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In the absence of written records from the Celtic and Germanic tribes, our current understanding of the deities worshiped in pre-Roman central Europe relies on Mediterranean writers. Their reports should be approached with caution as they often regarded barbarian ritual sites and practice as uncivilised when compared to their own, whilst not always correctly identifying foreign gods with counterparts from the Graeco-Roman pantheon. The latter process is usually described as interpretatio Romana thanks to a quote from Tacitus (Germania 43). The same term is now also used to include the common early Roman period habit of linking the names of Roman and indigenous deities on dedications, and of filling the lack of an indigenous Celtic or Germanic religious iconography by depicting local deities using imagery derived from Mediterranean gods. As this adaptation would probably have been undertaken by the Romanised cult communities themselves, the term interpretatio Romana, might only be partially appropriate, as it implies Roman involvement. The indigenous gods tended to survive behind the façade of the many twinnings (which start with the Latin god’s name), and their traditional areas of responsibility could lead to marked shifts away from the attributes of the associated Mediterranean deity. In southern Lower Germany, the most common gods to form part of these associations are Mercury, Apollo, Mars and Hercules (originally a demigod). Julius Caesar (De bello Gallico VI 17), already reports that Mercury was particularly popular in Gaul, as the inventor of all arts and crafts, as a guide on travel and as a guarantor of trade and wealth, and a similar German preference for Mercury is mentioned by Tacitus (Germania 9).
The pediment of a stone lararium from Cologne (Stadt Köln; Nordrhein-Westfalen / D) underlines this statement, by showing a central bearded and enthroned Mercury, flanked by two goddesses with cornucopia, and two river gods. Apart from appearing under his purely Roman name in the study area, the god also occurs as Mercurius Arvernus (e.g. in Cologne, Krefeld-Land (Stadt Krefeld; NRW / D) and Langerwehe-Wenau (Kr. Düren; NRW / D)), as Mercurius Channinus (in Blankenheim-Rohr (Kr. Euskirchen; NRW / D)), as Mercurius Cissonius (again in Cologne), as Mercurius Gebrinius (in Bonn (Stadt Bonn; NRW / D)), as Mercurius Leud(...)anus (in Eschweiler-Weisweiler (Kr. Aachen; NRW / D)) and as Mercurius Susurrio (in Aachen (Stadt Aachen; NRW / D)).
There are a few dedications to "Deus Mercurius" which may not really be meant for the Roman god, especially when the dedicant has an indigenous name. But the god’s importance is further demonstrated by a fragment from a temple to Mercurius Augustus, which was built for the well being of the Emperor Titus (79-81AD) by the town council of Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (Cologne), complete with portico, steps and interior decoration.
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Apollo, as a god of healing, follows Mercury in Caesar’s account of Gallic religion. He is known under his purely Roman name in southern Lower Germany, but also as Apollo Dysprus (from Xanten (Kr. Wesel; NRW / D)), Apollo Grannus (i.a. in Bonn) and Apollo Livix (Bonn). Only Apollo Grannus can be securely identified with an indigenous deity, however: a Celtic god of sources and healing. Whilst epigraphic evidence for Apollo Grannus is relatively rare, he appears to have had a major cult centre at Aachen (Stadt Aachen; NRW / D), the spa of the Lower German legions. At least this might be the inference from the town’s early medieval name "aquis Grani", which can be restored into Latin as "Aquae Granni".
A ritual complex found between the Büchel- and Münsterthermen contained at least two Gallo-Roman temples, an architecturally embellished springhead (so called "Quirinusquelle") and a large portico. It was probably dedicated to Apollo Grannus, but a lack of epigraphic evidence, and our still very sparse understanding of Roman Aachen does not allow us to say more.
