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Priapus
Priapus EuropeA god of fertility, originally worshipped by the Greek colonists at Lampsacus in Asia Minor. He is usually portrayed as a humorous gnome-like figure with an enormous, erect phallus. His cult spread to Greece after the death of Alexander in 323 BC, then to Italy. An excavated snack bar at Herculaneum has as its advertisement a Priapus boldly painted behind the counter for passers-by to see. As the fertility god was believed to be effective against the evil eye, the proprietor obviously intended this to bring his customers good luck.
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