Background

The plentifulness of the Earth is perhaps the greatest boon humanity has received. Yet we so often take it for granted, greedily plundering the soil and forestry for our purposes. To do so not only throws the natural order out of balance, but invokes the wrath of Ceres, Goddess of Agriculture. From her all the bounty of grain, fruits, and woodland derives, and mankind has long defied the divine protection of the wilderness, earning heavenly ire.

History

Ceres' name ultimately derives from a Proto-Indo-European root, 'kerh', meaning 'to create', making her name a cognate with the English word 'create'. The clear etymology through Latin implies her to be an indigenous goddess of the Italian peoples, with evidence for her worship stretching as far back as the Roman Kings who preceded the Republic.

Her Greek counterpart is Demeter, with whom she shares her body of myths and legends, such as being the mother of Proserpina (Greek Persephone). Unlike her Roman counterpart, no clear etymology has ever been purposed. While the suffix 'meter' is thought to mean 'mother', the prefix 'De' is unclear. Theories suggest meanings such as earth, grain, sky, or house, but no scholarly consensus has been reached.

Mythology and Legends

The complex origins of the Aventine Triad and Ceres herself allowed multiple interpretations of their relationships; Cicero asserts Ceres as mother to both Liber and Libera, consistent with her role as a mothering deity. However, no native Roman myths of Ceres are known.

In Ancient Rome

The agrarian role of Ceres is well known, even today, but she has also a rather confusing relationship with the dead as well. Romulus is said to have dug an underground pit known as the mundus, Latin for 'world', during the foundation, which he dedicated to Ceres. The exact location and nature of the mundus is unknown, but when opened, it was believed the spirits of the dead could wander the Earth freely. The connection of Ceres to the site is debated, but it seems the mundus may have been originally or additionally served as some kind of grain storage. The link to the world of the dead makes more sense when we recall Ceres is the mother of Proserpina, Queen of the Underworld, and the two were often dually worshiped.