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Vintonus
A Brythonic god: The Enclosing One
Vinotonus is a Brythonic god known from four inscriptions found near Bowes, England. In two of these he is associated with Roman Silvanus and he would seem to be a protective deity of herds and flocks. |
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Bryth: The Enclosing One
Vinotonus is a god known from four inscriptions found at different sites in or near Bowes, County Durham, England. The first of these [RIB 732] comes from an altarstone found at a Romano-British Temple, Scargill Moor, Bowes and reads DEO VINOTONO SILVANO IVL SECVNDVS > COH I THRAC V S L L M (For the god Vinotonus Silvanus, Julius Secundus, centurion in the First Cohort of Thracians, willingly, gladly and deservedly fulfilling his vow). The second inscription [RIB 733] comes from a second altarstone from the same temple and reads DEO VINOTONO L CAESIVS FRONTINVS PRAEF COH I THRAC DOM PARMA V S L L M (To the god Vinotonus, Lucius Caesius Frontinus, prefect of the First Cohort of Thracians, from Parma, willingly, gladly and deservedly fulfills his vow). The third inscription [RIB 737] comes from a fragmentary altarstone now held in Bowes museum and reads DEO VINOTONO .... The fourth and final inscription comes from the Scargill Moor Temple [RIB 733.A; Britannia XIX (1988), 491) and reads DEO VINOTONO SILVANO AVG T ORBIVS PRIMIANVS PRAEF [COH I THRAC] (To the great god Vintonus Silvanus Titus Orvius First Prefect of the First Cohort of Thracians [Willingly and Deservedly Fulfils his Vow]).
No depictions of Vinotonus survive, however the god's equating with Roman Silvanus by Interpretato Romana is interesting as Silvanus was originally a woodland deiy (though he later became an agrarian deity with a fertility aspect in respect to his responisbility for flocks and herds). Vinotonus' name can also be interpreted on the basis of the reconstructed proto-Celtic lexicon as being derived from the elements: *wi-na (bend, enclosure), *ten-e/o (strech out) as well as the Latinized masculine ending -us thus Vinotonus is 'He who Streches out the Enclosure' which can be expressed more poetically as: 'The Enclosing One'. This would fit-in with Silvanus' role as the protector of herds and flocks.
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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