Eos

Eos is the Greek Titaness of the dawn, and a daughter of Hyperion and Theia. She and her siblings Helios (Sun) and Selene (Moon) were amongst the second-generation Titans. Her Roman counterpart is Aurora. Dew was said to be Eos's tears due to the loss of her son Memmos in the Trojan War.

History
Eos rose up into the sky from the river Oceanus at the start of each day, and with her rays of light dispersed the mists of night. She was sometimes depicted riding in a golden chariot drawn by winged horses, at other times she was shown borne aloft by her own pair of wings.

Eos had an unquenchable desire for handsome young men. Some say it was the result of a curse laid upon her by the goddess Aphrodite. Her lovers included: Orion, Phaeton, Kephalos, and Tithonos, three of which she ravished away to distant lands.

The Trojan prince, Tithonos, became her official consort. When the goddess petitioned Zeus for his immortality, she forgot to also request eternal youth. In time he shriveled up by old age and transformed into a grasshopper.

Eos was closely identified with Hemera, the primordial goddess of day. In some myths, such as the tales of Orion and Kephalos, Eos stood virtually as a non-virginal substitute for Artemis.

The Curse of Eos
Aphrodite placed a curse upon the Titaness Eos, because she had slept with Ares. This curse filled her heart with constant passion, causing her to fall in love with a train of mortals: Orion, Tithonos, Kephalos, and Kleitos.

Representation
Eos is described by the poets as a beautiful maiden with rosy arms and fingers, and large wings, whose plumage is of an ever-changing hue; she bears a star on her forehead, and a torch in her hand. Wrapping round her the rich folds of her violet-tinged mantle, she leaves her couch before the break of day, and herself yokes her two horses, Lampetus and Phaethon, to her glorious chariot. She then hastens with active cheerfulness to open the gates of heaven, in order to herald the approach of her brother, the god of day, whilst the tender plants and flowers, revived by the morning dew, lift their heads to welcome her as she passes.

The Titan's Curse
Although Eos does not formally appear, she is referred to by Percy Jackson when he calls five o'clock in the morning "an ungodly hour, unless you're the goddess of dawn".

Aurora
Aurora is the Roman counterpart of Eos. Like most gods, she presumably becomes more disciplined, warlike, and militaristic. Her Roman form is also named Dawn, which Eos is the personification of in some myths.



Trivia

 * One of her sons, Eosphoros, is sometimes equated with the fallen angel Lucifer, his name meaning light-bearer.
 * She is often equated with Hemera, the Primordial goddess of Day.
 * According to some ancient texts, it was Artemis who was originally known as the goddess of dawn. This was before people knew that Eos was in fact the Personification/Titaness of the Dawn.
 * The Eos family is a prominent family of main belt asteroids, named after her.
 * Unlike her siblings Helios and Selene, Eos is the only one not stated to have faded.