A Greek Titaness personifying the Moon, Selene crosses the sky each night on her silver chariot drawn by white horses. Daughter of Hyperion and Theia, she is the sister of Helios (the Sun) and Eos (the Dawn). Her passion for the shepherd Endymion, whom she caused to fall into an eternal sleep so she could gaze upon him forever, is one of the most celebrated myths in the Greek tradition.
Selene
Selene
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Frequently asked questions
Famous Quotes
« “Endymion, sleep forever, so that I may gaze upon you and never lose you.” (words attributed to Selene by the Greek tradition)»
Key Facts
- Daughter of the Titan Hyperion and the Titaness Theia, sister of Helios and Eos
- Personifies the Moon in archaic Greek mythology, before being gradually assimilated into Artemis and then Hecate
- Mentioned by Hesiod in the *Theogony* (c. 700 BCE) as one of the great cosmic deities
- Myth of Endymion: she fell in love with a handsome shepherd sleeping on Mount Latmos and asked Zeus to grant him eternal sleep so she could keep him forever
- Identified with Luna in Roman mythology
Works & Achievements
Selene's eternal mission is to cross the night sky on her silver chariot, illuminating the mortal world from east to west. This cyclical journey symbolizes the lunar month, which formed the foundation of the Greek calendar.
Selene obtained from Zeus that the shepherd Endymion be cast into an eternal sleep so that she could gaze upon him forever. This myth, one of the most celebrated in ancient Greece, has inspired countless literary and artistic works down to the modern era.
Several traditions present Selene as the mother of Pandeia (the All-Bright, goddess of the full moon) and Ersa (the Dew), born of her union with Zeus. These figures embody the tangible gifts of moonlight upon vegetation and the natural world.
By completing her regular cycles of 29.5 days, Selene provided the Greeks with the unit of measure for the month (*mēn*). Her very name is etymologically linked to the notion of measurable radiance, making her the mythic founder of the Greek lunisolar calendar.
Anecdotes
Selene once fell in love with Endymion, a handsome shepherd sleeping on the slopes of Mount Latmos in Caria. So overwhelmed by his beauty, she asked Zeus to grant him eternal sleep so she could gaze upon him at her leisure every night. From that day on, Endymion has slept an endless sleep, visited night after night by the goddess of the Moon.
Every night, Selene crosses the sky in her silver chariot drawn by two white horses with bronze hooves, wearing a crescent-shaped crown on her head. This nightly journey is not merely a divine spectacle: it marks the rhythm of the Greek calendar, for each of Selene's cycles lasts 29.5 days and defines the lunar month.
Selene is part of a lunar triad with Artemis and Hecate, representing the new moon, the full moon, and the waning moon respectively. This gradual identification led the Greeks to sometimes confuse the three goddesses, with Selene eventually becoming partly absorbed into the cult of Artemis during the Hellenistic and Roman periods.
The Greek name Selene (Σελήνη) is directly linked to the word 'selas,' meaning brightness or light. This name has crossed the centuries and survives today in scientific terms such as selenology, the geological study of the Moon, and in the given name Selene still used in France and Greece.
In some mythological traditions, Selene is presented as the mother of Pandeia, goddess of the full moon, and Ersa, goddess of the morning dew, both born of her union with Zeus. These daughters embody the tangible blessings of moonlight on nature: the nocturnal glow and the moisture that nourishes plants.
Primary Sources
Hyperion, united with noble Theia, fathered great Helios, bright Selene, and Eos who illuminates all things on earth for the immortals and for mortal men alike.
Sing, honey-voiced Muses, of the broad-winged Moon whose light spreads across the earth. She rises, shining with immortal radiance, and beneath her golden crown the whole sky gleams once she has bathed in the Ocean.
Selene, the goddess who watches from the heights of heaven, saw Medea consumed by love and smiled with bittersweet feeling, remembering in her own heart the passion she had once felt for the handsome shepherd Endymion.
