By Jove, That's A Lot Of Gods!

How many Roman gods & goddesses do you know? It's probably more than you think, if you can name the planets. The Romans had 67 major gods, borrowing from other religions and giving them a Roman facelift. Some will be familiar, while others are entirely Roman inventions. How many names do you recognize?

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1. Jupiter

The big man at the top, Jupiter was the king of the gods, Rome's equivalent to Zeus. Like Zeus, Jupiter ruled over the heavens and was associated with thunderbolts and eagles. Unlike free-wheeling, chaotic Zeus, however, Jupiter was more faithful to his wife and was associated with justice.

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2. Juno

The patron goddess of Rome and queen of the gods, Juno is the Roman equivalent of Hera. Both goddesses were patrons of marriage, motherhood, and childbirth, but that's where the similarities end. The protector of the Roman state, Juno was more warlike than jealous Hera, and is often depicted armed and dangerous.

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3. Minerva

The goddess of a thousand works, Minerva is multifaceted like her Greek counterpart, Athena. In addition to martial strategy, Minerva was also the goddess of wisdom, weaving, medicine, and commerce. She, along with Jupiter and Juno made up the Capitoline Triad, the big three in the Roman pantheon.

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4. Neptune

Neptune's story closely resembles that of Poseidon; both were gods of seas, storms, and horses. However, Neptune gets further inland that Poseidon, with his patronage extending to freshwater. When you think about how important the river Tiber was to the Romans, it's no wonder they prayed for a little extra help.

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5. Mars

One of the most unpopular gods in the pantheon, Mars was also one of the most important. Much like Ares, Mars was the god of warfare, particularly the blood-thirsty side of war, which he used to secure peace. Mars was also the father of Romulus and Remus; one brother founded Rome, and the other...well...there's a reason the city isn't called Reme.

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6. Venus

Juno may have been the goddess of motherhood, but Venus represented the more carnal side of womanhood: beauty, desire, and fertility. Like her Greek counterpart, Aphrodite, Venus was one of the most popular gods, but maybe not for the reason you think. In the Iliad, Venus/Aphrodite was the mother of Aeneas; after the fall of troy, Aeneas went on to found Rome in the Aeneid. Thus, Venus and Mars's love affair reconciles Rome's two foundation myths.

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7. Apollo

Apollo is the least-changed of all the gods who were originally Greek—right down to his name. The god of archery, prophecy, light and disease, Apollo could either deliver people from epidemics or bring them on with poisoned arrows. Apollo also invented stringed instruments, so we have him to thank for all the dudes who have ever played Wonderwall at house parties.

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8. Diana

Apollo and his twin sister, Diana, were as different as night and day—literally. The moonlight to Apollo's sunlight, Diana was the goddess of nature, chastity, and the hunt. She and her Greek counterpart, Artemis, are among the post popular patronesses for modern pagans.

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9. Vulcan

No, Vulcan isn't the god of Star Trek. Rather, like Hephaestus, he controls volcanoes, fire, and the forge. An army is nothing without its weapons, and a bad fire can wipe out a whole year's worth of crops, so Vulcan is one god we wouldn't want to mess with.

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10. Vesta

Vesta was unique among the Roman gods, not because she's an original creation (she corresponds to Greek Hestia), but because she's more often depicted as a temple fire than a human. Protector of the home and hearth, Vesta was one of the most important gods for daily life. She even had her own order of priestesses tasked with tending to an eternal flame inside the Roman Forum.

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11. Mercury

Swift-footed Mercury was one tricky god. The patron of boundaries, commerce, travelers and thieves, Mercury was also tasked with seeing souls to the underworld. Spooky! His Greek counterpart was Hermes, and we wouldn't trust either with out wallet!

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12. Ceres

Everyone say thank you Ceres for giving us grain to make bread. Like Greek Demeter, Ceres was a quiet and understated goddess who stuck to herself. Unlike her fellow deities, this harvest goddess tended to mind her own business—except when her daughter was concerned, as we shall see.

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13. Proserpina 

Speaking of Ceres, her daughter, Prosperina, was quite literally the reason for the seasons. When Proserpina was abducted by the god of the underworld, her mother fell into such a deep depression that the earth grew cold and the harvest withered. Prosperina's story is almost identical to Greek Persephone, however Proserpina was combined with the fertility goddess Libera, an entirely Roman invention.

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14. Dis Pater

The only god to have two names, this gloomy guy gets a bad rap. Like Hades, Dis Pater is the god of the underworld, not the dead. Dis was originally associated with mineral wealth and agricultural fertility, and, since those minerals came from underground, the dead were included.

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15. Liber

Now that we've covered some borrowed deities, let's move on to a few that were uniquely Roman, starting with Liber. Liber was the god of the plebians, the tax-paying farmers, craftsmen, and laborers. While Liber was tied to Greece's party-god Dionysus, Liber also represented freedom and civil disobediance.

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16. Janus

Calling someone "two-faced" is an insult, but for this Roman god, it was factual Two-faced Janus was a god of transition: doors, gates, beginnings, and endings. He was worshipped before the city of Rome was even founded!

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17. Bellona

How many war goddesses does one empire need? If it's the Roman Empire, at least two. Depicted as Mars's sister, wife, or charioteer, Bellona is more bloodthirsty than Minerva. Her temple was where the senate discussed war and received visitors.

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18. Quirinus

Not much is known about Quirinus. The god of the Roman state, Quirinus was a bit of an odd duck. Some sources say he was originally a war god of the Sabines (a people who lived around Rome), others call him a deification of Rome's founder, Romulus.

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19. Sol

Later known as Sol Invictus, this sunny god always looked on the bright side. Sol was the god of sunlight and radiance; his cult was one of the most popular. In fact, the third century emperor Elagabalus tried to dethrone Jupiter place as chief god in favor of Sol...at least until his assassination.

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20. Pomona

The harvest goddess Pomona is unique among these gods because she was a wood nymph who became a goddess. Pomona is also unique because she has no clear counterpart in other mythologies, being the godess of orchard fruit. Depictions often show her carrying a platter or cornucopia filled with fruit.

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