[96], Gradivus was one of the gods by whom a general or soldiers might swear an oath to be valorous in battle. World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 16 Jan 2014. No temple was built at the altar, but from 193 BCE a covered walkway connected it to the Porta Fontinalis, near the office and archives of the Roman censors. AsMars Gradivus, or Marching Mars, the deity was revered for his a presence on the battlefield. In her earliest forms, the cat goddess Bastet was represented as a woman with the head of a lion or a wild cat. Mars: In Roman mythology, Mars was the deity of aggressive wars. [65], The main Temple of Mars (Aedes Martis) in the Republican period also lay outside the sacred boundary[where?] Mars is considered more level-headed than the impulsive and disruptive Ares. Thames and Hudson Ltd. 1997, Duncan Fishwick, "Imperial Cult in Britain,", A Saint Medocus is recorded in the early 16th century as the. Sound asleep, Rhea Silvia dreamed that she planted seeds that grew into two trees. Finally, there was the Armilustrium festival on the 19th of October, held on the Aventine and which involved the purification of weapons before they were stored away for the winter. In this painting from the 17th century, Swedish artist David Klcker Ehrenstrahl depicts Mars and Minerva in a lover's quarrel. Commissioned by Octavian and completed in 42 BC, the Temple of Mars Ultor celebrated the gods role in the Battle of Philippi, which saw Octavian crush Julius Caesar's assassins. The general shouted 'Mars vigilia' and, no doubt, asked for a swift and easy victory. Mars. Mythopedia, 29 Nov. 2022. https://mythopedia.com/topics/mars. Jupiter had usurped the accepted function of women as mothers when he gave birth to Minerva directly from his forehead (or mind). [44] The bird of Mars also guarded a woodland herb (paeonia) used for treatment of the digestive or female reproductive systems; those who sought to harvest it were advised to do so by night, lest the woodpecker jab out their eyes. Preserved in the rocks & sand bars. All of these powers fell to Rome in the early centuries BCE. To study the mystery of life's early history Solar System Local Interstellar Cloud Local Bubble Gould Belt Orion Arm Milky Way Milky Way subgroup Local Group Local Sheet Virgo Supercluster Laniakea Supercluster KBC Void Observable universe UniverseEach arrow () may be read as "within" or "part of". Set had a positive role where he accompanies Ra on his barque to repel Apep, the serpent of Chaos. Photo Credit: Doctor Who: The Pyramids of Mars The famous Egyptian god of destruction has a complicated place in Egyptian mythology. Mars's pursuit of Minerva ultimately backfired when the god of war found himself in an unwanted marriage. In the early days of the Roman state, Mars was regarded as a kind of second in command to Jupiter and occupied a formal spot in the Archaic Triad (of Mars, Jupiter, and Quirinus), which was thought to oversee Roman prosperity. The Greeks portrayed him as hateful and murderous, yet a coward, as shown in Homer's Illiad. One tradition holds that Horus lost his left eye fighting with Seth, but his eye was magically healed by the god Thoth. Bronze horse-hooves were found in one sanctuary. "[43] As the beak of the picus Martius contained the god's power to ward off harm, it was carried as a magic charm to prevent bee stings and leech bites. Figures Of Egyptian Mythology That Would Be Great For A God Of War Game Ancient.eu/Egyptian-gods-Mars-Horus/ The first archetype of Mars is Horus. The Romans thought that this altar had been established by the semi-legendary Numa Pompilius, the peace-loving successor of Romulus. The other two members of the triad were Ptahs wife, the lion-headed goddess Sekhmet, and the god Nefertem, who may have been the couples son. As Bastet, Maahes was often depicted as a lion-headed man. Books The story is re-told in Ovid's Fasti and begins with Mars falling in love with no less a figure than Minerva, but the virgin goddess of wisdom and crafts, wholly unimpressed, rejected his amorous advances. Other bronzes at the sites represent the heads or horns of bulls, but the bones in the ash layers indicate that sheep, goats, and pigs were the sacrificial victims. As represented by Ammianus, Julian swore never to make sacrifice to Mars againa vow kept with his death a month later. [9] The Hebrews named it Ma'adim () "the one who blushes"; this is where one of the largest canyons on Mars, the Ma'adim Vallis, gets its name. Please note that some of these recommendations are listed under our old name, Ancient History Encyclopedia. Mercury ( / mrkjri /; Latin: Mercurius [mrkrijs] ( listen)) is a major god in Roman religion and mythology, being one of the 12 Dii Consentes within the ancient Roman pantheon. Web. Mars (mythology) - Wikipedia