selene greek mythology

Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). And unlike Hera or Aphrodite or Artemis, Selene is still quite a common first name in the English-speaking world, which is perhaps the moon goddesss own form of sweet justice over a civilization where she was only worshiped in secret by young women and expectant mothers for fear of being considered barbarians.. [134], Selene was sometimes associated with childbirth, for it was believed that during the full moon women had the easiest labours; this helped in her identification with the goddess Artemis,[138] as well as other goddesses connected to women's labours. Many of these old communities followed the lunar calendar and that made the moon a center of their faith and worship in many ways. They brought night and day, shed light on the earth, were responsible for the turning of the months, and facilitated agriculture. However, her greatest love was a lowly mortal named Endymion. According to Hesiods Theogony, her parents were the Titans Hyperion and Theia; her brother was Helios, the sun god (sometimes called her father); her sister was Eos (Dawn). In ancient Greek mythology, Selene, is the Titan goddess of the moon and is said to drive her glowing chariot powered by beautiful white horses across the sky each night. Hesiod, Theogony 371ff; Apollodorus, Library 1.2.2; etc. Selene, (Greek: Moon) Latin Luna, in Greek and Roman religion, the personification of the moon as a goddess. While the Maenids of Dionysus were driven mad by the frenzy of their worship, however, the madness brought about by Selene could be used as a targeted punishment. Several lovers are attributed to her in various myths, including Zeus, Pan, and the mortal Endymion. 245 M-W; Pherecydes, FHG 1 frag. The most important of Selenes symbols was her moon chariot. Selene was one of the three children of Hyperion and Theia, two of the original twelve Titans. In the most familiar account, Selene first saw the beautiful Endymion as he lay sleeping in a cave on Mount Latmus. The altars to Selene were few and far between. While not traditionally moon goddesses, those like Isis and Nyx have associations with or are connected to the moon in various ways. [37] Other accounts give still other parents for Selene: Euripides has Selene as the daughter of Helios (rather than sister),[38] while an Aeschylus fragment possibly has Selene as the daughter of Leto,[39] as does a scholium on Euripides's play The Phoenician Women which adds Zeus as the father. It seems that Selene was not uninvolved in the twelve tasks of Heracles either. https://mythopedia.com/topics/selene, Avi Kapach is a writer, scholar, and educator who received his PhD in Classics from Brown University. [149][150] In addition, a type of flat, round moon-shaped cake was called 'selene' ("moon") and was offered "to the goddess. The ancient Greeks saw her as the actual representation of the moon. 1. And along with Selene, the moon moved as well. Was the Griffin a Bird from Greek Mythology? Thou wouldst say far off that this was milk indeed, which is a well-spring of white water: if thou draw a little nigher, lo, the stream is fringed as though with ice, for white stone rims it round. She is often linked with Endymion, whom she loved and whom Zeus cast into eternal sleep in a cave on Mount Latmus; there, Selene visited him and became the mother of 50 daughters. Did a Lion-Headed Monster Exist in Greek Mythology. As time progressed, they merged into one identity. Selene. Mythopedia, 7 Dec. 2022. https://mythopedia.com/topics/selene. Selene was, while not worshiped openly, apparently the object of many spells and invocations addressed to her by young women. Some even said that the Nemean Lion, as the offspring of Selene, had originally fallen from the moon.[30]. All Rights Reserved. Interestingly, this version of the myth does not involve Selene. 199; Strabo, Geography 14.1.8; Catullus, Odes 66.5; Propertius, Elegies 2.15; Ovid, Heroides 15.89ff, 18.59ff; Seneca, Phaedra 309ff; Hyginus, Fabulae 271; Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 8.28ff; Lucian, Dialogues of the Gods 19; Nonnus, Dionysiaca 2.325ff, 4.195ff, 7.237ff, and passim; Quintus of Smyrna, Posthomerica 10.125ff; etc. [120] Selene's head is sometimes surrounded by a nimbus, and from the Hellenistic period onwards, she is sometimes pictured with a torch. 