Selene
Selene ( ancient Greek Σελήνη "moon") is a moon goddess in Greek mythology .
context
Selene (as the personification of the month and poetically sometimes also Μήνη Mene ; with the Romans Luna ), the goddess of the moon, after Hesiod daughter of Hyperion and Theia , sister of Helios and Eos , also called Phoibe , later becomes the moon goddess Artemis ( Diana with the Romans ) or identified with Persephone .
relationship
Her parents are also Helios or Passas and the Euryphaessa , the one who shines from afar , another name for Theia.
Selene bore with Zeus the Pandia and Ersa ( Tau ); She has 50 daughters with Endymion , king of Elis, to whom she gave eternal sleep. One story reports that he is still asleep because Selene is said to have valued gentle kisses more than a fruitful passion. Another story tells that the generally lovable Pan seduced her in the forest, wrapped in a beautiful white fleece.
The number 50 is seen in connection with the 50 months between two Olympic Games.
meaning
At Hera's request , she is said to have created the Nemean lion , which Heracles was supposed to peel off in his first work.
presentation
Selene is depicted with a veiled occiput, the crescent moon over her forehead and a torch in her hand, riding on horses or cows, also driven by a pair of horses, floating down to her darling in reliefs of Endymion, also in statuesque individual works ( Vatican ).
Surrounded by other deities, you can see her on an altar in the Louvre , where she has the setting Hesperos (evening star) in front of her , behind her the phosphorus (morning star), and below her the mask of Oceanus , the cosmic stream from which she emerges.
Pedigree of the Titans
| Uranus | ← | Gaia | ← | chaos | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Family of gods | of the titans | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hyperion | Theia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selene | Eos | Helios | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
chemistry
The chemical element selenium is named after the titanine selene .
literature
- Meyers Konversationslexikon , 4th edition 1888/89
- Karl Kerényi : The Mythology of the Greeks - The Gods and Human Stories . dtv, ISBN 3-423-30030-2
- Michael Grant and John Hazel: Lexicon of Ancient Myths and Figures . dtv, ISBN 3-423-32508-9
- Robert von Ranke-Graves : Greek Mythology - Sources and Interpretation . rororo, ISBN 3-499-55404-6
- Karl Otfried Müller: Handbook of Archeology (3rd edition, p. 647 ff.).