The word Mrs (genitive Mrtis),[10] which in Old Latin and poetic usage also appears as Mvors (Mvortis),[11] is cognate with Oscan Mmers (Mmertos). According to the Osiris myth, Horus was the son of Isis and Osiris, magically conceived after the murder of Osiris by his brother Seth. The character and dignity of Mars differed in fundamental ways from that of his Greek counterpart, who is often treated with contempt and revulsion in Greek literature. List of Gods and Goddesses From Antiquity Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, UK. [118] Women were explicitly excluded from some cult practices of Silvanus, but not necessarily of Mars. [130] An inscription from the 2nd century records a vow to offer Mars Ultor a bull with gilded horns. His consorts included Bellona and Nerio, both goddesses of war associated with important cults in early Rome. No doubt the winner of the race won great honour and favour amongst the public, but the fate of one of the horses of the winning team was less fortunate, for the animal was sacrificed with the head becoming a much sought-after prize by the local residents. One of several deities associated with the sun, the god Re was usually represented with a human body and the head of a hawk. [72], The Campus Martius continued to provide venues for equestrian events such as chariot racing during the Imperial period, but under the first emperor Augustus it underwent a major program of urban renewal, marked by monumental architecture. and was devoted to the god's warrior aspect. Where Mars inspired manly courage and bloodlust in battle, Minerva inspired the tactical and strategic thought necessary to conquer powerful Mediterranean powers such as Carthage, Macedonia, and Epirus. . Although I could not decipher their meaning, it was impossible for me to think of them as having been entirely accidental. [124], The Temple of Mars Ultor, dedicated in 2 BCE in the center of the Forum of Augustus, gave the god a new place of honor. The Egyptians were the first to notice that the stars seem "fixed" and that the sun moves relative to the stars. Invocations of deities are often list-like, without connecting words, and the phrase should perhaps be understood as "Mars and Silvanus". Discovery of the occulations of the stars and planets by the dark side of the half-moon. [citation needed], The two most distinctive animal sacrifices made to Mars were the suovetaurilia, a triple offering of a pig (sus), ram (ovis) and bull (taurus),[60] and the October Horse, the only horse sacrifice known to have been carried out in ancient Rome and a rare instance of a victim the Romans considered inedible. Little is known of his original character, and that character (chiefly from the cult at Rome) is variously interpreted. It is a stylized representation of a shield and spear used by the Roman God Mars. Thank you! [34] As an agricultural guardian, he directs his energies toward creating conditions that allow crops to grow, which may include warding off hostile forces of nature. Though the meaning of the name Mars remains somewhat elusive, the name itself was clearly adapted from the names of a pair of Italian deities. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. He also symbolized death, resurrection, and the cycle of Nile floods that Egypt relied on for agricultural fertility. Last modified January 16, 2014. The early Romans revered Mars as a great raging god, whose fury inspired the savagery of warfare and produced the stunning accomplishments of the Roman arms. The observer there is a careful, reliable man and there is no reason to doubt that the light existed. He had Timor and Metus, gods of fear and abject terror. That was all. Mars children through these affairs were many. After Aeneas and his band of refugees arrived on Italian shores, he established a community that eventually came to be known as the kingdom of Alba Longa. Both priesthoods extend to the earliest periods of Roman history, and patrician birth was required. There was the feriae Marti festival, held on the 1st of March (the old New Year's Day), the second Equirria on the 14th, the agonium Martiale on the 17th, the Quinquatrus on the 19th (in later times Minerva would assume Mars' role), and the Tubilustrium on the 23rd of March (and again on the 23rd of May). In the Ptolemaic period she came to be associated with the Greek goddess Artemis, the divine hunter and goddess of the moon. 2022 Wasai LLC. [31], The uniting of deities representing Love and War lent itself to allegory, especially since the lovers were the parents of Concordia. In the Greco-Roman period she was identified with the Greek goddess Aphrodite and her cult spread as far west as Great Britain and as far east as Afghanistan. Mars's festivals at Rome occurred in the spring and the fallthe . In Greek myth, the adultery of Ares and Aphrodite had been exposed to ridicule when her husband Hephaestus (whose Roman equivalent was Vulcan) caught them in the act by means of a magical snare. Schiaparelli's "canali" observations combined with Percival Lowell's books on the subject put forward the standard notion of a planet that was a drying, cooling, dying world with ancient civilizations constructing irrigation works.