The Bloom of Youth

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In post-classical art [ edit ] Louise Henriette de Bourbon as Hebe by Jean-Marc Nattier (1744) Statue of the goddess Hebe, early 19th century CE, by Johan Niclas Bystrom, Gripsholm Castle, Sweden Hebe is a daughter of Zeus and Hera, [3] and the divine wife of Heracles ( Roman equivalent: Hercules). She had influence over eternal youth [4] and the ability to restore youth to mortals, a power that appears exclusive to her, as in Ovid's Metamorphoses, some gods lament the aging of their favoured mortals. According to Philostratus the Elder, Hebe was the youngest of the gods and the one responsible for keeping them eternally young, and thus was the most revered by them. [5] Her role of ensuring the eternal youth of the other gods is appropriate to her role of serving as cupbearer, as the word ambrosia has been linked to a possible Proto-Indo-European translation related to immortality, undying, and lifeforce. [6] In art, she is typically depicted with her father in the guise of an eagle, often offering a cup to him. Eagles were connected with immortality and there was a folklore belief that the eagle (like the phoenix) had the ability to renew itself to a youthful state, [7]

But if any man thinks he is behaving improperly toward his virgin, if she is past the flower of youth, and thus it must be, let him do what he wishes. He does not sin; let them marry.

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Gantz, Timothy, Early Greek Myth: A Guide to Literary and Artistic Sources, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, Two volumes: ISBN 978-0-8018-5360-9 (Vol. 1), ISBN 978-0-8018-5362-3 (Vol. 2).

Hebe was a remarkably popular subject in art in the period from about 1750 to 1880, having attracted little artistic attention before or after. In the later period, many depictions were portraits of ladies as Hebe, for which at a minimum the only modifications to a normal costume needed were a flowing white dress, some flowers in the hair and a cup to hold. Most artists added an eagle and a setting amid the clouds. In French there was a special term, " en Hébé", for the costume. The personification appears in rococo, Grand Manner and Neoclassical styles. Even some very aristocratic models allowed a degree of nudity, such as exposing a single breast, though this was often much greater in non-portrait depictions.a b Brumble, H. David (1998). Classical Myths and Legends in the Middle Ages and Renaissance: A Dictionary of Allegorical Meanings. London: Greenwood. pp.149–150. ISBN 978-0313294518. Lee Gyu-lee (January 25, 2023). "From period to action: different genre series set for February". The Korea Times . Retrieved February 2, 2023. Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.