#argimpasa

Silver plate showing topless Scythian goddess unearthed in Russia

The circle of the mirror, divided into eight equal segments, with a rosette in the middle, represents the model of the Universe, semantically equal to the Tree of Life, and probably implying some complex astronomical and astrological notions; the surface is covered with eight scenes, seven of them portraying fantastic demons, animals, and semi-bestial men, ostensibly dominated by a winged goddess holding two panthers in her widely stretched hands. This is Potnia Theron, who in the Kuban context was most likely associated with Argimpasa-Aphrodite.

In post-Achaemenian Iran Anahita was intimately connected with kingship. The rock reliefs at Naqsh-i-Rustam and Taq-I-Bostan depict the investiture of the Sassanian kings by Anahita. On a number of objects of art from Central Asia Anahita is represented holding a flower or pomegranate in one hand and an (investiture) crown in the other. Thus, Anahita of Persia, like Argimpasa of the Scythians and Aphrodite Ourania of the Bosporan kingdom, was worshiped as the divine patroness of the king, a giver of the royal power.

Iranians worshiped Anahita, the patroness of husbandry and fertility, the mistress of celestial waters. The permanent triple title of the goddess in the Avesta, Aredvi Sura Anahita, the Humid, Strong, and Immaculate, signifies her synthetic nature. The goddess was multivalent, representing three functions: sovereignty (the Strong), priestly force (the Pure), and fecundity (the Humid.) All these functions are present in the figure of Argimpasa.

the Enareës or "man-women" say that Aphrodite gave them the gift of divination, and they divine accordingly with the bark of the linden-tree. Having divided the linden-bark into three strips, the man twists them together in his fingers and untwists them again, and as he does this he utters the oracle.  When the king of the Scythians is sick, he sends for three of the diviners, namely those who are most in repute, who divine in the manner which has been said: and these say for the most part something like this, namely that so and so has sworn falsely by the hearth of the king, and they name one of the citizens, whosoever it may happen to be: now it is the prevailing custom of the Scythians to swear by the hearth of the king at the times when they desire to swear the most solemn oath. He then who they say has sworn falsely, is brought forthwith held fast on both sides; and when he has come the diviners charge him with this, that he is shown by their divination to have sworn falsely by the hearth of the king, and that for this reason the king is suffering pain: and he denies and says that he did not swear falsely, and complains indignantly: and when he denies it, the king sends for other diviners twice as many in number, and if these also by looking into their divination pronounce him guilty of having sworn falsely, at once they cut off the man's head, and the diviners who came first part his goods among them by lot; but if the diviners who came in afterwards acquit him, other diviners come in, and again others after them. If then the greater number acquit the man, the sentence is that the first diviners shall themselves be put to death.