Zeus-Oromasdes
Commagene royal syncretic cult · deity · hellenistic commagene royal cult · Recorded classification
Zeus-Oromasdes is the head of the syncretic pantheon proclaimed by Antiochus I Theos of Commagene (r. c. 69-34 BCE). His double name fuses the Greek sky-sovereign Zeus with Oromasdes, the Hellenized form of Ahura Mazda, the supreme 'Wise Lord' and creator of Zoroastrian tradition. In the great cult-law inscription (the nomos) carved on the backs of the colossal throne-statues at the Nemrud Dağı hierothesion, he is enumerated first among the gods, occupying the central and most honoured seat. He embodies the religious-juridical sovereign function within the tri-functional ordering of the Commagenian gods, and the deified king is shown grasping his hand in the dexiosis reliefs that assert the ruler's reception into divine company.
Domains
- supreme sky sovereignty
- cosmic order creation
Powers
- to preside as highest god over the assembled deities
- to uphold truth and cosmic order against falsehood
Epithets
- Ζεὺς ὨρομάσδηςDittenberger, Wilhelm. Orientis Graeci Inscriptiones Selectae (OGIS), no. 383, lines 54ff. Leipzig: Hirzel, 1903-1905. (secondary)
Relations
- companion: Antiochus I Theos of CommageneAntiochus I is depicted clasping the right hand of Zeus-Oromasdes in a dexiosis (handshake) relief, presenting himself as a companion received among the gods.Sanders, Donald H. (ed.). Nemrud Dağı: The Hierothesion of Antiochus I of Commagene, 2 vols. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 1996. (secondary)
- syncretism: ZeusBruno Jacobs, Nemrud Dağı, Encyclopaedia Iranica (secondary)
- syncretism: Ahura MazdaBruno Jacobs, Nemrud Dağı, Encyclopaedia Iranica (secondary)
Sources
- Zeus-Oromasdes is the supreme god of the Commagenian royal cult, a syncretism of Greek Zeus with the Iranian creator-deity Ahura Mazda, named first in Antiochus I's cult law and represented by a colossal seated statue at Nemrud Dağı.: Schmitt, Rüdiger. 'Nemrud Daği.' Encyclopaedia Iranica (online edition). (secondary); Boyce, Mary and Frantz Grenet. A History of Zoroastrianism, Vol. 3: Zoroastrianism under Macedonian and Roman Rule. Leiden: Brill, 1991, pp. 309-351. (secondary)