Turan (mythology)
Encyclopedia
Turan was the Etruscan
goddess
of love and vitality and patroness of the city of Velch
. In art, she was usually depicted as a young winged girl. Turan appears in toilette scenes of Etruscan bronze mirrors. She is richly robed and jeweled in early and late depictions, but consistently appears nude under the influence of Hellenistic art in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE. She is consistently paired with her young lover Atunis (Adonis
) and figures in the episode of the Judgement of Paris
.
She was commonly associated with birds such as the dove
, goose
and above all the swan
, Tusna, "the swan of Turan". Her retinue
were called Lasas
. Turan may be quite ancient but does not appear on the Piacenza list nor in Martianus list of Etruscan deities. The Etruscan month of July was named after her, although we only know the Latin word for it, Traneus.
She was seen as the equivalent to the Roman
Venus and the Greek
Aphrodite
. Her name is derived from the Etruscan verb turan "to rule".
Turan had a sanctuary in the Greek-influenced Gravisca
, the port for Tarquinia
, where votive gifts inscribed with her name have been found. One inscription calls her Turan ati, "Mother Turan" which has been interpreted as connecting her to Venus Genetrix
, Venus the mother of Aeneas
and progenitor of the Julio-Claudian lineage.
Etruscan mythology
The Etruscans were a diachronically continuous population, with a distinct language and culture during the period of earliest European writing, in the Mediterranean Iron Age in the second half of the first millennium BC...
goddess
Goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....
of love and vitality and patroness of the city of Velch
Volci
thumb|250px|The Castle dell'Abbadia and the bridge.Volci or Vulci is an Etruscan city in the Province of Viterbo, north to Rome, Italy....
. In art, she was usually depicted as a young winged girl. Turan appears in toilette scenes of Etruscan bronze mirrors. She is richly robed and jeweled in early and late depictions, but consistently appears nude under the influence of Hellenistic art in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE. She is consistently paired with her young lover Atunis (Adonis
Adonis
Adonis , in Greek mythology, the god of beauty and desire, is a figure with Northwest Semitic antecedents, where he is a central figure in various mystery religions. The Greek , Adōnis is a variation of the Semitic word Adonai, "lord", which is also one of the names used to refer to God in the Old...
) and figures in the episode of the Judgement of Paris
Judgement of Paris
thumb |right |460px |[[The Judgment of Paris |The Judgment of Paris]], [[Peter Paul Rubens]], ca 1636...
.
She was commonly associated with birds such as the dove
Dove
Pigeons and doves constitute the bird family Columbidae within the order Columbiformes, which include some 300 species of near passerines. In general terms "dove" and "pigeon" are used somewhat interchangeably...
, goose
Goose
The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....
and above all the swan
Swan
Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...
, Tusna, "the swan of Turan". Her retinue
Retinue
A retinue is a body of persons "retained" in the service of a noble or royal personage, a suite of "retainers".-Etymology:...
were called Lasas
Lares
Lares , archaically Lases, were guardian deities in ancient Roman religion. Their origin is uncertain; they may have been guardians of the hearth, fields, boundaries or fruitfulness, hero-ancestors, or an amalgam of these....
. Turan may be quite ancient but does not appear on the Piacenza list nor in Martianus list of Etruscan deities. The Etruscan month of July was named after her, although we only know the Latin word for it, Traneus.
She was seen as the equivalent to the Roman
Roman mythology
Roman mythology is the body of traditional stories pertaining to ancient Rome's legendary origins and religious system, as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans...
Venus and the Greek
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
Aphrodite
Aphrodite
Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, and procreation.Her Roman equivalent is the goddess .Historically, her cult in Greece was imported from, or influenced by, the cult of Astarte in Phoenicia....
. Her name is derived from the Etruscan verb turan "to rule".
Turan had a sanctuary in the Greek-influenced Gravisca
Gravisca
Gravisca or Graviscae was the port of the Etruscan city of Tarquinii, situated 8 km east of the city center.A colonia of Roman citizenship was established at the site in 181 BC.-References:*...
, the port for Tarquinia
Tarquinia
Tarquinia, formerly Corneto and in Antiquity Tarquinii, is an ancient city in the province of Viterbo, Lazio, Italy.- History :Tarquinii is said to have been already a flourishing city when Demaratus of Corinth brought in Greek workmen...
, where votive gifts inscribed with her name have been found. One inscription calls her Turan ati, "Mother Turan" which has been interpreted as connecting her to Venus Genetrix
Venus Genetrix
Venus Genetrix may be:*An epithet of the goddess Venus*Venus Genetrix , the name for a type of sculptural depiction of the goddess thought to represent her under this epithet....
, Venus the mother of Aeneas
Aeneas
Aeneas , in Greco-Roman mythology, was a Trojan hero, the son of the prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite. His father was the second cousin of King Priam of Troy, making Aeneas Priam's second cousin, once removed. The journey of Aeneas from Troy , which led to the founding a hamlet south of...
and progenitor of the Julio-Claudian lineage.