Battus of Malta

In Greco-Roman mythology, Battus (Ancient Greek: Βάττος) was the king of Malta who offered sanctuary to Anna Perenna, the sister of Dido, the Carthaginian founder in Virgil's Aeneid.^[1] Battus features briefly in Ovid's Fasti as the protector of Anna Perenna.

After Dido's tragic death, Anna finds refuge from her brother Pygmalion on Malta, with Battus the king of the island and a wealthy host.^[1] The "fertile island"^[1] of Melite, near Cossyra, provided hospitality to Anna, with Battus saying that ‘This land, however small, is yours.’ ^[1] Battus would have continued to provide sanctuary to Anna and her companions, but in the third year of her exile, Anna's brother came in her pursuit. The king hated war, as the island was a peaceable sanctuary, and asked Anna to flee for her own safety. ^[1] She fled at his command, with Battus giving her a ship.

According to Frazer, Ovid is the only source for a king named Battus on Malta.^[2] However, Dougall records the discovery of a punic inscription identifying a king Battus on a sepulcher in Malta.^[3]

In fact, Dougall mentions how in 1761 an underground sepulcher was found in "khasam ta byn Hysae," that is Bengħisa, in the south side of the island of Malta. The sepulcher had an inscription, made up of forty-seven letters in four lines. The characters were mostly unreadable, however the last line was agreed to state "hal byn bat malek," which signified "for the son of Bat, the king." ^[3] The same inscription was recorded in the Vocabolario Maltese published by Mikiel Anton Vassalli in 1796.^[4]

References

1. Ovid. Fasti, Book III, March 15.
2. Ovid (2015). Frazer, James George, ed. Fastorum libri sex. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 116. ISBN 1108082483.
3. Dougall, John (1816). Campbell, Thomas, ed. The New Monthly Magazine. 5. H. Colburn. p. 299.
4. Vassalli, Michele Antonio (1796). Vocabolario Maltese: recata nelle lingue Latina e Italiana. Rome: Apud Antonium Fulgonium. p. 455.