All about history book of myths and legends. ( PDFDrive )

Spring flower

Flora’s greatest gift to

humankind, remembered

especially in the spring,

was the seeds of many

different species of flowers.

Ensuring a regular food supply for their huge

population was of vital importance to the

Romans. Hence, many of their deities were

patrons of vineyard-keepers, shepherds,

farmers, and others who produced food for

the people. They included Lupercus, who

protected herds and flocks from wolves, Ops,

who was the goddess of the harvest, and

Liber, who ruled over the vines and fields.

Most of these deities had existed in Italy

before the Romans built up their empire, and

were later included in the Roman pantheon.

Fertility Deities

CLASSICAL EUROPE

Zephyrus and Flora

Although both helped the plants

bloom, Flora was the more

widely worshipped, and special

games, the Floralia, were

held in her honour.

SATURN

Saturn (the Roman version of the Greek god Cronus) was one of the founding

deities of the Roman people. He had been a deity on Mount Olympus, but had

quarrelled with Jupiter, who expelled him from the home of the gods. He hid

in Italy, and the place where he settled became known as Latium, from the

Latin word meaning “to hide”. It was said that he built a village by the River

Tiber, on the site where Rome was later to stand. Here, during the prosperous

time known as the Golden Age, he showed the locals how best to

cultivate the ground and how to grow vines and produce wine.

The Romans worshipped him at a festival called Saturnalia, held in the

month of December, when masters became servants and servants masters.

Saturn with a sickle

Because he was a god of

cultivation, Saturn was usually

depicted carrying a scythe or

a sickle. The barrel signifies

his role as a grower

of grapes for wine.

FLORA

The goddess of springtime, flowers, and

fertility, Flora is usually portrayed as an attractive

young nymph carrying a bunch of flowers. At first

she was shy and retiring, but Zephyrus, the west wind (also

known as Favonius), caught sight of her and, enchanted by her

beauty, blew in her direction. She ran from him in fright, but

eventually he caught her and made love to her. The story ended well

for Flora, however, because soon Zephyrus made her his wife and the pair

lived happily together, combining their abilities to bring fertile soil and favourable

weather so that the plants grew and the flowers bloomed.

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