The number of Horae varied according to different sources, but was most commonly three: either the trio of Thallo, Auxo, and Carpo (goddesses of the order of nature), or
Eunomia (goddess of good order),
Dike (goddess of Justice) and
Eirene (goddess of Peace).
The earlier Argive Horae In
Argos, two Horae, rather than three, were recognised, presumably winter and summer: Auxesia (possibly another name for Auxo) and Damia (possibly another name for Carpo). In late
euhemerist interpretations, they were seen as Cretan maidens who were worshipped as goddesses after they had been wrongfully stoned to death.
The classical Horae triads The earliest written mention of
Horai is in the
Iliad where they appear as keepers of
Zeus's cloud gates. "Hardly any traces of that function are found in the subsequent tradition,"
Karl Galinsky remarked in passing. They were daughters of
Zeus and
Themis, younger sisters of the
Moirai. The Horai are mentioned in two aspects in
Hesiod and the
Homeric Hymns: • in one variant emphasizing their fruitful aspect, Thallo, Auxo, and Carpo —the goddesses of the three seasons the Greeks recognized: spring, summer and autumn— were worshipped primarily amongst rural farmers throughout Greece; • in the other variant, emphasizing the "right order" aspect of the Horai, Hesiod says that Zeus wedded "bright
Themis" who bore Dike, Eunomia, and Eirene, who were law-and-order goddesses that maintained the stability of society; they were worshipped primarily in the cities of
Athens,
Argos, and
Olympia.
First triad ,
Athens Of the first, more familiar, triad associated with
Aphrodite and Zeus is their origins as emblems of times of life, growth (and the classical three seasons of year): • Thallo (Θαλλώ, from θάλλειν (
thallein 'to sprout, grow', esp. fruit trees)
Second triad |279x279px Of the second triad associated to Themis and Zeus for law and order: •
Dike (Δίκη, "Justice", her Roman equivalent was
Iustitia) was the goddess of morality and justice: she ruled over human justice, as her mother
Themis ruled over divine justice. The
anthropomorphisation of Diké as an ever-young woman dwelling in the cities of men was so ancient and strong that in the 3rd century BCE
Aratus in
Phaenomena 96 asserted that she was born a mortal and that, though Zeus placed her on earth to keep mankind just, he quickly learned this was impossible and placed her next to him on Olympus, as the Greek astronomical/astrological constellation
The Maiden. •
Eunomia (Εὐνομία, "Order", her Roman equivalent was Disciplina) was the goddess of law and legislation. The same or a different goddess may have been a daughter of
Hermes and
Aphrodite. •
Eirene (Εἰρήνη. "Peace", her Roman equivalent was
Pax) was the personification of peace and wealth, and was depicted in art as a beautiful young woman carrying a
cornucopia,
scepter, and a torch or
rhyton.
Third triad The last triad of Horae was identified by
Hyginus: The seasons were personified by the ancients, the Greeks represented them generally as women but on some antique monuments they are depicted as winged children with attributes peculiar to each season. The Greek words for the four seasons of the year were as follows:
Modern influence Nicolas Poussin has represented the four seasons by subjects drawn from the
Bible: Spring is portrayed by
Adam and
Eve in paradise: Summer, by
Ruth gleaning: Autumn, by
Joshua and
Caleb bearing grapes from the promised land; and Winter, by the
deluge. In more modern representations the seasons are often surrounding Apollo: Spring, as Flora, crowned with flowers, and in a shaded green drapery over a white robe: Summer, standing under the lion in the zodiac, with a gold-coloured drapery over a white gauze vestment, the edges of which are tinged by the yellow rays of the sun, holding a sickle, having near her a wheat-sheaf; Autumn, as a Bacchante, in a violet-coloured garment, pressing grapes with one hand into a golden cup, which she holds in the other; and Winter as an aged person, placed in the shade at a great distance from the god.
The Hours (1882)|293x293px Finally, a quite separate suite of Horae personified the twelve hours (originally only ten), as tutelary goddesses of the times of day. The hours run from just before sunrise to just after sunset, thus winter hours are short, summer hours are long:
The nine Hours According to
Hyginus, the list is only of nine, borrowed from the three classical triads alternated: and they are described as daughters of
Chronos (Time):
The twenty-four Hours The last set of hours of the day and night is allegorically represented in the following: == Notes ==