#Photolicious minerva full#

She then touched Arachne on the forehead, which made her feel shame for what she had done, leading her to hang herself. Minerva was insulted by the scenes that Arachne was weaving, and destroyed it. Minerva's weaving was meant as a final warning to her foe to back down. Arachne began to weave a tapestry that showed the shortcomings of the gods, while Minerva depicted her competition with Neptune and the gods looking down with disgust on mortals who would dare to challenge them. When Arachne refused, Minerva rid herself of her disguise and took Arachne up on her challenge. This angered Minerva, and she took the form of an old woman to approach Arachne, offering her a chance to take back her challenge and ask forgiveness. Arachne boasted that her skills could beat those of Minerva, and if she were wrong she would pay the price for it. Not only were her finished works that were beautiful, but also her process, so much so that nymphs would come out of their natural environments to watch her work. Minerva and Arachne Īrachne was a mortal highly proficient in weaving and embroidery. Many of the stories of her Greek counterpart Athena are attributed to Minerva in Roman mythology, such as that of the naming of Athens resulting from a competition between Minerva and Neptune, in which Minerva created the olive tree. Minerva is a prominent figure in Roman mythology.

#Photolicious minerva full#

To relieve the pain, Vulcan used a hammer to split Jupiter's head and, from the cleft, Minerva emerged, whole, adult, and in full battle armour. The constant pounding and ringing left Jupiter with agonizing pain. Others say she was simply a vessel for the birth of Minerva. In some versions of the story, Metis continued to live inside of Jupiter's mind as the source of his wisdom. The Titaness gave birth to Minerva and forged weapons and armour for her child while within Jupiter's body. Jupiter then recalled the prophecy that his own child would overthrow him, as he had Saturn, and in turn, Saturn had Caelus.įearing that their child would be male, and would grow stronger than he was and rule the Heavens in his place, Jupiter swallowed Metis whole after tricking her into turning herself into a fly. Jupiter had sex with the titaness Metis, which resulted in her attempting to change shape (or shapeshift) to escape him.

Origin įollowing the Greek myths around Athena, she was born of Metis, who had been swallowed by Jupiter, and burst from her father's head, fully armed and clad in armour. Helmut Rix (1981) and Gerhard Meiser (1998) have proposed the PIE derivative * menes-ueh₂ ('provided with a mind, intelligent') as the transitional form. The name Minerva stems from Proto-Italic * meneswo ('intelligent, understanding'), and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (PIE) * menos ('thought'). Marcus Terentius Varro considered her to be ideal and the plan for the universe personified. As the most important Roman goddess, she is highly revered, honored, and respected.

Minerva is commonly depicted as tall with an athletic and muscular build, as well as wearing armour and carrying a spear. She is often depicted with her sacred creature, an owl usually named the ' owl of Minerva', which symbolised her association with wisdom and knowledge as well as, less frequently, the snake and the olive tree. She was the virgin goddess of music, poetry, medicine, wisdom, commerce, weaving, and the crafts. Minerva is one of the three Roman deities in the Capitoline Triad, along with Jupiter and Juno. From the second century BC onward, the Romans equated her with the Greek goddess Athena. Minerva is not a patron of violence such as Mars, but of strategic war. Minerva / m ə ˈ n ɜːr v ə/ ( Latin: Etruscan: Menrva) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. Mosaic of the Minerva of Peace in the Library of Congress