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| Hestia | |
|---|---|
| Roman equivalent | Vesta |
What myths are associated with Hestia?
Noted among the 12 Olympians in Greek mythology, Hestia (Vesta in Roman myths) is the Goddess of the hearth, home, domestic life and hospitality.Hestia was the firstborn child of the Titans Cronus and Rhea, and was a sibling of the Greek supreme God Zeus. She was a gentle, stable, serene, forgiving and dignified virgin Goddess who is bound by her domestic duties at mount Olympus.
What are some other names of Hestia?
Other names: Estia. Epithets ... In some cases, Hestia was omitted from the twelve Olympian gods. The Greek god of wine, Dionysus, often took her place in such cases. Such was her importance, and by extension the importance of the hearth, that placing her among the 12 Olympians is a bit redundant. Hestia was the first to be invoked during all a ...
What are Hestia personality traits?
- Zeus: Hera often gets the blame for punishing Zeus's lovers but let’s just take a step back to see the full picture. Hera punishes ALL of Zeus’s lovers. ...
- Hera: She is WAYY better than zeus but she has some problems. She is a bit too vengeful (even though she has only the tiniest shred of reason to). ...
- The rest of the Greek gods are ok. ...
What is Hestia's sacred animal?
What is Hestia's sacred animal? donkey What is Hestia known for? Hestia is the Greek goddess of home, hearth, and family. She is usually considered one of the Twelve Olympian gods that live on Mount Olympus.
What does Hestia mean?
Hestia's name means "hearth, fireplace, altar", This stems from the PIE root *wes, "burn" (ult. from *h₂wes- "dwell, pass the night, stay"). It thus refers to the oikos, the domestic, home, household, house, or family. "An early form of the temple is the hearth house; the early temples at Dreros and Prinias on Crete are of this type as indeed is the temple of Apollo at Delphi which always had its inner hestia ". The Mycenaean great hall ( megaron ), like Homer 's hall of Odysseus at Ithaca, had a central hearth. Likewise, the hearth of the later Greek prytaneum was the community and government's ritual and secular focus.
Where is the statue of Hestia?
A statue of her reportedly existed in the Athenian Prytaneum: "Hard by is the Prytaneon (Prytaneum) [the town-hall of Athens] . . . and figures are placed off the goddesses Eirene and Hestia.". However, there were very few temples dedicated to Hestia. Pausanias mention only two, in Ermioni and in Sparta:
What was Hestia's duty?
Duty. Zeus assigned Hestia a duty to feed and maintain the fires of the Olympian hearth with the fatty, combustible portions of animal sacrifices to the gods. Wherever food was cooked, or an offering was burnt, she thus had her share of honor; also, in all the temples of the gods, she has a share of honor.
Where is the Orphic Hymn dedicated to Hestia?
There is also an Orphic Hymn dedicated to Hestia. And, the 11th Nemean ode of Pindar writes about Hestia. Dedication with military oaths, found at Acharnai, from the Sanctuary of Ares and Athena Areia, dated 350-325 BC. In one of these oaths, the Hestia is mentioned.
Where does Pausanias mention only two?
Pausanias mention only two, in Ermioni and in Sparta: " [At Hermione in Argolis :] Passing into the sanctuary of Hestia, we see no image, but only an altar and they sacrifice to Hestia upon it. [...] The Lacedaemonians (Lacedaemonians) also have a sanctuary of Hestia [at Sparta].".
Who is the youngest daughter of Aphrodite?
As "first to be devoured . . . and the last to be yielded up again", Hestia is thus both the eldest and youngest daughter; this mythic inversion is found in the Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite (700 BC). Throughout mythology, Hestia rejected the marriage suits of Poseidon and Apollo, and swore herself to perpetual virginity.
Who led the rites of Hestia?
Hestia's rites at the hearths of public buildings were usually led by holders of civil office; Dionysius of Halicarnassus testifies that the prytaneum of a Greek state or community was sacred to Hestia, who was served by the most powerful state officials. However, evidence of her priesthood is extremely rare.
What did Hestia do in Greece?
As the goddess of the hearth she personified the fire burning in the hearth of every home in Greece. Hestia receiving the first offering at every sacrifice in the household with families pouring sweet wine in her name and dedicating the richest portion of food to her.
