Thanatos / Thanatus - Θανατος
Roman: Mors, Letum*
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Thanatos is the god of non-violent death. He's also referred to a daimon, or the personified spirit of.
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Although Thanatos and his domain is referred to many times in myths, he rarely makes an appearance in person. Similarly, he has a much smaller following compared to the other gods, as the Greeks did not wish to invite Death into their home.
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Even despite this, there are a few things known about Thanatos.
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Appearance: He is usually depicted as a beareded, older man. In some depictions, he's a beardless youth, but this is unusual. He carries a sword, and will be seen with his brother (Hypnos), the Fates, or Keres.
Family: His mother is Nyx, and he is typically depicted as fatherless. One source lists his father as Erebos.
His brother is Hypnos, and the two are often mistaken for each other.
Epithets: Thanatos has no known epithets. He is referred to as 'Death' in most works.
Cults: He has no known temples or cults, but he was offered sacrifices sometimes. The city of Gadeira is said to have sung hymns in his honour.
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Possible Offerings
Little is known about what offerings people gave Thanatos. It was very likely he was given the same basic offerings other gods have been given. There are also mentions of Thanatos having no offerings, as the people did not believe offerings would sway his opinion as an unbiased god. (Aeschylus, Fragment 82 Niobe + Aristophanes, Birds 1360)
This list will remain specific to those offerings, and other mentions within Thanatos' mythos, but you're free to add your own findings as well!
- Lock of hair (From Alcestis of Euripides, in which he cuts off a lock of a dying person's hair and devotes it to the Underworld)
- Meat (Cows, Goats, and Sheep were common, so things such as steak or mutton would work for modern worship. Fish is also common in seaside places.)
- Wine
- Milk
- Honey
- Oil
- Water
- Fruit
Hymns:
Orphic Hymn 87 to Thanatus
Myths Featuring Thanatos:
Thanatos and Sisyphus
Thanatos and Heracles (Heracles wrestled Thanatos to save Alcestis.)
Thanatos and Sarpedon (He was sent to retrieve Sarpedon's body.)
*Letum is less common than Mors, but still used.
Sources + Further Reading:
Thanatos | Wiki | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Offerings | Photo
List of Worshippers - Sorted Alphabetically
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