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Vesunna
A Gaulish Goddess: The Noble One
Vesunna is a Gaulish mother goddess known from thre inscriptions found in Germany and France. In one of these she is associated with Roamn Tutela, a goddess of fortune. Thus Versunna would appear to be a goddess of fortune and good luck. |
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Gaul: The Noble One
Vesunna is a goddess known from three inscriptions. The first of these [AE 1981, 670] was found at Cologne, Germany where the Gooddess is invoked along with the Roman deity, Mercury. In Périgeux, Dordogne, France two inscriptions have been found. The first of these, [CIL XIII 00949] invokes the goddess as Vesunnae Tutelae, conflating her by Interpretato Romana with the Roman goddess Tutela (who is the Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess, Tyche, goddess of fortune) whilst the second inscription [CIL XIII 00956] invokes the goddess in the plural as Vesunniae
Thus it would seem that Vesunna was sometimes considered as a multiple (probably triple) goddess. Her name is also etymologically linked to that of the mother goddess Matronis Vesuniahenia and the natre of these deities may well overalp.
Unfortunately, none of Vesunna's attributes have survived. However, her name can be interpreted on the basis of the reconstructed proto-Celtic lexicon as being derived from the components: *wesu- (excellent, noble) and the feminine ending -a. Thus Vesunna is 'The Noble One' and epithet which certainly fits with her later Romanized role as a goddess of fortune.
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