What did Apollo and Poseidon propose to Hestia?
Although Apollo and Poseidon proposed marriage to Hestia, she requested of Zeus to remain a maiden forever. Domestic life was her dominion in spite of her desire to remain a virgin. She was one of only twelve Olympian deities. Her name literally means “hearth”; appropriately, her priorities were family and community.
Why is the Goddess of the Hearth called colorless?
Others, critically, have called her colorless because there is little information provided in regard to her character.
Who is the Greek goddess of the hearth?
Greek Goddess of the Hearth and Domestic Life. Hestia was the goddess of the hearth, home, architecture, domesticity, family, and the state. She was one of only three virgin goddesses, next to Athena and Artemis.
Was Hestia in Greek mythology?
Although Hestia appeared in a few stories, she was not overly significant in Greek mythology. Hestia is completely omitted from the works of Homer, author of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Poets such as Apollodorous, Hesiod, and Ovid allude to her in their works.
Did Hestia have a cult?
Though Hestia did not have a public cult, she was worshipped at any temple, regardless of the god the temple was dedicated to. Hestia is described as a kind, forgiving and discreet goddess with a passive, non-confrontational nature. Hestia was the eldest daughter of Cronos and Rhea.
What is the Roman equivalent of Hestia?
The Roman equivalent of Hestia was the goddess Vesta. Like Hestia she was a maiden goddess of the hearth, but her worship was much more visible than that of the Greek goddess. The temple of Vesta was one of the most important in the city of Rome.
What was Hestia's role in the Greek world?
But even though she rarely left her place in her brother’s house, Hestia’s reach extended throughout the Greek world. She was the goddess of the hearth, and keeping her brother’s home fires burning was her chief priority.
What did Hestia do in the temples?
Every temple had a sacred fire for offering sacrifices to the god or goddess it served, and Hestia held dominion over these pyres just as she did any other. Sometimes, therefore, Hestia was included in the iconography of temples dedicated to other gods and goddesses.
What was Hestia's duty?
As the keeper of Zeus’s hearth, Hestia had a sacred duty to stay close to home. Allowing the fire to die out in the home of the king of the gods would be a serious transgression and a failure of her assigned sphere. Hestia, therefore, was a goddess who was largely absent from the events that involved the other gods.
What did the fires that were sacred to Hestia protect?
Click To Tweet. The fires that were sacred to Hestia, therefore, protected the people from more than just cold and hunger. They could protect families, cities, and entire regions from the devastation that could come from offending the other gods of Olympus. READ NEXT: Chione: The Greek Goddess of Snow.
Which goddess fled the earth during the Iron Age?
Astraea – The goddess of innocence and purity fled the earth during the Iron Age to escape the wickedness of mankind. She was safely put in the sky as the constellation Virgo. Hecate – There are conflicting accounts of whether Hecate took a vow of celibacy, but most sources seem to support the idea that she did.
Who is the goddess of the hearth?
Hestia: Goddess of the Hearth. Hestia was one of the twelve great Olympians but was so removed from the drama of the other gods that she was sometimes forgotten about altogether. Keep reading to discover the truth. By.
Birth of Hestia
The goddess Hestia is the daughter of Titans Kronos and Rhea. This makes her the oldest of her siblings – Demeter, Hades, Hera, Poseidon, and Zeus.
Meaning of her name
Generally, Hestia’s name invokes a sense of “hearth” or “fireplace”. On the other hand, her name could also mean “home” or “family”. The third and final meaning of Hestia pertains to the state. For example, in almost every Greek prytaneum (the administrative seat of government), a huge hearth dedicated to Hestia was found.
What are the major symbols of Hestia?
Popular symbols of Hestia are fire, the hearth, cow (baby cows), and a pig.
Appearance and Depictions of Hestia
Of all the Twelve Olympians, Hestia is one of the least portrayed deities. And even when she is shown, she is depicted as a modest woman in very humble clothes with a hood over her head. In her hands was generally a staff or a fire. And as if those depictions weren’t modest enough, Hestia’s throne is a simple wooden throne.
