Artemis (Artemis), daughter of Zeus, eternally young and beautiful goddess of the hunt. Artemis

Artemis Artemis

(Αρτεμισ, Diana). Daughter of Zeus and Leto, sister of Apollo, born on the island of Delos, goddess of the moon and the hunt. She was depicted with a quiver, arrows and a bow and was identified with the moon goddess Selene, like Apollo with the sun god Helios. The Romans called this goddess Diana. Human sacrifices were made to Artemis, especially from ancient times (in Bravron, Attica, Tauris). The most famous surviving statue of Artemis is the one at Versailles in Paris. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was considered one of the seven wonders of the world.

(Source: “A Brief Dictionary of Mythology and Antiquities.” M. Korsh. St. Petersburg, edition by A. S. Suvorin, 1894.)

ARTEMIS

(Άρτεμις- etymology is unclear, possible options: “bear goddess”, “mistress”, “killer”), in Greek mythology the goddess of the hunt, daughter Zeus And Summer, twin Apollo(Hes. Theog. 918). Born on the island of Asteria (Delos). A. spends time in the forests and mountains, hunting surrounded by nymphs - his companions and also hunters. She is armed with a bow and is accompanied by a pack of dogs (Hymn. Hom. XXVII; Callim. Hymn. Ill 81-97). The goddess has a decisive and aggressive character, often uses arrows as an instrument of punishment and strictly monitors the implementation of long-established customs that regulate animal and vegetable world. A. was angry with the king of Calydon Oineus because he did not bring her the first fruits of the harvest as a gift, as usual, at the beginning of the harvest, and sent a terrible boar to Calydon (see article Calydonian hunt); she caused discord among relatives Meleager, who led the hunt for the beast, which led to the painful death of Meleager (Ovid. Met. VIII 270-300, 422-540). A. demanded her daughter as a sacrifice Agamemnon, the leader of the Achaeans in the campaign near Troy, because he killed the sacred doe A. and boasted that even the goddess herself would not have been able to kill her so accurately. Then A., in anger, sent a calm, and the Achaean ships could not go to sea to sail to Troy. The will of the goddess was transmitted through the soothsayer, who demanded in exchange for the killed doe Iphigenia, daughter of Agamemnon. However, hidden from people, A. took Iphigenia from the altar (replacing her with a doe) to Taurida, where she became a priestess of the goddess demanding human sacrifices (Eur. Iphig. A.). A. Tauride made human sacrifices, as evidenced by history Orestes, almost died at the hands of his sister Iphigenia, priestess A. (Eur. Iphig T.). He had to justify himself to A. and Apollo Hercules, who killed the Cerynean doe with golden horns (Pind. 01. Ill 26-30). These facts, emphasizing the destructive functions of the goddess, are associated with her archaic past - the mistress of animals in Crete. It was there that A.’s hypostasis was the nymph-hunter Britomartis. The most ancient A. is not only a hunter, but also a bear. In Attica (in Bravron), the priestesses of A. Vravronia wore bear skins in a ritual dance and were called bears (Aristoph. Lys. 645). A.'s sanctuaries were often located near springs and swamps (the veneration of A. Limnatis - “swampy”), symbolizing the fertility of the plant deity (for example, the cult of A. Orthia in Sparta, dating back to Crete-Mycenaean times). The chthonic unbridledness of A. is close to the image of the Great Mother of the Gods - Cybele in Asia Minor, where the orgiastic elements of the cult glorifying the fertility of the deity come from. In Asia Minor, in the famous Temple of Ephesus, the image of A. many-breasted (πολύμαστος) was revered. The rudiments of the archaic plant goddess in the image of A. are manifested in the fact that she, through her assistant (formerly her hypostasis) Ilithiya helps women in labor (Callim. Hymn. Ill 20- 25). As soon as she was born, she helps her mother accept Apollo, who was born after her (Apollod. I 4, 1). She also has the prerogative to bring quick and easy death. However, classical A. is a virgin and defender of chastity. She patronizes Hippolyta, despising love (Eur. Hippol.). Before A.’s wedding, according to custom, an atoning sacrifice was made. To the Tsar Admet, having forgotten about this custom, she filled the bridal chambers with snakes (Apollod. I 9, 15). Young hunter Actaeon, who accidentally spied the goddess’s ablution, was turned by her into a deer and torn to pieces by dogs (Ovid. Met. Ill 174-255). She killed her companion, the nymph, the huntress Callisto, who was turned into a bear, angry for her violation of chastity and Zeus’s love for her (Apollod. Ill 8, 2). A. killed the terrible Bufaga (“bull eater”), who tried to encroach on her (Paus. VIII 27, 17), as well as the hunter Orion(Ps.-Eratosth. 32). A. Ephesus - patroness of the Amazons (Callim. Hymn. Ill 237).
The ancient idea of A. is associated with its lunar nature, hence its closeness to the witchcraft spells of the moon goddess Selena and goddesses Hekates, with whom she sometimes gets close to. Late heroic mythology knows A.-luna, secretly in love with a handsome man Endymion(Apoll. Rhod. IV 57-58). In heroic mythology, A. is a participant in the battle with giants, in which Hercules helped her. In the Trojan War, she, along with Apollo, fights on the side of the Trojans, which is explained by the Asia Minor origin of the goddess. A. is the enemy of any violation of the rights and foundations of the Olympians. Thanks to her cunning, the giant brothers died Aloada, trying to disrupt the world order. Bold and unbridled Tityus was killed by the arrows of A. and Apollo (Callim. Hymn. Ill 110). Boasting to the gods about her numerous offspring Niobe lost 12 children, also killed by Apollo and A. (Ovid. Met. VI 155-301).
In Roman mythology, A. is known under the name Diana, was considered the personification of the moon, just as her brother Apollo was identified with the sun in late Roman antiquity.
Lit.: Herbillon J., Artemis homerlque, Luttre, 1927; In Bruns G., Die Jägerin Artemis, Borna-Lpz., 1929; Picard C h., Die Ephesia von Anatolien “Eranos Jahrbuch”. 1938, Bd 6, S. 59-90 Hoenn A., Gestaltwandel einer Gottin Z., 1946.
A. A. Takho-Godi