By comparison with the importance the literary sources assign to Apollo amongst the Celts and Germans, there is relatively little evidence for Mars being equated with indigenous gods. If we exclude mentions of Mars alone, or with Latin epithets such as Mars Militaris or Mars Propugnator, we are left with references to Mars Camullus (Kleve-Rindern (Kr. Kleve; NRW / D) and Xanten), Mars Cicollvis (again Xanten) and Mars Lenus (Blankenheim-Ripsdorf (Kr. Euskirchen; NRW / D)). The latter is a sign of the importance of the god as a Treveran tribal deity. His consequent wider influence is demonstrated by two further flung Mars Lenus sanctuaries: at Martberg bei Pommern (Kr. Cochem-Zell; Rheinland-Pfalz / D) in Upper Germany, and the "Irminenwingert" at Trier (Stadt Trier; Rheinland-Pfalz / D), in Gallia Belgica.
Magusanus, by contrast, was a Lower German god of more than regional importance. Epigraphically, he was usually equated with Hercules, and can be depicted in his classical guise, as in an example from Bonn, where he is accompanied by the hell hound Cerberus. Hercules Magusanus had his cult centre on the Lower Rhine, i.e. northern Lower Germany, but it is not clear if he acted as a god of trade, traffic and work, and a guardian of house, farm and property like the Mediterranean Hercules. Occasional depictions where he could be linked to these roles have been found on the side panels of dedications to Nehalennia: a goddess of bargemen and shippers, who was particularly popular on the coast, but was also venerated by Cologne merchants.
His occurrence on Jupiter column bases (a type of monument that was often built on private ground) fits well with a role as protector. Hercules Deusoniensis, who was named after the place Deuso/Deusone, also gained some importance for a time. He has not yet been identified on inscriptions, but can be found fairly often on the coinage of Postumus (260-269 AD), the first ruler of the Gallic Empire.
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The "Chronicon" of Hieronymus mentions Deuso as being "in regione Francorum" which, in the context of the events the author described, might refer to the Rhine left bank in Lower Germany, or possibly the opposite right bank. It is thus possible, that Hercules Deusoniensis was not the local deity of a Roman provincial settlement, but a god that resettled Germans had imported from their original homes across the Rhine. The main cult site might thus have lain away from a town-like settlement and this has led to the interpretation of a rural sanctuary at Krefeld-Elfrath (Stadt Krefeld; NRW / D) as an important, if not the primary cult centre for him. The argument is based on a small dedication and on a chronological match in which the sanctuary was rebuilt to its most grandiose extent and then completely destroyed at a time that might suggest that it was particularly favoured by Postumus.
In addition to the Romanised gods, further deities are known from Lower Germany, which, like Nehalennia (see above), maintained their purely Celtic and Germanic names into the early Roman period. Certain phonetic changes should not be ruled out, however, as they came under the influence of Latin phonetic and spelling habits on epigraphic dedications. Their areas of responsibility often remain hazy as, for example in a dedication by the Praetorian Prefect at Cologne, or on inscriptions from Kalkar (Kr. Kleve; NRW / D) and Kleve-Rindern, which mention Vagdavercustis, who may be a war goddess, comparable to Virtus: a preserver of military virtues.
Hludana, who occurs i.a. in Bad-Münstereifel-Iversheim (Kr. Euskirchen; NRW / D) and Xanten, may have been a fertility goddess, but little is known about Aveha and Hellevesa, who were worshiped as the Ahuecannae in the Hürth-Gleuel area (Kr. Bergheim; NRW / D). The same could be said about the local god Requalivahanus in Kerpen-Blatzheim (Rhein-Erft-Kr.; NRW / D) or (possibly Celtic) Bacurdus, in Cologne. Dea Sunuxal, who occurs in a few inscriptions in the loess belt and Eifel in southern Lower Germany, seems to have been the tribal goddess of the Sunuci, who settled between the Ubii and Tungri. In Varnenum, modern Aachen-Kornelimünster (Stadt Aachen, NRW / D), a larg(ish) sanctuary served the mother goddess and the local god Varneno. Place names and topographic features often occur as parts of deity names. Dea Ardbinna, for example, is known on an inscription from Hürtengenwald-Gey (Kr. Düren; NRW / D) and is probably identical with Arduinna: the goddess of the Ardennes and Eifel. But the most common occurrence of this habit is the Matrones, and such mother goddesses were more prominent in Lower Germany than in other provinces.
