Cupid, the Roman God of Love The Romans believed in polytheism, meaning they believed in many different gods and spirits, the Greeks were also polytheists. The Greeks and the Etruscans influenced the religious ideas of Rome. Unlike Greek gods, Roman gods usually were nameless or had no personality. So Roman gods were spirits, which protected and watched over people and objects. Because of the many trades taken place with Rome in that time, some of the stories of Greek gods were taken in by Rome. They changed the names, but kept the stories behind them.
This is how the Roman god “Cupid”, came to be. In ancient Greece, Cupid was known as Eros, the son of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, and Hermes. To the Romans he was Cupid- the son of Venus and Mercury. There was a certain kind and queen who had three daughters. The older two were normal mortals while the youngest had amazing beauty like no other mortal, named Psyche. Venus who is the goddess of love and beauty, became jealous of the gorgeous mortal and pointed her out to her own son Cupid, and says to him, “My dear son, punish that contumacious beauty; give thy mother a revenge as sweet as her injuries are great; infuse into the bosom of that haughty girl a passion for some low, mean, unworthy being, so that she may reap a mortification as great as her present exultation and triumph.” Cupid thought about how to obey his mother and concluded upon this idea: In the garden of Venus, there are two fountains, one with sweet water and one with bitter water.
The Essay on Aegean, Roman, and Greek Cultures
Aegean civilization flourished during the Bronze Age in Greece and the so-called Aegean Age. Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations were among those civilizations in the Aegean that has made its zenith during this era. Minoan civilization developed on the mountainous areas of Crete. Crete naturally possessed a wide-range of harbors which made it possible for the Minoans to settle and establish ...
He would fill up two vases with water from each fountain and would bring them to Psyche’s chamber. When he got there he put the water from the bitter fountain on her lips while she was sleeping. He then saw her amazing beauty, as he touched the point of his arrow to her side. She woke up from the prick and stared at Cupid (who is invisible to mortals) he was surprised that she was looking at him, so in his confusion accidentally stabbed himself with one of his arrows. The only way he could fix what he had done was to pour the sweet water over Psyche. This upset Venus even more, although other people look up at her and talked of her as if she really was a goddess.
Though this was thought of her no one would ask for her hand in marriage. Her two older sisters were married to two royal princes, but Psyche remained alone. Her parents were scared that they had upset the gods, so they asked the oracle Apollo of what to do. The oracle said: ” The virgin is destined for the bride of no mortal lover. Her future husband awaits her on the top of the mountain. He is a monster whom neither gods nor men can resist.” Everyone panicked when the news of the oracle came out.
Her parents were terrified. But Psyche decided to go to the mountain and accept her destiny. Once on the mountain she was taken away to a far away place with anything she could imagine hers. She had everything she had dreamed of and more.
She only saw her husband at night and never saw his face, but she loved him with all her heart. She asked to go back to bring her sisters to her new home and show them her new wonderful life. He agreed and they were brought to her. They asked about her husband, until she confessed that she had never seen him. They raised her interest to find out who her really was. One night after he had fallen asleep Psyche went to his chamber to see the face of the man she loved.
He was not only far from a horrible monster, he was extremely hansom and beautiful. He had two white wings and a beautiful face. It was Cupid! When she bent closer to see he face, a drop of hot wax dripped from her candle and landed on his shoulder awakening her love. He looked right in her eyes, got up and flew out of the window. Psyche, wanting to follow him walked right out the window and fell to the ground. When Cupid came back and held her limp body crying to himself about disobeying his mother, Psyche awoke and found herself back in her own city.
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The first artist I have chosen is Bartolomeo Manfredi (1582 – 1622). He was an Italian painter born in Mantua, and active mainly in Rome where he was one of the most important Caravaggio's followers. He specialized in low-life scenes of taverns, soldiers in guard-rooms card playing; and it was he rather than Caravaggio himself who was mainly responsible for popularizing this kind of work, ...
She then decided to visit Venus to find Cupid again. By looking into his eyes, he had become wounded. Venus agreed to make Psyche her servant and she could possibly see Cupid again. She did many chores that Venus though she could not accomplish, and with help from other gods, completed them successfully. For the last task, Venus gave Psyche a tiny box to take to the underworld. She was supposed to fill it with beauty from the goddess, Proserpine.
She was told NOT to open the box, but she did anyway, and went into a dead sleep. Cupid found her, gathered her deadly sleep and put it back in the box. Venus and Cupid both forgave her. The other gods, who were interested in Psyche’s love for Cupid, made her a goddess. This is why today, pictures of Cupid and his arrows sometimes express love, and to think it all came from a Roman myth!
