Diana is the Roman goddess of the hunt. The daughter of the god Jupiter and his mistress, Latona, Diana was born on the islands of Delos with her twin brother, Apollo, the god of light. Although primarily associated with hunting, Diana was also revered as the goddess of the woods, wild animals, children and childbirth, fertility, chastity, and the moon. Like other Roman deities, Diana was born as a fully-grown adult and was said to have been tall, beautiful, and youthful in appearance. In artwork, she is often shown as wearing a quiver of arrows on her shoulder and holding a bow. Typically clad in a short tunic, Diana is frequently depicted as going barefoot, or wearing simple buckskin foot coverings, as was the style of Roman huntresses. …show more content…
Sometimes referred to as Lucina, Diana’s reputation of protecting mothers and children earned her a place of honor among women, Further, Diana was praised for her intelligence. Diana was said to have displaced Luna as a moon goddess, and Diana is represented as directing movements of the moon from her chariot and was frequently thought as the goddess of light. Although considered smart, pure, and talented, as a moon goddess, Diana was said to have an unpredictable nature, and was, at times, vengeful. One myth indicates when the hunter, Actaeon, stumbled upon Diana bathing in a river, she turned him into a stag and set his hounds after him. Because of Diana’s strong connections to woodland creatures, hunting, and the moon, Diana is sometimes referred to as the Triple Goddess. Roman sculptors created statues depicting her with three heads, those of a dog, a boar, and a horse, and those statutes were erected in places where roads met. In Rome, Diana was considered a protector of the lower class (plebeians) and slaves. This, her temple in the ancient Greek city of Ephesus had to be presided over by a high priest who had been a runaway