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At least 70 different epithets are known for the Matrones. Amongst these, the Matronae Iulineihiae refers to the settlement of Juliacum/Jülich (Kr. Düren; NRW / D), and the Matrones Nersihenae to the river Niers. Others show clear links to tribal names such as the Matrones Canninefates or the Matrones Marsacae, which denote tribes on the Rhine-Meuse-estuary. Many names, which were once seen as reflecting long vanished place names, might also refer to groups of people. Some, known as Curiae, were probably ritual associations of men, based on extended families, septs or clans, and the fragments of 250-300 dedications, which were later recycled as make-up in a ford, might give some measure of their size. These stones were dedicated by the Curia Austriatinna, a sept of the Austriates, who offered them to the Matrones Austriahenae in their sanctuary near Morken-Harf (Rhein-Erft-Kr.; NRW / D), over a period of 150-200 years. Other examples include the curiae of the Gesationes and Etrates, in Titz-Rödingen and Titz-Höllen-Bettenhoven (Kr. Düren; NRW / D), who honoured the Matrones Gesahenae, and the Matrones Etrahenae respectively. In addition to these clear links with specific groups, some epithets also appear to give characterisations. The name of the Matronae Axsinginehae from Cologne may be Germanic and is likely to mean "giving fertility". The widely known Germanic name Matrones Aufaniae would be "liberal ancestral mothers", and the Audrinehae: "kind fates". The Matrones Alaferhviae, who occur in Eschweiler-Lohn-Fronhoven (Kr. Aachen; NRW / D), Inden-Altdorf (Kr. Düren; NRW / D) and Dormagen (Rhein-Kr. Neuss; NRW / D), by contrast, refer to trees, and may be a clue to the origins of Lower German Matrones worship, which may have derived from a tree cult.
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Further hints to a link with tree cults are provided by altars whose side panels and reverses often show trees: sometimes with earth linked fertility symbols, such as a snake or a bird’s nest, sometimes decorated with garlands, and sometimes growing out of a building/temple complex. Only later (probably the 2nd half of the 2nd century AD), do the first depictions of Matrones in human form occur, even though the earliest dedications date to the 2nd half of the 1st century. Thereafter, the most common images of the Matrones show three seated women.
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A central bare-headed girl is usually flanked by two older women, who wear the characteristic Ubian bonnet. As fertility attributes, they carry ears of grain, flowers and fruit baskets on their laps. Babies, toddlers and small dogs are also known elsewhere, but not in Lower Germany. Fruit tends to dominate the offerings depicted on dedications, which might again link back to trees as the original cult focus. The standardisation of the triad and composition could refer back to a specific cult image in the temple of the Matronae Aufaniae in Bonn, which was built c.160AD, according to a surviving building inscription. The triad might symbolise different ages, or possibly the Mother goddesses’ many responsibilities and universal power.
Apart from the Matrones and the Capitoline triad, regular pairings of different gods are rare in southern Lower Germany, unlike in Germania Superior and Gallia Belgica, where some gods seem to form fixed couples. Even the combination of Jupiter Optimus Maximus and his wife Juno Regina is rare in Germania Inferior, despite being known on several seated statues from Upper German Jupiter columns. In accordance with the theological thought of the time, this tendency towards separating deities did not, of course, preclude the joint veneration of several gods in the same shrine. Moreover, links may have existed between the Matrones and Mercury, for we find the occasional caduceus on Matrones dedications, and numerous dedications to Mercury in Matrones sanctuaries. This link may have been stronger than those between, for example, Hercules and Venus, who occur on the side panels of an altar to the Matrones Aufaniae at Nettersheim (Kr. Euskirchen; NRW / D), but it was still not comparable to that between cult companions in the neighbouring provinces.
Reliefs such as the "Viergöttersteine" (four-god-stones), all of whose sides were covered with images of various deities, should also not be linked to formal cult combinations. These tall rectangular stones usually formed the bases of Jupiter columns: a group of ritual monuments that can be found all over north-east Gaul, but especially in northern Germania Superior, Gallia Belgica and the southern part of Germania Inferior.
