Roman Pantheonarmor
Aegis of Jupiter
- Invulnerability
- Fear Inducement
- Divine Authority
- Storm Summoning
The divine shield of Jupiter, king of the Roman gods, adorned with the Gorgon's head. Like its Greek counterpart, it served as both protection and weapon, striking fear into the hearts of enemies and symbolizing supreme divine authority.
About Aegis of Jupiter
Jupiter's aegis in Latin verse
Virgil and Ovid give Jupiter the aegis and the thunder as they give Minerva the Gorgon-shield: Greek Zeus and Athena in Capitoline dress. Vulcan as smith is Hephaestus under a Latin name. There is no separate Roman forging-myth that contradicts Homer; it is interpretatio Romana. Cult of Jupiter Optimus Maximus used thunderbolt types on coin and temple. A unique stored "Aegis of Jupiter" as a museum relic in the Capitoline temple is poetic, not an inventory we have. The shield is the king's fear-sign in epic Latin.
Origin
Forged by Vulcan for the king of the gods, representing the protective power of the Roman state.
Sources and further reading
Source notes
These references are recorded in the catalog. Their passage wording and translation have not been checked, so quotations are not displayed here.
- Virgil, Aeneid (Jupiter's storm-gear; with Homeric aegis transferred)
About this entry
By Elizabeth Stein for Mythos Atlas. About the author. Editorial notes are grounded in the site's cited sources and can be challenged through the contact page.
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