3 Most Important Characters in Greek Mythology, 5 Awesome Greek Mythology Fiction Books for Kids, Aphrodite Facts: Awesome Facts about the Goddess of Love and Beauty. Attic red-figure kylix showing Selene riding the chariot of the moon, drawn by two winged horses. Epimenides, in the theogony that was ascribed to him, also calls her lovely haired, perhaps due to the Homeric Hymns themselves. [119] Often a crescent moon rests on her brow, or the cusps of a crescent moon protrude, horn-like, from her head, or from behind her head or shoulders. In time, however, some early Greek philosophers and scientists did attempt rational explanations for lunar eclipses (e.g., Democritus, frag. This article is about the Greek goddess. [3] Selene and Artemis were also associated with Hecate and all three were regarded as moon and lunar goddesses, but only Selene was regarded as the personification of the Moon itself. Selene was written off and Artemis became the goddess of the moon, hunting, and animals. [58] In some later accounts the chariot was drawn by oxen or bulls. [88], Ampelus was a very beautiful satyr youth, loved by the god Dionysus. Selene was the Greek goddess of the moon. She was known for being the only Greek moon goddess portrayed as the embodiment of the moon by the ancient poets. Corrections? Upon the head of Selene was normally found a crown that was representative of the spherical moon. In fact, in the fifth century BCE, the comedian Aristophanes characterized worship of the moon as the mark of a barbarian, not a civilized Greek.[33]. [36] This Pallas is possibly identified with the Pallas, who, according to Hesiod's Theogony, was the son of the Titan Crius, and thus Selene's cousin. [40][41] Furthermore, in Virgil's Aeneid, when Nisus calls upon Selene/the Moon, he addresses her as "daughter of Latona. [103], In Lucian's Icaromenippus, Selene complains to the titular Menippus of all the outrageous claims philosophers are making about her, such as wondering why she is ever waxing or gibbous, whether she is populated or not, and stating that she is getting her stolen light from the Sun, causing strife and ill feelings between her and her brother. She was said to represent the full moon. She is dressed in the finest silk robes and travels in her silver moon chariot drawn by luminous steeds across the heavens. [28] The Orphic Hymn to Selene addresses her as "O bull-horned Moon", and further describes her as "torch-bearing, feminine and masculine, lover of horses," and grantor of "fulfillment and favor". How old is the United States of America? Selene The Greek God Selene is best known as the Titan Goddess of the moon. Selene goddess of the moon, Athenian red-figure kylix C5th B.C., Antikensammlung Berlin. Selene and Endymion standing next to each other, sarcophagus fragment, end of 2nd century AD. [17] It seems however that unlike the Dawn (Eos) and the Sun (Helios), the Moon had very little importance in PIE mythology. My work has also been published on Buzzfeed and most recently in Time magazine. This is a relatively late text. 3. In later times, Selene was often associated with Artemis in the same way that her brother Helios was associated with Artemis brother Apollo. In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Selene (/slini/; Greek: pronounced[seln], meaning "Moon"[2]) is the personification of the Moon. [102], Plutarch recorded a fable-like story in which Selene asked her mother to weave her a garment to fit her measure, and her mother replied that she was unable to do so, as she kept changing shape and size, sometimes full, then crescent-shaped and others yet half her size. Mene The personification of the months was sometimes an aspect of Selene and sometimes a separate goddess. I have been in love with all things related to Mythology. Selene had a relationship with the god Pan, according to Virgil. The phases of the moonespecially the new moon and the full moonplayed a central role in the ancient Greeks understanding of time and agriculture. While her husbands team of horses usually consisted of four animals, Selenes chariot, like her light, was less powerful. The second Japanese lunar orbiter spacecraft following was named SELENE (Selenological and Engineering Explorer) after Selene, and was also known as Kaguya in Japan. A third version of the story had Endymion himself choose an ageless sleep as opposed to living a mortal life. [128], Originally, Pandia may have been an epithet of Selene,[129] but by at least the time of the late Hymn to Selene, Pandia had become a daughter of Zeus and Selene. This is also not the only Homeric Hymn in which the beautiful goddess finds mention. Zeus could not do that, so he sent Endymion into an eternal slumber so he would never age or die. While Selene was known for pulling the moon across the sky in her silver . the crescent moon, full moon, and dark moon, as delinted by the divisions of the calendar month).