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Sulis
A Brythonic and Gaulish Goddess, also known as Sul, Sulei, Sulla: Provider of Healing waters/She who is Viewed/The Bright One
Sulis (Sul, Sulei, Sulla) is Gaulish and Brythonic godesses (or mother godesses) known primarily from Bath, Englans (originally Aquae Sulis) where 38 inscriptions dedicated to her have been found. She is assciated with Roman Minerva and at Cirencester she is invoked in the plural form, which links her cult to France. Her iconography is that of a slor deity, but she is a healing goddess, associated with hot springs. |
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Gaul, Bryth: Provider of Healing waters/She who is Viewed/The Bright One
Sulis is the great goddess of the Roman baths at Aquae Sulis (Bath) in Avon. Though syncretized by Interpretato Romana with the goddess Minerva as Sulis Minerva she remains the patron deity of the site which bears her name. Indeed, her prominance at this site is attested by the sheer number of inscriptions and artefacts dedicated to this goddess. Thirteen inscriptions on stone are dedicated to Sulis herself with three dedicated to Sulis Minerva. Of the other inscriptions at the shrine/baths (22), most were found on curse tablets with eleven dedicated to Sulis and a further eleven dedicated to Sulis Minerva. Examples of the dedications to her are: G PROTACIVS ... DEAE SVLIS MINERVAE (Gaius Protacius [...] to the goddess Sul Minerva); EAE SVLI MIN ET NVMIN AVG G CVRIATIVS SATVRNINVS C LEG II AVG PRO SE SVISQVE VSLM (To the goddess Sul Minerva and the Spirit of the Emperor, Gaius Curiatius Saturninus, centurion of the Second Augustan Legion, for himself and his [family], willingly and deservedly fulfilled his vow); PRISCVS TOVTI F LAPIDARIVS CIVES CARNVTENVS SVLI DEAE VSLM (Priscus son of Toutus, stonecutter of the Carnutes tribe, to the goddess Sul, willingly and deservedly fulfils his vow) and Q POMPEIVS ANICETVS SVLI (Quintus Pompeius to Sul [and] Anicetus).
Amongst the inscriptions to Sulis/Sul as a singular deity there is also this interesting inscription at Bath SVLEVIS SVLINVS SCVLTOR BRVCETI F SACRVM F L M (To the Sulevi, Sulinus Scultor, son of Brucetus, willingly and deservedly made this sacred offering) that invokes Sulis as a multiple (protable triple) goddess, the Sulevi. This may mean that Sulis figured amongst the mother godesses, the Matres. Indeed, one of the images of Sulis Minerva found at Bath (above, right) bears a hairstyle highly reminiscent of the Xanthen Matres and of Nehalennia. Sulis is also invoked in her multiple aspect at the tribal city of Corinivm Dobvnnorvm (Cirencester, Gloucestershire) with the following dedication: SVLEIS SVLINVS BRVCETI VSLM (To the Sulei, Sulinus Brucetus willingly and deservedly fulfilled his vow). Though often confused with dedications to Sulevia/Suleviae inscriptions to the Sulei have also been discovered at Avenches, Berne, Soleure and Lusanne in Switzerland (all associated with thermal springs/baths) which indicates that the cult of Sulis was not specifically and insular Brythonic one.
At the Roman baths in Bath there once stood a magnificent bronze statue of Sulis Minerva. However this was destroyed in early Christian times and only the head now survives (above left). However, the existance of such a statue attests to the cult importance of Sulis Minerva as does the fact that the baths themselves were dedicated to her. Her importance as a deity is also attested by the sheer numbers of defixiones (curse tablets) found at the baths (at least 130) all dedicated to the goddess. A good example being the famous 'Docilianus Tablet' which states: 'Docilianus...to the most holy goddess Sulis. I curse him who has stolen my hooded cloak, whether man or woman, whether slave or free, that...the goddess Sulis inflict death upon...and not allow him sleep or children now and in the future, until he has brought my hooded cloak to the temple of her divinity'. These tablets also provide us with a further variant on Sul/Sulis' name, Sulla.
By association with healing springs and the healing waters at Bath itself we can be fairly certain that Sulis was considered as a goddess of healing. An inscription found at Bath also links Sulis with the local school of midwives. Thus like the similarly-named triple goddesses,the Suleviae Sul was also probably a goddess of childbirth. Minerva is the Roman equivalend of the Greek goddess Athena and embodies the protection of home and state against external invaders. She was also considered the goddess of city, handcrafts and agriculture and was the embodiment of wisdom, reason and purity (all probable attributes of Sulis). The warrior aspect of Athena/Minerva may be represented by Sulis' powers to witness oaths, catch thieves and find lost objects (as evidenced by the curse tablets found at the baths). These tablets also indicate that Sulis was considered to have the power of retribution and many of the tablets call on Sulis Minerva to punish the guilty party.
Sulis' name has proved complex to interpret, with many possible overlapping meanings. The goddess' name may be related to the reconstructed proto-Celtic word *silīn [to look, to gaze]) and probably forms the basis of the name of the goddess Adsullata (She Who is Gazed Upon) and suggests that Sulis/Sulla's name may also mena something like 'She Who is Viewed', 'Upon whom we Gaze'. The name could also be composed of the components *su- (good, very) and lījant- (flood, sea) giving a meaning of 'The Good Flooder' with a mythological meaning something like 'Provider of Beneficial [healing] Waters'. Sulis' name may also be related to the proto-Celtic word *sƒwol-/*s3il- ('sun', from which the Old Irish súil [eye] and the Cymric haul are derived); suggesting an interpretation of 'The Bright One'. This sun association may be why Aqua Sulis was also associated with the radiate-haired Medusa-like image of a Celtic solar deity.
If you would like to try the foods of the time of the ancient Celts, then why not have a look at the ancient recipes section of this site. For the foods of the time when some of these tales were written down, take a look at the Medieval recipes section of the site and, in particular, the recipes from The Forme of Cury.
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