Facts about Artemis
Artemis was known by various names throughout the Hellenic world, likely because her cult was a syncretic one that blended various deities and observances into a single united form.
One of the most famed tales featuring Artemis (one that is reproduced in both literature and visual art) is the story of Callisto, the unfortunate daughter of Lycaon, king of Arcadia.
Not wanting his young quarry to flee, the crafty god appeared to her disguised as Artemis, gained her confidence, then took advantage of her.
Clytemnestra sent her, and Agamemnon, placing her beside the altar, was about to slaughter her when Artemis carried her off to Tauris.
Artemis, the virginal goddess of nature and hunting, was a ubiquitous presence in both the mythic tales and the religious observances of the ancient Greeks.
Months later, when Artemis discovered that one of her maidens was pregnant, she was became apoplectic and banished the offender from their company.
Specifically, when Paul visits the town of Ephasus, the local metalsmiths, who feel threatened by his preaching of a new faith, jealously riot in the goddess's defense, shouting "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!"
Artemis, in one of various forms, was worshiped throughout the Hellenic world, in a cult whose geographical expansiveness was only rivaled by its great antiquity.
The general character of these worship practices is attested to in a surviving temple inscription credited to Xenophon, which states: "This place is sacred to Artemis.
Here the lady whom Greeks associated with Artemis through interpretatio Graecae was worshipped primarily as a mother goddess, akin to the Phrygian goddess Cybele.
Calchas said that they could not sail unless Agamemnon's most beautiful daughter were offered to Artemis as a sacrifice.
Artemis is the goddess most invoked by women in casual conversation ("By Artemis,..."), and as Lochia (Of the Child-Bearing Bed) she assisted women in childbirth – a critical new role facing these girls.
The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus (located in western part of Turkey), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was probably the best known center of her worship apart from Delos.
Only in post-Classical art do we find representations of Artemis-Diana with the crown of the crescent moon, as Luna.
Orion, another legendary hunter, also bore the brunt of Artemis's rage, though in this case it seems to have been justified.
Diana (Classical Latin: [dɪˈaː.na]) was the goddess of the hunt, the moon, and nature in Roman mythology, associated with wild animals and woodland, and having the power to talk to and control animals. She was equated with the Greek goddess Artemis, though she had an independent origin in Italy.
She was the daughter of Zeus, king of the gods, and the Titaness Leto and she has a twin brother, the god Apollo. Not only was Artemis the goddess of the hunt, she was also known as the goddess of wild animals, wilderness, childbirth and virginity.
Meaning unknown, possibly related either to Greek αρτεμης (artemes) "safe" or αρταμος (artamos) "a butcher". Artemis was the Greek goddess of the moon and hunting, the twin of Apollo and the daughter of Zeus and Leto. She was known as Diana to the Romans.