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Athena / Minerva
Greek / Minerva

Goddess of War, Wisdom, and Justice - Athena is a goddess of both wisdom and war, and for that she is generally considered a Crone goddess. This combination lends her to the role of prudent advisor and shrewd tactician, a defender instead of aggressor who wages war only as a last resort, but does so devastatingly when called upon. She will only aid the just, and is known to come down terribly upon the randomly violent and unjust.

Goddess of Invention, Industry and Crafts - Athena is goddess of all crafts, but she is particularly fond of spinning, weaving, and needlework. The mortal Ariadne claimed to be a better weaver than Athena and was turned into a spider for the remark. She also gave the Athenians such inventions as the plow, the flute, shipbuilding, the wagon and other necessities of civilization.

Goddess of Prosperity - She is a protectress and the patron deity of Athens, which she won in a contest judged not by gods but by the Athenians themselves. Poseidon, her rival for the city, presented the people with a well, but it was fed from the sea and salty, and therefore useless. Athena gave them an olive tree, associating her with agriculture.

Goddess of Independence and Personal Strength - Athena is a virginal goddess, solely her own woman. She depended upon herself and made her presence known even before birth: her father, Zeus, fearing that her mother, Metis, would bear a son more powerful than he, swallowed Metis whole while she was in the shape of a fly. Athena came to be inside Zeus's head, where she forged a suit of armor for herself, until the pain was so great that Zeus had his head split open to relieve it, and Athena emerged fully grown.