Adranos (or Hadranos)
Part of The Encyclopedia of Southern Italy.
Adranos (or Hadranos):A Sikel god often identified with the Phoenician deity Adramelech. It is believed that Adranos was originally a fire-god connected with Mt. Etna. It is certain that he had some link with the volcano. His name is believed to derive from the Sikel word adar (=fire). According to one legend, Adranos was the father of the Palici, a particular class of Sikel deity. The Greeks later assimilated Adranos into their own fire-god, Hephaistos. The Romans did the same with their god Vulcan. The sacred Sikel shrine of Adranos was located on the slope of Mt. Etna, near the ancient city of Adrano. Although this city was of far later date that the shrine, the coins minted here during the time of Timoleon (2nd half of the 4th century BC) show that the god was still venerated but that he had been changed into a river deity. According to legend the shrine was guarded by 1,000 sacred dogs that would welcome any honest man with friendship but would attack and kill drunkards and thieves.