Kerres, the grain goddess
Oscan · deity · Oscan Sabellic religion; pre Roman to Roman Italy · Recorded classification
Kerres is the Oscan form of the goddess the Romans called Ceres, and she stands at the head of the most important single document of Samnite religion, the bronze Agnone Tablet. Its two faces describe the sacred grove dedicated to her and enumerate the seventeen divine powers who held altars there, including a 'Daughter of Ceres' (Futreí Kerríiaí, corresponding to Persephone), water-nymphs of the springs, and a 'Hercules of Ceres'. The tablet prescribes annual sacrifices, some tied to the festival of Flora, marking Kerres as the organising centre of a whole agrarian pantheon concerned with the growth, watering and harvest of the crops.
Domains
- grain and agriculture
Powers
- to ripen the grain and the fruits of the field
Epithets
- ArentikaEmmanuel Dupraz, 'Religion, Italic', in Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, online edition). (secondary)
Relations
- ally: Diúveí VerehasiúíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Diúveí Verehasiúí, one of the two Jovian cult-forms sharing her grove on the Agnone Tablet.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Diúveí RegatureíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Diúveí Regatureí, the second Jovian cult-form in the Agnone list, glossed as the rain-giving Jupiter.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: VezkeíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Vezkeí, a recipient of the Garden of Ceres whose character the tablet does not disclose.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Evklúí PatereíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Evklúí Patereí, the father-god of the Agnone list, glossed as chthonic or as a messenger.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Futreí KerriíaíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Futreí Kerriíaí, 'the Cereal Daughter', sharing her cult-title in the Agnone list.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Ammaí KerriíaíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Ammaí Kerriíaí, 'the Cereal Mother', sharing her cult-title in the Agnone list.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Anter StataíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Anter Stataí, connected by reference treatment with the Stata Mater of the Marsi.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Liganakdíkeí EntraíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Liganakdíkeí Entraí, glossed as a power over vegetation and fruits.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Patanaí PiístíaíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Patanaí Piístíaí, glossed as a goddess of winemaking.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Deívaí GenetaíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Deívaí Genetaí, the goddess of birth, connected with the Roman Geneta Mana.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Pernaí KerriíaíCo-honoured in her Garden of Ceres at Agnone: Pernaí Kerriíaí, glossed as a goddess of shepherds, sharing her cult-title.Agnone Tablet (Tabula Osca), British Museum G_1873-0820-149 — the dative list of recipients of the Garden of Ceres. (epigraphic)
- ally: Hercle, the divine heroAmong the deities sharing Kerres' grove on the Agnone Tablet is Hereklúí Kerríiúí, 'Hercules of Ceres', incorporating the hero into her agrarian cult.Emmanuel Dupraz, 'Religion, Italic', in Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, online edition). (secondary)
- ally: Fluusa, goddess of floweringThe Agnone Tablet of the Ceres cult ties its annual sacrifices to the festival of Flora, associating Fluusa with the grain goddess Kerres in the agrarian calendar.'Agnone Tablet', Encyclopaedia Britannica (Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc.). (secondary)
Sources
- Kerres is the Oscan grain goddess, equivalent to Latin Ceres, who heads the Agnone Tablet and presides over a sacred grove of associated agricultural deities in Samnium.: 'Agnone Tablet', Encyclopaedia Britannica (Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc.). (secondary); Emmanuel Dupraz, 'Religion, Italic', in Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, online edition). (secondary)