![]() Together, Neptune and Salacia had four children: Benthesikyme, Rhodes, Triton, and Proteus. Salacia served as the Roman counterpart to Amphitrite, the sea nymph of Greek lore. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Public DomainĪlthough the precise nature of their relationship was unclear, Neptune’s consort was Salacia, a goddess associated with salt waters. In this 17th century work from German artist Hans Ulrich Franck, NeptuneĪnd his consort Salacia spur their chariot across the sea. His sisters were Ceres, goddess of agriculture and cereals, Vesta, goddess of the hearth and home, and Juno, goddess of marriage, family, and domestic tranquility. His brothers were Jupiter, king of the gods, and Pluto, the god of the underworld and wealth. His siblings were among the chief deities of the Roman pantheon. His mother was Ops (or Opis), a primordial goddess of the earth. Neptune’s father was Saturn, a mighty being who served as lord of the universe. Many depictions of Neptune also featured him riding a chariot pulled either by horses or mythical seahorses the latter were generally portrayed as horses with fish-like bodies and fins. Neptune was thought to wield a trident-a three-pronged thrusting weapon used by Mediterranean fisherpeople for centuries. As bringer and withholder of water, Neptune would have held agency over seasonal change. The corners of the mosaic feature women and agricultural scenes representing the four seasons. The central scene depicts a bearded Neptune riding in a chariot pulled by sea horses he is flanked by his sons Triton and Proteus. “The Triumph of Neptune,” a late 2nd century CE mosaic from La Chebba, Tunisia. While he was truly mighty in his own domain, Neptune’s power waned the further he was from the seas. By roiling the seas and delivering crushing waves, Neptune sunk many ships and sent many sailors to watery graves. Neptune could also summon winds and storms. Neptune made the Mediterranean Sea his domain, and lived in a golden palace beneath the waves with his consort Salacia and his loyal sons. Neptune controlled all waters, from the smallest streams and springs to the largest well-known bodies of water-namely, the seas (the Romans were aware of the ocean beyond the Iberian peninsula, but only dimly so). He was also known as Neptunus Equester, “the moist” or “cloudy horse lord.” Attributes This root aligned not only with Neptune’s control of water, but with his control of storms as well. The other candidate, nebh-, meant “cloud, mist, or fog”. One was the word neptu-, meaning “moist or wet.” Were this Neptune’s root, the literal translation of the name would mean something like “the moist one.” Such a translation would align with Neptune’s power over water. There are two candidates with strong cases. The name “Neptune” ( Neptunus in Latin) was derived from an Indo-European root, although which one has been a subject of dispute. As with other Roman deities, Neptune’s importance diminished in the early centuries of the Common Era, and fell completely out of favor with the advent of Christian dominance over the Roman Empire in the fourth century. ![]() His importance increased in the second and third centuries BCE as Roman hegemony spread throughout the Mediterranean. Though he lacked political power within the Roman pantheon, Neptune still commanded the fear and respect of a people whose fortunes were intimately tied to the seas. He was not represented in either the Archaic Triad of Jupiter, Mars, and Quirinus (the deified figure of Romulus, the founder of Rome) or the Capitoline Triad of Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. Whereas Poseidon’s subjects treated him as a kind of second-in-command to Zeus, Neptune was never a ruling deity. Unlike Poseidon, who had been part of Greek mythology from the onset, Neptune was a later addition to the Roman pantheon. Nymphenburg Palace Gardens, Munich, Germany. In terms of his characteristics and mythology, Neptune was an exact copy of the Greek deity Poseidon.Ī bearded Neptune holds his signature trident, a fishing tool used by ancient cultures. Also known as Neptunus Equester, he was recognized as a god of horses and horsemanship, as well as patron of horse racing, a popular form of entertainment for the ancient Romans. Neptune was the Roman god of waters and seas, who controlled winds and storms.
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