The monuments were always dedicated to Jupiter Optimus Maximus and had a standard composition. Above the foundation stood the base already mentioned, which occasionally carried an inscription. It could be undecorated, or covered with reliefs on three or four sides, and all three variants were equally common in Lower Germany. Cylindrical and octagonal base stones are rare, as are examples with only one relief, and the paucity of bases compared to other column parts might also suggest that a number of the study area’s columns lacked bases.
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The majority of surviving bases show standing, rather than seated gods, but the depiction of two on the same panel (e.g. a piece with Jupiter and Ganymede from Jülich (Kr. Düren; NRW / D)) is rare. It is striking that Hercules is almost always present on one of the four sides, but the choice of other deities varies much more. In order of frequency, we find Minerva and Apollo, with Juno and Vulcan joint third. Other gods are rarer or absent, for example Diana, Luna or Victoria, although occasionally, they might be shown on the column shaft or on rectangular pillars that rose above the base. Polygonal interim bases (sometimes called "Wochengötterstein" (stone of the weekday deities)), which are common in Upper Germany and Gallia Belgica, are completely absent in Lower Germany. The column itself, whose plinth sat immediately above the base (or foundations), was usually composed of several stones with a scaled surface pattern. Most were otherwise undecorated, but some carried additional reliefs.
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These usually show further deities, who tend to be depicted one above the other on the three main viewing sides (front, left and right). Decoration of all four sides was quite rare, but where it was done, the related Jupiter pillar form was used. The gods on the viewing sides stood on consoles and were sometimes framed by a concha. Their order was not fixed, but Juno is usually found at the top and Minerva in the middle, with the lowest position the most flexible with, perhaps, Mercury or Mars, Hercules, Fortuna, Victoria etc. A similar hierarchy is also apparent where the columns had reliefs on multiple sides: so Juno was set in close proximity to her husband, Jupiter, whose sculpture crowned the entire monument. His statue base was formed by the column’s capital, which could be of a composite, or a normal Corinthian type in Lower Germany, with figured capitals so far unknown.
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Lower Germany also differed markedly from Upper Germany and Gallia Belgica in its choice of Jupiter sculptures. The majority of the crowning sculptures show Jupiter enthroned, holding lightning in his right hand (which rested in his lap), whilst the left held a separately fitted sceptre, which was originally made of metal. The god was depicted as a mature man, whose naked torso was partially covered by a draped cloak. The construction of the throne can differ in detail and its back can carry further reliefs, such as a globe between two crossed cornucopia, an eagle or, in one case, Hercules. Nevertheless, the majority was probably based on the cult image of Jupiter Capitolinus in Rome, but this might have been at second hand, and their direct inspirations were more probably the capitolia of the various colonia settlements. Despite further artistic liberties, the Lower German Jupiter columns were thus deeply Roman influenced monuments. Other variants were rare generally, and especially in Lower Germany, for example: standing or walking Jupiters, or ones jointly enthroned with Juno. The so-called "Jupiter riding down the giant" motif, which is so common in Upper Germany and Gallia Belgica, is striking here only for its comparative rarity. The origins of this group, with its armoured god riding down a giant, probably derive from a local provincial vision, which may reflect the horseman as victor motif seen in later 1st century AD coins and soldier’s tombstones. This is not the only motif that is absent in southern Lower Germany, however, for the area’s Jupiters also lack attributes such as the wheel (a Celtic symbol for the sun and the sky-god Taranis), although its meaning was basically known. The same can be said about figured capitals with allegories of the seasons and planets.
The clear Celtic influence seen on the Jupiter columns of Upper Germany and Gallia Belgica was thus absent, although it had given Jupiter Optimus Maximus a cosmic-universal connotation, beyond his Mediterranean limitations. There were also some other differences, such as an absence of dedications or altars to accompany the main monument. But, with certain reservations, we are probably still justified in seeing the Lower German Jupiter columns as universal cult images, which united the most important deities for the local population.
If we ignore the oriental cults, which gained importance during the early Roman period, the religious atmosphere of Lower Germany was made up of a mixture of Celtic-Gallic and German ideas, which stressed unique cultural elements. The Roman pantheon was adapted within certain limits, but as the artistic expressions (i.a.) show, they remained to a degree rather truer to their Mediterranean origins than in other parts of Upper Germany and Gaul.
Christian Miks
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