The Sacred Cave as a symbol of Pan's homeland
This relief, probably part of a sarcophagus, represents the God Pan enclosed in a cave, with the God Dionysos seated opposite him, playing on pipes. In Arcadia, Pan was worshiped, like other Gods, at shrines set up in large temples, gatehouses, stadia, gymnasia, and baths, but spaces dedicated to Pan outside Arcadia typically assumed the form of a natural grotto, positioned symbolically at a distance from the urban centers. It would seem that when Pan set foot outside his mythical homeland, the grotto came to stand for the image of Arcadia itself and all it entailed.
Ancient sources all agree that the Greek God Pan was from Arcadia. A mountainous country, difficult to reach, Arcadia in the Peloponnese was portrayed duing classical times as an almost mythical land inhabited by poor villagers, who toiled the hard, barren soil, but whose principle source of wealth lay in their great flocks of goats and herds of horses. In the 5th century BCE, Pan’s cult finally left the borders of Arcadia and arrived in the city of Athens.( For more information on how Pan's cult reached Athens,see HERE). From there, it spread quickly across the Greek world and beyond. Pan was popular with both poor country folk and wealthy city dwellers. Commonly worshipped in natural caves or in open forest shrines, usually located on the outskirts of the city or town, he was an accessible god, approached by his followers with laughter, good humor, clapping, and dancing. His official public cult, observed on specific days throughout the year, involved elaborate processions culminating in the sacrifice of a goat, a communal meal, drunken jollification, and an all-night vigil.
SOURCE: The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
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