Among the ancient sculptures of A. are Roman copies of “A. Bravronia" of Praxiteles (“A. from Gabii”), statues of Leochares (“A. with a doe”), etc. Images of A. are found on reliefs (on the frieze of the Pergamon altar in the gigantomachy scene, on the frieze of the Parthenon in Athens, etc. ), in Greek vase painting (scenes of the murder of Niobides, the punishment of Actaeon, etc.).
In European medieval fine arts A. (in accordance with ancient tradition) often appears with a bow and arrows, accompanied by nymphs. In painting of the 16th - 18th centuries. The myth about A. and Actaeon is popular (see Art. Actaeon), as well as scenes of “Diana’s hunt” (Correggio, Titian, Domenichino, Giulio Romano, P. Veronese, P. P. Rubens, etc.), “Diana’s rest” (A. Watteau, C. Vanloo, etc.) and especially “Diana’s bathing” (Guercino, P. P. Rubens, Rembrandt, L. Giordano, A. Houbraken, A. Watteau, etc.). Among the works of European sculpture are “Diana the Huntress” by J. Goode and “Diana” by F. Shchedrin.
Among the literary works are the poem by G. Boccaccio “The Hunt of Diana” and others, dramatic works: “Diana” by I. Gundulic and “Diana” by J. Rotrou, a fragment of the play by G. Heine “Diana”, etc.

(Source: “Myths of the Peoples of the World.”)

Artemis

Goddess of the hunt, goddess of fertility, goddess of female chastity, patroness of all life on earth, giving happiness in marriage and assistance during childbirth. Daughter of Zeus and the goddess Leto, twin sister of Apollo. In Roman mythology, she corresponds to Diana. See more about it.

// François BOUCHER: Diana returns from the hunt // Arnold Böcklin: Diana's Hunt // Giovani Batista TIEPOLO: Apollo and Diana // TITIAN: Diana and Callisto // TITIAN: Diana and Actaeon // Francisco de QUEVEDO Y VILLEGAS: Actaeon and Diana // Afanasy Afanasyevich FET: Diana // Jose Maria de REDIA: Artemis // Jose Maria de REDIA: Hunting // Joseph BRODSKY: Orpheus and Artemis // Rainer Maria RILKE: Cretan Artemis // N.A. Kuhn: ARTEMIS // N.A. Kuhn: ACTEON

(Source: “Myths of Ancient Greece. Dictionary-reference book.” EdwART, 2009.)

ARTEMIS

The eternally young, beautiful goddess was born on Delos at the same time as her brother, the golden-haired Apollo. They are twins. The most sincere love, the closest friendship unites brother and sister. They also deeply love their mother Latona.

Artemis gives life to everyone (1). She takes care of everything that lives on earth and grows in the forest and in the field. She takes care of wild animals, herds of livestock and people. She causes the growth of herbs, flowers and trees, she blesses birth, wedding and marriage. Greek women make rich sacrifices to the glorious daughter of Zeus Artemis, who blesses and gives happiness in marriage, heals and sends diseases.

Eternally young, beautiful as a clear day, the goddess Artemis, with a bow and quiver over her shoulders, with a hunter’s spear in her hands, happily hunts in shady forests and sunlit fields. A noisy crowd of nymphs accompanies her, and she, majestic, in short hunter’s clothing, reaching only to the knees, quickly rushes along the wooded slopes of the mountains. Neither a timid deer, nor a timid fallow deer, nor an angry boar hiding in the reeds can escape from her arrows that never miss. Her nymph companions hurry after Artemis. Cheerful laughter, screams, and barking of a pack of dogs can be heard far away in the mountains, and the mountain echo answers them loudly. When the goddess gets tired of the hunt, she hurries with the nymphs to the sacred Delphi, to her beloved brother, the archer Apollo. She is resting there. To the divine sounds of Apollo's golden cithara, she dances with muses and nymphs. Artemis, slender and beautiful, walks ahead of everyone in the round dance; she is more beautiful than all the nymphs and muses and taller than them by a whole head. Artemis also loves to relax in cool, green grottoes, far from the eyes of mortals. Woe to him who disturbs her peace. This is how young Actaeon, the son of Autonoia, daughter of the Theban king Cadmus, died.

(1) Artemis (to the Romans Diana) is one of ancient goddesses Greece. As one might assume, Artemis, the goddess-hunter, was originally the patroness of animals, both domestic and wild. Artemis herself ancient times sometimes depicted in the form of an animal, for example, a bear. This is how Artemis of Brauron was depicted in Attica, near Athens. Then Artemis becomes the guardian goddess of the mother during the birth of the child, giving a successful birth. As the sister of Apollo, the god of light, she was also considered the goddess of the moon and was identified with the goddess Selene. The cult of Artemis is one of the most widespread in Greece. Her temple in the city of Ephesus (Artemis of Ephesus) was famous.

(Source: “Legends and Myths of Ancient Greece.” N.A. Kun.)

ARTEMIS

in Greek mythology, daughter of Zeus and Latona, twin sister of Apollo, goddess of the hunt, patroness of forests and wild animals, also goddess of the Moon.

(Source: “Dictionary of spirits and gods of German-Scandinavian, Egyptian, Greek, Irish, Japanese, Mayan and Aztec mythologies.”)

Synonyms:

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Goddess of the hunt, patroness of all living things... Wikipedia

Artemis- Artemis of Ephesus. Roman marble copy. Artemis of Ephesus. Roman marble copy. Artemis in the myths of the ancient Greeks is the goddess of the hunt, daughter of Zeus and Leto, twin sister of Apollo. Born on the island of Asteria (). Spent time in forests and mountains... ... encyclopedic Dictionary"The World History"

Y, female Borrowed Derivatives: Artemis; Ida.Origin: (In ancient mythology: Artemis is the goddess of the hunt.) Dictionary of personal names. Artemis Artemis, s, female, borrowed. In ancient mythology: Artemis is the goddess of the hunt. Derivatives: Artemis, Ida... Dictionary of personal names

- (gr. Artemis). Greek name for Diana. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. ARTEMIS Greek. Artemis. Greek name for Diana. Explanation of 25,000 foreign words that have come into use in the Russian language, with... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

April 12th, 2012

Goddess Aurora

Aurora V ancient greek mythology goddess morning dawn. The word "aurora" comes from the Latin aura, which means "pre-dawn breeze".

