Unchanged by any teller — how the centuries since have seen Hestia.
The gallery
The Hestia Giustiniani
Roman copy after a Greek original, c. 470 BC (original)
A marble statue of the veiled goddess of the hearth, a Roman copy after an early Classical Greek original of about 470 BC in the Severe style. The heavy peplos, grave frontal stance and modestly drawn veil convey Hestia's austere domestic dignity. The statue takes its name from the Giustiniani collection in Rome, where it was long held.
The Hestia Tapestry
Unknown (Byzantine Egypt), 6th century AD
A wool tapestry woven in Byzantine Egypt in the sixth century AD, now in the Dumbarton Oaks collection in Washington, DC. It shows the goddess enthroned as Hestia Polyolbos, 'Hestia rich in blessings', flanked by attendants bearing medallions inscribed with the gifts she bestows. It is a rare survival of the pagan goddess's imagery from a Christianizing age.
In play
Hades II
Supergiant Games
Hestia joins Supergiant's Olympian roster as the goddess of the hearth: flame boons and domestic steel for Melinoë — a rare modern starring turn for the quietest Olympian.
Vesta (mythology)
Roman Vesta carries Hestia into the Forum — the eternal hearth, the Vestal virgins, and the city's sacred fire under another name.
Hestia
Hestia remains the quiet centre of the Greek house — the first and last offering, the goddess who never left the hearth for Olympus' quarrels.