It is said that Endymion, son of Aethlius, received from Zeus the privilege of choosing his own end; he chose to sleep forever, and Selene, enamored of his beauty, came to visit him each night on Mount Latmos.
From the Titans were born: Oceanus and Tethys, Hyperion and Theia — from these last came Helios, Selene, and Eos —, Crius, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, and Themis.
Key Places
It is on this mountain in Caria, in Asia Minor, that Endymion — the immortal lover of Selene — slept for eternity. The site housed a sanctuary dedicated to Endymion, mentioned by Strabo and Pausanias, and was an active center of lunar worship in antiquity.
Home of the gods, Olympus is the symbolic starting point of Selene's nightly journey across the sky. There she mingles with the other deities — including her brother Helios — before setting out on her voyage through the heavens.
The region of Elis was home to the cult of Endymion, the legendary son of its king Aethlius. Pausanias mentions a tomb of Endymion there, as well as local rites closely tied to the myth of Selene.
Selene's true domain is the celestial vault she crosses each night in her chariot. A mythical realm par excellence, it is here that she fulfills her divine role: illuminating the world of mortals and marking the passage of time.
Typical Objects
Each night, Selene drives a resplendent silver chariot across the vault of heaven, symbolizing the steady movement of the Moon. This divine vehicle is her most distinctive attribute in Greek iconography.
The goddess wears a crown shaped like a crescent or lunar disc, an iconographic attribute that immediately sets her apart in Greek art. This symbol has become a universal representation of the Moon throughout the entire Western tradition.
Selene often holds a glowing torch representing the light she casts over the nocturnal world. This object underscores her role as a guide in the darkness and her belonging to the realm of light.
Selene's team consists of two brilliantly white horses, symbols of purity and celestial power. Their bronze hooves resound symbolically upon the vault of heaven during the nightly crossing.
Selene is often depicted draped in a dark mantle scattered with stars, evoking the night she illuminates. This garment expresses her belonging to the nocturnal realm and her sovereignty over the night sky.
The poppy, a plant associated with sleep and dreams, is sometimes offered to Selene in connection with the myth of the sleeping Endymion. It symbolizes the link between moonlight, the night, and the world of dreams.
School Curriculum
Vocabulary & Tags
Key Vocabulary
Daily Life
Morning
In the morning, as Helios begins his solar journey, Selene disappears below the western horizon and retreats to her celestial dwelling to rest. She gives way to the reign of the sun and sleeps while mortals go about their days in the light.
Afternoon
In the afternoon, Selene prepares her silver chariot and white horses for the nocturnal crossing ahead. In mythological depictions, she spends this time in the company of other celestial deities, awaiting the sunset that marks the beginning of her reign.
Evening
As soon as twilight wraps the Earth, Selene launches into the sky on her luminous chariot. She slowly crosses the night vault from east to west, casting her light over sleeping mortals — pausing at times, according to myth, to gaze upon Endymion in his eternal sleep on Mount Latmos.
Food
As an immortal Titaness, Selene sustains herself on ambrosia and nectar, the divine foods that grant immortality and strength to the Greek gods. These symbolic nourishments have no material reality, but express the transcendent and imperishable nature of the deities.
Clothing
Selene is typically depicted wearing a long white or silver robe, the color of moonlight, sometimes adorned with golden embroidery. She wears a dark cloak scattered with stars that billows behind her chariot like the mantle of night itself.
Housing
Selene dwells among the gods of Olympus, but her true domain is the celestial vault she traverses each night. In some later accounts, she is associated with a celestial lunar palace from which she gazes down upon the Earth and watches over mortals as they sleep.
Historical Timeline
Period Vocabulary
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
La traversée nocturne du ciel
Temps mythique (récit archaïque)
L'amour éternel pour Endymion
Temps mythique (attesté dès le VIIe s. av. J.-C.)
Maternité divine : Pandeia et Ersa
Temps mythique
Mesure du temps et du calendrier lunaire
Tradition archaïque grecque
