Nerites (mythology)
| Nerites | |
|---|---|
| Abode | Sea |
| Texts | On the Characteristics of Animals |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents | NereusandDoris |
| Siblings | Nereids |
| Consort | Aphrodite,Poseidon |
InGreek mythology,Nerites(Greek:Νηρίτης,romanized:Nērítēs) was a minorsea deity,the son of "Old Man of the Sea"Nereusand theOceanidDoris[1]and brother of the fiftyNereids(apparently their only male sibling). He was described as a young boy of stunning beauty. According toAelian,although Nerites was never mentioned by epic poets such asHomerandHesiodhe was a common figure in themariners' folklore nevertheless.[2]
Etymology[edit]
According toAristoteles,the nameneritesrefers to many species ofsea snails.R. S. P. Beekessuggests aPre-Greekorigin for the word.[3]
Mythology[edit]
Aeliancites two versions of the myth concerning Nerites,[2]which are as follows:
In the first version,Aphrodite,before her ascension from the sea toOlympus,fell in love with Nerites. When the time had come for her to join theOlympian gods,she wanted Nerites to go with her, but he refused, preferring to stay with his family in the sea. Even the fact that Aphrodite promised him a pair of wings did not make him change his mind. The scorned goddess then transformed him into a shellfish and gave the wings to her sonEros.
In the second version, Nerites was loved byPoseidonand answered his feelings. Their love was the origin of mutual love (Anteros). Poseidon also made Nerites his charioteer; the boy drove the chariot astonishingly fast, to the admiration of various sea creatures. The sun godHelios,for reasons unknown to Aelian's sources, changed Nerites into a shellfish; the narrative of the love-story is disrupted by Helios who is resentful of the boy's speed, but with no explanation behind it, allowing Aelian to conjecture that the two gods were rivals in love and Helios might have wanted the boy's affections for himself and was offended by his refusal.[4]
Iconography[edit]
In the nineteenth century several terracotta figurines from the Greek island ofAeginawere identified by the German archaeologistKarl Bernhard Starkas artistic representations of Aphrodite with Nerites.[5][6]
See also[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ^Grimal,s.v. Nerites, p. 308.
- ^abAelian,De Natura Animalium14.28.
- ^Beekes, p. 1017.
- ^Sanders et al. 2013,p.86.
- ^Wagner 1898,s.v.Nerites.
- ^Stark 1865,pp.71-80.
References[edit]
- Claudius Aelianus,On the Characteristics of Animals,translated by Alwyn Faber Scholfield (1884-1969), from Aelian,Characteristics of Animals,published in three volumes by Harvard/Heinemann,Loeb Classical Library,1958.Online version at the Topos Text Project.
- Beekes, Robert S. P.,Etymological Dictionary of Greek,2 vols, Leiden,Brill,2009.ISBN978-90-04-17418-4.Online version at Brill.
- Grimal, Pierre,The Dictionary of Classical Mythology,Wiley-Blackwell, 1996.ISBN978-0-631-20102-1.Internet Archive.
- Sanders, Ed; Thumiger, Chiara; Carey, Christopher; Lowe, Nick J. (2013).Erôs in Ancient Greece.Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-960550-7.
- Stark, Karl Bernhard (1865)."Aphrodite Pontia und Nerites, Terracotta aus Aegina".Archäologische Zeitung(in German) (200).RetrievedNovember 12,2023.
- Wagner, Richard (1898). "Nerites". In Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher (ed.).Ausführliches Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie[Detailed dictionary of Greek and Roman mythology] (in German). Vol. III. Leipzig: Teubner-Verlag.
External links[edit]
- "NERITES".Theoi Project.
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