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Dionysus, Bakkha, and Nike
Dionysus,
also known by the Roman name Bacchus, is not only a god but an object of
frenzied worship. His followers are Bacchae, mortal women who, according to the
Greek dramatist Euripides in his tragedy The Bacchae, "run in sweet pain
and lovely weariness with ecstatic Bacchic cries in the wake of the roaring
god, Dionysus." Their male counterparts are satyrs, whose favorite sport is to
chase Bacchae through the woods. Both enjoy Bacchanalian feasts. Here, Dionysus
stands in a cart pulled by two panthers directed by Nike, the god of victory; a
dancing Bakkha leads the way.
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