Amor and PsycheI want to share this beautiful coin together with the fairy tale, one of the most exciting ancient stories. Sadly I couldn't get the coin itself. I have bid on it but surprisingly (or possibly not) the
price went over $3000!
The coin:Thrace, Serdika,
Septimius Severus, AD 193-211
AE - 3.05g
obv. AV KL [...] -
CEVHROC (HR
ligate)
Head, laureate, r.
rev. [C]ER - DWN
Eros, winged, nude, stg. r., and
Psyche, nude to hips, stg. l., embracing; on the l.
side a burning
altarref. not in
Ruzicka (
cf. nr.384 for
Caracalla); not in
Varbanov (engl.); unpublished
very
rare, about VF, dark green
patinaex
Gorny&Mosch auktion 181, lot 1696
Photo courtesy of Lübke&Wedemann, Stuttgart/Germany
The story we know goes back to an ekphrasis (insertion) in the Metamorphoses of Apuleius, known too under the title 'The Golden Ass'.
The fairy tale:"In a certain country once lived a
king and a queen, who
had three daughters. The two eldest were adorned by charm and grace. But both vanished like a shadow by the bright brillance of her sister." From near and far the people came to look at her. Yes, rumour arose, that
Venus herself has come back to earth and was wandering around, and people began to worship her.
No more anyone went to Paphos
nor Knidos nor Kythera to venerate
Venus. Her temples decayed, her altars became orphans.
Venus burned with anger and she vented her displeasure that a mortal would compete with her. She called her son
Amor, led him into the city where
Psyche - the name of that princess - lived, told him the sacrilege and commanded him to wound her with one of
his arrows that she as a punishment became inflamed with passion to the lowest and most depraved creature on earth.
Psyche herself was not happy with her supernatural beauty. Indeed she was admired and gazed in amazement, but there was no prince asking for her hand, whereas her elder sisters were married felicitously already early. Lonely and hopelessly she wept her empty days. Her beauty became an horror to herself. Her sorrowful father asked the age-old oracle of
Apollo in
Miletos. And
Apollo gave him order to invest
Psyche like to a marriage and then to put her on the highest peak of the mountain. For she was destined not to marry a mortal but a beast, false and cruel like the brood of vipers, where the Styx itself was afraid of.
There was moaning and lamentation in the whole city. But to defy the god's order was impossible. In a long procession more like a funeral cortege than a marriage procession the sobbing
Psyche was led to the allocated mountain. There she was left alone. All the bridal torches were extincted by her tears.
However
still waiting for her end she felt softly floating. A zephyr (south wind) raised her, bore her to the valley below and placed her in the bloomy fold of a soft lawn.
Awakened after a refreshing sleep she found herself in a graceful park with a crystal-clear brook coming softly sweeping from a cliff, and with a gorgeous palace whose walls were made of gold and whose beauty was blinding her eyes. She arrived and was astonished at the celestial grandeur.
Psyche recognized that she was adopted by a deity. After having taken a bath she
sat down at a table full of the most excellent wines and the most exquisite foods. But nobody dished up, all seemed to be put on the table by magical hand. After the dinner an invisible singer appeared accompanied by another with a
kithara. Then
Psyche retired.
But about midnight she awoke by a low noise. It was her unknown husband. He loved her and rushed away before daybreak. Immediately the invisible servants were present and shepherded her at the best. And so one day followed the other and
Psyche enjoyed the unusual life.
Meanwhile her sisters
had heard about her desaster and hurried to the inconsolable parents. In the same night
Psyche was warned by her unknown husband against the enviousness and badness of her sisters. But she longed for them in desire, dispraised her new
home as a golden prison and ceased eating and drinking. So her husband with a heavy heart accommodated her on condition that she never will explore
his true likeness.
Hearing her sisters calling her all about
Psyche sends for the cephyr who brought both smoothly down to her. They celebrate the reunion and
Psyche shows them the palace. They both are astonished, wonder about the invisible servants, and ask
Psyche for her husband. She quickly invents a beautiful
youth being hunting most of the time. Then with lots of rich presents the zephyr brought them back.
Now the jealousy of the happy
Psyche arose and the sisters bemoaned each other her own
fate and complained about their own husbands. Especially the proudness of the younger sister seemed to be unbearable for them and they decided to break it.
Again she was warned by her husband who promised that her child would became immortal when only she kept
his secret. Overhappy she pledged to do it. But the sisters are on the way already. Seeing that
Psyche is pregnant they adulate her and cropped up in her confidence. They begin to talk about her husband and remind her of the Pythean oracle. It has prodicted her as husband a monster who will devour her after the childbirth. They convince
Psyche to look in the coming night with a
lamp at the monster and then to cut its
head with a knife. And so did
Psyche. But flipping the bedspread she looks at the most graceful and most lovely monsters of all: It is Cupido, the sweet god of love! She controls
his arrows and incautiously she pricks her finger. Suddenly she falls in love with him, by her own blame but without her knowledge. She admires
his golden curls and
his purple wings and she is drunken of delight. She bends over to kiss him. With that some drops of hot oil from her
lamp fall down on
his shoulder and with pain the god jumps up. He flies to the next tree and begins to berate her that she has betrayed their love. To punish her he now will leave her forever, and saying this he flies away.
When she couldn't see him anymore
Psyche in despair jumped into the near river. But the river took pity with her and laid her down on a meadow where
Pan seated together with
Echo and
his goats.
