The Cornucopia

    Our group, along with every other group in our Roman Myths class, was given the task to choose one myth or character from the books The Aeneid or Metamorphoses.  We were to explore the many different instances and representations of that myth across different contexts. While reading Ovid’s Metamorphoses, we came across one origin story of the horn of plenty that was a result of a fight between Hercules and Achelous. Since none of us had ever heard of that story, we thought it would be interesting to explore more interpretations and instances of the cornucopia. The horn of plenty is a symbol that represents abundance, fertility, and fortune in many different cultures. Its roots go back to early Greek and Roman mythology, but its application and representation are still around today. Within this blog post, we want to explore the many different contexts in which the cornucopia has appeared throughout time and see how its meaning and symbolism is similar in some cases and very different in others.

Myths and Representations Explored:

The Cornucopia and Zeus

Hercules and Achelous

The Roman Imperial Cult

The Symbol of the Gods

Fortuna

Hades

Halloween

Thanksgiving

The Hunger Games

Digital Cornucopia

The Story of Zeus’ Infancy

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    One origin story for the cornucopia comes from Greek mythology. The story goes that as a baby, Zeus was in danger of being swallowed by his father Cronus, who feared that one day he'd be overthrown by one of his children. In an effort to save her child, Rhea hid Zeus from Cronus and left him in the care of Amalthea. There are several different interpretations of whether Amalthea was a she-goat or a nymph. In either interpretation, a goat was used to feed Zeus, and one day Zeus tore one of the horns off of the goat’s head. Some interpretations say that after the horn was torn off by Zeus, it flowed abundantly with infinite nourishment (2). Others say that after it was torn off, it radiated mystical qualities that granted it the ability to give whoever had it anything they desired (1). In both of these cases, it became known as the cornucopia or the horn of plenty, and whoever had it would be fruitful. It’s hard to find these stories written as original Greek stories because they were primarily told vocally and passed down through generations. This was because most people at that time were illiterate with the exception of very wealthy men. The people would tell these stories as a way to praise these gods and keep the idea of them alive with their words. This is definitely clear in the case of this story as Zeus’ immense power is blatantly illustrated. Even as a baby, he had enough power to unknowingly create a relic that flows continuously with riches. It makes sense that this origin story of Zeus and the cornucopia is one the Greeks told of their king of the gods. What could make their god seem more powerful than a story about him as a mere baby pretty much accidentally creating something so powerful? If he was able to achieve such a task as an infant, imagine what he could do as a fully realized god. This story reveals not only a version of the origin of the cornucopia, but it also expresses that even in infancy, Zeus had incredible power and was destined to rule in Mt. Olympus.

Hercules and Achelous

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    Another version of the cornucopia’s origin story comes from the Roman poet, Ovid, in the Metamorphoses. The story is told through the eyes of Achelous, a river god who was able to transform himself. Both Achelous and Hercules wanted the hand of Deianira, one of the fairest maidens at the time. After discussing with her father about who was more suitable for a match, it was clear that Achelous had a better way with words than Hercules. Hercules said, “‘Your tongue is far more dexterous than mine, but just as long as I can win with punches, I’ll let you have the victory with words,”’(3) before advancing Achelous. They fought hand to hand for a while before Achelous resorted to shapeshifting. He changed into a snake to no avail, then to his final form as a bull. It was in this form that he was finally defeated and Hercules ripped off one of his horns. Achelous said that the naiads, “‘immortalized this incident, filling my horn with fruit and fragrant flowers; known as the cornucopia, it now enriches the sweet goddess of Abundance”’ (3). This version of the cornucopia’s origin story is very different from the origin story involving Zeus because we are hearing the story from the “actual” source. Since the cornucopia is known for abundance, fortune, and beauty, this version of the story seems surprisingly gory. It is a little strange that such a powerful and beautiful symbol came from the loser of a fight. This makes it all the more interesting that Ovid decided to tell this story from the perspective of Achelous instead of Hercules. If we’d read the story from Hercules' perspective, it might seem more reasonable for the cornucopia to be a result of the fight. We would get the perspective of the hero winning the fight, ripping off the enemy's horn, and it being immortalized by becoming the horn of plenty. Instead, we read the story and feel bad for Achelous whose horn was savagely ripped off. The fact that his horn became the cornucopia can have two very different meanings for Achelous. Maybe to have that moment immortalized by this symbol would cause him shame since no one would ever forget his defeat. On the other hand, maybe he saw that even though he lost, without him there would be no mystical horn of plenty that many seek. Ovid makes an effort to put more weight on the fact that even though Achelous lost the physical battle, he still was the source of something as meaningful as the cornucopia.

