Greek Mythology · deity

Demeter

Δημήτηρ
also: Ceres (Roman)
deityharvestthe grainfertilitythe seasons

Goddess of the harvest and the grain; mother of Persephone; her grief at Persephone's abduction set the seasons in motion.

Demeter, Persephone, and Ploutos (the Eleusinian theogony) — Relief Fragments from the Great Eleusinian Relief
Relief Fragments from the Great Eleusinian Relief · Unknown (Roman) · ca. 27 BCE – 14 CE · The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public domain (Met Open Access)
The account

Who they are

Demeter (Ceres) is the goddess of the harvest, the grain, and the fertility of the earth [S1]S1 · Hesiod, Theogonyc. 700 BCEtextOpen source ↗[S4]S4 · Homeric Hymnsc. 700–300 BCEtext[S5]S5 · Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library (Bibliotheca)c. 1st–2nd c. CE (transmits earlier)text. One of the first-born children of Cronus and Rhea (swallowed and later disgorged by Zeus), she is the mother of Persephone [S4]S4 · Homeric Hymnsc. 700–300 BCEtext[S5]S5 · Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library (Bibliotheca)c. 1st–2nd c. CE (transmits earlier)text. Her defining myth is the abduction of Persephone by Hades: in her grief, Demeter withdrew the fertility of the earth, and the world went cold and barren until a compromise was reached — Persephone would spend part of the year with her mother (spring/summer) and part in the underworld (autumn/winter), giving rise to the cycle of the seasons [S4]S4 · Homeric Hymnsc. 700–300 BCEtext[S5]S5 · Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library (Bibliotheca)c. 1st–2nd c. CE (transmits earlier)text. Her great sanctuary was at Eleusis, where the Eleusinian Mysteries (a secret initiation cult) were held in her and Persephone's honor [S6]S6 · Pausanias, Description of Greecec. 150–180 CEtext.
Worth knowing
  • Her grief at Persephone's abduction is the origin of the seasons [S4]S4 · Homeric Hymnsc. 700–300 BCEtext[S5]S5 · Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library (Bibliotheca)c. 1st–2nd c. CE (transmits earlier)text.
  • The Eleusinian Mysteries at Eleusis were her great cult [S6]S6 · Pausanias, Description of Greecec. 150–180 CEtext.
  • Mother of Persephone [S4]S4 · Homeric Hymnsc. 700–300 BCEtext[S5]S5 · Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library (Bibliotheca)c. 1st–2nd c. CE (transmits earlier)text.
Relationships (6)

Connections

3 rows · 6 recorded edges — identical notes are grouped

Family & kinship

SIBLING_OFZeus · Hera · Hades · Poseidon — First-born children of Cronus and Rhea.[S1]
PARENT_OFPersephone — Demeter is the parent of Persephone.[S4] [S5]

Conflict & enmity

ENEMY_OFHades — Hades's abduction of Persephone caused Demeter's wrath (the seasons).[S4] [S5]
Local graph

Their corner of the divine world

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hierarchical — generations top → bottom, partners side by side
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FocusDemeterGreek
GREEK · 41variantvariant♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥AegisHelmet of HadesCaduceus of Her…Trident of Pose…Thunderbolt of …Alcmenamortalthe mortal mother of Heracles1 relationsAndromedamortalthe rescued princess2 relationsAphroditedeitylove7 relationsAtlasdeitythe sky (bore)1 relationsChaosprimordialorigin2 relationsDanaemortalthe mortal mother of Perseus1 relationsDemeterdeityharvest6 relationsEchidnamonsterthe monster-mother2 relationsGaiadeityearth6 relationsHadesdeitythe dead7 relationsHeradeitymarriage8 relationsHestiadeityhearth1 relationsLetodeitymotherhood (as mother of Apollo/Artemis)2 relationsMedusamonsterthe Gorgon3 relationsMetisdeitycounsel2 relationsOceanusdeitythe great world-river1 relationsOdysseusherocunning2 relationsPenelopemortalthe faithful wife of Odysseus2 relationsPoseidondeitythe sea6 relationsRheadeitymotherhood2 relationsSemelemortalthe mortal mother of Dionysus1 relationsTethysdeitythe primordial sea1 relationsTyphonmonsterthe great monster7 relationsCerberusmonsterthe guardian of the underworld3 relationsErosdeitylove2 relationsHebedeityyouth2 relationsHephaestusdeityfire6 relationsMaiadeitythe nymph2 relationsUranusprimordialsky6 relationsPersephonedeitythe underworld2 relationsTelemachusmortalthe son of Odysseus2 relationsCronusdeitytime (later association)9 relationsZeusdeitysky29 relationsApollodeitysun (later)4 relationsAresdeitywar (violence, bloodshed)3 relationsArtemisdeitythe hunt3 relationsAthenadeitywisdom4 relationsDionysusdeitywine3 relationsHeraclesherostrength7 relationsHermesdeitymessengers5 relationsPerseusheroheroism8 relations
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Myths featuring Demeter

1 story

The Abduction of Persephone and the Seasons

Hades abducted Persephone to be his queen. Demeter's grief withheld the earth's fertility until a compromise: Persephone spends part of the year on earth (spring/summer) and part in the underworld (autumn/winter), because she ate pomegranate seeds below [S4]S4 · Homeric Hymnsc. 700–300 BCEtext[S5]S5 · Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library (Bibliotheca)c. 1st–2nd c. CE (transmits earlier)text.

READ THE STORY →

Artworks

Depictions

Demeter, Persephone, and Ploutos (the Eleusinian theogony) — Relief Fragments from the Great Eleusinian Relief
Relief Fragments from the Great Eleusinian Relief · Unknown (Roman) · ca. 27 BCE – 14 CE · The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public domain (Met Open Access)
Relief Fragments from the Great Eleusinian Relief · ca. 27 BCE – 14 CE
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