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Concept
Britomartis
Summary
Britomartis (brɪtoʊ'mɑːrtɪs;Βριτόμαρτις) was a Greek goddess of mountains and hunting, who was primarily worshipped on the island of Crete. She was sometimes believed to be an oread, or a mountain nymph, but she was often conflated or syncretized with Artemis and Aphaea, the "invisible" patroness of Aegina. She is also known as Dictynna or as a daughter of Dictynna (Δίκτυννα; derived by Hellenistic writers as from δίκτυα [diktya], "hunting nets").
In the 16th century, the naming of a character identified with English military prowess as "Britomart" in Edmund Spenser's knightly epic The Faerie Queene (probably just because "Brit" seemed to fit well with "Britain", with "mart" from Mars, the god of war) led to a number of appearances by "Britomart" figures in British art and literature.
According to Solinus, the name 'Britomartis' is from a Cretan dialect; he also says that her name means virgo dulcis, or "sweet virgin". Solinus also identifies her explicitly as the Cretan Artemis. Hesychius of Alexandria also equates the Cretan word βριτύ (britý) with Greek γλυκύ (glyký) 'sweet'. Other scholars have argued that Britomartis ("sweet maid") is an epithet that does not reveal the goddess's name, nor her character, instead arguing that it may be an noa-name.
The goddess was frequently portrayed on Cretan coinage, either as herself or as Diktynna, the goddess of Mount Dikte, Zeus' birthplace. As Diktynna, she was depicted as a winged goddess with a human face, standing atop her ancient mountain, grasping an animal in each hand, in the guise of Potnia Theron, the mistress of animals.
By Hellenistic and Roman times, Britomartis was given a genealogical setting that cast her into a Classical context:
Britomartis, who is also called Dictynna, the myths relate, was born at Caeno in Crete of Zeus and Carmê, the daughter of Eubulus who was the son of Demeter; she invented the nets (dictya) which are used in hunting.
Official source
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