In Greek mythology, Erato (; ) is one of the Greek

Muses In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the p ...

, the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. The name would mean "desired" or "lovely", if derived from the same root as Eros, as Apollonius of Rhodes playfully suggested in the invocation to Erato that begins Book III of his '' Argonautica''.

Function

Erato is the Muse of lyric poetry, particularly erotic poetry, and mimic imitation. In the

Orphic hymn Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracians, Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned Ancient Greek poetry, poet and, according to ...

to the Muses, it is Erato who charms the sight. Since the Renaissance she has mostly been shown with a wreath of myrtle and roses, holding a

lyre The lyre () is a stringed musical instrument that is classified by Hornbostel–Sachs as a member of the lute-family of instruments. In organology, a lyre is considered a yoke lute, since it is a lute in which the strings are attached to a yoke ...

, or a small

kithara The kithara (or Latinized cithara) ( el, κιθάρα, translit=kithāra, lat, cithara) was an ancient Greek musical instrument in the yoke lutes family. In modern Greek the word ''kithara'' has come to mean "guitar", a word which etymologic ...

, a musical instrument often associated with Apollo. In Simon Vouet's representations, two turtle-doves are eating seeds at her feet. She is sometimes depicted holding a golden arrow, symbolizing "eros", the feeling she inspires in everybody; at times she is accompanied by Eros, holding a torch.

Family

In Hesiod's genealogy, Erato is the daughter of Zeus and the Titaness Mnemosyne, and the sister to Calliope, Clio,

Euterpe Euterpe (; el, Εὐτέρπη, lit=rejoicing well' or 'delight , from grc, εὖ, eû, well + el, τέρπειν, térpein, to please) was one of the Muses in Greek mythology, presiding over music. In late Classical times, she was named muse ...

Melpomene In Greek mythology, Melpomene (; grc, Μελπομένη, Melpoménē, to sing' or 'the one that is melodious), initially the muse of chorus, eventually became the muse of tragedy, and is now best known in that association. Etymology Melp ...

Polyhymnia Polyhymnia (; el, Πολυύμνια, lit=the one of many hymns), alternatively Polymnia (Πολύμνια), was, in Greek mythology, the Muse of sacred poetry, sacred hymn, dance and eloquence, as well as agriculture and pantomime. Etymology ...

, Terpsichore, Thalia and Urania. Her father gave Erato to Malus (eponym of Malea), as a bride and by him became the mother of Cleophema who bore Aegle ( Coronis) by Phlegyas. Isyllus, ''Hymn to Asclepius'
128.37 ff.
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Development

Erato was named with the other muses in

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet i ...

's '' Theogony''. She was also invoked at the beginning of a lost poem, ''Rhadine'' (), that was referred to and briefly quoted by

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

. The love story of Rhadine made her supposed tomb on the island of Samos a pilgrimage site for star-crossed lovers in the time of Pausanias and Erato was linked again with love in Plato's ''

Phaedrus Phaedrus may refer to: People * Phaedrus (Athenian) (c. 444 BC – 393 BC), an Athenian aristocrat depicted in Plato's dialogues * Phaedrus (fabulist) (c. 15 BC – c. AD 50), a Roman fabulist * Phaedrus the Epicurean (138 BC – c. 70 BC), an Epic ...

''; nevertheless, even in the third century BC, when Apollonius wrote, the Muses were not yet as inextricably linked to specific types of poetry as they became.Richard Hunter, editor. ''Jason and the Golden Fleece'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993), p. 66 note. Erato is also invoked at the start of book 7 of Virgil's '' Aeneid'', which marks the beginning of the second half or "Iliadic" section of the poem.

Notes

References

* Pseudo-Apollodorus. '' The Library''. Translated by Sir James George Frazer. 2 vols. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. ISBN 0-674-99135-4
Online version
an
Greek text
at the Perseus Digital Library. * Apollonius Rhodius, ''Argonautica''. Translated by Robert Cooper Seaton. R. C. Loeb Classical Library Volume 1. London: William Heinemann. 1912
Online version at the Topos Text Project
* Apollonius Rhodius ''Argonautica''. George W. Mooney, ed. London. Longmans, Green. 1912
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...

. ''The Library of History''. Translated by

Charles Henry Oldfather Charles Henry Oldfather (13 June 1887 – 20 August 1954) was an American professor of history of the ancient world, specifically at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He was born in Tabriz, Persia. Parentage Oldfather's parents, Jeremiah and Fe ...

. 12 vols.

Loeb Classical Library The Loeb Classical Library (LCL; named after James Loeb; , ) is a series of books originally published by Heinemann in London, but is currently published by Harvard University Press. The library contains important works of ancient Greek and L ...

. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8
Online version at Bill Thayer's web site at the University of Chicago
* Diodorus Siculus. ''Bibliotheca Historica''. Vol 1–2. Immanel Bekker, Ludwig Dindorf and Friedrich Vogel, eds. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner. 1888–1890
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*

. ''Theogony''. In ''The Homeric Hymns and Homerica'' with an English translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann. 1914
Online version
an
Greek text
at the Perseus Digital Library. * Pausanias. ''Description of Greece''. English translation by W. H. S. Jones. 4 vols. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann. 1918.
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Pausanias, ''Graeciae Descriptio.'' 3 vols. Leipzig: Teubner. 1903
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*

, ''The Geography of Strabo.'' Edition by H. L. Jones. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann. 1924
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Strabo, ''Geographica'', translated and edited by A. Meineke. Leipzig: Teubner. 1877
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library

External links

Warburg Institute Iconographic Database
{{Authority control Muses (mythology) Ancient Greek poetry Ancient Greek erotic literature Children of Zeus Greek goddesses Music and singing goddesses Wisdom goddesses Music in Greek mythology Metamorphoses characters