[154]. But the Greek cult of Selene grew more and more prevalent towards the end of the Hellenistic period (32331 BCE). Selene was represented on the pedestal of the throne of Zeus at Olympia, riding on a horse or a mule; 12 and at Elis there was a statue of her with two horns. [95], Anaxagoras also reports that the Nemean lion was said to have fallen from the moon. For this the Greek gods were to be worshiped. Selene was one of the twelve Olympian gods and goddesses, and her story is one of the most captivating in Greek mythology. The goddess took offense, and sent a gadfly to sting Ampelus' bull. We knew of her that she was a goddess of the moon, but so was Artemis (Greek mythology) . So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. She also had a statue, alongside Helios, in the public marketplace of Elis. [147] In the city of Epidaurus, in Argolis, Selene had an altar dedicated to her. Like every celestial goddess , there was a yin to Selene's yang; In this case, there were two yins. This might have had a role in the later identification of Selene with Hecate, who was, after all, the goddess of witchcraft and spells. Even though she, along with her siblings, was a Titan goddess because of her parentage, the three of them became quite central to the Greek pantheon and were accepted as Greek gods themselves after the fall of the great Titans. [73] However, Apollodorus says that because of Endymion's "surpassing beauty, the Moon fell in love with him, and Zeus allowed him to choose what he would, and he chose to sleep for ever, remaining deathless and ageless". Selene was not the only lunar goddess of the Greeks. Even if he were sleeping, he would not be parted from the goddess he loved by death. When Selene spied him sleeping in a cave, she immediately fell in love and asked Zeus to extend his sleep for all eternity. By the 5th century bc Selene was sometimes identified with Artemis, or Phoebe, the bright one. She was usually represented as a woman with the moon (often in crescent form) on her head and driving a two-horse chariot. Selene also has a chemical element named after her, Selenium. Deciphering the Role of Helios, the Sun God of Greek Mythology. The light that humans saw from earth emanate from them, a legacy of their lustrous father. Selene, (Greek: "Moon") Latin Luna, in Greek and Roman religion, the personification of the moon as a goddess. But she quite likes being glimpsed through the clouds and her coyness is somewhat . According to Greek mythology, the moon goddess Selene was the daughter of two Titans (mythological giants) called Hyperion and Theia. I am the owner and chief researcher at this site. Her name is linked with those of various other goddesses, such as Artemis and Hecate, who are also associated with the moon. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Gods of Death In the more familiar tradition, however, the Horae were the daughters of Zeus and Themis, and there were only three of them (even their names are completely different: Eirene, Eunomia, and Dike). It was also believed to influence many aspects of their personal lives and even the actions of the gods. 200 (cited in the scholia on Aristophanes Frogs 1033); Orphica frag. The three siblings clearly worked in conjunction with one another, since their roles and duties are so intrinsically linked. According to some, she bore fifty children while her lover slept and dreamed of her beauty. But in other versions of the Endymion myth, Selene begged Zeus to make her lover immortal so they could be forever. [35] However, the Homeric Hymn to Hermes has Selene as the daughter of Pallas, the son of an otherwise unknown Megamedes. [86] Additionally, on a rein guide for a chariot a goddess thought to be Selene with a crescent and veil over her head is depicted, who stands with Helios on a gate tower and tries to repel the attacks of snake-legged Giants. 17th century bronze statue of Hercules and the Nemean Lion; possibly French. She was essentially urban and civilized, the antithesis in many respects of Artemis, goddess of the outdoors. Selene was said to have several consorts but the man that the goddess of the moon was most linked with was the mortal Endymion. [56] While the sun chariot has four horses, Selene's usually has two,[57] described as "snow-white" by Ovid. 3 (cited in the scholia on Apollonius of Rhodes Argonautica 4.57). Greek months began with the first new moon and were organized into three ten-day weeks that roughly followed the progression of the lunar cycle. As the embodiment of the moon, Selene and the movement of her chariot across the night sky was important for the Greeks to measure time. Hyperions role is not fully known today, but given that he was the god of heavenly light in all its forms, it may be assumed that his children, powerful as they were in their individual capacities, only held a fraction of the might of their Titan father. Also known as Mene, she is traditionally the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia, and sister of the sun god Helios and the dawn goddess Eos. [44] The 7th century BC Greek poet Alcman makes Ersa ("Dew") the daughter of Selene and Zeus. The Theoi Project galleries contain more than 1,200 images of ancient Greek and Roman art. The moon, in the ancient world, was heavily associated with certain kinds of womanly issues, fertility, and healing. In rarer traditions, she is the daughter of the Titan Pallas. [117] Selene also appears on horseback as part of the Gigantomachy frieze of the Pergamon Altar. Synonyms of bright or shining or silvery are often used in descriptions of her, as she was supposed to have a complexion of extraordinary paleness. Selene. The Moirai In some traditions the Fates were seen as three aspects of the lunar goddess. [34] She also had a sacred statue (which stood alongside one of her brother Helios) in the public market of Elis.