BENDIS. In Greek testimonies, this South Thracian goddess is known variously as Bendis, Béndis, or Mendis. Her name is uncontroversially explained as deriving from Indo-European *bhendh-, "bind." She was probably a goddess of marriage whose function it was to watch over marital bindings.

As early as 429/8 bce, Bendis was the object of a state cult in Athens. In the ceremonies called Bendideia, which took place on the nineteenth or twentieth of the month Thargetion, two processions took place, one composed of the rich and influential Thracians of Piraeus, the other of Athenians. The Bendideion, or temple of Bendis, was situated on the hill Munychia.

The Bendideia, as described in Plato's Republic (327a–c), was spectacular but did not contain any hint of the orgiastic character that is typical of rites performed in worship of a great goddess. Bendis was commonly identified with the Greek Artemis; it is...