Annotations vpon the Celestiall
Elegies of the Goddesses



BErecinthia alias Rhea Cybele Ops Ve­
sia, Tellus, &c.  as Hesiodus saith was
the daughter of Cœlum and Terra the
wife of Saturne commonly called the
mother of the gods & goddesses of the
earth; whome Poets faine to be drawne by foure
Lions in a chariot with a crowne of Towres on her
head and royall scepter in her hand, she is also re­
puted the founder of Cities and Towres for defence. 


Iuno  called Prunuba and of some Lucina the
daughter of Saturne and Ops, wife and sister of Iupi­
ter, Queene of heauen, and goddesse of riches, im­
palled with the celestiall diademe, drawne in her
chariot by Peacockes, she is accounted to predomi­
nate mariages, and the birth of children.


Pallas  otherwise called Minerua as Hesiodus af­
firmeth is the daughter of Neptune and Triton, poe­



tically also fayned to be engendred of the braine of
Iupiter. She is the Goddesse of wisedome, learning,
and the liberall sciences, She is the sister of Mars
and is said to be the Goddesse of warres and martiall
strategems, and for that is often called Bellona.


Cynthia  called also Diana and Phœbe the daughter
of Iupiter and Latona the sister of Phœbus she is the
Goddesse of hunting and fishing, who addicting her
selfe wholy to virginitie obtained of Iupiter there­
fore to liue in the woods. Virgil, Lib. II. Alme tibi bane
nemorum cultrix Latonia virgo.


Venus  termed also Cytherea poetically fained to
be bred of the froth of the Sea, excelled all other
Goddesses in beautie, she is the Goddesse of loue,
pleasures and lasciuious delightes, she rideth in a cha­
riot drawne by doues, she is the mother of Cupid and
is accounted one of the seuen planets




Thetis  called also Amphitrite the wife of Peleus
King of Thessalie, daughter of Nereus and mother
of Achilles was esteemed Goddesse of the Sea: of
Nereus all the Nymphs were called Nereides.


Ceres  the daughter of Saturne and Ops sister of Iu­
piter & Pluto, is the Goddesse of Corne drawen in her
chariot by dragons, crownde with sheaues of wheat
she wandred about the world to finde her daughter
Proserpina whom Pluto stole a way, she first taught
the vse of the plough and to till the land.


Aurora  the morning, the daughter of Hyperion
and Thia in the iudgement of Hesiodus, or as others
say of Titan and Terra whom for her faire vermilion
colour Homer faineth to haue fingers of damaske
roses, and to be drawne by bright bay horses in a
golden chariot, she is said by Orpheus not only to be
the most comfortable Ladie to men, but also to beasts
and plants and is a great friend to the Muses.




Nox  the night, bred of Chaos as Poets faine
whome they cal the most auntient mother of all crea­
tures, because there was no light but darkenes be­
fore the Sunne and the heauens were made. And she
possessed all places before the birth of the gods, she
is cloathed in blacke rayment, with a sable vayle vp­
on her head, transported by blacke horses in her e­
ben chariot, she came from Erebus and the infer­
nals obscuring this Hemysphere when the Sunne
gone to the Antipodes.


Flora  called also Chloris the wife of Zephirus is
deemed the goddesse of Flowres.


Bellona  the goddesse of warre called also Pallas, 
which to expresse both the valour and the wisedome
of the honorable race of the Howardes I haue twise
expressed in seuerall sonnets, whom Virgil nameth
the president of warre.



Armipotens belli præses Tritonia Pallas


Fortuna  as some suppose was the daughter of Oce­
anus, albeit Hesiodus writing of the originall birth
of the Gods, makes no mention of her, yet she is
vainely reckoned among the number of the Gods as
Iuuenal witnesseth.

Nullum numen abest si sit prudentia, sed te
Nos facimus Fortuna deam Cæloque locamus.

She is the Goddesse of chance and inconstancie
she is saide to be blinde and to be rouled about vp­
on a wheale as Tibullus in I. Elegiarum. Versatur
celeri Fors Ieuis orbe rota.


Proserpina  called also Persephone and of some He­
cate is the daughter of Iupiter and Ceres, the wife of
Pluto Queene of Hell, she hath soueraigne power of
dead bodies.




Nemesis  the daughter of Oceanus and Nox may be
called the Goddesse of reuenge, who was sent from
Iupiter to suppresse the pride and insolence of such as
are to much puft vp with arrogancie for the fruition 
of worldly felicitie: and therfore Aristotle Li. de mun­
do, affirmeth Nemesis to be the deuine power and
iustice of God to punish malefactors for their hay­
nous crimes, and to distribute to euery one accor­
ding to his demerits.


Libitina  is the Goddesse of Funeralls.


The Graces called Gratiæ or Charites  the Graces
daughters of Iupiter and Eurynome whose names are
Aglaia, Euphrosyne and Thalia, they were beautifull
and the companions of Venus.


Horæ  the howres, daughters of Iupiter and The­
mis, are by Homer and other Poets saide to keepe the
gates of heauen, and by opening of them to make
faire weather, and by shutting them to make foule



weather, they fauour learning and associate Venus
and the Graces: They are imagined to haue soft feet
and to be most slow of all the Goddesses, and still to
worke some new matter, they moderate and de­
uide the succession of times.


Pandora,  a Ladie imbellished with all fayre orna­
ments of bodie and minde on whome euery one of
the Gods bestowed a seuerall gift of grace, was sent
by Ioue to Prometheus with all euils inclosed, fast in a
box or little cofer, which gift being refused by Pro­
metheus was by her brought to Epimetheus, who o­
pening the couer of the box, perceiuing all those e­
uils to flie out suddenly shut the same, reseruing only
hope in the bottome thereof reposed which he kept
fast: which hope you must imagine now that Pan­
dora hath lost in the cariage by reason of this most
noble Countesse death.




Niobe  the daughter of Tantalus waxing insolent
beyond measure for the beautie and goodly propor­
tion of her childern, insomuch that she compared or
rather preferred her selfe in opinion of glory before
Latona and her sacred ofspring was therefore by the
decree of the Gods metamorphosed into a stone, and
so became her owne bodies sepulcher: and her chil­
dren were slaine by Phœbus and Diana with ar­
rowes as Poets sayne.


Pales  is the Goddesse of Shepheards in honour of
whose diety Shepheards did celebrate certain games
called Palilia.


Feronia  the Goddesse of woods or groues whose
temple (as Strabo writeth) was famous in the Citie
Soractes, and she with great deuotion was there wor­
shipped, of whome there is no mention made touch­
ing her birth or education, notwithstanding she is rec­
koned soueraigne of the woods as Virgil writeth.

Et viridi gaudens Feronia Iuco.




THE nine Muses  which are the presidents of Po­
ets and first authors of Poetry Musicke & other
sciences, are the daughters of Iupiter & mnemosyne
alias memoria whose names are Clio, Melpomine,
Thalia, Eutepre, Terpsichore, Erato, Calliope, Vrania &
Polihimnia. Clio exerciseth her wit & skill chiefely
in Histories and recording the actes & monuments
of worthie persons, Melpomine in Tragedies, and
lamentable Elegies, Thalia in Comedies, comely
gestures, and sweete speeches, Euterpe in the pipe
& such like instruments, Terpsichore in the Citterne
or Lute, Erato in Geometrie, or Chosmographie,
Calliope in heroicke verses, Vrania in Astrologie and
contemplation of the starres, and Polihimnia in
Rhetorick and Eloquence.