Prowe
Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature [1]
a divinity of the Wends and Northern Slaves, had the reputation of a wise but severe and terrible judge. He was the god of justice, and carried, as a symbol of wisdom, snakes on his breast; he held in his hand an iron shield, which in doubtful cases was made glowing for the fiery ordeal. His iron statue represents him in the shape of an old man clothed in a long, folding garment; he wears chains around his neck, and holds a sacrificial knife in his hand. He was more especially worshipped at Stargard: he had a temple in that city. and sacrifices were constantly offered to him. Around his sanctuary, and the wood consecrated to him, the people assembled every Monday: to penetrate into the holy forest itself was prohibited under penalty of death, a prohibition which among the Prussians secured likewise the solitude of the holy spots. The priests drank of the blood of the victims, and then, in the presence of the king and of the whole people; requested the advice of the idol. Sentences were then pronounced by the god, and orders given, which nobody could think of contradicting; animals and prisoners, in later times Christians, were immolated to him. On Fridays, according to the old chroniclers, women, children, and servants who brought offerings were allowed the entrance of the holy wood; a banqliet was held in its surroundings, and merry dances were performed till an advanced hour of the night.
The same Prowe, it is believed, was also worshipped under a different form: he stands on a column, his nude form in a pair of boots; a bell lies at his feet. This is asserted by the chronicle of Botho, which calls the god Promo, and speaks of him as being the idol of Altenburg or Stargard. Botho may be mistaken in identifying this booted deity with Prowe: other idols besides the latter may have been worshipped at Stargard; perhaps the chroniclers mistook one of them for the god of justice. See ‘ Thorpe, Northern Mythology (see Index in vol. 3).
