Classical Mythology, 7th Edition - obinfonet: dia logou

MYTHS OF CREATION 59
Selene's continual absence from her duties in the heavens, or it may be the fulfillment
of Selene's own wishes for her beloved.
Apollo, Sun-God, and Artemis, Moon-Goddess. Many stories about the god of the
sun, whether he be called Hyperion, Helius, or merely the Titan, were transferred
to the great god Apollo, who shares with them the same epithet, Phoebus,
which means "bright." Although Apollo was, in all probability, not originally
a sun-god, he came to be considered as such. Thus Phaëthon may become
the son of Apollo, as sun-god. Similarly Apollo's twin sister Artemis became associated
with the moon, although originally she probably was not a moongoddess.
Thus Selene and Artemis merge in identity, just as do Hyperion, Helius,
The Endymion Sarcophagus. Marble, ca. 200-220 A.D.; width 73 in., height 28 in. (with lid).
The sarcophagus is shaped like a trough in which grapes were pressed. On the lid is a
portrait of its occupant, Arria, with nine reliefs: those on the extreme left and right are
of mountain gods, appropriate to the setting of the myth on Mt. Latmos; the next pair
are representations of seasons, Autumn on the left and Spring on the right; the next pair
are Cupid and Psyche on the left and Aphrodite and Eros on the right; the next pair are
Ares on the left and his lover, Aphrodite, on the right. Balancing Arria is the union of
Selene and Endymion. In the center of the main panel Selene descends from her chariot,
whose horses are held by a nymph, to join Endymion, who lies to the right. Night pours
the opiate of sleep over him (note the poppy-head between the heads of Night and the
lion) and Cupids play around the lovers and beneath the right lion's head. Cupid and
Psyche embrace beneath the left lion's head. Oceanus and Ge, respectively, lie to the left
and beneath Selene's horses, and the horses of the chariot of Helius can be seen rising at
the left, while Selene's chariot disappears to the right. The myth of Endymion was a common
subject for Roman sarcophagi (seventy examples are known from the second and
third centuries A.D.) because it gave hope that the sleep of death would lead to eternal
life. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1947 (47.100.4). All rights reserved, The
Metropolitan Museum of Art.)