Worship
The hearth played an integral part in the homes of ancient Greeks. It was used for heating and cooking for centuries. The fireplace/hearth often took center stage in the house, enabling the family to offer sacrifices and prayers to the gods.
Importance of Hestia in Ancient Greece
Almost all temples in ancient Greece – be it the ones at Delphi (i.e. the temple of Apollo) or at the great hall in Mycenae – had hearths installed in order to offer prayers and sacrifices to various Greek deities.
Other Interesting Myths about the Greek Goddess Hestia
As families in ancient Greece moved from placing importance on the religious aspects in a home, so did the hearth fade into obscurity.
Early Life
Hestia was born the first child of Kronos (Titan of Time) and Rhea (Titan of Motherhood). Kronos became so paranoid of his children overthrowing him that he swallowed them all. For years Hestia lived inside the Titan's stomach until Zeus was able to force Kronos to regurgitate his siblings.
Myths
Her beauty attracted the interest of Apollo and Poseidon who asked her to marry them. However, Hestia was unwilling to get married and asked Zeus to make her a virgin Goddess so that she would never be married.
Her Place on the Throne
Zeus had a Demigod son with the mortal princess Semele, named Dionysos. Dionysos was not like the other demigods who fought and were adventurous. He was quite different from other people. He was shunned by others, until he crushed wine grapes in such a way, it made wine.
Overview
In Ancient Greek religion and myth, Hestia is the virgin goddess of the hearth, the right ordering of domesticity, the family, the home, and the state. In myth, she is the firstborn child of the Titans Cronus and Rhea.
Greek custom required that as the goddess of sacrificial fire, Hestia should receive the first offering at every sacrifice in the household. In the public doma…
Origins and etymology
Hestia's name means "hearth, fireplace, altar", This stems from the PIE root *wes, "burn" (ult. from *h₂wes- "dwell, pass the night, stay"). It thus refers to the oikos: domestic life, home, household, house, or family. Burkert states that an "early form of the temple is the hearth house; the early temples at Dreros and Prinias on Crete are of this type as indeed is the temple of Apollo at Delphi which always had its inner hestia". The Mycenaean great hall (megaron), like Homer's hall of Ody…
Worship
The worship of Hestia was centered around the hearth, both domestic and civic. The hearth was essential for warmth, food preparation, and the completion of sacrificial offerings to deities. At feasts, Hestia was offered the first and last libations of wine. Pausanias writes that the Eleans sacrifice first to Hestia and then to other gods. Xenophon in Cyropaedia wrote that Cyrus the Great sacrifice…
Mythology
Hestia is a goddess of the first Olympian generation. She is the eldest daughter of the Titans Rhea and Cronus, and sister to Demeter, Hades, Hera, Poseidon, and Zeus. Immediately after their birth, Cronus swallowed all his children (Hestia was the first who was swallowed) except the last and youngest, Zeus. Instead, Zeus forced Cronus to disgorge his siblings and led them in a war against their father and the other Titans. As "first to be devoured . . . and the last to be yielded up again", …
See also
• 46 Hestia, asteroid named after the goddess
• Sacred fire of Vesta
• Vitex agnus-castus
• Zalmoxis
Citations
1. ^ Graves, Robert. "The Palace of Olympus". Greek Gods and Heroes.
2. ^ R. S. P. Beekes. Etymological Dictionary of Greek, Brill, 2009, p. 471.
3. ^ Calvert Watkins, "wes-", in: The American Heritage Dictionary of Indo-European Roots. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston 1985 (web archive).
General references
• Burkert, Walter (1985). Greek Religion. Harvard University Press. Internet Archive.
• Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica. Vol 1-2. Immanel Bekker. Ludwig Dindorf. Friedrich Vogel. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Leipzig. 1888–1890. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Evelyn-White, Hugh, The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White. Homeric Hymns. Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; Lo…
• Burkert, Walter (1985). Greek Religion. Harvard University Press. Internet Archive.
• Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica. Vol 1-2. Immanel Bekker. Ludwig Dindorf. Friedrich Vogel. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Leipzig. 1888–1890. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Evelyn-White, Hugh, The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White. Homeric Hymns. Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; London, W…
External links
• HESTIA from Mythopedia