The ancient Greeks called Aurora the ruddy dawn, the rose-fingered goddess Eos. Aurora was the daughter of the titan Hipperion and Theia (in another version: the sun - Helios and the moon - Selene). From Astraeus and Aurora came all the stars that burn in the dark night sky, and all the winds: the stormy northern Boreas, the eastern Eurus, the humid southern Note and the gentle western wind Zephyr, which brings heavy rains.

Andromeda

Andromeda , in Greek mythology, the daughter of Cassiopeia and the Ethiopian king Kepheus. When Andromeda's mother, proud of her beauty, declared that she was more beautiful than the sea deities of the Nereids, they complained to the god of the seas, Poseidon. God took revenge for the insult by sending a flood and a terrible sea monster to Ethiopia that devoured people.
According to the oracle, in order to avoid the destruction of the kingdom, an atoning sacrifice had to be made: Andromeda should be given to the monster to be devoured. The girl was chained to a rock on the seashore. There she was seen by Perseus, flying past with the head of the gorgon Medusa in his hands. He fell in love with Andromeda and received the consent of the girl and her father to marry if he defeated the monster. Perseus was helped to defeat the dragon by the severed head of Medusa, whose gaze turned all living things into stone.
In memory of the exploits of Perseus, Athena placed Andromeda in the sky near the constellation Pegasus; the names Kepheus (Cepheus) and Cassiopeia are also immortalized in the names of the constellations.

Priestess Ariadne

Ariadne , in ancient Greek mythology, a priestess from the island of Naxos. Ariadne was born from the marriage of the Cretan king Minos and Pasiphae. Her sister was Phaedra. Theseus was sent to the island of Crete to kill the Minotaur. Ariadne, who passionately fell in love with the hero, helped him save his life and defeat the monster. She gave Theseus a ball of thread and a sharp blade with which he killed the Minotaur.
Walking through the winding Labyrinth, Ariadne's lover left behind him a thread that was supposed to lead him back. Returning victorious from the Labyrinth, Theseus took Ariadne with him. On the way, they made a stop on the island of Naxos, where the hero left the girl while she was sleeping. Abandoned by Theseus, Ariadne became a priestess on the island, and then married Dionysus. As a wedding gift, she received from the gods a luminous crown, which was forged by the heavenly blacksmith Hephaestus.
This gift was then taken up into the heavens and became the constellation Corona Borealis.
On the island of Naxos there was a cult of worship of the priestess Ariadne, and in Athens she was revered primarily as the wife of Dionysus. The expression “Ariadne’s thread” is often used figuratively.

Goddess Artemis

Artemis A , in Greek mythology, the goddess of the hunt.
The etymology of the word "Artemis" has not yet been clarified. Some researchers believed that the name of the goddess is translated from Greek language meant “bear goddess,” others meant “mistress” or “killer.”
Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and the goddess Leto, twin sister of Apollo, born on the island of Asteria in Delos. According to legend, Artemis, armed with a bow and arrow, spent her time in the forests and mountains, surrounded by faithful nymphs - her constant companions, who, like the goddess, loved to hunt. Despite her apparent fragility and grace, the goddess had an unusually decisive and aggressive character. She dealt with those who were guilty without any regret. In addition, Artemis strictly ensured that order always reigned in the world of animals and plants.
One day, Artemis was angry with King Calydon Oeneus, who forgot to bring her the first fruits of the harvest, and sent a terrible boar to the city. It was Artemis who caused discord among the relatives of Meleager, which led to his terrible death. Because Agamemnon killed the sacred doe of Artemis and boasted of his accuracy, the goddess demanded that he sacrifice his own daughter to her. Unnoticed, Artemis took Iphigenia from the sacrificial altar, replacing her with a doe, and transferred her to Tauris, where the daughter of Agamemnon became a priestess of the goddess.
In the most ancient myths, Artemis was depicted as a bear. In Attica, priestesses of the goddess wore a bearskin when performing rituals.
According to some researchers, in ancient myths the image of the goddess was correlated with the goddesses Selene and Hecate. In later heroic mythology, Artemis was secretly in love with the handsome Endymion.
Meanwhile, in classical mythology, Artemis was a virgin and protector of chastity. She patronized Hippolytus, who despised carnal love. In ancient times, there was a custom: girls getting married made an atoning sacrifice to Artemis in order to ward off her anger. She released snakes into the wedding chambers of King Admetus, who had forgotten about this custom.
Actaeon, who accidentally saw the bathing goddess, died a terrible death: Artemis turned him into a deer, which was torn to pieces by his own dogs.
The goddess severely punished girls who could not maintain chastity. So Artemis punished her nymph, who reciprocated Zeus’s love. Sanctuaries of Artemis were often erected among water sources, considered a symbol of fertility.
In Roman mythology, she corresponds to the goddess Diana.

Diana, in Roman mythology the goddess of nature and the hunt, was considered the personification of the moon, just as her brother Apollo was identified with the sun in late Roman antiquity. Diana was also accompanied by the epithet “goddess of the three roads,” interpreted as a sign of Diana’s triple power: in heaven, on earth and under the earth. The goddess was also known as the patroness of Latins, plebeians and slaves captured by Rome. The anniversary of the founding of the temple of Diana on the Aventine, one of the seven hills of Rome, was considered their holiday, which ensured the goddess's popularity among the lower classes. A legend about an extraordinary cow is associated with this temple: it was predicted that whoever sacrificed it to the goddess in the sanctuary on the Aventine would provide his city with power over all of Italy.