The Roman Imperial Cult

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    Over the course of many centuries, Rome developed and the Imperial Cult developed along with it. The Imperial Cult was the practice of believing that the emperor of Rome was a god and should be worshiped as one. This practice began shortly after the death of Caesar in 44 BC when a supporter put up a pillar in his honor and “offered cult to him as a being now resident among the gods” (6). Many followed in his example and Caesar's heir, Octavian, declared him as 

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divine. Once his deification was granted, emperor worship swiftly expanded. There's no question that the intent of making the masses believe their leader is a god was to allow emperors more power. If everyone thinks that their emperor is a god, no one will try to go against them, as it would be unholy. Also, they wanted to be seen as gods because gods are never in the wrong. Pretty much this would give them the “right” to do anything they wanted without ramifications. Gods are all-powerful, and because of this, it’s not too surprising that the cornucopia was one of the things used to symbolize the Roman Imperial Cult. Since the cornucopia represents abundance and fortune, they used it to help push the idea that these emperors would provide for their people, especially since they are gods. In many of their paintings and reliefs, artists would include a cornucopia. If every time people see artwork of their emperor, and he’s paired with a cornucopia, there’s no doubt that soon the symbolism would be intermixed. They would associate their leader with abundance and fortune.

Symbol of the Gods

    The Cornucopia, as mentioned earlier, is symbolized as a horn of abundance.  Many Gods and Goddesses have been depicted with the cornucopia throughout Greek and Roman mythology. In history, it has been found that Erecura, Epona, Dionysus, Hades, Abundantia, and Pax Romana have all had a 

connection to the cornucopia. Each of these Gods and Goddesses has a power relating to something that can be beneficial to have an abundance of. Some of these powers include harvest, fertility, spirituality, and peace. The Cornucopia wasn’t only limited to the Gods there are also origins that have found nymphs to have had the object as well. One particular nymph that was seen with the horn was Maia, who is one of the seven Pleiades. 

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    Looking into the mythology aspect of the cornucopia we can see that it had a huge influence over the Gods and in turn, this had a great impact on the people in Ancient Egypt (13). Not only them, but the symbol of the cornucopia has also been found across many cultures and religions. In terms of art, the first depiction of the cornucopia was around 1619 after that the symbol could be seen throughout sculptures, paintings, and different books. (12) Also looking at how the cornucopia has affected recent cultures, we can see that a few countries have added the horn to their coat of arms.  Examples of this can be seen in Peru, Columbia, Venezuela, and Panama (11). Looking at the effects of the cornucopia and how it influenced the Gods it also influenced the people of today. The cornucopia is still associated with certain holidays and its symbol is still seen throughout artwork today. 

The Cornucopia in relation to Hades 

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One God that has been depicted with the Cornucopia is Hades, the god of the underworld and brother to Zeus. It has been found that before the fourth century the cornucopia was seen in his possession and shown to be half his height (14). The relationship between Zeus and Hades as well as the connection that Hades has with Demeter is a strong indicator of how he had come across the horn. However, his connections aren’t the only possible reason as to why he is seen with the cornucopia. Hades is also known as “a bringer of agricultural, mineral and spiritual wealth” (13). Knowing this about Hades we can see how he could have possibly used the cornucopia and its symbol of abundance to his own use in the underworld. The image that is presented to the right also depicts the cornucopia as hade's penis. This impacts the overall reputation for the cornucopia as well because it gives evidence of a violent theme for the cornucopia. Considering Hades and his violent nature with the kidnap of his wife as well as his role in the underworld this connection adds to that argument.  In different sets of artwork, there is also found a particular detail of the contents of the cornucopia also in relation to the underworld. Attic painters have symbolized a certain fruit into the cornucopia and if we analyze what it could have been we could argue that it could have been pomegranates and poppies which happen to be related to death (14). The historical context that goes with the idea of Hades in relation to the cornucopia is found throughout art. Along with the attic painters, there have been others throughout history who have not specifically added hades to art that they had but Persephone, who was his wife. It can be argued that some of the symbolism that was found with Persephone was in direct correlation to Hades (14). This argument relates to the cornucopia because in some pieces of art we can not only connect the cornucopia to Persephone, but also analyze how that connects with Hades. Going through history with both art and mythology we can see that for a time period the cornucopia had a big connection to Hades at one point. We can also relate this to some to the themes of the cornucopia and how death can be seen as part of the horn. Death and violence are not exactly what you would think of when it comes to the cornucopia, but throughout mythology there are evidences of these themes, especially in relation to Hades. 

