Post-Roman Mythology: Artemis, The Goddess Of The Hunt

Artemis (also called Diana in Roman mythology), was the forever young virgin goddess of the hunt. While Artemis was the goddess of the hunt, she ruled over the wilderness, wild animals, and the moon. Though she wasn’t technically the goddess of fertility and childbirth, she acted as though she was. She was the child of Zeus and Leto, along with her twin brother Apollon (Apollo). Apollon and Artemis guarded children until marriage, Apollon guarding male children while Artemis guarded the girls. When together, Artemis and Apollo brought “sudden death and disease,” Apollon afflicting men whilst Artemis targets women (citation for Theoi page).

In post-Roman/Greek history, Artemis and Diana are associated with Wicca (witches). Generally referred to as her Roman counterpart Diana, Artemis is mentioned in Wicca focusing on the “feminine aspect of the divine” (citation for wiki article). Artemis is mentioned by name numerous times in Homer’s The Odyssey, being described as “lovely,” and “tall” (book 6). In popular depictions of Artemis, she is painted/sculpted/etc. with her most popular companions: a stag (male deer), and doe (female deer) drawn chariot, or a heron (pelican-like bird).
Artemis is known for many myths, one of them being her birth story.
According to legend, Artis’ mother Leto was being “hounded” by another goddess, Hera, out of jealousy. While in her late stages of pregnancy, she sought refuge on a floating island. Upon arriving, Leto went into labor. She then gave birth to Artemis, who successfully acted as Leto’s midwife while she birthed Apollon (theoi page
citation).

Another popular myth depicting Artemis is that where Aktaion (Actaeon) was caught spying on Artemis bathing with her woodland nymphs, and consequently became a stag and eaten alive by his hounds. Or when, according to myth, Artemis sent a giant boar to attack King Oineus after he neglected to offer her sacrifice when he did so for the other gods (theoi page citation).

With Artemis’ feminine nature, it is no surprise that one of her greatest challenges is dealing with men. Artemis often expresses what could be interpreted as a hatred for men when assigning punishments. She also has objections to the institution/idea of marriage, due to the fact that she believed it decreases women’s freedom (Geary Schools citation).