When King Servius Tullius learned about the prediction, he took possession of the cow by cunning, sacrificed the animal to Diana and decorated the temple with its horns. Diana was identified with the Greek Artemis and the goddess of darkness and sorcery Hecate. The myth of the unfortunate hunter Actaeon is associated with Diana. The young man who saw the beautiful goddess bathing was turned into a deer by Artemis - Diana, who was torn to pieces by her own dogs.

Goddess Athena

Athena , in Greek mythology, the goddess of wisdom, just war and crafts, daughter of Zeus and the Titanide Metis. Zeus, having learned that his son from Metis would deprive him of power, swallowed his pregnant wife, and then himself gave birth to a completely adult Athena, who, with the help of Hephaestus, emerged from his head in full battle garb.
Athena was, as it were, a part of Zeus, the executor of his plans and will. She is the thought of Zeus, realized in action. Her attributes are a snake and an owl, as well as an aegis, a shield made of goatskin, decorated with the head of the snake-haired Medusa, possessing magical power, terrifying gods and people. According to one version, the palladium statue of Athena supposedly fell from heaven; hence her name - Pallas Athena.
Early myths describe how Hephaestus tried to take possession of Athena by force. To avoid losing her virginity, she miraculously disappeared, and the seed of the blacksmith god spilled onto the earth, giving birth to the serpent Erichthonius. The daughters of the first ruler of Athens, the half-serpent Cecrops, having received a chest with a monster for safekeeping from Athena and ordered not to look inside, broke their promise. The angry goddess sent madness upon them. She deprived young Tiresias, a casual witness of her ablution, of his sight, but endowed him with the gift of a soothsayer. During the period of heroic mythology, Athena fought with titans and giants: she kills one giant, rips off the skin of another, and dumps the island of Sicily on a third.
Classical Athena patronizes heroes and protects public order. She rescued Bellerophon, Jason, Hercules and Perseus from trouble. It was she who helped her favorite Odysseus overcome all difficulties and get to Ithaca after the Trojan War. The most significant support was provided by Athena to the matricide Orestes. She helped Prometheus steal the divine fire, defended the Achaean Greeks during the Trojan War; she is the patroness of potters, weavers and needlewomen. The cult of Athena, widespread throughout Greece, was especially revered in Athens, which she patronized. In Roman mythology, the goddess corresponds to Minerva.

Goddess Aphrodite or Goddess Venus

Aphrodite (“foam-born”), in Greek mythology, the goddess of beauty and love that permeates the whole world. According to one version, the goddess was born from the blood of Uranus, castrated by the titan Kronos: the blood fell into the sea, forming foam (in Greek - aphros). Aphrodite was not only the patroness of love, as reported by the author of the poem “On the Nature of Things,” Titus Lucretius Carus, but also the goddess of fertility, eternal spring and life. According to legend, she usually appeared surrounded by her usual companions - nymphs, ors and harites. In myths, Aphrodite was the goddess of marriage and childbirth.
Due to her Eastern origins, Aphrodite was often identified with the Phoenician fertility goddess Astarte, the Egyptian Isis and the Assyrian Ishtar.
Despite the fact that serving the goddess contained a certain shade of sensuality (the hetaera called her “their goddess”), over the centuries the archaic goddess turned from sexy and licentious into the beautiful Aphrodite, who was able to take an honorable place on Olympus. The fact of her possible origin from the blood of Uranus was forgotten.

Seeing the beautiful goddess on Olympus, all the gods fell in love with her, but Aphrodite became the wife of Hephaestus - the most skillful and ugliest of all the gods, although she later gave birth to children from other gods, including Dionysus and Ares. In ancient literature you can also find references to the fact that Aphrodite was married to Ares, sometimes even the children who were born from this marriage are named: Eros (or Eros), Anteros (hatred), Harmony, Phobos (fear), Deimos (horror).
Perhaps Aphrodite's greatest love was the beautiful Adonis, the son of the beautiful Myrrh, who was transformed by the gods into a myrrh tree that produces beneficial resin - myrrh. Soon Adonis died while hunting from a wound inflicted by a wild boar. Roses blossomed from drops of the young man's blood, and anemones blossomed from Aphrodite's tears. According to another version, the cause of Adonis’ death was the anger of Ares, who was jealous of Aphrodite.
Aphrodite was one of three goddesses who argued about their beauty. Having promised Paris, the son of the Trojan king, the most beautiful woman on earth, Helen, the wife of the Spartan king Menelaus, she won the argument, and the abduction of Helen by Paris served as the reason for the start of the Trojan War.
The ancient Greeks believed that Aphrodite provided protection to heroes, but her help extended only to the sphere of feelings, as was the case with Paris.
A vestige of the goddess’s archaic past was her belt, which, according to legend, contained love, desire, and words of seduction. It was this belt that Aphrodite gave to Hera in order to help her divert the attention of Zeus.
Numerous sanctuaries of the goddess were located in many regions of Greece - in Corinth, Messinia, Cyprus and Sicily. IN Ancient Rome Aphrodite was identified with Venus and was considered the ancestor of the Romans thanks to her son Aeneas, the ancestor of the Julius family, to which, according to legend, Julius Caesar belonged.

Venus, in Roman mythology, the goddess of gardens, beauty and love.
In ancient Roman literature, the name Venus was often used as a synonym for fruit. Some scholars translated the name of the goddess as “mercy of the gods.”
After the widespread legend of Aeneas, Venus, revered in some cities of Italy as Frutis, was identified with Aeneas' mother Aphrodite. Now she became not only the goddess of beauty and love, but also the patroness of the descendants of Aeneas and all Romans. The spread of the cult of Venus in Rome was greatly influenced by the Sicilian temple built in her honor.
The cult of Venus reached its apotheosis of popularity in the 1st century BC. e., when the famous senator Sulla, who believed that the goddess brings him happiness, and Guy Pompey, who built a temple and dedicated it to Venus the Victorious, began to count on her patronage. Guy Julius Caesar especially revered this goddess, considering her son, Aeneas, the ancestor of the Julian family.
Venus was awarded such epithets as merciful, purifying, shorn, in memory of the courageous Roman women who, during the war with the Gauls, cut their hair in order to weave ropes from it.
IN literary works Venus acted as the goddess of love and passion. One of the planets in the solar system was named after Venus.

