Hestia and Vesta

 

Hey, demigods! This week’s Battle of the Gods is about the differences between Hestia & Vesta. Ready to find out what the differences are between these 2 goddesses? 

Hestia: Hestia is the goddess of the hearth, home, family, virginity, and sometimes also the state. She is one of the 3 virgin major goddesses (Athena, Hestia & Artemis). She decided to stay a virgin after she had to choose between Apollo & Poseidon, who both wanted to marry her. Hestia was the first child of Kronos and Rhea and she’s sometimes seen as the youngest because she was the last who escaped from Kronos’ stomach. She was an Olympian goddess but gave her throne up for Dionysos. She can often be found by the hearth on Olympus and sometimes she could be found in Delphi. She had her own altar in Apollo’s temple in Delphi, where the oracle of Delphi was in. Hestia was very worshipped, although she didn’t have many temples because every hearth was dedicated to her. She always got the first offering and everything that was offered in a hearth belonged to her. She one of the most peaceful goddesses and the hearth was a safe place for everyone. If a stranger came to the central hearth in a Greek city, he came in peace and the people of that city had to help him. Hestia’s sacred animal is a domestic pig. 

Vesta: Vesta is the Roman goddess of the heart, altars, home, and family. She was, just like Hestia, a virgin goddess. Her parents were Saturn and Ops and she was one of the most worshipped goddesses. She had her own temple on the Forum Romanum, which was the most important form in the roman empire. In the temple, which was called Atrium Vestae, was burning an eternal flame, also known as the sacred fire of Vesta. If it would stop burning, terrible things would happen to the state. Only Vestal virgins, they were kinda like the hunters of Artemis but less aggressive and they didn’t fight, were allowed to enter Vesta’s temple. she also had her own festival called ‘Vestalia’ which was one of the most important Roman holidays. She was one of the goddesses who were in the Dii Consentes, who were the 12 most worshipped gods and goddesses of the Roman empire. While the Greeks saw Hestia as the goddess of the hearth and altars as her symbol, the Romans saw her as the goddess of the hearth and altars. According to Cicero was Vesta first and last by offerings and prayers. She was one of the kindest and most peaceful goddesses, what’s an unusual thing for Roman gods and goddesses. Hestia’s sacred animal was a donkey. 

So if you compare the 2 goddesses, you’ll see that they’re very similar, they have similar personalities. There are only 2 major differences: Hestia has a domesticated pig as a sacred animal and Vesta a donkey. And the other is the way they were worshipped. Vesta was more worshipped with temples, which made her a little more worshipped than Hestia.