Ethnographical Memoir on the Nations of Slavonian Race. 59 



Tschernebogc:" all these words have only dialectic dififerences, and mean the 

 black or the evil god. Masch supposes, however, that Tschernebogc was 

 not a proper name, but a designation of character, as Velibogc, or good 

 divinity, seems to be, in the statue of Radegast, He thinks that Pya is 

 the proper name of this idol j his figure represents an enraged lion, and on 

 the middle of his back is seen legibly the name Tschernebogc. On the 

 right side is Rhetra, and on the left Pya, in Runic characters. 



The images above described, are the most remarkable that were found 

 in the collection of sacred paraphernalia, disinterred by parson Spon- 

 holtz, at the lake of Tollentz; and they happen to be specimens or re- 

 presentations of all the principal gods which are described by the German 

 historians, as worshipped by the Obotrites. We must not, however, con- 

 sider these as exactly constituting the pantheon of all the Slavonic nations. 

 So rude a system of superstition, and one referable to no general principles, 

 was likely to vary, according to the caprice of particular tribes, and under 

 particular contingencies. The favourite object of worship in one district, 

 was in another subject to a different tutelary deemon of the place. The 

 divinities of neighbouring nations were sometimes blended with the indi- 

 genous gods of the Wends, or Slavi. Perhaps this was the case at Rhetra, 

 where Masch supposes that the Wends of that city, being intermixed with 

 old Vandals and other tribes, adopted some of the gods belonging to that 

 people, and some from the Prussians. He even conjectures that Radegast 

 was an intruder in the calendar of the Slavi, and was originally a deity, or 

 warrior of the Vandals. In this, I am disposed to believe him mistaken, 

 because Radegast was worshipped by many other Wendish tribes besides 

 the Obotrites. The following is an enumeration of the gods who held the 

 highest rank among different Slavonian tribes. The Wends of Prussia, 

 according to Hartknoch, held Purcunust,* Picollo, or Potrimpi, for 

 principal divinities. The Sorabians, or AVends of Lausitz, (Lusatia) as- 

 signed tiie first place to Zwantewith and Radegast. t The Moravians 

 worshipped Peron or Pierun, Radgost or Radegast, Witislaw and the 

 Krasopani.; The Bohemians, Peron, together with Swantewit;§ the 

 Poles had nearly the same gods. According to the opinion of Alexander 

 Guagnuini,|| they worshipped the sun, which was the Svvantewit, or the 

 sacred light of other Wendish nations ; the moon ; tempest, which they 

 termed I'ogwistj Jupiter was termed by them, Jessa ; Pluto, Lacton j 

 Ceres, Niaj Venus, Marzana ; Diana, Zievoniaj Castor and Pollux, Lelus 

 and Pofetus. John Doglossus further adds, that Mars was called Ladu; 



• Hartknoch. Diss— Masch ubi supra. 



t Abr. Frenzel de Diis Soraborum in Gottfr. Hoffmanns Scriptorum Lusat. 

 Goslur. 1719. 



J J. G. Strcdowski, Sacra Moraviae Historiae, Solislar, 1710. 

 § Paul Stranaky, Resp. Bohem. Lugd. Bat. 1634. 

 II nescriptio Sarmat. Europ. 1581. 



