Psyche is the Greek goddess of the soul and often represented as a beautiful woman with butterfly wings. The name Psyche means “soul” in Greek and was commonly referred to as such in Roman mythology as well, though the direct translation is Anima (Latin word for “soul”). In Book VI of Apuleius’s Metamorphoses (also known as “The Golden Ass”), the mortal Psyche endures four arduous trials set by Venus (Aphrodite), who is jealous of Psyche’s beauty and her relationship with Venus’s son, Cupid. First, Psyche is ordered to sort a vast heap of mixed grains. Next, she must gather golden wool from fierce, man-eating sheep. For the third trial, she is sent to fetch water from the treacherous River Styx. Finally, she must descend into the underworld to retrieve a box of Proserpina’s beauty, but she opens it out of curiosity and falls into a deathlike sleep. Cupid ultimately rescues her, and Jupiter grants Psyche immortality so she and Cupid can be united in eternal love.
Appearance List Literature: Apuleius’s Metamorphoses (2nd century CE), “Ode to Psyche” (1819) poem by John Keats, “The Earthly Paradise” (1868) by William Morris, et. al.
Sample Read A Book of Myths (1915) by Jeanie Lang [Internet Archive]
Description Psyche is the Greek goddess of the soul and often represented as a beautiful woman with butterfly wings. The name Psyche means “soul” in Greek and was commonly referred to as such in Roman mythology as well, though the direct translation is Anima (Latin word for “soul”). In Book VI of Apuleius’s Metamorphoses (also known as “The Golden Ass”), the mortal Psyche endures four arduous trials set by Venus (Aphrodite), who is jealous of Psyche’s beauty and her relationship with Venus’s son, Cupid. First, Psyche is ordered to sort a vast heap of mixed grains. Next, she must gather golden wool from fierce, man-eating sheep. For the third trial, she is sent to fetch water from the treacherous River Styx. Finally, she must descend into the underworld to retrieve a box of Proserpina’s beauty, but she opens it out of curiosity and falls into a deathlike sleep. Cupid ultimately rescues her, and Jupiter grants Psyche immortality so she and Cupid can be united in eternal love.
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