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Proserpina (sometimes spelt Proserpine, Prosperine or Prosperina) is an ancient Roman goddess
Goddess

A goddess is a female deity. Often deities are part of a polytheism system that includes several deities in a pantheon .Common associations of goddesses are the Earth goddess, the Mother Goddess, Love goddess, and the hearth goddess, reflecting historical gender roles....
 whose story is the basis of a myth
Mythology

The word mythology refers to a body of folklore/myths/legends that a particular culture believes to be true and that often use the supernatural to interpret natural events and to explain the nature of the universe and humanity....
 of Springtime
Springtime

Springtime may refer to:* Spring , one of the four temperate seasons* Springtime , a band from Austria* Springtime , an experimental guitar created by Yuri Landman...
. Her Greek
Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the Ancient Greece concerning their List of Greek mythological figures#Immortals and Greek hero cult, Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices....
 goddess' equivalent is Persephone
Persephone

In Greek mythology, Persephone was the embodiment of the Earth's fertility at the same time that she was the Queen of the Greek Underworld, the kore , and the parthenogenesis daughter of Demeter and, in later Classical myths, a daughter of Demeter and Zeus....
. The probable origin of her name comes from the Latin, "proserpere" or "to emerge," in respect to the growing of grain.






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Luca Giordano 016
Proserpina (sometimes spelt Proserpine, Prosperine or Prosperina) is an ancient Roman goddess
Goddess

A goddess is a female deity. Often deities are part of a polytheism system that includes several deities in a pantheon .Common associations of goddesses are the Earth goddess, the Mother Goddess, Love goddess, and the hearth goddess, reflecting historical gender roles....
 whose story is the basis of a myth
Mythology

The word mythology refers to a body of folklore/myths/legends that a particular culture believes to be true and that often use the supernatural to interpret natural events and to explain the nature of the universe and humanity....
 of Springtime
Springtime

Springtime may refer to:* Spring , one of the four temperate seasons* Springtime , a band from Austria* Springtime , an experimental guitar created by Yuri Landman...
. Her Greek
Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the Ancient Greece concerning their List of Greek mythological figures#Immortals and Greek hero cult, Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices....
 goddess' equivalent is Persephone
Persephone

In Greek mythology, Persephone was the embodiment of the Earth's fertility at the same time that she was the Queen of the Greek Underworld, the kore , and the parthenogenesis daughter of Demeter and, in later Classical myths, a daughter of Demeter and Zeus....
. The probable origin of her name comes from the Latin, "proserpere" or "to emerge," in respect to the growing of grain. Proserpina was subsumed by the cult of Libera
Libera (mythology)

In Roman mythology, Libera is a goddess of fertility and the Earth. She is the daughter of Liber and Ceres . Libera is associated with Persephone of Greek mythology....
, an ancient fertility goddess
Fertility goddess

The fertility goddesses are the female deities to watch over and promote fertility, pregnancy, and birth in many Polytheism cultures. In some cases these deities were directly associated with sexual intercourse, and in others they simply embodied related attributes....
, wife of Liber
Liber

In Roman mythology, Liber was originally associated with husbandry and crops, but then was assimilated with Dionysos. He is the consort of Ceres and the father of the goddess Libera ....
 and is also considered a life–death–rebirth deity
Life-death-rebirth deity

The category life-death-rebirth deity also known as a "dying-and-rising" or "Resurrection" deity is a convenient means of classifying the many divinities in world mythology or religion who are born, suffer death, an eclipse, or other death-like experience, pass a phase in the underworld among the dead, and are subsequently reborn, in either a...
.

She was the daughter of Ceres, goddess of cereals and Jupiter, the god of sky and thunder.

Myths


Myth of Abduction


Venus, in order to bring love to Pluto, sent her son Amor also known as Cupid
Cupid

In Roman mythology, Cupid is the god of eroticism love and beauty. He is also known by another one of his Latin names, Amor . He is the son of goddess Aphrodite....
 to hit Pluto with one of his arrows. Proserpina was in Sicily
Sicily

Sicily is an Autonomous regions with special statute of Italy. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest land area at 25,708 km? and currently has just over five million inhabitants....
 (an island outside of Italy), at the fountain of Arethusa
Arethusa (mythology)

Arethusa means "the waterer". She was a nymph and daughter of Nereus , and later became a fountain on the island of Ortygia in Syracuse, Sicily, Sicily....
 near Enna
Enna

Enna is a city located in the center of Sicily in the province of Enna, towering above the surrounding countryside. It has earned a few nicknames, such as "belvedere" or the "ombelico" of Sicily....
, where she was playing with some nymph
Nymph

In Greek mythology, a nymph is any member of a large class of mythological entities in human form. They were typically associated with a particular location or landform....
s and collecting flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s, when Pluto came out from the volcano
Volcano

A volcano is an opening, or rupture, in a planet's surface or Crust , which allows hot, molten rock, ash, and gases to escape from below the surface....
 Etna with four black horses named Orphnaeus, Aethon, Nycteus and Alastor. He abducted her in order to marry her and live with her in Hades
Hades

Hades refers both to the ancient Greek underworld, the abode of Hades, and to the god of the underworld. Hades in Homer referred just to the god; the genitive case , Haidou, was an elision to denote locality: "[the house/dominion] of Hades"....
, the Greco-Roman Underworld
Underworld

In the study of mythology and religion, the underworld is a generic term approximately equivalent to the lay term afterlife, referring to any place to which newly the dead souls go....
, of which he was the ruler. Notably, Pluto was also her uncle, being Jupiter's (and Ceres's) brother. She is therefore Queen of the Underworld
Underworld

In the study of mythology and religion, the underworld is a generic term approximately equivalent to the lay term afterlife, referring to any place to which newly the dead souls go....
.