Goddess Hecate

Hecate , in ancient Greek mythology, the goddess of the night, the ruler of darkness. Hecate ruled over all ghosts and monsters, night visions and sorcery. She was born as a result of the marriage of the titan Persus and Asteria.
Hecate had three bodies connected together, six pairs of arms and three heads. Zeus - the king of the gods - endowed her with power over the destinies of the earth and sea, and Uranus endowed her with indestructible strength.
The Greeks believed that Hecate wanders in deep darkness at night with her constant companions, owls and snakes, lighting her path with smoldering torches.

She walked past the graves along with her terrible retinue, surrounded by monstrous dogs from the kingdom of Hades, living on the banks of the Styx. Hecate sent horrors and painful dreams to the earth and destroyed people.
Sometimes Hecate helped people, for example, it was she who helped Medea achieve Jason’s love. It was believed that she helped sorcerers and sorcerers. The ancient Greeks believed that if you sacrifice dogs to Hecate while standing at the crossroads of three roads, she would help remove the spell and get rid of evil damage.
Underground gods like Hecate personified mainly the formidable forces of nature.

Goddess Gaia

Gaia (G a i a, A i a, G h) · mother Earth . The most ancient pre-Olympic deity, who played a vital role in the process of creating the world as a whole. Gaia was born after Chaos. She is one of the four primary potencies (Chaos, Earth), who gave birth to URANUS-SKY from herself and took him as her wife. Together with URANUS, Gaia gave birth to six titans and six titanides, among them Kronos and Rhea, the parents of the supreme deities of the Greek pantheon - ZEUS, HADES, POSEIDON, HERA, DEMETER and HESTIA. Her offspring were also Pont-sea, three CYCLOPES and three HUNDRED-HANDED men. All of them, with their terrible appearance, aroused the hatred of the father, and he did not release them into the light from the womb of the mother. Gaia, suffering from the weight of the children hidden in her, decided to stop the spontaneous fertility of her husband, and at her instigation, KRONOS castrated URANUS, from whose blood monsters and the beautiful APHRODITE were born. The marriage of Gaia and Pontus gave rise to a whole series of monsters. The grandchildren of Gaia, led by ZEUS, in a battle with the children of Gaia, the titans, defeated the latter, throwing them into TARTARUS, and divided the world among themselves.

Gaia does not live on OLYMPUS and does not take an active part in the life of the OLYMPIC GODS, but she monitors everything that happens and often gives them wise advice. She advises RHEA how to save ZEUS from the gluttony of KRONOS, who devours all his newborn children: RHEA, instead of the baby ZEUS, wrapped a stone, which KRONOS safely swallowed. She also tells us what fate awaits ZEUS. On her advice, ZEUS freed the hundred-armed men who served him in the Titanomachy. She advised ZEUS to start the Trojan War. Golden apples growing in the gardens of the Hesperides are her gift to HERA. The powerful force with which Gaia fed her children is known: her son from the union with Poseidon Antaeus was invulnerable thanks to her name: he could not be overthrown as long as he touched his mother, the earth, with his feet. Sometimes Gaia demonstrated her independence from the Olympians: in alliance with Tartarus, she gave birth to the monstrous TYPHON, who was destroyed by ZEUS. Her offspring was the dragon Ladon. The offspring of Gaia are terrible, distinguished by savagery and elemental strength, disproportion (the Cyclopes have one eye), ugliness and a mixture of animal and human traits. Over time, the spontaneously generating functions of Gaia faded into the background. She turned out to be the keeper of ancient wisdom, and she knew the dictates of fate and its laws, so she was identified with THEMIS and had her own ancient oracle in Delphi, which later became the oracle of APPOLO. The image of Gaia was partially embodied in DEMETER, with her beneficial functions for humans, calling Karpoforos- Fruitful, in the mother goddess RHE with her inexhaustible fertility, in CYBEL with her orgiastic cult.

The cult of Gaia was widespread everywhere: on the mainland, on the islands, and in the colonies.

Artemis is the goddess of the hunt in Greek mythology. She is also a virgin, the patroness of chastity and all living things. It gives happiness in marriage and helps during childbirth. Later she was associated with the Moon, being the opposite of her twin brother Apollo, who personified the Sun. However, the goddess of hunting is her main hypostasis. Her animals were a bear and a doe.

Birth of twins

The goddess of hunting Artemis and her brother Apollo were the children of Zeus himself and his beautiful wife. When Zeus fell in love with Leto, his jealous wife Hera began to pursue her through the dragon Python. He drove Leto from one place to another, and not a single country, for fear of the monster, dared to shelter the goddess.

But there was a small rocky island of Asteria, which gave her shelter, since Leto promised to glorify it for this by building a magnificent temple here. On this earth the twins were born - Apollo and Artemis. Born first, the daughter helped her mother by delivering the baby. So the maiden goddess became an assistant to women in labor.

The island of Asteria became green and beautiful and received a new name Delos, from the Greek “to appear.” Keeping her promise, Leto founded the Temple of Apollo on Delos, famous throughout Greece.

Fulfillment of desires

According to legend, Zeus, holding three-year-old Artemis on his lap, asked her what she wanted to receive as a gift. Then the little goddess of the hunt announced many wishes, asking her father:

eternal virginity;
as many names as her brother;
Bow and arrows;
opportunity to bring Moonlight;
a retinue of sixty oceanids and twenty nymphs to feed the dogs when she was hunting;
everything in the world is mountains;
a city that would show her respect above all other gods.

A loving father fulfilled all wishes. Artemis became the goddess of the hunt among the Greeks, the eternal virgin. Had a large number of names, for example, such as Arrow-loving, Huntress, Bolotnaya, Zlatostrelnaya. The Cyclops in the forge of the god Hephaestus made her a bow and arrows. She also received a city that revered her, not just one, but thirty.

