), in the ancient territory of the

Petrocorii The Petrocorii were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the present-day Périgord region, between the Dordogne and Vézère rivers, during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Etymology They are mentioned as ''Petrocoriis'' by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC), ''P ...

, where she is partnered with the god

Telo The Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO) is a Sri Lankan Tamil political party and former militant group. Initially, the TELO campaigned for the establishment of an independent Tamil Eelam in northeastern Sri Lanka from 1972 to 1987, until ...

. By comparison of the various fragments, the suggested restoration is certain, except for the end of the first line and the beginning of the second line: ''Deo Telo et deae Stannae, solo A(uli) Pomp(eii) Antiqui, Per…ius, Silvani fil(ius) Bassus, c(urator) c(ivium) r(omanorum), consaeptum omne circa templum et basilicas duas, cum ceteris ornamentis ac munimentis, dat'', which Noémie Beck translates as, ‘To the god Telo and to the goddess Stanna, Per ��us Bassus, son of Silvanus, curator of the Roman citizens, offers, at his own expense, this entire wall erected around their temple on the land of Aulus Pompeius Antiquus, and these two basilicas with the other embellishments and accessories’. This inscription is of great interest, for it mentions the existence of a temple dedicated to Telo and Stanna. The dedicator Per ��ius Bassus was a Roman citizen and held official functions. He was a ''curator'', which means he had been appointed by the emperor to manage and supervise the finances of the city. He offered a wall, two basilicas, ornaments and accessories extending and embellishing the sanctuary, which was built on the property of the Roman citizen Aulus Pompeius Antiquus. Sianna and Vesunna are two goddesses from the town of Périgueux in the territory of the Petrocorii.

References

{{reflist Celtic goddesses Gallo-Roman religion