Hestia she was a goddess present in the Greek pantheon, representative of the hearth, home, domestic life and hospitality. She had a strong relationship with home life and with the fireplace, her great symbol. Thus, every Greek home had a small fireplace that was lit in reference to her.
Also, in public spaces in Ancient Greece, there were fireplaces that were lit permanently in honor of Hestia, and some public events were marked by homage and offerings made primarily to this goddess. Despite this importance, Hestia is barely mentioned in Greek myths.
Read more: Athena — goddess of wisdom and patron of the city of Athens
Summary on Hestia
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she was the Greek goddess of the hearth, home, domestic life and hospitality.
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The Greeks kept fireplaces lit in their homes in her honor.
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she is barely mentioned in Greek myths.
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she was the eldest daughter of Kronos and Rhea, therefore sister of Zeus.
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she became known for choosing to remain a virgin.
Who was Hestia
Hestia was a goddess of Greek religiosity, being the representative of the fireplace, of the home, of domestic life, of hospitality , between others. The cult of her had a strong relationship with the fireplace and it was very common for a small fireplace to be kept lit in Greek homes in honor of the goddess. In addition, public religious ceremonies honored her in the same way.
Hestia was a virgin goddess and never if she married no one . Some public places in Greece kept open fireplaces, whose fire was related to her, and this practice is believed to have been a heritage of the Mycenaeans.
Public places in Greek cities that had a fireplace were known as prytaneion (headquarters of government) e bouleuterion (assembly that brought together Greek citizens for decision-making). Furthermore, the Greeks believed that she was present at every bonfire lit in her honor.
Hestia in Greek Mythology
Hestia mentions in Greek mythology are quite scarce, mainly because she was a family goddess, who was reclusive in the domestic environment. Still, we can say that Hestia belonged to to first generation of Greek gods , for she was daughter of Kronos and Rhea , two titans.
Kronos devoured his children, fearing that one of them would dethrone him, and Hestia, his eldest daughter, was the first to be swallowed. Rhea managed to free Zeus from this fate by tricking Kronos by giving him a rock in baby clothes. Zeus grew up in safety and returned one day to free his brothers.
Zeus made Kronos vomit his devoured children, and then began the war of the Greek gods against the Titans. This war was won by the gods. There is a divergence about whether or not Hestia is an Olympic goddess , that is, residing on Mount Olympus. Some sources consider her Olympian, but others put the god Dionysus in her place.
Another mythological highlight about Hestia is that she remained a virgin and refused to marry suitors such as Apollo, Poseidon and Priapus. Keeping her virginity was part of an oath she swore to Zeus, and for that she was given the honor of being honored in homes and being the first goddess honored at Greek public events.
Read more: Persephone — goddess of agriculture and vegetation, was responsible for the fertility of planted grains
Hestia in Greek Religiosity
The cult of Hestia spread throughout Greece precisely because theGreeks believed that she was present in every fireplace lit for religious purposes . In addition, the Greeks considered it the very personification of the fireplace, which highlighted the importance of this item to their cult.
In addition to domestic worship,every public ceremony in Greece began with offerings to this goddess , who was also present in prayers and religious speeches. In the case of domestic worship, the fireplace always needed to be fed to keep the flame in his honor lit.
This is because the Greeks understood that letting this fire go out was a demonstration of lack of care for one's own family. The cult of Hestia was very strong in some cities like Eleusis, Piraeus, Cos and in many other Greek regions. The Romans also worshiped her and knew her as Vesta .