[17]. Mars was accorded the respect owed to a deity of his high office. They called Mars Har Decher - the Red One. In the section of his farming book that offers recipes and medical preparations, Cato describes a votum to promote the health of cattle: Make an offering to Mars Silvanus in the forest (in silva) during the daytime for each head of cattle: 3 pounds of meal, 4 pounds of bacon, 4 pounds of meat, and 3 pints of wine. He then laid the trap by placing the net over his bed. After the rulers of Thebes rebelled against a dynasty of foreign rulers known as the Hyksos and reestablished native Egyptian rule throughout Egypt, Amon received credit for their victory. His weapon was the spear, which would be wrapped in a laurel to symbolize peace. These rites may also have been connected to agriculture but the nature of Mars' role in this area of Roman life is disputed by scholars. [59] Mars did receive oxen under a few of his cult titles, such as Mars Grabovius, but the usual offering was the bull, singly, in multiples, or in combination with other animals. Initially, the Roman god of fertility and vegetation and a protector of cattle, fields and boundaries, Mars later became associated with battle and identified with the Greek god Ares. This practice continued alongside the temple cult of Sekhmet into Roman times, long after Venus had lost most of its tail in encounters with Earth and Mars, and had circularized its orbit so that it no longer approached Earth. Putting her plan into motion, Anna disguised herself as Minerva and offered her hand in marriage to Mars, who eagerly accepted. On the relation of Mars's warrior aspect to his agricultural functions with respect to Dumzil's, The myth of the she-wolf, and the birth of the twins with Mars as their father, is a long and complex tradition that weaves together multiple stories about the founding of Rome. Though Vulcan was enraged, he did not act immediately. The twins eventually came to rest at a spot that would become Rome and were nursed back to health by a she-wolf. [7] Mars's altar in the Campus Martius, the area of Rome that took its name from him, was supposed to have been dedicated by Numa, the peace-loving semi-legendary second king of Rome; in Republican times it was a focus of electoral activities. When she awoke, Rhea Silvia discovered that she was pregnant with twins, who would come to be known as Remus and Romulus. He was usually represented as a jackal or as a man with the head of a jackal. In Ovid's version of Mars' origin, he was the son of Juno alone. In this last festival, departing armies were ritualistically cleansed for their upcoming battles. Mars was known by many epithets, each representing one of his many personas. Romans also called himMars Ultor, meaning Mars the Avenger. Minerva rebuked his advances, sending Mars to seek the help of Anna Perenna, a goddess of time. Unlike his Roman counterpart, Mars, he was never very popular, and his worship was not extensive in Greece. Most of his festivals were held in March, the month named for him (Latin Martius), and in October, which began the season for military campaigning and ended the season for farming. A figure of primal masculinity, Mars was desired by many. It housed a colossal statue of Mars and a nude Venus. During its time on Mars, the rover snapped a selfie and captured images of the Martian surface . [2] Whether the Greeks equated Nergal with their god of war, Ares, or whether both drew from a more ancient association is unclear. Cite This Work (1) Prediction of eclipses. [19], Tesla's theories gained support from Lord Kelvin who, while visiting the United States in 1902, was reported to have said that he thought Tesla had picked up Martian signals being sent to the United States. Privacy Policy, https://www.theoi.com/Text/OvidFasti1.html. Mars has survived in the popular lexicon thanks to the various cultural elements that bear his name. [81], The spear is the instrument of Mars in the same way that Jupiter wields the lightning bolt, Neptune the trident, and Saturn the scythe or sickle. The story (coming again from OvidsFasti) began with Mars falling in love with Minerva, the goddess of both wisdom and the Roman state, who steadfastly maintained her virginity. In this guise, Mars is presented as the dignified ancestor of the Roman people. In the most ancient Roman calendar, Martius was the