Zakoros (Ancient Greek: ζάκορος) was an ancient Greek religious office, denoting an attendant in a temple [1], similar to a neokoros.

According to one source the word was used in two senses. In the first sense, and depending in some part on a translation of the word, the zakoros is understood to have participated in activities within temples, to sweep and clean the temples and also to tend the sacrificial fire. In the second sense is the example of the courtesan of the goddess Aphrodite, named Phryne, who was referred to as a zakoros because of the splendour of her body.[1][2][3]

In another source, Phryne is mentioned again, and this shows the word to be a person who is a cultic official, particularly from the 4th century BC and later, to refer especially to those involved with foreign cults.[4]

Demetrios of Sphettos, who was involved in the buildings catalogued IG II2 3187 and IG II2 3188, and an otherwise unnamed son of Antiochus of Sphettos, are referred to as zakoroi.[5]

References

  1. ^ M. Dillon - Girls and Women in Classical Greek Religion (p.90) Routledge 2 Sep 2003, 448 pages, ISBN 1134365098 [Retrieved 2015-07-13]
  2. ^ E M Craik - The Dorian Aegean Routledge, 1980 ISBN 0710003781 Retrieved 2012-06-09
  3. ^ Martha Feldman, Bonnie Gordon - The Courtesan's Arts: Cross-Cultural Perspectives (p.35) Oxford University Press USA 23 Mar 2006, 396 pages, ISBN 0195170296 [Retrieved 2015-07-13]
  4. ^ Rebecca Kennedy - Immigrant Women in Athens: Gender, Ethnicity, and Citizenship in the Classical City (p.147) Routledge Studies in Ancient History, Routledge 16 Apr 2014, 192 pages, ISBN 1317814703 [Retrieved 2015-07-13]
  5. ^ G.C.R. Schmalz - Augustan and Julio-Claudian Athens: A New Epigraphy and Prosopography Volume 302 of Mnemosyne supplements, History and Archaeology of Classical Antiquity, BRILL 2009, 369 pages, ISBN 900417009X [Retrieved 2015-07-13]
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