Cornucopia symbolizing Fortuna

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     Fortuna is also associated with the cornucopia. Fortuna is a Roman goddess of chance, luck, and fortune. She can either bring good luck or bad luck. As the first daughter of Jupiter, she shares his ability to be bountiful. She is said to resemble a fertility deity which makes her associated with the bounty of soil and the “fruitfulness of women.” (18) She was known to help pregnant women since she was the first mother. In Italy, she was praised and regarded as the bearer of prosperity and gain. She was also an oracle goddess that was looked to for guidance about the future. Fortuna was worshipped often in the early times of Italy and had well-known shrines that were considered oracle seats in Praeneste and Antium. She was a fairly popular goddess because of her ability to bring prosperity to the people. Not only is Fortuna the goddess of luck but she is the goddess of fate as well. Drawings of her have her holding a rudder of a boat to symbolize that she is the controller of destiny, a Rota Fortunae (or a wheel of fortune), and a cornucopia since she was the giver of abundance. The cornucopia is also used to symbolize her power to grant prosperity to others. She would also be depicted as standing on a ball to represent the uncertainty of fortune and/or a blindfold to show that luck is blind. Fortuna doesn't really care who she gives good luck or bad luck to. We can see in this statue of her. It is from Vatican Rome. She has the full cornucopia, or Horn of Plenty, in her hands with fortune spilling out and she is wearing a blindfold.

Cornucopia and Halloween/Equinox

    When thinking of a cornucopia, many people’s first thought is of the holiday Thanksgiving. However, the cornucopia can be associated with Halloween as well. In some cultures, another name for Halloween is Cornucopia. It was first created by the Celtic druids over 2,000 years ago and falls on the 

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Fall Equinox which lasts from September 23rd to November 4 (17). Halloween has been celebrated in many different ways in many different cultures throughout the years. In some cultures, they have feasts for the dead, others have celebrations, and still, more have burnings. These days, we celebrate by going trick or treating and dressing up in costumes. Many people use the cornucopia for decorating for Halloween along with pumpkins or Jack-O-Lanterns and fake fall leaves. Since people already associate the wicker cornucopia with fall because of Thanksgiving, it looks good with the other fall decorations that individuals put up. The cornucopias that are put out in October look a little different than the ones that are displayed in November. The ones put out around Thanksgiving usually have a variety of vegetables in them like corn and different colored squashes. They might also have some dead leaves, pinecones, wheat, or fruit. Cornucopias that are put out around Halloween have a bit less variety. They consist mostly of different colored pumpkins, the miniature kind since they are the ones that can fit into the Horn of Plenty. If there is anything else in the cornucopia, it will be either the color orange, tan, or cream. There might also be candy in the Halloween cornucopia. Since the cornucopia represents prosperity and bounty, it might be used around Halloween to represent an abundance of candy that the children will receive that year. The recipes for cornucopia themed treats further confirm that the cornucopia represents sweet treats at that time of year. The recipes typically call for mini sugar cones and candy pumpkins, candy corn, and orange and brown candy like Reese's Pieces. This reinforces the idea the cornucopias at Halloween represent the prosperity of candy in children’s trick or treat bags.