first month. The origins of Isis are obscure. [15] Mars in Roman mythology was the God of War and patron of warriors. From 217 BCE onward, Mars was among the gods honored at the lectisternium, a banquet given for deities who were present as images. An inscription in the Alps records the gratitude of a slave who dedicated a statue to Mars Augustus as conservator corporis sui, the preserver of his own body, said to have been vowed ex iussu numinis ipsius, "by the order of the numen himself". Ares was the Greek god of war. Figures Of Egyptian Mythology That Would Be Great For A God Of War Game [79], Particularly in works of art influenced by the Greek tradition, Mars may be portrayed in a manner that resembles Ares, youthful, beardless, and often nude. Brother of Artemis/Diana, shared by Romans and Greeks alike. In his workshop, Vulcan crafted a net of material so fine that it could not be seen with the naked eye. His wife, Isis, reassembled his body and resurrected him, allowing them to conceive a son, the god Horus. He was represented as a mummified king, wearing wrappings that left only the green skin of his hands and face exposed. Venus, Mars, and Cupid (c. 1630) by Peter Paul Rubens. Cartwright, M. (2014, January 16). World History Publishing is a non-profit company registered in the United Kingdom. This was but one way in which the gods were used for political ends. Before rising to national importance in the New Kingdom (c. 15391292 BCE), the god Amon was worshipped locally in the southern city of Thebes. [16] occupies Unicode position U+2642. When the executioner set about the task, he took pity on the twins and sent them down the Tiber River in a basket. According to the Osiris myth, Anubis embalmed and wrapped the body of the murdered king, becoming the patron god for embalmers. Maahes (or "Miysis" according to the centuries) was the god of war of ancient Egypt. Related Content Generals and soldiers alike swore oaths toMars Gradivus, promising to fight furiously in his name. Venus. Apollo. [5] The planet is called Angaraka in Sanskrit,[6] after the celibate god of war who possesses the signs of Aries and Scorpio, and teaches the occult sciences. The Babylonians called Mars Nergal - the great hero, the king of conflicts. [27], Nerio probably originates as a divine personification of Mars's power, as such abstractions in Latin are generally feminine. It appears that Mars was originally a thunderer or storm deity, which explains some of his mixed traits in regards to fertility. According to the story (told by Ovid in theFasti), Juno resented the fact that Jupiter had given birth to Minerva without the need of a mother. Unlike Ares, who was viewed primarily as a destructive and destabilizing force, Mars represented military power as a way to secure peace, and was a father (pater) of the Roman people. [3], In the Skanda Purana, a Hindu religious text, Mars is known as the deity Mangala () and was born from the sweat of Shiva. Minerva - Mythopedia In a form merged with the sun god Re, he became the most powerful deity in Egypt, a position he retained for most of the New Kingdom. A humble Egyptian would implore Sekhmet to protect his health, his family, his crops, and so on. 11 Egyptian Gods and Goddesses | Britannica Special interests include art, architecture, and discovering the ideas that all civilizations share. Many scholars now believe that no such animal ever existed and that the Seth animal is some sort of mythical composite. Mars | Myths and Folklore Wiki | Fandom Anubis was concerned with funerary practices and the care of the dead. He wears a military cloak (paludamentum) and a cuirass ornamented with a gorgoneion. In Egypt, the "sun-gods" Re, Horns, Osiris, Amen, and Ptah all take the form of a horned godthe mighty "bull.". From at least the time of Homerwho established him as the son of the chief god, Zeus, and Hera, his consortAres was one of the . The goose was considered a bellicose animal because it is easily provoked to aggression. Learn more about our mission. He was believed to have invented language and the hieroglyphic script and to serve as a scribe and adviser for the gods. The Romans bestowed his name upon the fourth planet from the sunMars. [35], The priesthood of the Arval Brothers called on Mars to drive off "rust" (lues), with its double meaning of wheat fungus and the red oxides that affect metal, a threat to both iron farm implements and weaponry. [18] This role was later taken in the Roman pantheon by several other gods, such as Summanus or Jupiter. Over time one of the trees grew so large that it covered the entire world with its shade, a reference to the ultimate success of Romulus and the growth of the huge Roman Empire. Wolf Gods and Goddesses: Leto, Artemis, Mars, the Morrighan & More Were building the worlds