This is the first in a series of posts about our pantheon. Find the full list of the whole series here.

Last time, I shared the full pantheon that we've developed for Ariadne's Tribe. Now it's time to explore the deities one at a time and discover where we can find their iconography in Minoan art.

The pantheon begins with the Three Mothers - the mother goddesses who represent the realms of land, sky, and sea. So that's where we'll begin with this exploration. First up, Rhea, the Earth Mother goddess. We also call her Ida; there's still a mountain on Crete with this name. In fact, there are a number of sacred mountains that are said to be hers. The Minoans built cave shrines and peak sanctuaries on these sacred mountains. That gives us another of her epithets, the Mountain Mother.

But really, she's the Earth itself, and more specifically, the island of Crete.

Crete with Minoan Cities

Image CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Her relationship with humanity goes back to a time when every group of people had their own Earth Mother goddess who represented, not the whole planet, but the small patch of ground that those people called home. Given that our bodies literally take in the Earth where we live (at least, if we eat locally-grown food), that kind of setup makes sense.

But by the time a recognizable Minoan culture developed, Rhea had taken on specific symbolism that helps us recognize her in the art. The most obvious sign that we're looking at a bit of Minoan art that relates to her is the lion. Mountains are a big tipoff, too.

If you look at the main blog image at the top of this post, you see a female figure standing on top of a mountain that's flanked by a pair of lions. That's Rhea. There's a shrine behind her and a male worshiper making the Minoan salute in front of her.

We also find lions on Minoan seals flanking female figures or altars. A pair of animals flanking a human figure or an altar (or a pillar, column, or stylized tree) tells us which deity is being represented. It's a kind of pictorial shorthand.

But there are some more impressive lions, too. How about this gorgeous alabaster lioness rhyton from Knossos - the eyes and nose would originally have been inlaid with colored stones. A rhyton is a type of ritual pitcher used to pour libations (liquid offerings). In this case, the rhyton was filled via the neck, and the liquid poured out the mouth.

Alabaster lioness rhyton from Knossos

Image CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Here's another lioness rhyton, this time in ceramic from Akrotiri. I love the expression on this one.

Ceramic lioness rhyton from Akrotiri

Image CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

So when you're looking at Minoan art, keep an eye out for lions and mountains. They're a clue that you're looking at a sacred image involving the mother goddess Rhea.

In the name of the bee,
And of the butterfly,
And of the breeze, amen.