Thanksgiving

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    One holiday that the cornucopia has a huge representation for is thanksgiving. Considering that the cornucopia is symbolic to harvest it is not unexpected for it to be connected with the holiday of thanksgiving. There isn’t any evidence that the cornucopia was at the first thanksgiving, but it has been found to be part of many traditions afterward (21). As of right now, the cornucopia has been found to be a centerpiece for many Thanksgiving dinners. A typical cornucopia is made out of wicker and sometimes made out of materials like metal, ceramics, and even wood (20). For the insides of the horn, you could fill it with fruits, vegetables, and anything that you would associate with fall. Sometimes there are even pumpkins that you could fill in the cornucopia with. The fillings will most likely be fake and even saved to use for the next year. Looking at the picture to the right you can see an example of how you can style your cornucopia for this holiday. Another thing to note is the overflow of objects coming out of the cornucopia. With relation to abundance, it is common to style the centerpiece in this way and also gives more of a symbolic tone. The association with thanksgiving isn’t really represented in a deep way, the main connection is the relation that thanksgiving has to harvest. There are also the themes of the cornucopia to abundance and wealth. There have been hints that the cornucopia was found in European harvest festivals so that could be another reason as to why the cornucopia is found to be a part of thanksgiving (21). Something to consider as well as the difference that the horn has across cultures. We can see more of the cornucopia and thanksgiving to be found in America, but in other countries, it could have a different meaning. It has been found in particular countries’ coat of arms and for them, the symbol probably has a deeper meaning to them. Also, the tradition of thanksgiving is more of an American thing than it is for other countries, so the cornucopia could have more of a relation to harvest than it does to that specific holiday. 

The Hunger Games

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    Suzanne Collins’ 2008 novel The Hunger Games, takes place in a futuristic North America, now called Panem that is separated into twelve districts. The higher the district number goes, the more impoverished the district is, with the Capital being completely wealthy. Each district's job is to essentially provide a certain type of service for the Capital like coal, agriculture, or even jewelry. This system was established by the higher-ups in the Capital after the war and destruction that brought about the fall of what was North America. To scare everyone into submission to this way of life, the Capital came up with The Hunger Games. One boy and one girl from each district will be drawn to participate each year. They are all taken to the Capital to prepare for a week, then sent to the arena to fight each other to the death resulting in one victor. This barbaric tradition serves as a reminder to all the districts of the power the Capital has over them and how rebelling against them is pointless. In the center of the arena, the tributes start equally around a giant metal cornucopia that is filled with weapons and survival gear.  This representation of a cornucopia takes the original meaning and gives it a dark twist. Yes, the cornucopia within the games does give the tributes essential things they will need to survive, but not in the happy fortunate way it usually does. It’s providing them a way to survive by killing others and simply survive. In no way does the cornucopia in this context give them everything they could ever want, most of the tributes would probably agree that all they really want is to go home and not have to murder countless other people to do so. The strategic use of the cornucopia by the Gamemakers to be the vessel that provides the tributes with their weapons further expands their narrative that these games are essential. Since the cornucopia is associated with good fortune and abundance, the Gamemakers knew that the people of Panem and the tributes would associate their warped cornucopia as a good thing. As a thing that they needed. Violence and having a victor is what they want everyone to believe they need. We could also see the meaning of the cornucopia to the tributes as a metaphor for the meaning of the Capital to the districts. From the outside, the cornucopia seems like the thing that will save the tributes from death, but when you look a little closer, you can see that no one would really choose to survive by killing if they had a choice. The same goes for the Capital. The Capital wants all of the districts to feel as though they need them in order to survive when in all actuality it’s the Capital that needs the districts in order to survive. If the districts thought they had a choice in whether they provide to the Capital even when it means they can’t provide for themselves, I’m sure they’d choose not to live in poverty just to give all they have to those who are already rich. Although technically the cornucopia within the games did give the tributes what they needed to survive, the meaning behind those essential items is anything but fortunate.

