In the blazing summer of 1998, I was fortunate to spend a month traveling around Italy. My senses where delighted on every level, and my love of ancient cultures has never been so deeply actualized. The travel itinerary for every stop included at least one church, and as a Pagan woman, I sought remnants of the Old Ways embedded in the traditions and symbols adapted by the new faith that had replaced it. I was pleasantly surprised to find how very much has survived, unwittingly transmitted through the ages to the inheritors of the ancient faiths, so that they in turn, can restore what has been lost, and build the old temples anew.
I reveled in the subtleties — like the ubiquitous seven-pointed star of Ishtar-Astarte-Aphrodite found everywhere the Blessed Mother was depicted – and rejoiced in the obvious – like the incredible statue of the multi-breasted Diana of Ephesus, so well preserved in the collections of the Vatican Museum. My greatest personal discovery was the modern-day continuance of an ancient fertility ritual in my father’s hometown (see “Inner Pilgrimage” for more information), but I would like to share some of the other powerful images and vestiges of Goddess worship which I encountered along the way.
The world’s second largest church is Il Duomo in Milan, a masterpiece of Gothic architecture that took five centuries to compete. This impressive church can hold 40,000 people and is crowned by 135 spires and a golden statue of the Madonna, to whom the cathedral is dedicated. Inside, not only did I find this amazing statue of the Madonna fully embodying the Aspect of the Lunar Goddess, as seen by the crescent moon beneath Her feet, but also vestiges of the Sacred Geometry which was used to build this church (below).
The transit of the Sun is recorded on the marble stones of Milan’s Il Duomo. On the day of the Winter Solstice, sunlight shines through a hole in the right-hand side wall in the rear of the church, touching this plaque (right) on the left-hand side wall, bearing the symbol of Capricorn, the astrological ruler of the Winter Solstice. Whether marking the rebirth of the Sun — or the birth of the Son — this is a fitting tribute to the Great Mother, and evidence that the builders of this venerated cathedral made use of sacred geometry in its planning.
A similar consideration for the motion of the sun can be found in Vatican City. This round marker in the cobblestones of Saint Peter’s Square is one of many marking where the shadow of tip of the square’s central obelisk (next photo) falls during different times of the year. This particular stone marks the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes.
Central oblilisk in Saint Peter’s Squart, Vatican City
One of the pillars supporting the pulpit on the altar of The Cathedral of Pisa, whose leaning bell tower is known the world over. Rich with symbolism, we see an anthropomorphic rendering of the Roman Church, indicated by the Dove of the Holy Spirit (Sophia) descending on the crowned image of Holy Mother Church. The twins suckling at her breasts are a revisioning of the Remus and Romulus myth. Below her and supporting her, are Female images representing the Four Cardinal Points – the directions, the seasons, the elements. We can see the Tetramorphic Sacred Beasts of the Western Tradition along side these female figures; the Lion of Leo/Fire/the South and the Eagle of Scorpio/Water/the West are visible.
The Pantheon in Rome, raised in 118 BCE in honor of all Roman Gods, is the only Classical Pagan temple still in continuous use – albeit reconsecrated as a Christian church –in the world today. This is unusual because Pagan temples and holy sites were often torn to the ground, and replaced by a Christian structure, as in the Temple of Venus in Rome. Seen below, the Temple of Venus, located across from the Coliseum and Palatine Hill is being restored; it was recently excavated from beneath a Church.
The Temple of Venus, located across from the Coliseum and Palatine Hill in Rome is being restored; it was recently excavated from beneath a church.
Inside the Pantheon, this statue of Mother and Child protects the grave of famed Italian painter Raphael. Although it is meant to represent the Madonna, its Classical renderings could easily have seen this statue representing Juno, the Roman Goddess of Motherhood.
The silent remains of Pompeii, destroyed in 79 C.E., were made even more eerie by the brooding menace of Mt. Vesuvius in the background. Overdue for an eruption, the pent up energy of this font of devastation can be seen as a halo around its peak (left). Because the city was buried in ash, a great deal of the culture and lifestyles of ancient Rome has been preserved for us. The Goddess can be found everywhere in the city.
What remains of a stunning bronze statue of Diana; you can almost see her pull back Her bow. Across the ruined Pompeian courtyard from Her, is a companion statue of Her brother Apollo.
This fountain façade, perhaps representing Ceres or Flora, is especially poignant as it is an example of just how much the Old Gods were integrated into everyday life – even in as common an object as a spout from which fresh water could be collected within the city limits of Pompeii.
Finally, and fittingly, this image of Hecate, Goddess of the Underworld – indicated by her totem hound and her iconographic upheld torch – survived the devastation of Pompeii.
