Artemis

Artemis, the twin sister of Apollo, was one of the twelve Olympian deities who dwelled upon Mount Olympus. A goddess of striking contrasts, she presided over both the hunt and childbirth, wielding her bow with deadly precision while also protecting young children and maidens. The Romans would later worship her as Diana.

Her birth story reflects the complex dynamics of divine families. Zeus and the Titan Leto conceived the twins, but Hera, Zeus's jealous wife, decreed that Leto could not give birth anywhere touched by sunlight. Zeus cleverly circumvented this curse by creating a shaded haven on a floating island, where Artemis and Apollo were born.

Artemis was known for her swift and severe retribution against those who offended her. When the hunter Actaeon stumbled upon her bathing and lingered to gaze upon her, she transformed him into a stag. His own hunting dogs, failing to recognize their master, tore him apart. In another tale of vengeance, she and Apollo slew all twelve children of Niobe, who had boasted that her numerous offspring made her superior to Leto.

Classical art typically depicts Artemis with her bow and hunting dogs, and her influence extends through ancient literature, from Homer's Iliad to Ovid's Metamorphoses and the plays of Euripides.