Eos, My Greek Slave/Goddess



I have a little area in my back yard that has not been kind to any plants I have tried to grow there, like banana trees and a corn plant (the pictures below are from the Web because my plants were mere shadows of these; what healthy banana trees and a corn plant should look like).

I finally decided to not torture plant anything there again. I began to think a statue set among the coral rocks that were still there would be a nice (and non-living) thing.

I had initially thought I wanted a mermaid statue. I saw one at a little garden shop across the river. The Colonel and I went to check her out. Up close and personal, she wasn't quite what I expected or wanted (or her big price tag either). We walked around the garden center and saw two statues that were possibilities: a lady with a flowing dress and flowers and a semi-nude woman with manacles on one of her wrists.

The Colonel and I were immediately smitten with the manacled woman statue. She reminded us of the "Bound Woman" that can be found upon a grave in the Key West Cemetery.

I asked the woman working at the garden shop what was the significance of the manacled woman and she did not know but would go and look her up in a catalog. She came back and said she could not find the statue in the catalog. Even without knowing "who" she was, I had to have her for my yard.

When we unloaded her at home we showed her to Yam. She said the statue reminded her of one called "The Greek Slave" by Hiram Powers. He sculpted his statue in 1847 and it created quite a stir during its world tour.



 

I have decided Yam is correct in her observation. This is what my "Greek Slave" looks like.

 

 

Here are close up details of both statues and see if you do not agree with Yam (no matter how loosely my Greek Slave is based on Mr. Powers').

 

 

My Greek Slave statue may not be as pretty or finely sculpted as Mr. Powers' but I think she is wonderful.

 

 

I have decided to name her Eos. Eos is the ancient Greek Goddess of dawn. I searched for a Greek goddess of sun/sunshine (because of living in The Sunshine State and I wanted a positive name...the woman is in chains...she needs a ray of sunshine) but I could not find one.

 

Helios is the Greek Sun God and Eos is his sister; the closest thing I could get to a Greek Sun Goddess.

 

I had thought of calling her Antheia, the Greek Goddess of flower gardens, but nothing grows well in that area of my backyard and I for one don't wish to court the wrath of a Greek goddess.

 

Who knows, maybe if I did name her Antheia, something might have half a chance at growing well there.