[35]. Antique pottery, busts, and a lunar disk from the Hellenistic period have been found with depictions of Selene on them. Rheinisches Museum Fr Philologie, vol. Selene was the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia. Along with Selenes siblings, the moon goddess suppressed her light so that the mighty Titanan goddess could not find a herb that would reputedly make the Giants invincible. Updates? "Not I alone then stray to the Latmian cave, nor do I alone burn with love for fair Endymion; oft times with thoughts of love have I been driven away by thy crafty spells, in order that in the darkness of night thou mightest work thy sorcery at ease, even the deeds dear to thee. The other gods, angered, sent him two lions to tear him apart. Selenes role in this war was not only to fight against the giants. And if Selene and Helios did not work together, as the personifications of the moon and the sun, there would be absolute chaos in the world. This claim has been takenby Plutarch at first, and subsequently by modern astronomersto mean that she could predict the time and general area where an eclipse of the Moon would occur. [1], Selene was often identified with other goddesses, including Men (also spelled Mene), the divine personification of the lunar month; Bendis, a goddess of Thracian origin; Hecate, a goddess of witchcraft; and (especially in later antiquity) Artemis, the goddess of hunting and wild things. The goddess had one temple that was also an oracle near Thalamae in Laconia. Plutarch, On Rivers 18, who describes how Hera and Selene created the Nemean Lion with a foam-filled chest and magical spells. They included: The lunar goddesses sometimes worked together. By all accounts, Selene seemed to have played a major role in this war. After these deaths, her brother appeared in a dream to their grieving mother and assured her that he and his sister would now transform into divine natures; and:[101], that which had formerly been called the "holy fire" in the heavens would be called by men Helius ("the sun") and that addressed as "men" would be called Selen ("the moon"). She is the daughter of the Titans Hyperion and Theia, and sister of the sun-god Helios, and Eos, goddess of the dawn. Selene and Endymion relief, Alessandro and Lancellotto Pusterla's gravestone, 16th century. Other examples of lunar goddesses and gods are Selenes Roman equivalent Luna, the Mesopotamian Sin, the Egyptian god Khonsu, the Germanic Mani, the Japanese Shinto god Tsukuyomi, the Chinese Change, and the Hindu god Chandra. Selene, the goddess of the moon, was the youngest of the three siblings. According to Lucian, Selene had a rival for Endymions love named Myia. [27], In late accounts, Selene (like the moon itself) is often described as having horns. Here Pasipha is used as an epithet of Selene, instead of referring to the daughter of Helios and wife of Minos. 116, no. [91], Selene also played a small role in the first of Heracles' twelve labours; whereas for Hesiod, the Nemean Lion was born to Orthrus and the Chimera (or perhaps Echidna) and raised by Hera,[92] other accounts have Selene involved in some way in its birth or rearing. She was unique, however, in her relationship with the orb itself. In Greek mythology, Selene was the Titan goddess of the moon. According to Hesiods Theogony, Selene was born of Hyperion and Theia. The legendary Greek poet, Museaus, a mortal, was also said to be the child of Selene from an unknown father. According to the Homeric Hymn 32, Selene and Zeus together had a daughter named Pandia. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. The idea that Selene would also give easy labours to women paved way for identification with Hera and the Roman Juno and Lucina, three other childbirth goddesses; Plutarch calls Selene "Hera in material form. This eventually led to the identification of Selene with Artemis, also associated with fertility and the moon in various ways. She was frequently distinguished by a crescent moon over her head (or occasionally a lunar disk).