Derzelas, the Great God of Odessos
Thracian · deity · Hellenistic to Roman Odessos (Varna) and Histria, 3rd c. BCE 3rd c. CE · Recorded classification
Great god of Odessos. Native theonym Derzelas/Darzalas transmitted in Greek; in cult often only 'Theos Megas'. Classified 'deity'. Counted in the Dacian foreground per the prompt because the deity is described as Thraco-Dacian; primary attestation is the Greek Pontic city of Odessos. Distinct from the Greco-Egyptian Serapis with whom the Great God of Odessos was later assimilated on some coins.
Domains
- abundance and fertility
- underworld and chthonic
- health and vitality
Powers
- pours out abundance from the cornucopia
Epithets
- Θεὸς Μέγας the Great God (of Odessos)Coinage and dedications of Odessos (Varna), 3rd c. BCE - 3rd c. CE (primary)
Sources
- Derzelas/Darzalas is the great chthonic god of Hellenistic-Roman Odessos (Varna), honored as 'Theos Megas' (the Great God), a giver of abundance, health and vitality with underworld associations, frequent on the city's coinage and honored by the periodic Darzaleia games.: Coinage and inscriptions of Odessos; temple at Histria (primary)
- He is identified as a Thraco-Dacian deity; in the Hellenistic period he was addressed chiefly by the epithet Theos Megas.: Encyclopedic treatments of Derzelas (Thraco-Dacian god of abundance/underworld/health) (secondary)