Smetrios
By Jimmy Joe
Smetrios or Smetrius was the Gallic god of war. Smetrios was the tutelary deity of the Treveri.
It is possible that Smetrios is not a name of an individual god, but rather that it is a title or epithet used by several Gaulish gods, such as Cernunnos, Esus and Tarvus Trigaranus.
Smetrios was said to be depicted as a bearded god holding a rearing snake in one hand, while the other hand held either a club or a firebrand. Smetrios was identified with the Roman god Mars (Ares) and Hercules (Heracles). He was referred to sometimes as Mars Smetrius.
At Möhn, near Trier, there was a large temple enclosing a sacred spring, sacred to Smetrios and his consort Ancamma, a water goddess. Because of the spring and the meaning of his name, which possibly means “Provider”, Smetrios was believed to be a god of healing springs and a god of plenty.
Outside of Gaul, his name can be found on an invocation at Grossbach, Austria.
