Luna is the Roman goddess of the moon, the Greek equivalent of Selene, and is often portrayed with a crescent moon. Her counterbalance is Sol, god of the sun. Many goddesses were associated with the moon such as Juno and Artemis however, Luna was the only one portrayed by Greek poets as the moon incarnated. She was born from the Titan Theia along with her brother Sol and sister Eos as stated in Hesiod’s Theogony. Luna became consort to Jupiter and also Endymion and had fifty offspring know as The Menae. This myth, mainly Greek but also Roman, was well established across the Roman population and featured on many wall paintings.
To discover more about oil lamps in Antiquity, please visit our relevant blog post: Lighting The Way.
