Neptune (mythology)
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Neptune (Latin: Neptūnus) is the god of water and the sea in Roman mythology, a brother of Jupiter and Pluto. He is analogous with but not identical to the god Poseidon of Greek mythology.[1] The Roman conception of Neptune owed a great deal to the Etruscan god Nethuns.[2]
For a time he was paired with Salacia, the goddess of the salt water. [3] At an early date (899 BC) he was identified with Poseidon, when the Sibylline books ordered a lectisternium in his honour (Livy v. 13). [4] In the earlier times it was the god Portunes or Fortunus who was thanked for naval victories, but Neptune supplanted him in this role by at least the first century BC when Sextus Pompeius called himself "son of Neptune."[5] Neptune is associated as well with fresh water, as opposed to Oceanus, god of the world-ocean. Like Poseidon, Neptune was also worshipped by the Romans as a god of horses, under the name "Neptune Equester," patron of horse-racing.[6] The planet Neptune was named after the god, as its deep blue gas clouds gave early astronomers the impression of great oceans.
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[edit] Festivals
His festival, Neptunalia, at which tents were made from the branches of bushes, took place on July 23. He had two temples in Rome. The first, built in 25 BC, stood near the Circus Flaminius, the Roman racetrack, and contained a famous sculpture of a marine group by Scopas.[7]
The second, the Basilica Neptuni, was built on the Campus Martius and dedicated by Agrippa in honour of the naval victory of Actium.[8].
[edit] A.D. 300 statue
The Department of Subaquatic Archaeological Research divers (headed by Michel L'Hour) discovered a first decade, A.D. 300, 5.9 foot marble statue of Neptune, in the Rhone River.[9] The statue is one of 100 artifacts that the team excavated between September and October 2007.[9][10]
[edit] Renaissance Depictions
The Renaissance brought with it a revival in pagan art, and many pagan gods were depicted in the same classical models used in Greek and Roman times. However, with Neptune no such models existed, allowing the artists of the Renaissance to depict Neptune however they chose. The results included a face and actions that seemed more mortal, as well as associations with Hercules. The overall effect was to change Neptune's image to a less deified state. [11]
[edit] Neo-Classical depictions
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The depiction of Neptune in an allegorical sense, representing victory or dominion over the sea is common in works of art produced in the neoclassical period.
[edit] Neptune and the "Line-crossing ceremony"
"King Neptune" plays a central role in the long-standing tradition of the "Line-crossing ceremony" initiation rite still current in many navies, coast guards, and merchant fleets.
When ships cross the equator, "Pollywogs" – sailors who had not done such a crossing before – receive "subpoenas" [12] to appear before King Neptune and his court (usually including his first assistant Davy Jones and her Highness Amphitrite and often various dignitaries, who are all represented by the highest ranking seamen).
Some Pollywogs may be "interrogated" by King Nepture and his entourage. At the end of the ceremony – which in the past often included considerable hazing – they are initiated as Shellbacks or Sons of Neptune and receive a certificate to that effect.
[edit] References and notes
- ^ BOOKRAGS STAFF. "Mythology." 2000. February, 13 2009. <http://www.bookrags.com/notes/myt/>.
- ^ "Nethuns." Encyclopedia Mythica from Encyclopedia Mythica Online. <http://www.pantheon.org/articles/n/nethuns.html> [Accessed February 13, 2009].
- ^ Elseviers Mythologische Encyclopedie. van Aken, Dr. A.R.A. Elsevier, Amsterdam: 1961
- ^ Showerman, Grant. The Great Mother of the Gods. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin, 1901. p. 223
- ^ Fox, Robin Lane. The Classical World. Basic Books, 2006. p. 412 ISBN 0465024963
- ^ Compare Epona.
- ^ http://www.mmdtkw.org/VNeptunalia.html
- ^ Samuel Ball Platner and Thomas Ashby, A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome, (London: Oxford University Press) 1929. "Basilica Neptuni"
- ^ a b [1] Divers find Caesar bust that may date to 46 B.C.
- ^ Julius Caesar bust found in Rhone River, by Henry Samuel, The Telegraph
- ^ http://www.springerlink.com/content/r0505005858761h8/
- ^ Ceremonial Certificates – Neptune Subpoena
"Neptune (god)". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.
Media related to Neptune at Wikimedia Commons
</gallery> Image:Pl-gdansk-neptun2004.jpg|Neptune statue in Gdańsk Image:Neptune fountain02.jpg|The Fountain of Neptune, Bologna Image:FountainNeptuneAlamedaCentral.JPG|Neptune fountain in the Alameda Central in Mexico City </gallery>
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