About the Moon Goddess Selene
Selene was the Greek goddess of the moon She has been associated with the Roman goddess Diana and the Greek goddess Artemis, but that's only part of the story.
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The Facts
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The ancient Greeks worshiped the Moon Goddess Selene as part of a triad of Artemis, Selene and Hecate.
The poet Hesiod said that Selene was the daughter of Hyperion and his sister, Theia. Her brother was Helios, the Sun God, and her sister was Eos, the Dawn. Other Greek writers claimed that Selene's father was Pallas, Zeus or Helios, and her mother was Euryphaessa or Leto.
Misconceptions
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Selene and Artemis are not the same deity. Artemis represented the Maiden aspect of the Triple Goddess, as well as the Waxing Moon. Selene is the Mother aspect, represented by the Full Moon.
The misconception that Selene was the daughter of Zeus and Leto may stem from the confusion of Selene and Helios with Artemis and Apollo, the twin children of Zeus and Leto. -
Geography
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Selene's centers of worship were in the Greek Peloponnesus, the Southern peninsula that includes Corinth, Argos, Achaea and Arcadia. There are two Roman temples devoted to the moon goddess Selene's Roman counterpart, Luna, one on the Aventine Hill and one on the Palantine Hill. Just as Selene was eventually supplanted by Artemis, Luna was eventually supplanted by Diana.
Time Frame
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It's difficult to date the worship of Selene because so many of her traditions were subsumed into Artemis, but there is evidence of moon goddess worship dating back to 2400 BC. By 750 BC, the worship of Artemis was already fully established. Aristophanes, writing c. 425 BC, contrasted the worship of the Twelve Olympians with the worship of the lesser gods, including Helios and Selene. In his writing, he implied that worship of the older gods was old-fashioned and rustic.
Size
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Worship of Selene does not seem to have been as widespread as the worship of Artemis, and later of Diana. Selene's worshipers were mostly confined to the Southern part of the Greek Isles, and in Thrace and Corinth. However, our modern view of Greek mythology comes mostly from Athenian sources. By the time of the Athenians, worship of the Titans was fading away, so it's difficult to be certain just how widespread worship of Selene may have been.
Significance
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Several myths about Selene have come down through the ages. Some have been the basis for famous poems and works of art. The best known myth about Selene tells how she fell in love with the beautiful youth Endymion, a shepherd. Selene him asleep in a cave and fell in love with his beauty. She asked Zeus to grant him eternal youth. Zeus cast him into eternal sleep, and Selene visited him each night while he slept and bore him fifty daughters who are said to represent the fifty lunar months between each Olympiad.
Selene is a favorite of poets, especially of the romantic poets.
Features
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Selene is most often presented as a beautiful young woman with a pale face and long, silver hair. She often wears a horned crown that looks like a crescent moon and is frequently depicted driving a silver chariot drawn by white horses or white bulls. She has been been referred to in poetry as "far-winged" and "long-winged" and is sometimes shown with long, white wings.
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Resources
- Photo Credit Photo collage by Deb Powers
