...I didn't find the epithet Bremetes outside of a commercial context (auction catalogs etc.).
So could this be perhaps rather modern marketing than ancient religion?
I suspect so, and the way the term '
Zeus Bremetes' is used while accompanied by a full description of the iconography suggests as much, for surely the the epithet would encompass the attributes of
Zeus expressed in the iconography. I also note the same epithet is now being
applied by some dealers to other depictions of
Zeus, be he sitting, standing facing etc. The only common element as far as I can establish is that its related to depictions of
Zeus with a
thunderbolt in hand. This then runs up against another epithet '
Zeus Ithomatas' (an example below) the term reflecting a local residency of
Zeus derived from the Messenian
hill of Ithome, where the god
had a sanctuary, and where an annual festival, the Ithomaea, was celebrated in
his honor. With the exception of an
eagle perched on
his extended left
arm, rather the
Aegis draped over
his left
arm, this depiction of
Zeus Ithomatos could be the frontal view of the so called '
Zeus Bremetes'.
I've done a quite extensive literature
search and yet to find any mention of the epithet 'Bremetes' in connection with
Zeus, or anyone else for that matter.
As best I can determine it first came into use
CNG's attributions and I suspect Molinari might be right that it was derived from 'the word meaning “roar” (bremw) as in roaring of thunder' and thus manufactured in modern times rather than reflective of an ancient epithet.
It would thus fall in the same category as other modern descriptors (rather than genuine epithets) such as
Zeus Aëtophoros (
eagle in
his hand) and
Zeus Nikephoros (
Nike in
his hand) - modern creations of the numismatic trade.
I would have preferred a true epithet '
Zeus Stratios' (warlike) in this case - more accurately reflecting the times with
Baktria under assault from the Parni led by Arsaces who Diodotos I eventually vanquished. Similarly, the Messenians having been freed from enslavement by the Spartans continuously on the defensive against their neighbor. Both Diodotos and the Messenians it appears invoked a warlike thundering
Zeus to their protection.
