batch.motif.greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg-l3059-l3071
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg-l3059-l3071
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
passage_locator:
label: ARTEMIS (DIANA). / ARCADIAN ARTEMIS. / EPHESIAN ARTEMIS. / BRAURONIAN ARTEMIS.;
lines 3059-3071
start: '3059'
end: '3071'
translation: Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Fugitives obtain the image of the Taurian Artemis and bring it to Brauron,
where the goddess becomes known as Brauronian Artemis. The passage says Taurian
rites involving human sacrifice were introduced into Greece, practiced in Athens
and Sparta, and later ended by Lycurgus, who substituted the scourging of youths
at the goddess's altars; some youths died, and their mothers were said to regard
such deaths as honorable.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Fugitives obtained the image of the Taurian Artemis and carried it to Brauron
in Attica.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The divinity was thereafter known as the Brauronian Artemis.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Rites associated with Taurica were described as being introduced into Greece.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Human victims were sacrificed under a sacrificial knife in Athens and Sparta.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: Lycurgus ended the offering of human sacrifices to the Brauronian Artemis.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Lycurgus substituted the scourging of youths on the altars of the Brauronian
Artemis.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: Some youths died under the lash.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The mothers of youths who died were said to rejoice and consider the death
honorable for their sons.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Fugitives
description: Unspecified fugitives who obtain the image of the Taurian Artemis and
carry it to Brauron.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Taurian Artemis / Brauronian Artemis
description: A divinity whose image is brought from Taurica to Brauron and who is
thereafter known as the Brauronian Artemis.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Human victims
description: Victims sacrificed to the Brauronian Artemis in Athens and Sparta.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Lycurgus
description: The great Spartan lawgiver who puts an end to human sacrifice and substitutes
scourging of youths.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Youths
description: Young men scourged on the altars of the Brauronian Artemis, with some
dying under the lash.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Mothers
description: Mothers of youths who died under the lash, said to rejoice and regard
the deaths as honorable.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
roles:
- id: role:1
label: Bearers of cult image
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: They obtain the image of Taurian Artemis and carry it to Brauron.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: Recipient divinity of rites and sacrifices
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The passage describes worship, sacrifices, and scourging connected with the
Brauronian Artemis.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:3
label: Sacrificial victims
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: They are described as bleeding under the sacrificial knife.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: Lawgiver and ritual reformer
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Lycurgus ends human sacrifice and replaces it with scourging.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: Substitute ritual sufferers
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Youths are whipped on the goddess's altars, sometimes fatally.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:6
label: Approving kin of dead youths
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Their mothers are said to rejoice and regard their sons' deaths as honorable.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: Cult image of Artemis
literal_form: image of the Taurian Artemis
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: Sacrificial knife
literal_form: sacrificial knife
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: Altars of Brauronian Artemis
literal_form: altars of the Brauronian Artemis
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:4
label: Lash used in scourging
literal_form: lash
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Transfer of Artemis image to Brauron
summary: Fugitives obtain the image of the Taurian Artemis and carry it to Brauron
in Attica, where the divinity is known as Brauronian Artemis.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Introduction of human sacrifice in Greece
summary: Rites associated with Taurica are introduced into Greece, and human victims
are sacrificed in Athens and Sparta.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Lycurgus substitutes scourging for sacrifice
summary: Lycurgus ends human sacrifice and substitutes the whipping of youths on
the altars of the Brauronian Artemis.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Mothers honor deaths under the lash
summary: When youths die from scourging, their mothers are said to rejoice and consider
the deaths honorable.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Human sacrifice to a goddess
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage explicitly describes human victims offered to the Brauronian
Artemis under a sacrificial knife.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The account is from a later handbook and should not be treated as direct
ritual evidence without review.
- id: motif:2
label: Ritual substitution of nonlethal or less direct ordeal for human sacrifice
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: Lycurgus is said to end human sacrifice and replace it with scourging of
youths at the goddess's altars.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The substituted rite is described as sometimes fatal, so the replacement
is not simply nonviolent.
- id: motif:3
label: Transported divine image establishes a local cult form
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The image of the Taurian Artemis is carried to Brauron, after which the divinity
is known as Brauronian Artemis.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage does not detail the circumstances of obtaining the image beyond
saying the fugitives contrived to obtain it.
- id: motif:4
label: Honorable death in ritual suffering
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage says mothers rejoiced when sons died under the lash, considering
it an honorable death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The claim is reported indirectly as something the mothers are said to
have done.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 3059-3062
quote_or_summary: Fugitives obtain the image of the Taurian Artemis, carry it to
Brauron in Attica, and the divinity is thereafter called Brauronian Artemis.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 3062-3065
quote_or_summary: Rites associated with Taurica are introduced into Greece, and
human victims bleed under the sacrificial knife in Athens and Sparta.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 3065-3069
quote_or_summary: Lycurgus, described as the great Spartan lawgiver, ends human
sacrifices and substitutes scourging of youths on the altars of the Brauronian
Artemis.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 3069-3071
quote_or_summary: Some youths expire under the lash, and their mothers are said
to rejoice, considering the deaths honorable for their sons.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short summary generated from supplied passage.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The passage is explicit about the sequence of image transfer, sacrifice,
and ritual substitution. Motif labeling is limited to the supplied taxonomy and
passage wording. No external comparisons are added.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Used only the supplied passage and metadata; no external historical or mythographic details were added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg__l3059-l3071
passage_sha256=7b3afa2d4cf90dff5998bbc6f92434d47193fc0f6fd19828e43118c9524403e5