Avernus was an ancient name for a volcanic crater near Cumae (Cuma), Italy , in the region of Campania west of Naples . Part of the Phlegraean Fields of volcanoes, Avernus is approximately 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi) in circumference. Within the crater is Lake Avernus ( Lago d'Averno ).
7-476: Avernus was believed to be the entrance to the underworld , and is portrayed as such in the Aeneid of Virgil . According to tradition, all birds flying over the lake were destined to fall dead, hence the lake’s name was transferred to Greek as Ἄορνος (λίμνη) Áornos (límnē) ‚ or 'birdless (lake)'. This was likely due to the toxic fumes that the mouths of the crater gave off into the atmosphere. In later times,
14-518: Is Lake Avernus. They were also called mephites. Mephitis was the Roman goddess of noxious vapors who protected against malaria. The adjective ' mephitic ' means 'foul-smelling' or 'malodorous'. This Lazio location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article relating to an Ancient Roman myth or legend is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Underworld The underworld , also known as
21-421: The netherworld or hell , is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths , located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. The concept of an underworld is found in almost every civilization and "may be as old as humanity itself". Common features of underworld myths are accounts of living people making journeys to
28-567: The lake into a military port, the Portus Julius . A waterway was dug from Lake Lucrino to Avernus to this end. The port's remains may still be seen under the lake's surface. The term avernus (plural averni ) was also used by ancient naturalists for certain lakes, grottos, and other places which infect the air with poisonous steams or vapors. The Cave of Dogs in Italy was a famous example. The most celebrated of these, however,
35-399: The underworld , often for some heroic purpose. Other myths reinforce traditions that the entrance of souls to the underworld requires a proper observation of ceremony, such as the ancient Greek story of the recently dead Patroclus haunting Achilles until his body could be properly buried for this purpose. People with high social status were dressed and equipped in order to better navigate
42-601: The underworld. A number of mythologies incorporate the concept of the soul of the deceased making its own journey to the underworld, with the dead needing to be taken across a defining obstacle such as a lake or a river to reach this destination. Imagery of such journeys can be found in both ancient and modern art. The descent to the underworld has been described as "the single most important myth for Modernist authors". This list includes underworlds in various religious traditions, with links to corresponding articles: Echeide , Guayota This list includes rulers or guardians of
49-474: The word was simply an alternative name for the underworld. On the shores of the lake is the grotto of the Cumaean Sibyl and the entrance to a long tunnel ( Grotta di Cocceio , c. 800 metres (2,600 ft)) leading toward Cumae, where her sanctuary was located. There are also the remains of temples to Apollo and Jupiter . During the civil war between Octavian and Antony , Agrippa tried to turn
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