Mythology & Folklore: Roman

In Greek and Roman mythology, the god of sun, music, poetry, prophecy, agriculture, and pastoral life, and leader of the Muses.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
In Roman mythology, the goddess of corn, representing the fertility of the earth as its producer; patron of the corn trade.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
In Roman mythology, the goddess of chastity, hunting, and the Moon; daughter of Jupiter and twin of Apollo. Her Greek equivalent is the goddess Artemis.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
In Roman mythology, the principal goddess, identified with the Greek Hera. The wife of Jupiter and queen of heaven, she was concerned with all aspects of women's lives and also regarded as a patroness of commerce.

From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Jupiter ('sky-father'), in Roman myth, was an amalgam of the Etruscan god Tinia ('thunderer') and the Greek Zeus.

From Who's Who in Classical Mythology
The Roman god of war, identified with Ares; though originally he had been a god of more general characteristics or specifically of agriculture.

From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
The Roman counterpart of the Greek hermes, son of maia and jupiter, to whom he acted as messenger.

From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
The Roman goddess, possibly of Etruscan origin, of wisdom and the patroness of the arts and trades.

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
In Roman religion, the god of water. Neptune was originally the god of fresh water, but by 399 BC he was identified with the Greek god Poseidon and thus became a deity of the sea.

From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
The Roman goddess of beauty and sensual love, identified with aphrodite, in some accounts said to have sprung from the foam of the sea, in others to have been the daughter of jupiter and dione, a nymph.

From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Vesta ('hearth'), in Roman myth, was one of the four Hesperides who tended the Golden Apples of Immortality.

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Ancient Roman god of fire. He was the counterpart of the Greek Hephaestus.

From Chamber's Dictionary of the Unexplained
The art or practice of interpreting signs and omens, such as the flight or cries of birds, to gain knowledge of secrets or to predict the future.

From Holidays, Festivals, and Celebrations of the World Dictionary
The ancient Roman festival known as the Bona Dea, or Maia Maiesta Festival, was celebrated only by women; no men were allowed to observe or participate in the festivities.

In Phrygian mythology, an earth goddess, Great Mother of the Gods; identified by the Greeks of Asia Minor with the Titan Rhea, mother of Zeus; and honoured in Rome.

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
Practice of foreseeing future events or obtaining secret knowledge through communication with divine sources and through omens, oracles, signs, and portents.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
In ancient Rome, Etruscan priest who practised divination. They were especially popular in the early days of the republic.

From Late Antiquity: A Guide to the Postclassical World
Under the tetrarchy the relationship between emperor and gods was reformalized. The 3rd century emphasis on the protection of the emperor by one particular god changed with the creation of two senior and two junior emperors: the former were called “Jovius” (of Jupiter) and the latter “Herculius” (of Hercules).

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
Mystery religion based on the worship of the Persian god of light, Mithras, and the religious ideals of redemption and salvation; baptism in blood was the pledge.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
Any of various cults of the ancient world that were open only to the initiated.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
Ancient Greek mystery religion of which the Orphic hymns, poems attributed to the legendary poet Orpheus, formed a part. The cult dates from the 6th or 7th century BC, but the poems are of a later date.

Belief in a plurality of gods in which each deity is distinguished by special functions. Polytheistic worship does not imply equal devotion or importance to each deity.

A type of religious offering, or gift to a superior or supreme being, in which the offering is consecrated through its destruction. MORE

Place regarded as holy due to an association with a divine figure, relic, or event. Shrines are important places in most religions, and are often a focus of worship or meditation.

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia
One of the six priestesses of the Roman goddess Vesta, who served in her temple in Rome. Their lives were dedicated to the goddess and they kept the sacred flame burning permanently in the shrine.