most authoritative, online mythology resource, with engaging, accessible content that is both educational and compelling to read. In Irish (Gaelic), the day is An Mhirt, while in Albanian it is e Marta. Mars importance to the Roman people was embedded in the mythic history of Rome and the origins of the Roman state. In addition to the festivals where Mars was the central deity, he was also involved with ceremonies relating to the ancient triad of gods which included himself, Jupiter, and Quirinus. This symbol is also used in biology to describe the male sex, and in alchemy to symbolise the element iron which was considered to be dominated by Mars whose characteristic red colour is coincidentally due to iron oxide. Mars controlled war and the passions that fueled it. According to mytho-historical accounts of the founding of Rome, Mars was the father of the twins Romulus and Remus. His helmet is a plumed neo-Attic-type. [52], Mars's association with the wolf is familiar from what may be the most famous of Roman myths, the story of how a she-wolf (lupa) suckled his infant sons when they were exposed by order of King Amulius, who feared them because he had usurped the throne from their grandfather, Numitor. Romulus and Remus, Mars and Quirinus. Mars in Roman mythology was the God of War and patron of warriors. Kailas for 14.4 years and released into a holding obit for 15.6 years. What started it all, writes historian Karl Dannenfelt, was a . In some traditions, she would welcome the setting sun every night; living people hoped to be welcomed into the afterlife in the same way. In a separate tradition, Mars married Anna Perenna, the goddess of time and the changing of years. He represented the distasteful aspects of brutal warfare and slaughter. Greek and Roman mythology tells of the god of war, the son of Zeus and Hera, who was despised by his parents. The honorific marks the affiliation of a deity with Imperial cult. Asteroid 99942 Apophis is a near-Earth object (NEO) estimated to be about 1,100 feet (340 meters) across. . Ptah was the head of a triad of gods worshipped at Memphis. An ancient gem in Pharaoh Tutankhamun's adornments is thought to have been created by a blast more powerful than modern atomic bombs.". [50] The Umbrian cognate peiqu also means "woodpecker," and the Italic Picenes were supposed to have derived their name from the picus who served as their guide animal during a ritual migration (ver sacrum) undertaken as a rite of Mars. Over the course of Egyptian history hundreds of gods and goddesses were worshipped. [98] His cult title is most often taken to mean "the Strider" or "the Marching God," from gradus, "step, march. Along with her sister Nephthys, Isis acted as a divine mourner, and her maternal care was often depicted as extending to the dead in the underworld. This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. [37] In his book on farming, Cato invokes Mars Silvanus for a ritual to be carried out in silva, in the woods, an uncultivated place that if not held within bounds can threaten to overtake the fields needed for crops. Vulcan then assembled the gods to witness the scene, and together they mocked the naked lovers. Horus was raised to avenge his fathers murder. Apollo | Facts, Symbols, Powers, & Myths | Britannica Family portraits of Mars, Venus, and Cupid were common in western art. [78], On the Altar of Peace (Ara Pacis), built in the last years of the 1st century BCE, Mars is a mature man with a "handsome, classicizing" face, and a short curly beard and moustache. Convinced of its power, she then used the flower on herself and conceived Mars. Some scenes may imply marriage,[30] and the relationship was romanticized in funerary or domestic art in which husbands and wives had themselves portrayed as the passionate divine couple. [48] It was one of the most important birds in Roman and Italic augury, the practice of reading the will of the gods through watching the sky for signs. Ares | God, Myths, Siblings, Family, & Facts | Britannica While Anna Perenna outwardly agreed to help Mars win the affections of Minerva, she secretly plotted to make the comely god of war her own. The date of the temple's dedication on May 12 was aligned with the heliacal setting of the constellation Scorpio, the sign of war. The Indo-European character of this prayer is discussed by, Celia E. Schultz, "Juno Sospita and Roman Insecurity in the Social War," in, Harry Sidebottom, "International Relations," in, A.E. You can recognise Mars or Ares by his armour and weapons - usually a spear and a shield - and the god is sometimes accompanied by a boar or a vulture. The English word Tuesday derives from Old English "Tiwesdg" and means "Tiw's Day", Tiw being the Old English form of the Proto-Germanic war god *Twaz, or Tr in Norse. [62] According