Some mystery cults had a restricted local character and took place in sanctuaries of families, gene or orgeones. The mysteries that occurred in the sanctuary of the Lykomidai family were known until late antiquity. The most celebrated offspring of that family was Themistokles. They were related to the "Great Goddess", who was usually identified with the Earth. It was said that the hymns of the rituals were composed by Orpheus, Musaios and Pamphos. From the little evidence that we have, we can only assume that it was a cult that involved cosmogonic issues with forms of sexuality and fertility. Other mysteries of local character were those practised in Lykosoura in honour of Despoina, in Idaion Andron for the nocturnal Zagreus, the Mothe of the Mountains and the Kouretes and in Andania of Messana for the Great Gods and Hagne. Most of the above mentioned mystery deities remain vague, since the ancient writers were always frugal in their references to them.

Among the mysteries that acquired Panhellenic fame were those of Kabeiroi in Samothrace. The Kabeiroi were also worshipped in Lemnos and Thebes and a theory exists that they represented the guild of of the blacksmiths. From what we know a non Greek element is revealed in this cult, to which the experts have attributed a Semitic or Hittite origin. The Lemnian Kabeiroi are related to the worship of Hephaestus and the Thyrrenian (Etruscan?) past of the island. In Thebes they worshipped Kabeiros and Pais. Both in Thebes and in Samothrace there existed a small "theatrical" area for the rituals of the hierophant. Part of the ritual must have been the drinking of wine with special vases, the Kabeirian skyphoi, which were shattered immediately after.


The sanctuary of Samothrace pre-existed the Archaic period, but its restructuring programme is related to Hellenistic colonization during the 7th century B.C. In the Classical period the mysteries of Samothrace were known in Athens and it seems that Herodotus had been initiated in them. However, the sanctuary reached its apex during the Hellenistic period and excavations have substantiated this predominantly building phase. The gods that were worshipped were never named, but they were only referred to as the Great Gods. Finally Dardanus of Troy, Kadmus of Thebes and his wife Harmonia were involved in the mysteries of Samothrace, a fact that leads to their connection with Mycenaean elements and of Asia Minor. At the core of the mysteries were notions about cosmogony and relationships of eroticism and death. From a practical point of view the idea existed that mysteries protected the initiated from the dangers of the sea and ensured successful voyages.


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