PALLAS-ATHENE (Minerva)

PALLAS-ATHENE (Minerva).

Pallas-Athene, goddess of Wisdom and Armed Resistance, was a purely
Greek divinity; that is to say, no other nation possessed a corresponding
conception. She was supposed, as already related, to have issued from the
head of Zeus himself, clad in armour from head to foot. The miraculous
advent of this maiden goddess is beautifully described by Homer in one of
his hymns: snow-capped Olympus shook to its foundation; the glad earth
re-echoed her martial shout; the billowy sea became agitated; and Helios,
the sun-god, arrested his fiery steeds in their headlong course to
welcome this wonderful emanation from the godhead. Athene was at once
admitted into the assembly of the gods, and henceforth took her place as
the most faithful and sagacious of all her father’s counsellors. This
brave, dauntless maiden, so exactly the essence of all that is noble in
the character of “the father of gods and men,” remained throughout chaste
in word and deed, and kind at heart, without exhibiting any of those
failings which somewhat mar the nobler features in the character of Zeus.
This direct emanation from his own self, justly his favourite child, his
better and purer counterpart, received from him several important
prerogatives. She was permitted to hurl the thunderbolts, to prolong the
life of man, and to bestow the gift of prophecy; in fact Athene was the
only divinity whose authority was equal to that of Zeus himself, and when
he had ceased to visit the earth in person [44]she was empowered by him
to act as his deputy. It was her especial duty to protect the state and
all peaceful associations of mankind, which she possessed the power of
defending when occasion required. She encouraged the maintenance of law
and order, and defended the right on all occasions, for which reason, in
the Trojan war she espouses the cause of the Greeks and exerts all her
influence on their behalf. The Areopagus, a court of justice where
religious causes and murders were tried, was believed to have been
instituted by her, and when both sides happened to have an equal number
of votes she gave the casting-vote in favour of the accused. She was the
patroness of learning, science, and art, more particularly where these
contributed directly towards the welfare of nations. She presided over
all inventions connected with agriculture, invented the plough, and
taught mankind how to use oxen for farming purposes. She also instructed
mankind in the use of numbers, trumpets, chariots, &c., and presided
over the building of the Argo,^[20] thereby encouraging the useful art of
navigation. She also taught the Greeks how to build the wooden horse by
means of which the destruction of Troy was effected.

The safety of cities depended on her care, for which reason her
temples were generally built on the citadels, and she was supposed to
watch over the defence of the walls, fortifications, harbours, &c. A
divinity who so faithfully guarded the best interests of the state, by
not only protecting it from the attacks of enemies, but also by
developing its chief resources of wealth and prosperity, was worthily
chosen as the presiding deity of the state, and in this character as an
essentially political goddess she was called Athene-Polias.

The fact of Athene having been born clad in armour, which merely
signified that her virtue and purity were unassailable, has given rise to
the erroneous supposition that she was the presiding goddess of war; but
a deeper [45]study of her character in all its bearings
proves that, in contradistinction to her brother Ares, the god of war,
who loved strife for its own sake, she only takes up arms to protect the
innocent and deserving against tyrannical oppression. It is true that in
the Iliad we frequently see her on the battlefield fighting valiantly,
and protecting her favourite heroes; but this is always at the command of
Zeus, who even supplies her with arms for the purpose, as it is supposed
that she possessed none of her own. A marked feature in the
representations of this deity is the ægis, that wonderful shield given to
her by her father as a further means of defence, which, when in danger,
she swung so swiftly round and round that it kept at a distance all
antagonistic influences; hence her name Pallas, from pallo, I
swing. In the centre of this shield, which was covered with dragon’s
scales, bordered with serpents, and which she sometimes wore as a
breastplate, was the awe-inspiring head of the Medusa, which had the
effect of turning to stone all beholders.

In addition to the many functions which she exercised in connection
with the state, Athene presided over the two chief departments of
feminine industry, spinning and weaving. In the latter art she herself
displayed unrivalled ability and exquisite taste. She wove her own robe
and that of Hera, which last she is said to have embroidered very richly;
she also gave Jason a cloak wrought by herself, when he set forth in
quest of the Golden Fleece. Being on one occasion challenged to a contest
in this accomplishment by a mortal maiden named Arachne, whom she had
instructed in the art of weaving, she accepted the challenge and was
completely vanquished by her pupil. Angry at her defeat, she struck the
unfortunate maiden on the forehead with the shuttle which she held in her
hand; and Arachne, being of a sensitive nature, was so hurt by this
indignity that she hung herself in despair, and was changed by Athene
into a spider. This goddess is said to have invented the flute,^[21] upon [46]which she played
with considerable talent, until one day, being laughed at by the
assembled gods and goddesses for the contortions which her countenance
assumed during these musical efforts, she hastily ran to a fountain in
order to convince herself whether she deserved their ridicule. Finding to
her intense disgust that such was indeed the fact, she threw the flute
away, and never raised it to her lips again.

Athene is usually represented fully draped; she has a serious and
thoughtful aspect, as though replete with earnestness and wisdom; the
beautiful oval contour of her countenance is adorned by the luxuriance of
her wealth of hair, which is drawn back from the temples and hangs down
in careless grace; she looks the embodiment of strength, grandeur, and
majesty; whilst her broad shoulders and small hips give her a slightly
masculine appearance.

When represented as the war-goddess she appears clad in armour, with a
helmet on her head, from which waves a large plume; she carries the ægis
on her arm, and in her hand a golden staff, which possessed the property
of endowing her chosen favourites with youth and dignity.

Athene was universally worshipped throughout Greece, but was regarded
with special veneration by the Athenians, she being the guardian deity of
Athens. Her most celebrated temple was the Parthenon, which stood on the
[47]Acropolis at Athens, and contained her
world-renowned statue by Phidias, which ranks second only to that of Zeus
by the same great artist. This colossal statue was 39 feet high, and was
composed of ivory and gold; its majestic beauty formed the chief
attraction of the temple. It represented her standing erect, bearing her
spear and shield; in her hand she held an image of Nike, and at her feet
there lay a serpent.

The tree sacred to her was the olive, which she herself produced in a
contest with Poseidon. The olive-tree thus called into existence was
preserved in the temple of Erectheus, on the Acropolis, and is said to
have possessed such marvellous vitality, that when the Persians burned it
after sacking the town it immediately burst forth into new shoots.

The principal festival held in honour of this divinity was the
Panathenæa.

The owl, cock, and serpent were the animals sacred to her, and her
sacrifices were rams, bulls, and cows.

MINERVA.

The Minerva of the Romans was identified with the Pallas-Athene of the
Greeks. Like her she presides over learning and all useful arts, and is
the patroness of the feminine accomplishments of sewing, spinning,
weaving, &c. Schools were under her especial care, and schoolboys,
therefore, had holidays during her festivals (the Greater Quinquatria),
when they always brought a gift to their master, called the Minerval.

It is worthy of notice that the only three divinities [48]worshipped in
the Capitol were Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva, and in their joint honour
the Ludi Maximi or great games were held.