Diana Huntress, the Roman goddess of the hunt, as the name suggests was the goddess of hunt, and wildlife. However, there was more to her power than this. She was also known as the goddess of childbirth, and nature, and eventually also came to be known as goddess of the night and moon.
Often equated with Armetis of the Greek Mythology, Diana has been a significant figure of the Roman Mythology and Hellenistic religions, a prominent site of whose worship is the Diana Nemorensis, translated as Diana of the Woods. This site is situated in Aricia on the shores of Lake Nemi.
For her prominence as a goddess of fertility and childbirth, Diana has been known to be worshiped by women seeking to bear children as well as for protection of women during childbirth. However, her most widely known form is Diana Huntress which has also been a subject of several pieces of art over centuries. The hunting sport is considered to be a major sport and feature of Roman and Greek Mythologies, making her a central figure within it.
Diana the Huntress Painting
Created by the very famous Italian Mannerist painter, Giuseppe Cesari in 1603 on a wooden panel using oil-based supplies, Diane the Huntress is a famous painting displayed in the Capitoline Museums in Rome. This painting depicts Diana with an arrow and surrounded by her hunting dogs who seem to be accompanying her on her hunt. Diana’s relation to the moon is also weaved into this piece very creatively by adorning her hair with a simple accessory that resembles the crescent of the Moon.
As Diana’s primary perception starting from the Renaissance period up to the modern era is inclined towards the huntress, this form has been the inspiration for a number of paintings as well as various versions of Diana the Huntress Statue. In some parts of the world, the Diana Huntress Statues can also be found installed in public places.
Another prominent piece displayed in the Palace of Moncloa was painted by the artist Anton Raphael Mengs. This piece, known as “Diana as Personification of the Night” was painted in 1765 on a canvas medium using oils. While this piece also highlights Diana’s visual as a Huntress, the central focus here lays on her connection with the moon and night.
Anton beautifully highlights Diana’s various forms- the huntress, and fertility goddess. In this painting, Diana is seen pulling out an arrow from her quiver while holding her arrow against a full moon background. The moon highlight becomes a focal point addressing her form as a fertility goddess, because it is believed that Diana’s relation with the moon is the reason she comes out as a fertility goddess (drawing from the connection between menstrual cycles and moon cycles). This piece is a part of a set of four personification paintings corroborating to different times of a day.
Diana has been idealized in various forms, however, and the common factor among them remains that she was seen as a powerful character, full of strong attributes.