Super Glossary

Herm

Entertainment / Literature / Herm: (plural herma or hermai) In Greco-Roman archeology, a herm is a stone, bronze, or terracotta marker--originally placed at cross-roads or at estate and territorial boundaries, though in classical Athens, homeowners would erect herma outside the entrances of their houses for good luck. These stone carvings consisted of a bearded human head (i.e., of the god Hermes or Mercury) set on top of a rectangular or square stone column (typically between one and two meters in height) with no arms or legs but a prominent phallus carved to protrude about halfway up the column. Scholars like Walter Burkit have interpreted the original herma as apotropaic wards rather than as fertility or luck symbols, but by classical times, it was common for homeowners to place wreathes on the herm's phallus during celebrations. Before taking long journeys, wayfarers would annoint and rub the herm's phallus with olive oil as a libation to Hermes, the god of travel. In historical literature, we have accounts (such as that about Alcibiades) suggesting that vandalism of a herm was considered one of the most impious acts imaginable among classical pagans.
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