Agonius (Ancient Greek: Ἀγώνιος) or Enagonius (Εναγώνιος) was an epithet of several gods in Greek mythology (or a distinct deity).[1] Aeschylus and Sophocles use it of Apollo and Zeus,[2][3] and apparently in the sense of helpers in struggles and contests,[4] or possibly as the protectors of soldiers.[5] But Agonius is more especially used as an epithet of Hermes, who presides over all kinds of solemn contests (ἀγῶνες), such as the Agonalia.[6] Classical scholar William Warde Fowler thought it likely the deity or the epithets were merely inventions of the pontifices.[7]

Agonius/Enagonius
Helpers in struggles and contests or possibly as the protectors of soldiers.

According to a 19th-century catalog of Greek and Roman art in the Vatican Palace, there was in that building a statue considered by the museum's curator to be that of Hermes Enagonius, dated to the time of Lysippos, although other critics have variously believed the statue to depict Heracles, Theseus or Meleager.[8]

"Agonius" was also the original name of the Quirinal Hill in Rome.[9]

Notes

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  1. ^ Schmitz, Leonhard (1867). "Agonius". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. p. 75.
  2. ^ Aeschylus, Agamemnon 513
  3. ^ Sophocles, Trachinian Women 26
  4. ^ Comp. Eustathius on Homer, Iliad p. 1335
  5. ^ McClintock, John (1889). Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature. New York: Harper & Bros. pp. 66–67.
  6. ^ Pausanias, 5.14.7; Pindar, Olympian Odes vi. 133, with the scholia
  7. ^ Fowler, William Warde (1908). The Roman Festivals of the Period of the Republic: An Introduction to the Study of the Religion of the Romans. London: Macmillan & Co. pp. 281.
  8. ^ Massi, H. J. (1890). Compendious Description of the Museums of Ancient Sculpture, Greek and Roman, in the Vatican Palace. Rome: Vatican typography. p. 76.
  9. ^ Lemprière, John (1839). Bibliotheca Classica: Or, A Dictionary of All the Principal Names and Terms. New York: W. E. Dean. p. 270.

References

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  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainSmith, William, ed. (1870). "Agonius". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.