Her mother Ceres, the goddess
Goddess

A goddess is a female deity. Often deities are part of a polytheism system that includes several deities in a pantheon .Common associations of goddesses are the Earth goddess, the Mother Goddess, Love goddess, and the hearth goddess, reflecting historical gender roles....
 of cereal
Cereal

Cereals, or cereal grains, are mostly Poaceae cultivated for their edible brans or fruit seeds . Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple foods....
s or of the Earth
Earth

Earth is the third planet from the Sun. Earth is the largest of the terrestrial planets in the Solar System in diameter, mass and density. It is also referred to as the World and Wiktionary:Terra.Note that by International Astronomical Union convention, the term "Terra" is used for naming extensive land masses, rather...
, went looking for her in vain to every corner of the earth, but wasn't able to find anything but a small belt that was floating upon a little lake (made with the tears of the nymphs). In her desperation Ceres angrily stopped the growth of fruit
Fruit

The term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. In botany, which is the scientific study of plants, fruits are the ripened Ovary of flowering plants....
s and vegetable
Vegetable

The term "vegetable" generally means the Eating parts of plants. The definition of the word is traditional rather than scientific, however, and therefore the usage of the word is somewhat arbitrary and subjective, as it is determined by individual cultural customs of food selection and food preparation....
s, bestowing a malediction
Curse

A curse is any manner of adversity thought to be inflicted by any supernatural power, such as a spell , a prayer, an imprecation, an execration, magic , witchcraft, a god, a natural force, or a spiritual being....
 on Sicily
Sicily

Sicily is an Autonomous regions with special statute of Italy. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest land area at 25,708 km? and currently has just over five million inhabitants....
. Ceres refused to go back to Mount Olympus and started walking on the Earth, making a desert
Désert

?D?sert? is ?milie Simon's debut single, released in October 2002. The song was a huge success both critically and commercially in her homeland....
 at every step.

Worried, Jupiter sent Mercury
Mercury (mythology)

In Roman mythology, Mercury was a messenger, and a god of trade, profit and commerce, the son of Maia Maiestas, also known as Ops, the Roman version of Cronus, and Jupiter ....
 to order Pluto (Jupiter's brother) to free Proserpina. Pluto obeyed, but before letting her go he made her eat six pomegranate
Pomegranate

The pomegranate is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing to between five and eight metres tall. The pomegranate is native to the region from Iran to the Himalayas in northern India and has been cultivated and naturalized over the whole Mediterranean Basin region and the Caucasus since ancient times....
 seeds, because those who have eaten the food of the dead could not return to the world of the living. This meant that she would have to live six months of each year with him, and stay the rest with her mother. This story was undoubtedly meant to illustrate the changing of the seasons; When Ceres welcomes her daughter back in the spring the earth blossoms, and when Proserpina must be returned to her husband it withers.

In another version of the story, some people believe that upon her abduction, Proserpina ate only four pomegranate seeds, and she did so of her own accord. When Jupiter ordered her return, Pluto struck a deal with Jupiter, saying that since she had stolen his pomegranate seeds, she must stay with him four months of the year in return. For this reason, in spring when Ceres received her daughter back, the crops blossomed, and in summer they flourished. In the autumn Ceres changed the leaves to shades of brown and orange (her favorite colors) as a gift to Proserpina before she had to return to the underworld. During the time that Proserpina resided with Pluto, the world went through winter, a time when the earth was barren.

Orpheus and Eurydice


The myth
Mythology

The word mythology refers to a body of folklore/myths/legends that a particular culture believes to be true and that often use the supernatural to interpret natural events and to explain the nature of the universe and humanity....
 of Proserpina, the most extensive Latin version of which is by Claudian
Claudian

Claudian was a Roman poet, who worked for Emperor Flavius Augustus Honorius and the latter's general Stilicho.A Greek language citizen of Alexandria, Claudian arrived in Rome before 395, and made his mark with a eulogy of his two young patrons, Probinus and Olybrius, thereby becoming court poet....
 (4th century AD, available), is closely connected with that of Orpheus
Orpheus

Orpheus was a legendary figure, probably from Thracian origin, venerated by the Greeks and Thracians of the Classical age as a chief among poets and musicians, and the perfector of the lyre invented by Hermes....
 and Eurydice
Eurydice

In Greek mythology, Eurydice was an oak nymph or a sweet maiden. She was the wife of Orpheus. Orpheus loved her dearly; on their wedding day, Orpheus played songs filled with happiness as his bride danced through the meadow....
 — it is Proserpina, as Queen of Hades, who allows Orpheus to enter and bring back to life his wife Eurydice who is dead by snake poison. Proserpina played her cetra to quiet Cerberus
Cerberus

Cerberus is the name given to the entity which, in Greek mythology and Roman mythology, is a multi-headed dog which guards the gates of Hades, to prevent those who have crossed the river Styx from ever escaping....
, but Orpheus did not respect her order never to look back, and Eurydice was lost.

