Bacchus / Dionysus. Bacchus, also known as Dionysus in Greek mythology, is the god of wine, fertility, festivity, and ecstasy.
He is typically portrayed as a beardless youth. This reflects his association with pleasure and indulgence.
A famous example is Michelangelo's sculpture Bacchus, which captures the god's youthful beauty and sensuality. Bacchus is often shown holding a glass of wine or grapes, symbols of his dominion over cultivated plants, particularly the vine.
He may also be depicted wearing a crown of ivy leaves, another plant associated with him. The thyrsus, a staff entwined with ivy and topped with a pine cone, is another of Bacchus's signature attributes.
The thyrsus was used in Bacchic rituals and symbolized the wild frenzy of his cult. In his religion, identical with or closely related to Orphism, Dionysus was believed to have been born from the union of Zeus and Persephone, and to have himself represented a chthonic or underworld aspect of Zeus. Many believed that he had been born twice, having been killed and reborn as the son of Zeus and the mortal Semele. In the Eleusinian Mysteries he was identified with Iacchus, the son of Demeter. His origins are uncertain, and his cults took many forms; some are described by ancient sources as Thracian, others as Greek. Though most accounts say he was born in Thrace, traveled abroad, and arrived in Greece as a foreigner, evidence from the
He is typically portrayed as a beardless youth. This reflects his association with pleasure and indulgence.
A famous example is Michelangelo's sculpture Bacchus, which captures the god's youthful beauty and sensuality. Bacchus is often shown holding a glass of wine or grapes, symbols of his dominion over cultivated plants, particularly the vine.
He may also be depicted wearing a crown of ivy leaves, another plant associated with him. The thyrsus, a staff entwined with ivy and topped with a pine cone, is another of Bacchus's signature attributes.
The thyrsus was used in Bacchic rituals and symbolized the wild frenzy of his cult. In his religion, identical with or closely related to Orphism, Dionysus was believed to have been born from the union of Zeus and Persephone, and to have himself represented a chthonic or underworld aspect of Zeus. Many believed that he had been born twice, having been killed and reborn as the son of Zeus and the mortal Semele. In the Eleusinian Mysteries he was identified with Iacchus, the son of Demeter. His origins are uncertain, and his cults took many forms; some are described by ancient sources as Thracian, others as Greek. Though most accounts say he was born in Thrace, traveled abroad, and arrived in Greece as a foreigner, evidence from the
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