Perhaps today it is difficult to meet a person who would not know anything about ancient Greek mythology and the gods mentioned in it. With the inhabitants of Olympus, we encounter on the pages of books, in cartoons and in full-length films. Today, the heroine of our story will be the winged goddess Nick. We offer a closer acquaintance with this inhabitant of Ancient Olympus.
Goddess Nick: Description
In ancient Greek mythology, her name sounds the same as "Nike." She is the goddess of victory and is the daughter of the titan Pallant and the monstrous creature Styx, personifying primitive horror. Nika was brought up with Athena, one of the most revered goddesses of war and wisdom in ancient Greek mythology. She was an ally of the great Zeus in his struggle with giants and titans. The Greek goddess Nika everywhere accompanies Athena, helping her in her affairs. By the way, in Roman mythology Victoria corresponds to her.
What does Nick symbolize?
This goddess is the personification of a happy outcome and a positive result in any business. Nika takes part not only in military operations, but also in sports, music and religious events organized on the occasion of success. We can say that Nick, rather, symbolized the very fact of a perfect victory, rather than any actions and steps that led to it.
The image of the goddess
Most often, this heroine of ancient Greek mythology is depicted with wings and in a pose of rapid movement above the surface of the earth. An integral attribute of Nicky is a bandage and a wreath. Later, a palm tree joined them, as well as a trophy and weapons. Sculptors, as a rule, portrayed this goddess as a participant in the festival or ceremony of sacrifice, or a messenger of victory. With her, most often there is an attribute of Hermes - the staff. The goddess of victory, Nick, either appears gently nodding his head to the winner, then hovering weightlessly above him, as if crowning his head, then controls his chariot, then stabs the animal during the sacrifice, or constructs a trophy from the weapon of the defeated enemy. Her sculptures are almost always accompanied by sculptures of the great Zeus and Athena Pallas. In them, Niku is depicted in the hand of more significant Olympic gods.
Interesting Facts
In honor of Nicky, an asteroid discovered in 1891 was named. Also the winged goddess of victory is dedicated to the XXXIII Orphic anthem. In addition, her name was taken as the basis for the creation of the name of the American sports brand "Nike".
Temple of Nicky Apteros
One of the largest surviving places of worship of this goddess is located in the Acropolis of Athens. It is called the Temple of Niki Apteros. Also, sometimes it is called "Temple of Niki Athens."
The construction is located on a steep hill on the right side of the main entrance (Propylaea). Here, local residents worshiped the goddess in the hope that she would contribute to a positive outcome in a long war against the Spartans and their allies (Peloponnesian War).
Unlike the Acropolis itself, which could only be entered through the main entrance, the sanctuary of the winged goddess was accessible. This temple was built by a famous architect of Ancient Rome named Kallikrath between 427 and 424 years BC. Before this place was the sanctuary of Athena, which was destroyed by the Persians in about 480 BC. The building is an amphiprostyle - a type of temple in Ancient Greece, both on the front and rear facades of which four columns are located in a row. The stylobate structure consists of three steps. Friezes are decorated with sculptural reliefs depicting Zeus, Poseidon and Athena, as well as scenes of military battles. The originals of the surviving fragments of these decorations are today stored in the British Museum, but only copies can be seen in the Greek temple.
Like most of the acropolis, the temple of Nicky was built of Pentelicon marble. A few years after the completion of its construction, the building was surrounded by a parapet in order to protect people from a possible fall from a high cliff. Inside the temple was a statue of Nicky. In one hand she held a helmet (a symbol of war), and in the other a grenade (a sign of fertility). Unlike most accepted images, the statue did not have wings. This was done on purpose - so that victory never leaves the walls of the city. Actually, therefore, the building was called the temple of Niki Asperos, that is, wingless victory.
Nika of Samothrace
This sculpture is another image of the Olympic goddess that has come down to us since ancient times. Its fragments in the amount of more than 200 pieces were brought to Paris from Greece by the archaeologist Charles Champoiseau in 1863. Thanks to the painstaking work and efforts of the restorers, a magnificent statue was reborn from them. Despite the fact that the goddess Nick was deprived of her arms and head, as well as one wing (which was eventually made of plaster), she conquered all art lovers and for many decades has been one of the most valuable exhibits of the Louvre.