Ancient Greek muse Euterpe - muse-patroness of lyrical poetry

What is art for ancient civilizations? This is a sign of prosperity, the golden age, when life in a city or state is stable and abundant. People focus their attention not only on obtaining the necessary, but have the opportunity to give strength and time to create the beautiful. In today's world, in this sense, little has changed, but in the past to achieve such prosperity was more difficult, and therefore, and art was appreciated much higher. It is not surprising, therefore, that in Ancient Greece they treated with so much respect the muses that give inspiration and talent. And it is no coincidence that the most elegant and beautiful of the nine sisters was Euterpe, the muse of lyrical poetry.

Not all art is equally valuable

In the distant past, when the heroes performed their exploits, and later, when the great poets wrote their poems about them, the most admired kind of art was the ability to weave words. Painting or sculpture, rather, applied to crafts: they delighted in the sight, but were not thought of as something divine. At the top of everything was poetry. It is no coincidence that several muses are associated with its various directions . Erato helped create love and wedding lyrics. Calliope was in charge of the epic. Muse Euterpe inspired the creation of lyrical poetry. And among the beautiful sisters was Polymnia or Pologimnia, which patronized everyone who put down the hymns.

Painting and sculpture did not have muses. But they were in astronomy and history. These sciences were equated with art. The inspiration and mentor of the astrologers was Urania. Historians also praised Clio.

Poetry is closely connected with drama and theater. The music of Melpomene and Talia helped create tragedies and comedies. They reminded their favorites that human lives are only roles and are completely dominated by the gods. Closes the smooth procession of the sisters of Terpsichore - the muse of dance and choral singing.

Where did the muse come from?

The inspirers of the poets come from ancient nymph sources. They lived in the ringing waters of the keys and gave people the ability to write poetry. Actually the muse appears first as three sisters, Melet, Mnem and Aed (meditation, memory and song). And several years later, nine modern women are familiar to the modern man. Starting with the blessing of their favorites poetic gift, they gradually divided among themselves all the directions of art.

Divine origin

According to Hessiod and other authors, Euterpe's muse and sisters were the daughters of Zeus and the Titanides of Mnemosyne. Beautiful maidens were born at the foot of Mount Olympus. Muses are eternally young beauties singing at feasts of the gods. Often they are portrayed with Apollo, he was their patron and constant companion.

The Muses presented those who honored them. Could inspire the creation of a masterpiece, tell how to achieve the mercy of the gods. Those who considered themselves more talented than muses or tried to compete with them were cruelly punished.

Habitat

It is believed that the cult of muses originated in the tribe of Thracian singers. They lived at Mount Olympus, in Peeria, and later moved to Boeotia. Here is located Helicon, loved by the Muses. This mountain, as well as Parnassus, the Muses loved for the rustling foliage, cool caves and keys with crystal clear water. Here the beautiful virgins lived. It was believed that if you drink water from the spring of Aganippe or Hippocrene, you can find a poetic gift.

Worshiped the muses in special temples, museion. They often lived and worked scientists. The modern word "museum" (the place where works of art are stored and exhibited) occurred precisely from the name of the temple of the muses.

The most beautiful of sisters

Ancient Greek muse Euterpe patronized the poets, above other genres of loving lyrics, as well as musicians. It was believed that she stands out among the muses with a special refinement and tenderness. According to myths, the gods of Olympus could indefinitely enjoy her poems.

The main epithet, which adorned the muse of lyric poetry, was a pleasure. The very name of "Euterpe" occurs, according to Diodorus, from the description of the pleasure experienced by listening to music. Sensitive and inspiring, she could give her chosen ones the ability to create a harmonious melody from the chaos of sounds, to add seemingly random words to a stiff and flowing song. Light-legged and wayward, like all sisters, Eutterpe's muse rigidly put in place those who tried to contradict her or pretended to be superior in skill. One of the myths well describes how the inspirers with rivals were cracked.

How the magpie appeared

The daughter of the Macedonian king Pierre, and there were nine of them, like the Muses, were immensely proud of their talents. They decided to call inspirers to a musical contest and show how good their voices are. As judges, the nymphs were invited. The music muse of Euterpe and her sisters arrived at the appointed time.

The daughters of the king sang about the war of the gods with giants. They did not glorify Zeus and his entourage, but laughed at how the Olympians fled from the formidable Tiphaon in the form of forest animals. The muzes became indignant, but they were forced to sing. Beautiful Calliope took up the lyre and told about the abduction of Persephone. The nymphs were fascinated by the voice and play of the muse and recognized her as the best in the match, but the princesses did not agree with this decision. Pride and wilfulness drove Dyer's daughters to the point that they tried to hit the muses. Such an insult to the inspirer could not forgive. They turned the prideful princess into forty, loud and crackling.

Attributes of the most beautiful of the muses

To those who worshiped the goddesses, they gave their disposition, and with it the ability to conquer the hearts of people by various arts. Euterpe, the muse of lyrical poetry and music, according to myths, his singing and playing the flute, could illuminate the soul of man with a magical light, clear it of a touch of callousness and grayness. It was represented almost always in hands with musical instruments. As a rule, it was a flute, avlos (double pipe, ancestor of the modern oboe) or lyre. Also often there are images of a muse accompanied by forest nymphs. On some canvases and bas-reliefs the muse Euterpe keeps garlands of flowers, a symbol of tenderness and beauty.

Images of Euterpe

Despite the fact that the Muses did not patronize sculptors and painters, they for many centuries dedicated their works to immortal sisters. And of course, poets of all time and of many peoples wrote about them: Byron and Homer, Pushkin, Fet and Yesenin. In G.R. Derzhavin is a poem dedicated to Euterpe ("To Euterpe"). Many artists painted her image. Among them, the Italian Francesco del Cossa and the Swiss Arnold Beklin. Sculptures depicting the muses decorate the Vatican Museum and the Louvre Museum. Copies of antique statues can be seen in a beautiful park in Pavlovsk near St. Petersburg. Euterpe is depicted here without the traditional attribute, the pipe. The sculpture is a copy of the Roman statue placed in the Vatican, which, in turn, reproduces the lost work of the Greek master.

Euterpe, the muse of lyrics, inspires and contemporary artists. She still devotes poems and sculptural images. The patroness of poets and musicians is invisibly present not only at parties dedicated to Greek art. She, like her sisters, is a source of creativity for all who are imbued with the poetics of ancient mythology.