Mantus
Etruscan · deity · classical · deity
Mantus is the Etruscan lord of the dead as the Graeco-Roman tradition described him — an old man with a crown and wings at his shoulders, ruling the dark realm beside Mania. It is worth being plain that this portrait comes from later report rather than from Etruscan texts: the underworld rulers the Etruscans themselves name are Aita and Persipnei, who already stand in this registry. Ancient tradition also derived the name of Mantua from him. The record is kept thin, and its source weight low, precisely because the figure is better attested in what Romans wrote about Etruscans than in what Etruscans wrote.
Domains
- underworld
- death
Relations
- spouse: Mania
Sources
- Reference and antiquarian accounts of Mantus and Mania as rulers of the Etruscan realm of the dead.