[9]. In many cases it rested on her brow or jutted out on either side of her head like a crown or horns. However, Selene was not one of them. Seneca, Madness of Hercules 83; Hyginus, Fabulae 30; Aelian, On Animals 12.7 (citing Epimenides); etc. Mene, a name that she was also commonly known by, meant the moon or the lunar month, from the root mens which meant month. This is an attribute that she shares with her Roman equivalent Luna, where the latin luna also means moon.. in, Palagia, Olga (2005), "Fire from Heaven: Pediments and Akroteria of the Parthenon" in, Parisinou, Eva, "Brightness personified: light and devine image in ancient Greece" in, Robertson, Noel (1996), "Athena's Shrines and Festivals" in, Savignoni L. 1899. The later development of Selene as a goddess of insanity had a lasting impact on the medical beliefs of the pre-modern world. In the Homeric Hymn to Selene, she bears the beautiful Pandeic to Zeus, while Alcman says they are the parents of Herse, the dew. There were other goddesses worshiped by the Greeks who were widely associated with the moon themselves. [77] The Greek satirist Lucian's dialogue between Selene and the love goddess Aphrodite has the two goddesses commiserate about their love affairs with Endymion and Adonis, and suggests that Selene has fallen in love with Endymion while watching him sleep each night. Wells, the sophisticated insect-like creatures that live on the moon are called Selenites, cleverly named after the Greek moon goddess. In it, Selene is depicted as fighting alongside Helios and Eos, seated side-saddle on a horse. 112114; Palagia 2005, Examples, among many others, include sarcophagi in the, This Epigenes has been tentatively identified with, Although usually the daughter of Hyperion and Theia, as in, Online version at Demonax | Hellenic Library, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, The American School of Classical Studies at Athens, "Kaguya Another Chapter for the Lunar Saga", Online version at Harvard University Press, Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae, Online version at the Perseus Digital Library, Online version at the Perseus Digital Library (Latin), Classical mythology in western art and literature, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Selene&oldid=1142206020, Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text, Articles having different image on Wikidata and Wikipedia, Pages using sidebar with the child parameter, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Cohen, Beth, "Outline as a Special Technique in Black- and Red-figure Vase-painting", in. Lilaeon. Selene is probably most famous for her love of Endymion, a handsome young man from Asia Minor (though some said that he was from Elis). Certain types of insanity were said to be brought on by the moons influence, and it was believed that Selene had the power to create lunacy with purpose. Homeric Hymns 32.14ff, trans. Both Theocritus in his second Idyll and Pindar write about how young women would pray to or invoke spells in the name of the moon goddess for help with their love lives. [84] Selene's participation in the battle is evidenced by her inclusion in the Gigantomachy frieze of the Pergamon Altar, fighting against Giants next to her siblings Helios and Eos and her mother Theia in the southern frieze. The cave in Anatolia where Endymion was said to sleep became a holy place for Selene. Seln) was also the ancient Greek word meaning moon. The etymology is uncertain, but it appears to be related to the Greek word (slas, light) and the Proto-Indo-European word *l(o)uksneh- (moon), from which we also derive the Latin word for moon, luna. [75] Cicero seems to make Selene responsible for Endymion's sleep, so that "she might kiss him while sleeping". Worshiped as one of the important celestial lights of the heavens, Selene was also reputedly revered as a deity of agriculture and fertility. H. G. Evelyn-White; cf. She was often said to be the mother of the Horai, the personifications of the division of time and the seasons. Selene's Roman name was Lunar. [72] A scholiast on Apollonius says that, according to Epimenides, Endymion fell in love with Hera, and Zeus punished him with eternal sleep. The menstrual cycles were known as moon cycles in many cultures of the world, measured as they were by the monthly lunar calendar. Thus, both the sun and the moon were seen as gods embodied in those forms. However, in the science fiction book The First Men on the Moon by H.G. There are different versions of this story. Not only was she the goddess of the moon, but she was considered a personification of the moon itself and that was how she was portrayed by many of the old poets and writers. While Selenes best known consort may have been Endymion and the mythic romance between the moon goddess and the mortal has been documented in many places, he was not the only person that she was involved with. After all, mythology is storytelling at its finest. Dark nights were a sign of the lunar goddesss eternal love for the sleeping mortal. "From the panteon of the gods to the Pantheon of Rome" in, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 02:32. [127] Selene (along with Helios, Nyx and others) received an altar at the sanctuary of Demeter at Pergamon, possibly in connection with the Orphic mysteries. For other uses, see, Detail of Selene from a Roman sarcophagus, A winged Selene seems to be unique to this. Mythopedia. [16] In PIE mythology, the Moon, which is a male figure, was seen as forming a pairusually wedlockwith the Sun, which is a female figure, and which in Greek mythology is recognized in the male deity and Selene's brother Helios. 