Digital Cornucopia

    The world wide web is a more modern representation of the cornucopia. The web is constantly expanding with new information, ideas, creations, and social media posts. This creates tension between the new and the old, creators and consumers, and the analog and digital. The world is changing quickly but some people don’t want to get on board with the changes. Some people can’t adapt to the new situation of abundance, especially since there was limited availability or even a scarcity of culture was the norm (19). Because of this consistent outpouring from the internet, Alek Tarkowski says that the internet creates a cornucopia of culture and media. Culture on the internet is constantly growing in volume, mass, and weight and it can be a bit difficult to keep up with. The web is not just a cornucopia for culture. It’s also a cornucopia because it is generative, rapidly distributes new creations, and is open to new possibilities of creation. Because of its global scale, it can function as a unified single 

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information medium. Since the price of the internet is relatively low, and there are places for people to access it for free like schools or public libraries, many creators prefer to use it to create and put out their content. The size of the internet allows for many things that may have been restricted or only available to a select number of people to be readily available for anyone with access to the internet. For example, an article that may have only been available in a specific, more underground magazine could be found with a quick google search and a few clicks. Thanks to the internet, many people have access to the abundance of knowledge and culture that the web contains. Since the internet has so many outlets for people to put out content, there is an incredibly steady stream of content that is impossible to keep track of. This is very similar to a cornucopia, it seems to have an unlimited amount of abundance inside of it.

Author Bios

Myranda Soncksen

    Myranda is a senior at Hastings College majoring in Prek-12 Art Education. On campus, she is part of the sorority Alpha Phi Sigma and academic honorary Alpha Chi. She’s from Burlington Colorado, a rural town on the eastern plains of the state. A few things that she loves are her family, her Bagle Hound (half beagle, half basset hound) named Bambi, and creating things.

Rylie Felton

    Rylie is a senior at Hastings College majoring in English and minoring in creative writing. She is part of the sorority Kappa Rho Upsilon and sometimes hosts open mics on campus. She spent most of her childhood growing up in Grand Island, Nebraska. She loves writing poetry, organizing in her Passion Planner, and playing with her mini Husky named Chester.

Aaliyah Fisher 

Aaliyah is a freshman at Hastings college majoring in criminology and minoring in psychology. She is part of the women's wrestling team and is from Eagle Mountain, Utah. She loves playing sports and reading in her free time as well as hanging out with her family. In the future, she hopes to find a career in law enforcement and wants to help others.

Sources

1. https://www.greeklegendsandmyths.com/amalthea.html
   

2. (photo and text) https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/from-zeus-to-williamssonoma-the-history-of-the-cornucopia 

3. Martin, Charles, translator. Metamorphoses. Book 9. 45-129 By Ovid, W.W.Norton & Company, 2004. 

4. (photo)https://www.nationalgalleries.org/art-and-artists/14431/hercules-wrestling-achelous-form-bull 

5. (photo)https://theclassofthetragicpoet.wordpress.com/2019/03/13/ancient-love-triangles-hercules-nessus-and-achelous/ 

6. https://www.britannica.com/place/ancient-Rome/Cult-of-the-emperors

7. (photos)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_cult_of_ancient_Rome 

8. Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic, 2008.

9. (video)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7EIW_C0-9c 

10. (Photo)The Hunger Games. United States: Alliance Film, 2012.

11. https://mythology.wikia.org/wiki/Cornucopia 

12. http://samblog.seattleartmuseum.org/2015/10/object-of-the-week-the-origin-of-the-cornucopia/#:~:text=In%20the%20past%2C%20the%20painting,devoted%20to%20classical%20European%20art. 

13. https://www.ancientpages.com/2019/01/14/cornucopia-horn-of-plenty-ancient-symbol-and-its-almost-forgotten-meaning/ 

14. https://moam.info/hades-cornucopiae-fertility-and-death_5a1e6c631723dda03323660f.html 

15. (Photo) https://www.aspireauctions.com/#!/catalog/354/1875/lot/82708 

16. (fortuna Photo) http://forums.smitegame.com/showthread.php?168893-Fortuna-Goddess-of-Good-Fortune

17. https://www.allaboutgod.com/halloween-origins.htm 

18. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Fortuna-Roman-goddess

19. Digital cornucopia picture: https://mindgruve.com/blog/technology/5-digital-things-were-thankful-for

20. https://holidappy.com/holidays/How-Did-the-Cornucopia-Become-Associated-with-Thanksgiving

21. https://www.countryliving.com/entertaining/a28621909/thanksgiving-cornucopia/

22. (Photo) https://www.theribboninmyjournal.com/cornucopia-thanksgiving-symbol/ 

23. (photo) http://www.mythphile.com/2010/11/the-cornucopia-horn-of-plenty-in-greek-myth/

24. (photo) https://pudgefactor.com/cornucopia-halloween-treats/