Iris was the rainbow and a messenger of the gods, especially Hera. She was the daughter of the Titan Thaumas and the Oceanid Electra. Iris was represented as a beautiful virgin with wings of varied hue, in robes of bright colors, and riding on a rainbow; at other times with a nimbus on her head, in which the colors of the rainbow were reflected.

      The ancients believed it was Iris who charged the clouds with water from lakes and rivers, in order that they might let it fall again upon the earth in gentle fertilizing showers; and, accordingly when her bow appeared in the clouds the farmer welcomed it as a sign of rain to quicken the fields, and gladly paid honors to the goddess.

ACTIVITIES:
Iris activity

KEY TEST WORDS:
Iris, the rainbow goddess and messenger of Hera. Symbol: rainbow

The Lesser Deities

The Underworld

Footnotes:
Iris was looked upon by mankind as a guide and adviser. She traveled with the speed of wind always from one end of the world to the other. She could penetrate to the bottom of the sea, or to the Styx, in this respect the female counterpart of Hermes.

SOURCES:
Jane Smith
Edith Hamilton's Mythology
Edward Tripp's "Crowell's Handbook of Classical Mythology"
"Manual of Mythology" by Alexander S. Murray.