Art featuring Prosperina


Proserpina's figure inspired many art
Art

Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music and literature....
istic compositions, eminently in sculpture
Sculpture

Sculpture is Three-dimensional space artwork created by shaping or combining hard and or plastic material, sound, and or text and or light, commonly Stone sculpture , metal, glass, or wood....
 (Bernini
Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini was a pre-eminent Baroque sculpture and architect of 17th Century Rome....
 ), in painting (D.G.Rossetti , Pomarancio , J.Heintz , P.P.Rubens , A.Durer , Dell'Abbate , M.Parrish ) and in literature (Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

was a Germans writer and according to George Eliot, "Germany's greatest man of letters? and the last true polymath to walk the earth." Goethe's works span the fields of poetry, drama, literature, theology, philosophy, humanism and science....
  and Swinburne's Hymn to Proserpine
Hymn to Proserpine

"Hymn to Proserpine" is a poem by Algernon Swinburne, published in 1866. The poem is addressed to the goddess Proserpina, the Roman equivalent of Persephone....
)

Proserpina in astronomy

Proserpina
26 Proserpina

26 Proserpina is a Main belt asteroid.It was discovered by Karl Theodor Robert Luther on May 5, 1853.It is named after the Roman mythology goddess Proserpina, the daughter of Ceres and the Queen of the Underworld....
  is a Main belt asteroid
Asteroid

Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets or planetoids, are small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun, smaller than planets but larger than meteoroids....
 95.1km in diameter, which was discovered by R. Luther
Karl Theodor Robert Luther

Karl Theodor Robert Luther was a Germany astronomer who searched for asteroids while working in D?sseldorf.Two of his discoveries are now known to have unusual properties: the binary asteroid with equal components 90 Antiope and the extremely slow-rotating 288 Glauke....
 in1853.

Trivia


  • For reasons that may be obvious, a variety of pomegranate
    Pomegranate

    The pomegranate is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing to between five and eight metres tall. The pomegranate is native to the region from Iran to the Himalayas in northern India and has been cultivated and naturalized over the whole Mediterranean Basin region and the Caucasus since ancient times....
     is called Proserpina.


  • Proserpina is the title of a book by John Ruskin
    John Ruskin

    John Ruskin was a British art critic and social thought, also remembered as an author, poet and artist. His essays on art and architecture were extremely influential in the Victorian era and Edwardian period eras....
     in which he describes and discusses the form, structure and function of wayside flowers.


Further reading

  • Pluto (mythology)
    Pluto (mythology)

    Pluto was the Roman god of the underworld, known in Latin as Tertius, the counterpart of the Greek Hades....
  • Anthesphoria
    Anthesphoria

    Anthesphoria, in antiquity, was a flower-festival celebrated in Sicily, and to a lesser extent Peloponnesus, in honor of Proserpine .The word is derived from the Greek language ????? and f??? , in regard the goddess was forced away by Pluto when she was gathering flowers in the fields....
    , festival honoring Proserpina(pros-er-pin-a)


External links

  • Claudian
    Claudian

    Claudian was a Roman poet, who worked for Emperor Flavius Augustus Honorius and the latter's general Stilicho.A Greek language citizen of Alexandria, Claudian arrived in Rome before 395, and made his mark with a eulogy of his two young patrons, Probinus and Olybrius, thereby becoming court poet....
    , De raptu Proserpinae ("The Rape of Proserpine"), three books, in and , Bill Thayer's edition of the Loeb Classical Library
    Loeb Classical Library

    The Loeb Classical Library is a series of books, today published by the Harvard University Press, which presents important works of ancient Greek Literature and Latin Literature in a way designed to make the text accessible to the broadest possible audience, by presenting the original Greek or Latin text on each left-hand leaf, and a fairly...
     text at LacusCurtius
    LacusCurtius

    LacusCurtius is a website specializing in ancient Rome, currently hosted on a server at the University of Chicago. It went online on August 26, 1997; in January 2008 it had "2786 pages, 690 photos, 675 drawings & engravings, 118 plans, 66 maps."...
  • adapted as a children's tale by Nathaniel Hawthorne
    Nathaniel Hawthorne

    Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer.Nathaniel Hathorne was born in 1804 in the city of Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and Elizabeth Clarke Manning Hathorne....
    , in Tanglewood Tales
    Tanglewood Tales

    Tanglewood Tales for Boys and Girls is a book by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, a sequel to A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys. It is a re-writing of some of the most famous of the ancient Greek myths in a volume for children....