Goddess Posters, Prints, & Photographs
for history, theology, social studies classrooms, home schoolers, and inspirational art.

The Greek Muses are a sisterhood of nine goddesses who inspire the creative process; their mother is Mnemonsyne, the personfication of memory.

The muses are Clio - history; Thalia - comedy; Terpsichore- dance, Euterpe - music & lyric poetry, Polyhymnia - sacred songs;, Calliope - the chief muse and muse of epic poetry; Erato (from the same root as Eros) - lyric poetry; Urania - astronomy & astrology; Melpomese - tragedy.

The words music, museum and mosaic are derived from the same root as the word muse.

• The Nine Muses: A Mythological Path to Creativity

Nut (Nuit), was the Sky Goddess in Egyptian mythology; the word Nut means night. Nut was represented as overarching the people with her body that was covered with stars.

• Egypt posters

In ancient Egypt the cat was highly revered as a protector for their ability to keep vermin from the stored grains and was worshipped as a sun goddess, Bast.

Ishtar, the Babylonian and Assyrian goddess of love, fertility and war, was “the divine personification of the planet Venus.”

Astarte, the Greek named for Ishtar, is also connected with fertility, sexuality, war and the planet Venus.

• Ancient Civilizations -Assyrian

Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love and beauty, her Roman equivalent is Venus. Their symbolic flower is the rose.

• Explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville was responsible for the French acquiring the now famous statue called "Venus de Milo" which is housed in the Louvre.

Artemis, a virgin goddess, is the goddess of the moon and the hunt. She is described as the daughter of Zeus and Leto, and the twin sister of Apollo. Her name is related to the Greek word for bear.

Artemis is most often depicted as a huntress with bow and arrow, a hunting dog, a stag, and the moon.

She is often paired with her hunting companion Orion, who died accidently by her, or Gaia's, hand. Artemis's story also included Actaeon who upon seeing her bathing attempts to force himself on her. Artemis turns him into a stag and the hunting dogs tear him apart.

The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Diana is the Roman equivalent to Artemis.

Athena is the Greek goddess of wisdom (symbol owl), war, the arts, industry (weaving), justice and skill. The city of Athens takes its name from Athena who provided the citizens with the valuable olive tree. Athena's most famous temple is the Parthenon on the Acropolis of Athens.

Athena, who emerged fully grown and armed with helmet, shield and thunderbolt, out of her father's head, was the favorite child of Zeus and his first wife, Metis (wisdom). Zeus, fearing that Metis would give birth to a son more powerful than himself, had swallowed Metis, to prevent a rival. What he got was a tremedous headache.

The goddess Minerva was the Roman equivalent of Athena.

FYI - The noted architect known as Palladio was given the name by one of his appreciative aristocratic clients to connect his talent with Athena.

Ceres is the Roman goddess of growing plants (note the similarity with the word cereal) and motherly love. The name derives from the Proto-Indo-European “ker” meaning grow.

The Greek equivalent of Ceres is the older Demeter; it is Demeter's grief during the six month disappearance of her daugher Persephone that was the cause of seasonal change.

• Did you know a statue of Ceres is atop the Missouri State Capitol Building?

The goddess Nike personified victory (Roman - Victoria), is usually shown with wings.

A U.S. anti-aircraft missile system was named after Nike as is the shoe company Nike, Inc., to impart the idea of strength and speed.

The Winged Victory of Samothrace, also called the Nike of Samothrace, is a 2nd century BC marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike. The statue has been displayed at the Louvre since 1884.

FYI ~ names related to Nike include Nicholas, as in Saint Nick or Santa Claus, who flies through the world in one night, bringing Christmas gifts to children.

The city of Nice, France, is named for Nike.

Kali is the Goddess of Destruction

Coatlicue, the ancient Earth and Mother Goddess of the Aztec, is usually represented as a woman wearing a skirt of writhing snakes and a necklace made of human hearts, hands, and skulls.

Mary, Mother of Jesus, is much venerated in most Christian churches. The Roman Catholicism belief of the corporeal assumption of Mary into Heaven was formally declared dogma by Pope Pius XII in 1950.

The Islamic faith also holds Mary in a revered position; she is the only woman directly named in the Quran.