to Roman tradition, the Campus Martius had been consecrated to Mars by their ancestors to serve as horse pasturage and an equestrian training ground for youths. All Rights Reserved. [citation needed], Mars was also honored by chariot races at the Robigalia and Consualia, though these festivals are not primarily dedicated to him. He was also the embodiment of the divine kingship, and in some eras the reigning king was considered to be a manifestation of Horus. It is absolutely inexplicable. The characteristics of individual gods could be hard to pin down. In 363 AD, in preparation for the Siege of Ctesiphon, Julian sacrificed ten "very fine" bulls to Mars Ultor. In underworld scenes showing the judgment undergone by the deceased after their deaths, Thoth is depicted as weighing the hearts of the deceased and reporting the verdict to Osiris, the god of the dead. Thoth, the god of writing and wisdom, could be depicted in the form of a baboon or a sacred ibis or as a man with the head of an ibis. [22], The consort of Mars was Nerio or Neriene, "Valor." Important festivals and ceremonies, usually connected to the preparation and closure of military campaigns, were held in honour of the god in March and October and carried out by Mars' specially dedicated priests, the flamen Martialis. Mars was largely based on the Greek godAres, the Greek god of war, and shared much of his mythology. When Mars and Venus next made love, they became ensnared in the net and could not move. In addition it provides more graphic images than do the Indian myths. This famous episode of feminine guile was commemorated in Rome on the Ides of March (the 15th) when young girls would sing risqu songs. Monuments, texts, and even public offices bear the marks of Egypt's myriad gods. [104] As a guarantor of treaties, Mars Quirinus is thus a god of peace: "When he rampages, Mars is called Gradivus, but when he's at peace Quirinus. It is clear that by historical times he had developed into a god of war; in Roman literature he was protector of Rome, a nation proud in war. 142.) Ancient Egyptian Sun Gods: Conjunction Of Venus,Saturn,Mars - Beyond Enigma [141], In addition to his cult titles at Rome, Mars appears in a large number of inscriptions in the provinces of the Roman Empire, and more rarely in literary texts, identified with a local deity by means of an epithet. They also noticed five bright objects in the sky (Mercury, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn) that seemed to move in a similar manner. Mars also had a group of children known as the Cupids, winged creatures who symbolized and controlled various aspects of love and erotic desire. But these could change over time as gods rose and fell in importance and evolved in ways that corresponded to developments in Egyptian society. When the legionary standards lost to the Parthians were recovered, they were housed in the new temple. The planet Mars was named for him, and in some allegorical and philosophical writings, the planet and the god are endowed with shared characteristics. Not one to be put off by a virgins wishes, Mars pursued the goddess anywayto no avail. Many other observations and proclamations by notable personalities added to what has been termed "Mars Fever". As the god of wisdom, Thoth was said to possess knowledge of magic and secrets unavailable to the other gods. After all, mythology is storytelling at its finest. The great red planet aptly symbolized the gods fiery passion. Isis Such deities may sometimes be referred to as threefold, tripled, triplicate, tripartite, triune, triadic, or as a trinity. Numerous educational institutions recommend us, including Oxford University. In ancient Roman religion and myth, Mars ( Latin: Mrs, pronounced [mars]) [4] was the god of war and also an agricultural guardian, a combination characteristic of early Rome. The 1st-century statue of Mars found in the Forum of Nerva (pictured at top) is similar. [61], The earliest center in Rome for cultivating Mars as a deity was the Altar of Mars (Ara Martis) in the Campus Martius ("Field of Mars") outside the sacred boundary of Rome (pomerium). [106], Mars is invoked as Grabovius in the Iguvine Tablets, bronze tablets written in Umbrian that record ritual protocols for carrying out public ceremonies on behalf of the city and community of Iguvium. [112] To Mars Pater other epithets were sometimes appended, such as Mars Pater Victor ("Father Mars the Victorious"),[113] to whom the Roman army sacrificed a bull on March 1. [55] At the Battle of Sentinum in 295 BCE, the appearance of the wolf of Mars (Martius lupus) was a sign that Roman victory was to come. [24] In the early 3rd century BCE, the comic playwright Plautus has a reference to Mars greeting Nerio, his wife.
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