City of Artemis - Ephesus

Artemis also softened in relation to Agamemnon, the commander of the Greek army in the war with Troy, who killed her beloved doe while hunting. Having achieved his obedience when he agreed to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia to Artemis, the wayward goddess left the girl alive.

Type and attributes of the goddess Artemis. - Diana the huntress. - Punishment of Actaeon. - Nymphs of Artemis. - Goddess Artemis and nymph Callisto. - Type of Artemis of Ephesus. - Amazons.

Type and attributes of Artemis

Sister of the god Apollo - goddess Artemis in ancient Greek, or Diana in Latin, - was born at the same time as her brother. Apollo and Artemis were united by the closest friendship, and the ancient Greeks in their myths give them the same qualities and virtues. Even the facial features of Apollo and Artemis are similar, only in Artemis they are more feminine and rounded.

Artemis (Diana) - goddess of the hunt. Features Artemis - quiver, golden bow and torch. A deer and a dog are dedicated to Artemis.

On most ancient statues, the hair of Artemis (Diana) is tied into one knot at the back of the head, in the manner of Doric hairstyles. In archaic ancient Greek statues, the goddess Artemis appears dressed in long robes. In the era of the highest development of Hellenic art, Artemis is depicted covered with a short Doric shirt.

Most often in paintings, Artemis (Diana) is presented accompanied by her nymphs, scouring the forests in search of fleet-footed deer, or on a chariot, driven by chamois and deer.

Many coins have survived depicting the head of the goddess Artemis and her attributes.

One ancient Greek hymn praising Artemis (Diana) says that Artemis, as a child, asked her father Zeus to allow her to remain an eternal virgin, to give her a quiver and arrows and light short clothes that would not interfere with her running through the forests and mountains. Artemis also asked to be given sixty young nymphs, her constant hunting companions, and twenty others who would take care of Artemis’ shoes and dogs.

She does not want to own cities; Artemis is completely satisfied with one, because she will rarely stay in cities, preferring mountains and forests. But as soon as women expecting a child in the cities call on Artemis (Diana), Artemis will immediately rush to their aid, because the goddesses Moira () obliged Artemis to help these women because all the goddesses tried to help her mother Latona, when Latona the wrath of Hera (Juno) fell.

Diana the Huntress

The goddess Artemis (Diana), like the god Apollo, has many names: her name is Diana the Huntress, when she is, in the words of the Roman poet Catullus, “mistress of forests, mountains and rivers.”

The best statue of Diana the Huntress is considered to be the one in the Louvre; it is known as "Diana with a Hind", an addition to the famous statue of Apollo Belvedere. There are many repetitions of this statue, but the best of them is the one in the Louvre.

Modern sculptors also often depicted Diana the huntress, but sometimes, contrary to Greek traditions, they represented her naked, for example, the famous Houdon. Jean Goujon gave his Diana the 16th-century hairstyle and facial features of the famous favorite Diane de Poitiers.

Diana is called Diana of Arkadskaya when she bathes and frolics with her nymphs in the rivers and springs dedicated to her, and Diana Lutsina, or Ilithyia, when she helps with the birth of children.

In ancient art, the goddess Diana was never depicted naked, because, according to ancient myths, when the goddess Diana bathed, a mere mortal could not look at her with impunity; the myth of Actaeon confirms this.

Actaeon's Punishment

In one of the shady and cool valleys, dedicated to the goddess Artemis (Diana), a stream flowed between the banks covered with luxurious vegetation; tired from hunting and the oppressive heat, the goddess loved to bathe in clear water this stream.

One day, the hunter Actaeon, by the will of an evil fate, approached this place precisely at the time when Artemis (Diana) and her nymphs were happily frolicking and splashing in the water. Seeing that a mortal was looking at them, the nymphs, emitting cries of horror, hurried to the goddess, trying to hide Artemis from immodest glances, but in vain: Artemis was a whole head taller than her companions.

The angry goddess splashed water on the head of the unfortunate hunter and said: “Go now and, if you can, boast that you saw Diana bathing.” Immediately, branched horns grew on Actaeon’s head, his ears and neck lengthened, his arms turned into thin legs, and his whole body was covered with hair. Overcome with horror, Actaeon runs and falls exhausted on the river bank. Actaeon sees in her the reflection of the deer into which he has turned, and wants to run further, but his own dogs rush at him and tear him to shreds.

In art, Actaeon was never depicted as a stag, but only with small antlers, indicating that the transformation into a stag had begun. Many painters used this mythological plot for their paintings: for example, eighty-year-old Titian painted his famous painting “Diana and Actaeon” for Philip II.

Filippo Lori, Pelenburg, Albano painted several paintings on the same theme. The French artist Lezuer painted the painting “Diana Caught in the Water” by Actaeon, which is very famous from reproductions. He took the moment when the frightened nymphs are trying to hide Diana, Actaeon stands on the bank of the stream, as if struck by the sight of such beauty.

The bathing of Diana and her nymphs served as a plot for many works of art ancient and new art. Rubens painted several paintings, Pelenburg seemed to choose this topic as his specialty, and Domenichino painted a very famous painting, which is now in the Villa Borghese in Rome.

Nymphs of Artemis

Goddess Artemis and nymph Callisto

The nymphs, companions of the goddess Artemis (Diana), are all doomed to remain virgins, and Artemis strictly monitors their morality. Having once noticed that the nymph Callisto did not keep her vow, Artemis mercilessly expels her.

A beautiful painting by Titian depicts the moment when the nymphs try to hide their friend from the angry gaze of the goddess.

Many artists of the Renaissance, including Rubens, Albano, Lezuer, interpreted the same mythological plot.

Jealous Hera (Juno), suspecting that Callisto enjoyed the favor of Zeus (Jupiter), turned Callisto into a bear, hoping that she would not escape from the arrows of the hunters, but Zeus, feeling sorry for Callisto, turned her into the constellation known as Ursa Major .

