The Aeneid

Hero Myth

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About this myth

The Aeneid is a Hero myth originating from the Roman Paganism belief system. The main deity depicted in this myth is likely Aeneas.

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The Meeting of Dido and Aeneas
Sourcetate.orgRetrieval date07/12/2019
MediumDigital iconImage date2020CreatorOMNIKA Foundation
Source record No.T06736MediumOil paint on canvasOrientationFull frontalImage dateca. 1766CreatorSir Nathaniel Dance-HollandSource notes"The Meeting of Dido and Aeneas. Description: The picture depicts the meeting of the Trojan prince Aeneas and the Carthaginian queen, Dido, as described in Book I of Virgil's Aeneid. Following the sack of Troy, Aeneas and his followers are shipwrecked on the coast of North Africa, near the city of Carthage. There, Aeneas meets his mother, Venus, disguised as a huntress. She tells him the sad history of Dido, who was forced to flee her home in Tyre and to build a new citadel at Carthage. Venus envelops Aeneas and his compatriot Achates in a shroud of mist to enable them to penetrate Dido's citadel undetected. Upon entering the temple of Juno, Aeneas sees Dido seated upon her throne, welcoming a number of his fellow Trojans whom he had believed drowned in the recent shipwreck, and expressing her desire to see their 'king' Aeneas. At that moment the mist clears and Aeneas reveals his identity to Dido. This is the precise moment portrayed by Dance."

In a nutshell

Myth summary

After the Trojan war, Aeneas goes through a long journey of hardship to ultimately find the city of Rome. His travels require him to endure the suffering of many trials, including countless personal challenges. He inevitably turns down love and comfort in order to fulfill his destiny.

Attested: Unknown
Created: Unknown
Myth type: Hero
Main deity: Aeneas
Belief system: Roman Paganism
Origin: Europe › Southern Europe › Italy

Belief system

Roman Paganism Religion

Polytheistic

Roman Paganism refers to the cultural practices of the Roman empire before Christianity (ca. 756 BCE - 325 CE).

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Belief system

Aeneas

Main deity

According to Virgil, Aeneas was the Roman half-deity who founded Rome after the Trojan War.

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Main deity

Translation

"Virgil's Aeneid": English Translation by John Dryden

Book · Publius Vergilius Maro (Virgil) · 1909

"Virgil's Aeneid" is an English translation of Virgil's Aeneid by John Dryden. Dryden's version is classical rendition of a timeless Roman myth. The language is readable for a contemporary audience; however, there are occasional phrases that may be considered archaic. The work was translated from classical Latin into English. Charles W. Eliot edited the current version, which was published in 1909. The work contains all twelve books. The Aeneid is about the journey of Aeneas, the epic hero who finds and builds the empire of Rome after the Trojan War.

Included: Translation, Collation (full)
Language: Latin ⟶ English
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More information

The Aeneid from Virgil is an epic Roman poem which recounts the heroic founding of Rome by Aeneas.

Authorship

Like the Iliadic myths by Homer (e.g., the Iliad and Odyssey), the Aeneid by Virgil is also subject to disputed authorship.

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Texts related to this myth

See full texts of this myth via related artifacts. Where available, a translation is included.

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"Virgil's Aeneid" Book · Publius Vergilius Maro (Virgil) · 1909
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How did we get this date?

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How did we get this date?

We're not quite sure about the creation date for this myth.

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Cite this page

MLA Modern Language Association (8th ed.)

OMNIKA Foundation Contributors. "The Aeneid." OMNIKA – World Mythology Index, OMNIKA Foundation, 09 Jun. 2019, omnika.org/stable/164. Accessed 18 Nov. 2024.

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APA American Psychological Association (6th ed.)

OMNIKA (2019, June 09). The Aeneid. Retrieved from https://omnika.org/stable/164

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CMS Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.)

OMNIKA Foundation Contributors. "The Aeneid." Las Vegas, NV: OMNIKA Foundation. Created June 09, 2019. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://omnika.org/stable/164.

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Bibliography

Dryden, John, trans. "Aeneid." In Virgil's Aeneid: Translated by John Dryden, With Introductions and Notes, 75-428, written by Virgil. Authored by Virgil. Edited by Charles W. Eliot. Vol. 13, The Harvard Classics, Vol. XIII. New York, NY: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909.
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Virgil. Virgil's Aeneid: Translated by John Dryden, With Introductions and Notes. Translated by John Dryden. Edited by Charles W. Eliot. Vol. 13, The Harvard Classics, Vol. XIII. New York, NY: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909.
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Virgil. Virgil's Æneid: Books I-VI; the Original Text with a Literal Interlinear Translation. Translated by Frederick H. Dewey. New York, NY: Translation Publishing Company, 1917.
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Fast facts

Myth
Roman Paganism Belief system
Aeneas Main deity
Origin
location_city Italy Southern Europe

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