Artemis

This article is about the Greek goddess. For the fantasy novel series, seeArtemis Fowl.

Bronze Diana, 3rd Century BC

Artemisis the Greekgoddessof theMoon,hunting,archery,virginity,wilderness, forests, animals, hills andmidwifery.She is one of the members of theTwelve Olympianswho ruled the world on top ofMount Olympus.She is the daughter ofZeusandLeto,older twin sister ofApollo.Her Roman equivalent isDiana.

Artemis is generally depicted as a beautiful huntress wearing a sleeveless tunic and carrying a bow and arrow. She is accompanied by a group of nymphs huntresses.Bow,arrow,quiverandknivesserves as her symbols. Whiledeerandstagsis her sacred animal.

Ancient Greek myths involving Artemis

Birth

Hera, who was Zeus's wife, discovered that Leto was pregnant and became very angry. She banned Leto from giving birth on any mainland or island known.

Leto found the island of Delos, which floated and so was not an island or mainland, and gave birth there. Hera then locked up the goddess of childbirth, Eilethyia, so she could not give birth to the twins. Then, all the other goddesses convinced her to let her free so she could finally give birth. Leto gave birth to Artemis without any problem. However she was in labor with Apollo for nine days. Artemis helped Leto to give birth to Apollo.

Acteon

A mortal hunter named Acteon stumbled upon Artemis while she was bathing. Artemis discovered him and was enraged. She inflicted a punishment upon him for spying on her whilst she was bathing, by transforming him into a stag. She then sent his own huntingdogsto tear him apart.

Hippolytos

Hippolytos, a companion and devotee of Artemis, was slain through the machinations ofAphrodite,as punishment for his scorning of love and neglecting her worship. Artemis avenged the death of Hippolytos by killing Aphrodite's favourite lover,Adonis.She later petitionedAsclepiusto bring the boy back to life, and spirited him away to her sacred shrine in Aricia.

Related pages

• Artume-Etruscan mythologyversion of Artemis.
• Diana-Roman mythologyversion of Artemis.
• Temple of Artemis

Other websites

• Theoi Project, Artemis, information on Artemis from original Greek and Roman sources, images from classical art.
• Hymn To Artemis - The Virgin Goddess of the Hunt
• A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890) (eds. G. E. Marindin, William Smith, LLD, William Wayte)