No. 264Greek Traditions

Hestia

Ἑστία

Greek goddess of the hearth, eldest of the Olympians and keeper of the shared flame

Hestia (Ἑστία, "hearth") is the Greek goddess of the hearth and its fire, the quiet centre of every home. Daughter of Cronus and Rhea, she was the first of the children Cronus swallowed and the last he gave up, so she is both eldest and youngest. When Apollo and Poseidon sought her hand, she swore to remain a maiden, and Zeus honoured her by letting her preside over all sacrifices.

Devotees turn to her for home, family, hospitality and the shared hearth of the city. In ancient Greece she received the first share of every sacrifice and was honoured at every household hearth and at the civic hearth. Today Hellenic polytheists keep her at the household altar and on Noumenia, the first day of the lunar month. Her Roman counterpart is Vesta, who has her own cult.

See the gallery
Hestia
Latin: Hestia Giustiniani Hestia (Museo Torlonia copy), Roman, second century CE. Original; c.460 BCE. Wikimedia Commons (public domain), anonymous

How to recognise Hestia

  1. VeilA veil or mantle drawn over her head is her key identifying mark, showing her as a modest woman in Athenian vase painting and classical sculpture.
  2. RobeA long, plain, full-length robe, a peplos or chiton with a mantle, speaks of modesty and a life without show.
  3. Hearth fireLook for a small, steady flame in a low round hearth, brazier or lamp beside her; the same Greek word names both the goddess and the fireplace.
  4. Flowering branchIn some vase paintings she holds a flowering branch, perhaps of the chaste-tree, and a small flower.
  5. KettleClassical sculpture is also said to give her a kettle, a homely sign of the household she watches over.
  6. Calm bearingShe stands or sits with a grave, steady calm, apart from the quarrels of Olympus; in the earliest vases she walks in the wedding procession of Peleus and Thetis.
  7. Shared mantleIn early vases she shares a mantle with Demeter and Chariklo, and she is paired in tradition with Hermes (the domestic and the outdoor life) and Zeus (hospitality and family unity).

Names and titles

  • Hestia First and LastAt every feast the first and last libations were poured to her
  • Keeper of the HearthShe is the goddess of the household fire
  • Eldest and YoungestSwallowed first and released last by Cronus, she is both the eldest and the youngest
  • Guardian of the Common HearthThe city kept a public hearth in the prytaneion as hers
  • The Vow Before ZeusShe declined Apollo and Poseidon and swore to remain a maiden, and Zeus honoured her for it

Feast days

  • Vestalia (festival of Vesta)7 June, every year

    The Vestalia was the Roman festival of Vesta, goddess of hearth and home, whose sacred fire was tended in Rome by the Vestal Virgins. Romans identified her with Greek Hestia. It honoured family life and the household storechamber.

    How it's celebrated. In Rome, the temple's inner sanctum opened to women, who came barefoot with offerings. On the festival's peak day the Vestals prepared salted meal and donkeys were garlanded with bread. The temple was then cleansed. Greek households honoured Hestia at meals and at Noumenia, when Hellenic polytheists today offer incense or honey cakes at the household altar.

    Sources: Britannica: Vestalia · Wikipedia: Vestalia · Wikipedia: Noumenia

Hestia in the shop

Designs of Hestia are being drawn: cute, vintage and a painted portrait.

Sources

  1. Britannica: Hestia
  2. 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica (Wikisource): Hestia
  3. Theoi Project: Hestia
  4. Wikipedia: Hestia
  5. World History Encyclopedia: Hestia
  6. Theoi Project Gallery: Hestia (S13.1)
  7. Museum of Classical Archaeology, Cambridge: Hestia Giustiniani cast
  8. Theoi Project Gallery: Hestia (K13.2)
  9. Journal of Hellenic Studies: The Anthropomorphism of Hestia, Reconsidering the Early Greek Sources
  10. Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite, trans. Gregory Nagy (University of Houston)
  11. Britannica Kids: Hestia
  12. The Collector: Who Was the Greek Goddess Hestia?
  13. Britannica: Vesta
  14. Mythopedia: Hestia
  15. GreekMythology.com: Hestia
  16. Wikipedia: Noumenia
  17. British Museum, Sophilos dinos (Perseus Digital Library)
  18. MDPI Arts: article on Hestia
  19. EBSCO Research Starters: Hestia
  20. Pantheon.org: Hestia
  21. Panegyria: The Month of Boedromion, a Hellenistic Lunar Calendar
  22. Wikipedia: Giustiniani Hestia

Also in Greek Traditions

← The Encyclopedia Spotted something to correct? Suggest a correction