Type of Artemis of Ephesus

The cult of the goddess known as Artemis of Ephesus is of Asian origin. The goddess Artemis of Ephesus has nothing in common with the sister of Apollo.

According to mythology, the warlike Amazons erected a majestic temple in the city of Ephesus in Asia Minor. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was considered one of the seven wonders of the world. The Amazons established there the cult of this goddess, personifying the fertility of the earth.

In the temple of Artemis of Ephesus there was a statue of the goddess, reminiscent of a mummy in appearance; the bull heads with which Artemis of Ephesus is all covered are symbols of agriculture. In the hilt, a bee was dedicated to the goddess Artemis.

Amazons

The Amazons, who built the Temple of Artemis of Ephesus, played a large role in Greek myths.

The Amazons were a tribe of very warlike women, they were obliged to serve military service and made a vow to remain virgins for a certain time. When this period ended, the Amazons got married in order to have children. They occupied all public positions and performed all public duties.

Amazon husbands spent their lives at home, performing household duties and nannying children.

Ancient Greek sculptors, wanting to immortalize the Amazons and preserve their memory in posterity, organized a kind of competition with an award for the best Amazon statue. The highest award went to the statue of Polykleitos, and the second to Phidias.

The statues depict Amazons for the most part with bare arms and legs, in short clothes exposing one side of the chest.

Sometimes, however, Amazons were depicted in Phrygian caps and trousers; In this form, images of Amazons are found on the sarcophagi of heroes and on some painted antique vases.

The painting “The Battle of the Amazons” by Rubens, located in the Munich Pinakothek, is considered one of the best works of this great Flemish master.

The Amazons appear in all the heroic and national myths of the Greeks. The last time they were mentioned was in the Trojan War.

Hercules is the first hero to defeat the Amazons. A painted vase has been preserved, depicting the battle of the Amazons with the Greeks and the conqueror of the Amazons, Hercules, accompanied by the goddess Athena, Apollo and Artemis, the patroness of the Amazons.

ZAUMNIK.RU, Egor A. Polikarpov - scientific editing, scientific proofreading, design, selection of illustrations, additions, explanations, translations from Latin and ancient Greek; all rights reserved.

Birth of Apollo and Artemis. Among the Olympian gods is a pair of twins, Apollo and Artemis. Their father is the thunderer Zeus, and their mother is the beautiful goddess Leto. Zeus fell in love with her, and Hera, of course, hated her. She sent the terrible dragon Python to pursue the meek Leto, ordering him not to give Leto peace. Python chased the unfortunate goddess from end to end, and not a single country, not a single island sheltered her - everyone was afraid of the monster. Summer barely found refuge on a small rocky island, which in those days was floating on the waves, without a permanent place, and was called Asteria. Summer promised the island that if it would accept her, she would glorify it with a magnificent temple. On this island her beautiful children were born. Artemis was born first, and then she helped her mother by delivering her baby. Since then, Artemis, although a virgin goddess, is considered an assistant to women giving birth.

The miraculous appearance of Delos. All nature rejoiced at the birth of divine children, and the island of Asteria stopped at the very place where this happened, its land, previously barren, was covered with greenery, and it itself received a new name - Delos (from the Greek word meaning “to appear”). Leto kept her promise: indeed, a temple famous throughout Greece was founded in Delos in honor of Apollo, one of her children.

Artemis of Versailles.
Circle of Liochara.
Roman copy

Artemis's wish. They say that when Artemis was three years old, she sat on the lap of Zeus and he asked her what gift she would like to receive. Artemis answered him: “Promise to give me eternal virginity, as many names as my brother, a bow and arrow, the duty of bringing light, sixty oceanids to form my retinue, twenty nymphs who will feed my hunting dogs when I'm not hunting, and all the mountains in the world; and also give me the city you wish, so that I can be honored in it above all the gods.”

Zeus fulfilled everything according to her wishes. Artemis became the third and last maiden goddess on Olympus. She had no less names than her brother, and perhaps more. She was called “Hunter”, “Arrow-loving”, “Gold-shooting”, there was even Artemis Swamp! The Cyclopes made her a bow and arrows in the forge of Hephaestus, and she shot her first two arrows into the trees, the third into an animal, and the fourth into the city of wicked people who do not know justice.

Ephesus is the city of Artemis.

As for the cities in which she would be venerated, here Zeus even exceeded his daughter’s request - not one city, but as many as thirty honored her, and in many more cities she had her share in the sacrifices.

But the main city of Artemis was the Asian city of Ephesus, located on the territory of modern Turkey. Artemis of Ephesus was one of the most famous goddesses in the entire Hellenic world, and a magnificent temple built of marble was dedicated to her. The inhabitants of Ephesus created it for more than a hundred years, and it was so beautiful that in ancient times the temple was considered one of the seven wonders of the world. It took a long time to build the temple, but it died in one night.

Herostratus sets fire to the Temple of Artemis.

One Ephesian named Herostratus, a man who did not stand out in any way, really wanted to become famous. To do this, one night he set fire to the temple of Artemis. Of course, he suffered a well-deserved punishment, and the townspeople even issued a decree that the memory of Herostratus should be consigned to oblivion. But the former magnificent temple could no longer be restored, and we still remember the name of Herostratus. “Herostratus glory” is the name given to the glory of a person who has become famous due to a bad deed.

Artemis is the patroness of wildlife. Having received the mountains from Zeus, Artemis became the patroness and mistress of not only them, but also all the animals that lived there. She hunts them, but she also makes sure that no one offends them needlessly; she helps the hunters, but she also takes care that the number of animals does not decrease and their offspring. But Artemis takes care not only of them, but also of everything that lives on earth, grows in the forest and in the field: herds of livestock, people, and plants. She causes the growth of herbs, flowers and trees, she blesses birth, wedding and marriage. Beautiful as a clear day, with a bow and quiver over her shoulders, she wanders cheerfully through the forests and fields. Artemis also has a favorite among animals - the fallow deer. Artemis took special care of her, and the doe was often depicted nearby.

