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Neptune

 
Dictionary: Nep·tune

prop. n.

[L. Neptunus.]

1. (Rom. Myth.) The son of Saturn and Ops, the god of the waters, especially of the sea. He is represented as bearing a trident for a scepter.

2. (Astron.) The remotest major planet of our solar system, discovered -- as a result of the computations of Leverrier, of Paris -- by Galle, of Berlin, September 23, 1846. It is classed as a gas giant, and has a radius of 22,716 km and an estimated mass of 1.027 x 1026 kg, with an average density of 2.27 g/cc. Its mean distance from the sun is about 5,000,000,000 km (3,106,856,000 miles), and its period of revolution is about 164.78 years.
[1913 Webster +PJC]

Neptune powder, an explosive containing nitroglycerin, -- used in blasting. -- Neptune's cup (Zoöl.), a very large, cup-shaped, marine sponge (Thalassema Neptuni).


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Neptune holding his trident, classical sculpture; in the Lateran Museum, Rome
(click to enlarge)
Neptune holding his trident, classical sculpture; in the Lateran Museum, Rome (credit: Alinari/Art Resource, New York)
In Roman religion, the god of water. Neptune was originally the god of fresh water, but by 399 BC he was identified with the Greek god Poseidon and thus became a deity of the sea. His female counterpart, Salacia, probably began as a goddess of spring water but was later equated with the Greek goddess Amphitrite. Neptune's festival (Neptunalia) took place in the heat of summer (July 23), when fresh water was scarcest. In art Neptune is often given Poseidon's attributes, the trident and dolphin.

For more information on Neptune, visit Britannica.com.

Neptune (Neptūnus), ancient Italian god of water, of whom in his original form hardly anything is known. He was worshipped at the festival of the Neptunālia on 23 July; of the ritual it is known only that arbours of foliage were erected, and the object may have been to obtain sufficient water at this hot and dry time of year. Under Greek influence he became a sea-god and was identified with Poseidon. Owing to Poseidon's connection with horses, and because horses were associated with the Roman god Consus, the latter was identified with Neptune.

 
Neptune, in Roman religion and mythology, god of water. He was presumably an indigenous god of fertility, but in later times he was identified with the Greek Poseidon, god of the sea. At his festival, the Neptunalia (July 23), arbors were dedicated to him.


Mythology Dictionary: Neptune
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[Greek name Poseidon]

The Roman and Greek god who ruled the sea.

  • Neptune is frequently portrayed as a bearded giant with a fish's scaly tail, holding a large three-pronged spear, or trident.
  • The eighth planet from the sun (the Earth is third) is named Neptune.

  • Translations: Neptune
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    Dansk (Danish)
    n. - Neptun

    Nederlands (Dutch)
    Neptunus de zeegod, Neptunus de planeet

    Français (French)
    n. - (Mythol) Neptune, (Astron) Neptune

    Deutsch (German)
    n. - Neptun

    Ελληνική (Greek)
    n. - (αστρον.) Ποσειδώνας

    Italiano (Italian)
    Nettuno

    Português (Portuguese)
    n. - Netuno (m)

    Русский (Russian)
    Нептун

    Español (Spanish)
    n. - Neptuno

    Svenska (Swedish)
    n. - Neptunus

    中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
    海王星

    中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
    n. - 海王星

    한국어 (Korean)
    n. - 넵튠(해신), 바다, 해왕성

    日本語 (Japanese)
    n. - ネプトゥーヌス, 海王星, 海, ネプチューン

    العربيه (Arabic)
    ‏(الاسم) نبتون ( كوكب), اله البحر عند الرومان‏

    עברית (Hebrew)
    n. - ‮נפטון (כוכב-לכת)‬


    Best of the Web: Neptune
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    Some good "Neptune" pages on the web:


    Roman Mythology
    www.pantheon.org
     
     
     
    Learn More
    neptunicentric
    Despina (in astronomy)
    Galatea (in astronomy)

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    Copyrights:

    Dictionary. Webster 1913 Dictionary edited by Patrick J. Cassidy  Read more
    Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
    Classical Literature Companion. The Concise Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. Copyright © 1993, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
    Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/ Read more
    Mythology Dictionary. The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.  Read more
    Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

     

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