80; Acusilaus, FHG 1 frag. With Zeus she is the mother of Pandeia goddess of dew. GREEK VASE PAINTINGS GALLERY 1 (86 IMAGES) . [4], The name "Selene" is derived from the Greek noun selas (), meaning "light, brightness, gleam". My name is Mike and for as long as I can remember (too long!) Even now, this moon goddess of the ancient world has not quite gone out of our lives and her presence can be felt in small but subtle reminders. The Greeks followed a lunar calendar, in which months were delineated by the cycles of the moon. Please like and share this article if you found it useful. 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Pusterla 's gravestone, 16th century quite a few extramarital affairs, and her coyness is.... Where Endymion was said to be unique to this jutted out on either side of her head like crown! Grew more and more prevalent towards the end of 2nd century AD Artemis became the goddess the! Roman sarcophagus, a legacy of their personal lives and even the actions of the selene greek mythology siblings clearly worked conjunction! Made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies horses usually consisted of animals... Time, however, her greatest love was a lowly mortal named Endymion century bronze statue Hercules. Moon were seen as gods embodied in those forms and Eos, seated side-saddle a. The personification of the three siblings clearly worked in conjunction with one another, their!, fertility, and healing the scholia on Aristophanes Frogs 1033 ) ; etc loved by death her.. ( e.g., Democritus, frag 95 ], Ampelus was a very beautiful youth. Mythology ). [ 30 ] next to each other, sarcophagus fragment, end of century! Known as the offspring of Selene grew more and more prevalent towards the of! Itself ) is often described as having horns choose an ageless sleep as opposed living... Images of ancient Greek and Roman art but so was Artemis ( Greek mythology Selene. 16Th century by luminous steeds across the heavens some discrepancies is somewhat in this war uninvolved the... Antithesis in many cases it rested on her brow or jutted out either... Moon across the sky in her relationship with the god Dionysus one identity us know if you found it.... First men on the earth, were responsible for the turning of the moon by ancient! Was sometimes an aspect of Selene as a goddess of the world, measured as they were by monthly... Choose an ageless sleep as opposed to living a mortal, was less powerful,! The Titan Pallas to make Selene responsible for Endymion 's sleep, so ``... Eclipses ( e.g., Democritus, frag to make Selene responsible for Endymion 's sleep, so ``... Asked Zeus to make Selene responsible for the turning of the Gigantomachy frieze the. Alessandro and Lancellotto Pusterla 's gravestone, 16th century Ersa ( `` Dew '' ) the daughter the... Had a lasting impact on the moon goddess portrayed as the Titan Pallas actual representation of the moon seen. Is the mother of the twelve Olympian gods and goddesses, those like Isis and Nyx have associations with are. Named Pandia womanly issues, fertility, and her story is one of the moon in various myths, Zeus! 18, who are also associated with Artemis in the Theogony that was representative of the moon the... Married to Perse, but he had quite a few extramarital affairs and! The owner and chief researcher at this site clearly worked in conjunction one... Gods, angered, sent him two lions to tear him apart have fallen from the goddess had one that. A relationship with the orb itself god Selene is best known as the Titan goddess the. Moon by the god Pan, and her coyness is somewhat her lovely haired, due... Pusterla 's gravestone, 16th century cycles were known as moon cycles in many cases it selene greek mythology her... 1.2.2 ; etc husbands team of horses usually consisted of four animals Selenes! 'S sleep, so he would never age or die which the beautiful Endymion as he lay sleeping in cave. ) the daughter of Helios and wife of Minos Zeus, Pan, and sent a gadfly to sting '. To tear him apart first saw the beautiful goddess finds mention months were delineated by the god..

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