Pan tried to console her and advised her to pray to Cupido. On her further way she came to the city of one of her sisters. She told her about her unfortunate
fate, that her husband has been Cupido whom she has hurted with hot oil. Hereupon he has cursed her and now she - her sister -was chosen as
his new wife. Hearing that her sister was lying something of the parent's death and embarked to the rock in question. On top of it she called zephyr, jumped down, and dashed to pieces. With the same
fraud her other sister came to her end too.
Whereas
Psyche was in
search of Cupido he rested in a room of
his mother and suffered from the pain at
his shoulder. A sea-gull recognized that and defamed him at
his mother
Venus who just was bathing: Cupido would lay with
his paramour, would fornicate and she amuses herself with bathing. There were no more pudicity on earth, no matrimonies, no friendship
nor childlike love. When
Venus asked for the name of that girl and heard it was
Psyche she became very angry, went to the bed-chamber of her son and charged him heavily. To punish him she would send him to her enemy, the temperance, who would empty
his quiver, blunt
his arrows, cut
his golden curls and crop
his wings.
Ceres and
Juno - who already know the case -
met Venus. They tried to soften the rage of the goddess and doubted that Cupido has done something wrong. It's just the way he is, they said. But actually they feared
his arrows. But
Venus became even more indignant.
In the mean time
Psyche came to a temple full of wheat and barley ears laying on the ground confused with wreaths and sickles. Immediately she began to bring order into it. When
Ceres - whose temple it was - arrived she was surprised that
Psyche even in her sorrow didn't forget the order of the sanctuary.
Psyche fell down before her and begged for protection against the revengeful
Venus. But
Ceres must refuse her because she was joint to
Venus in friendship.
Psyche walked onwards and came to another temple. Now it was the temple of
Juno, mother of heaven.
Psyche prostrated and supplicated her, who immediately stood before her in all her majesty. But she was disappointed again. Now
Psyche is ready to deliver herself to
Venus even if that would be her doom.
Venus was tired to
search for
Psyche on earth. In a golden
chariot drawn by doves and accompanied by sparrows she drives back to heaven and goes to
Jupiter. Proudly she claims Mercurius for
help and asks him to
search for
Psyche on earth. Mercurius promises each human being he would
help him kisses of
Venus herself.
Psyche is hurrying to the door of
Venus. Consuetudo drags her to the throne of her mistress. Looking at
Psyche Venus loughs out loud and insults her as unworthy to be her daughter-in-law. She leaps at her, tears her garment and insults her unborn child as bastard. Then she pours out a heap of wheat, barley, millet and other
grains and commanded
Psyche to sort these until evening.
Psyche stands stiffened from the insolvable task. But an ant feels pity with her, calls her people and until evening all is sorted in nice heaps. But
Venus didn't accept this as
work of
Psyche.
The next morning
Venus pointed at a flock of wild and dangerous
sheep at the bank of a river in a near forest and prompted
Psyche to bring her a flake of their precious wool.
Psyche went to the forest to drown herself in the river. But the
reed begged her not to desecrate the river by her death
nor to deliver herself to the furious
sheep. She should gather the wool from the bushes when the
sheep were fallen asleep. And so did
Psyche. But again
Venus was not appeased and gave her another task. To prove her
courage she should bring her water from a river on top of a rugged cliff which fell down deep to the Styx and drowns out even the roaring of the Kokytos. With a
jug Psyche hurries to the cliff. Horrible gorges open up, dragons threaten in caves and bark against her. She is certain that this is her last task because it is impossible to leave this place alive. Exanimated she stands, even tears she has no more.
But the misery of he who suffers innocently has not remained hidden to the all-bountiful providence. She sends an
eagle, Jupiter's bird, who levitating over the abyss fills the
jug. Full of
joy Psyche brings it back to
Venus. But she reviles
Psyche as sorceress, gives her a box and sends her to
Proserpina in the underworld to bring her beauty for one day which she has lost while caring for her son. But she should be quick. Now
Psyche knows Venus' intention. The hint for orkus is enough. She
scales a tower to jump down. But the tower begins to talk and tells her of a gate to the underworld at Cape Taenaron in Lacedaimon where she could
cross over giving Charon a boatage. Two honey cakes she needs to soften
Cerberus. Then she would get the gift from
Proserpina. But never she is allowed to look at the divine beauty in her box. She succeeds and
comes luckily back to the surface. But in the bright light of the day her desire to look at the divine beauty becomes overwhelming and she opens the box. But out
comes a deadly sleep and
Psyche sinks down on the way.
In the mean time Cupido was recovered from
his wound and longed for
Psyche. He escaped
his prison and
his wings brought him to her. He released her from the deadly sleep, put him back into the box and wakened
Psyche by the soft stick of
his arrow. Again he accused her of her curiosity but now he promised that he will care for her from now on.
Psyche brings the gift of
Proserpina to
Venus.
Cupido soars up to
Jupiter, complains of
his misery and makes him inclined to
his wishes. Graciously
Jupiter kisses the little rascal and promises to
help him, even though that he himself has suffered so often by
his arrows. He calls up a convention of the gods and prompts them to agree with him to apply finally reins to Cupido and to marry him off. He already has chosen a girl: In Psyche's arms he would find eternal fulfilled love.
Venus was comforted that from now on everything would be prohibited which offends decency and is against the laws.
Mercurius was ordered to bring
Psyche to heaven.
Jupiter himself
hands her the
cup of immortality and the most glorious marriage dinner was prepared. Anyone embeds around. Ganymed poured out nectar from the Ida mountains to
Jupiter, the Muses enjoyed the guests with their silvery voices and
Apollo sang to the
lyra.
Venus was dancing gracefully. So
Psyche was wedded ceremoniously to Cupido. Soon she gave birth to a daughter, called by the mortals Voluptas, lust.
(continued)