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* [[Joshua Reynolds]] painted Mrs. Mary Hale, wife of General [[John Hale (British Army officer)|John Hale]], as Euphrosyne in 1766.
* [[Joshua Reynolds]] painted Mrs. Mary Hale, wife of General [[John Hale (British Army officer)|John Hale]], as Euphrosyne in 1766.
* [[John Milton]] invoked her in the poem ''[[L'Allegro]]''.<ref name=":0">"[http://www.rc.umd.edu/editions/mws/lastman/milton.htm Milton, L'Allegro and Il Penseroso]"</ref>
* [[John Milton]] invoked her in the poem ''[[L'Allegro]]''.<ref name=":0">"[http://www.rc.umd.edu/editions/mws/lastman/milton.htm Milton, L'Allegro and Il Penseroso]"</ref>
* [[Virginia Woolf]] set her novel [[The Voyage Out]] on a ship named ''Euphrosyne''.


===In science===
===In science===

Revision as of 02:15, 21 January 2023

Euphrosyne
Goddess of good cheer, joy and mirth
Member of The Charites
A statue of Euphrosyne in Achilleion palace, Corfu.
AffiliationAphrodite
Major cult centreBoeotia
AbodeMount Olympus
Genealogy
ParentsZeus and Eurynome
Nyx and Erebus[1]
Siblings
by Zeus and Eurynome

In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Euphrosyne (/jˈfrɒzɪn/; Template:Lang-grc), was a deity, one of the Charites, known in ancient Rome as the Gratiae (Graces). She was sometimes called Euthymia (Εὐθυμία) or Eutychia (Εὐτυχία).[2]

Family

According to Hesiod, Euphrosyne and her sisters Thalia and Aglaea were daughters of Zeus and the Oceanid Eurynome.[3] Alternative parentage may be Zeus and Eurydome, Eurymedousa, or Euanthe;[4] Dionysus and Kronois;[5] or Helios and the Naiad Aegle.[6]

In some accounts, Euphrosyne was a daughter of the primordial gods, Erebus (Darkness) and Nyx (Night).[7]

"From Nox/ Nyx (Night) and Erebus [were born]: Fatum/ Moros (Fate), Senectus/ Geras (Old Age), Mors/ Thanatos (Death), Letum (Dissolution), Continentia (Moderation), Somnus/ Hypnos (Sleep), Somnia/ Oneiroi (Dreams), Amor (Love)--that is Lysimeles, Epiphron (Prudence), Porphyrion, Epaphus, Discordia/ Eris (Discord), Miseria/ Oizys (Misery), Petulantia/ Hybris (Wantonness), Nemesis (Envy), Euphrosyne (Good Cheer), Amicitia/ Philotes (Friendship), Misericordia/ Eleos (Compassion), Styx (Hatred); the three Parcae/ Moirai (Fates), namely Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos; the Hesperides."[8]

Mythology

Euphrosyne is a goddess of good cheer, joy and mirth.[9] Her name is the female version of the word euphrosynos, "merriment". Pindar wrote that these goddesses were created to fill the world with pleasant moments and good will.[10] The Charites attended the goddess of beauty Aphrodite.[11]

In art, Euphrosyne is usually depicted with her sisters dancing.[9]

Euphrosyne (left) depicted with her sisters on The Three Graces sculpture at the Hermitage, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Cults

Euphrosyne and her sisters' main cult was located in Athens, Sparta, or Boetia.[9][12]

Legacy

In art and literature

Mrs Mary Hale as Euphrosyne, painted by Joshua Reynolds

In science

The asteroid 31 Euphrosyne is named after the goddess, as is the Euphrosinidae family of marine worms.

Notes

  1. ^ Hyginus, Fabulae Preface
  2. ^ Pindar, fr. 155
  3. ^ Hesiod, Theogony 907
  4. ^ Cornutus, Compendium of Greek Theology 15
  5. ^ Nonnus, Dionysiaca 15.87 & 48.530
  6. ^ Pausanias, 9.35.5
  7. ^ Hyginus, Fabulae Preface
  8. ^ Hyginus, Fabulae Preface
  9. ^ a b c Larson, Jennifer (2007). Ancient Greek Cults. New York, NY: Routledge. pp. 162–163. ISBN 978-0415491020.
  10. ^ Pindar, Olympian Ode 14.1-20
  11. ^ Homeric Hymn 5 to Aphrodite 58
  12. ^ "www.britannica.com". Retrieved 2016-08-31.
  13. ^ The Three Graces. Victoria & Albert Museum, 2013. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
  14. ^ "Milton, L'Allegro and Il Penseroso"

References