Horae- Greek GroupCollective"Guardians of the Gates of Olympus"

Daughters of Law

The Horae were born to Zeus and Themis, the Titaness of divine law, and their names declare what that union produced: Eunomia, Good Order; Dike, Justice; Eirene, Peace. Sisters to the Moirai who spun mortal fate, the Horae governed what was timely and right — the seasons turning in proper sequence, crops ripening when they should, communities held together by lawful conduct. What the Moirai enforced for each life — its fixed span, its allotted portion — the Horae ensured for the world at large: that the seasons kept their order and the gates of heaven opened when they should.

Gates and Garlands

The Horae kept the cloud-gates of Olympus. When a god needed to descend, they rolled the heavy mist aside with a rumble like thunder; when the god returned, they closed it behind. When Aphrodite emerged from the sea, it was the Horae who received her on the shore at Paphos — they bathed her in ambrosial oil and dressed her, then led her before the Olympians. They nursed the infant Aristaeus, son of Apollo and the nymph Cyrene, and when the gods fashioned Pandora, the Horae crowned her with garlands of spring flowers.

The Hours and the Harvest

In later tradition the three Horae multiplied. Some counted twelve, daughters of Helios marking the twelve hours of the day. Others named four, one for each season. The Orphic hymn invokes them as bringers of each season's turn, from spring flowers through winter storms. In Athens they received cult worship. Their altar stood near the entrance to the Acropolis, and the Athenians celebrated the Horaea, praying for temperate weather and good harvests. The altar at the entrance was apt. The Horae had always stood at gates.