Zeus : a study in ancient religion . f the fig^. It is, therefore, tempting to surmise that Theseus was purified avecdu sue des figuiers sacr^s (?)* and that Meiltchios meant originally the god ofFigs {ineilichay. Whether we accept Monsieur Reinachs further contentionthat the word sykophdjttes meant the hierophant of this fig-cult^, or not, wemust admit that the contiguity, of a place named the Sacred Fig-tree affordsstrong support to his derivation of Meiltchios. Moreover, Zeus Meiltchios was,according to the myth, a purificatory power, and another purifying Zeus borethe title Sykdsios, which

---

Zeus : a study in ancient religion . f the fig^. It is, therefore, tempting to surmise that Theseus was purified avecdu sue des figuiers sacr^s (?)* and that Meiltchios meant originally the god ofFigs {ineilichay. Whether we accept Monsieur Reinachs further contentionthat the word sykophdjttes meant the hierophant of this fig-cult^, or not, wemust admit that the contiguity, of a place named the Sacred Fig-tree affordsstrong support to his derivation of Meiltchios. Moreover, Zeus Meiltchios was,according to the myth, a purificatory power, and another purifying Zeus borethe title Sykdsios, which presumably denotes the god of Fig-gathering{sykdzeiny. The case for a local fig-cult might indeed be made even Plouton carried off Kore, he was said to have descended into the earthbeside the Eleusinian Kephisos at a point known as Erineos, the Wild Fig-tree^. Again, Sir James Frazer thinks that the site of the ancient altar dedicated also in pediment. Within the temple sits lupiter Ultor with thunderbolt and

---

Size: 1593px × 1568px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, booksubjectclassicalantiquities, booksubjectfol