Artemis loves more than just bows and arrows and hunting; The sounds of lyres, round dances, and the distant sounds of merry nymphs are also dear to her. In the evening, if the moon is clear in the sky, Artemis and the nymphs join hands and dance in the forest clearings until late at night. And sometimes Artemis and her friends climb along sacred paths to the top of Mount Parnassus, where Apollo loves to be. Often, tired from hunting, she, putting her hunting weapon aside, listens to her brother playing the cithara. They are never at odds with Apollo, treat each other with kindred tenderness, and both passionately love their mother, Leto, not forgiving her insults to anyone. Together they punished the wild giant Tityus, who treated her roughly, and together they punished the arrogant Niobe.

Proud Niobe. Niobe was the queen of the city of Thebes and had seven sons and seven daughters, beautiful as young gods. When one day the Theban women were about to make rich sacrifices to Leto, Niobe saw them and exclaimed: “You are foolish, foolish, O Theban women! You offer sacrifices to this goddess, but why don't you and I give divine honors? After all, I am not inferior to her in beauty, and I have many more children than she does!”

Summer heard such impudent and arrogant speeches and was saddened; She didn’t want to complain to anyone about her insult, but Apollo and Artemis noticed her mother’s grief. They asked for a long time about the cause of the disorder, and finally Summer told them everything as it happened. She wept bitterly from resentment, and rage flared up in the hearts of her children. Loudly shaking the arrows in their quivers, the formidable gods rushed to Thebes to look for the offender.

Death of Niobe's sons. Just at this time, Theban youths competed in agility in a field outside the city. Here are the two sons of Niobe rushing on hot horses, they are far ahead of their rivals, purple cloaks fluttering behind their shoulders. But the string of Apollo's bow rang - and they fell from their horses onto the damp ground, struck by golden arrows. Then two more found death: they fought with each other, their bodies were closely intertwined, and Apollo pierced both with one arrow. One by one, Niobe's sons die. The youngest of them begged for mercy, Apollo took pity on him, but did not have time to hold back the deadly arrow: it struck Niobe’s last son right in the heart.

Death of Niobe's daughters. The news of the death of her sons reached Niobe. She rushed with her daughters into the field, saw the lifeless bodies and burst into tears. Her heart is torn with grief, but she does not humble herself, she again challenges the immortal goddess: “Rejoice, cruel Summer! You deprived me of half of my children! But even now I’m happier than you, I still have more children than you!” As soon as Niobe fell silent, the ringing of the bowstring was heard again: Artemis shot a formidable arrow. Niobe's daughters stood in mournful silence around their lifeless brothers. And suddenly, without even screaming, one of them fell, then the second, the third... Artemis shot six arrows, leaving Niobe with only one daughter, the youngest. The unfortunate Niobe tries to hide her in the folds of her clothes, she prays to Summer: “You have defeated me, goddess! Leave me at least one daughter! Spare her, O great Summer! But belated prayers are in vain; the poor girl is struck down by Artemis’ arrow right in her mother’s arms.

Niobe's Eternal Tears. Having learned about terrible events, the Theban king, Niobe's husband, stabbed himself with a sword. Niobe stood mournfully over the bodies of the children: she had lost everyone she valued in life. She was numb with grief. The wind doesn’t sway or flutter her hair, her eyes don’t glow with life, nothing touches her anymore. Only frequent large tears fall from her eyes to the ground, one drop after another. The grieving Niobe stood there for a long time, and finally the gods took pity on her: they turned her into stone. And then a gust of wind came and carried the rock to the homeland of the unfortunate queen, to the country of Lydia. And so, ever since then, a rock resembling a man has stood there, and drops of water ooze from it: these are Niobe’s eternal tears falling to the ground.

Artemis and people.

Just from the way Artemis dealt with Niobe’s daughters, it is clear that this goddess is not to be trifled with. Indeed, in case of disrespect to her, she knew no mercy, and myths are full of stories about cruel punishments that people, sometimes deservedly, but sometimes not, suffered. For example, she, being a virgin, did not tolerate her companions getting married and having children.

Nymph Callisto. One day Zeus fell in love with one of the nymphs, Callisto. When time passed and Artemis noticed that Callisto was expecting a child, the son of Zeus, she was beside herself with rage. For such a violation, the nymph was banished to the mountains. But when her son was born, named Arkad, Artemis became even more angry and turned Callisto into a bear. Many years later. Arkad grew up and became a famous hunter. One day in the forest he met a bear and was ready to deal her a fatal blow, not knowing that it was his mother in front of him. However, Zeus could not allow the death of his beloved and matricide. He immediately lifted Arkadas and Callisto into the sky and turned them into the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

Actaeon. Artemis also treated the hunter Actaeon cruelly. One day, while hunting in the forest, he accidentally wandered into the place where Artemis was bathing. The goddess was angry: Actaeon saw something that no one should see, neither gods nor people - so let him not be able to tell anyone about it! And the unfortunate hunter was immediately turned into a deer. Meanwhile, a hunt was going on in the forest. Actaeon's comrades with dogs drove away the forest animals; Among their dogs was Actaeon's pack of dogs, the best, the fastest and the most vicious. A deer flashed ahead - and immediately all the dogs rushed after it. Ahead of everyone, of course, raced the dogs of Actaeon. So they caught up with the deer, surrounded it, grabbed onto it, and tore it to pieces. Hunters surround the defeated beast, they are surprised at its size and beauty, they regret that Actaeon has disappeared somewhere and does not see what kind of beast his dogs drove into. And no one notices that completely human tears flow from the eyes of the dying beast. This is how this hunter died for his accidental sin.

Artemis can be merciful. However, if Artemis is treated with respect, she can change her anger to mercy. For example, at the request of Apollo, she pardoned King Admetus and his wife Alcesta, who forgot to make expiatory sacrifices to her when they married, and from Agamemnon, the leader of the Greek army in the Trojan War, she only sought submission, and when he agreed to sacrifice her her daughter (how it happened is described further), she did not allow the girl to die.