Says

Figure of Say in the Supreme Court of Vermont State House.

Dice, Dicea or Diké (in ancient Greek Δίκη Díkê, 'justice') is, in Greek mythology, the personification of justice in the human world. In some Roman sources she appears with the name Astrea (in Greek Ἀστραία or Ἀστραίη; in Latin Astraea ). The equivalent of her in Roman mythology was Iustitia .

Genealogy

According to Hesiod's Theogony, she was one of the three Horas, daughter of Zeus and Themis, and sister of Eunomia and Irene. While her mother represented divine justice, she personified justice in the world of men. Another genealogy, on the other hand, made her the daughter of Astreo and Eos.

Description

Dice watched over the acts of men and approached the throne of Zeus with lamentations every time a judge violated justice. She was the enemy of all falsehoods, and the protector of the wise administration of justice, and Hesiquia, that is, the peace of mind, was his daughter.

In the tragedies, Dice appears as a divinity who severely punishes all injustice, watches over the maintenance of justice, and penetrates the hearts of the unjust with the sword made for her by Aisa. In this role, she is closely related to the Erinyes, although his role is not only to punish injustice but also to reward virtue. The idea of Dice as the personification of justice is further developed in the dramas of Sophocles and Euripides. She was represented on the chest of Cypselo as a beautiful goddess, pulling Adicia (injustice) with one hand while she with the other held the rod with which she beat her.

In some sources it is given the name Astrea.

In Parmenides' poem she is named along with her mother Themis, and is nicknamed "she of multiple punishments".

Relation to the constellation Virgo

Astrea leaves the shepherdsof Salvatore Rosa (the 17th century).

According to what Arato relates about the origin of the constellation Virgo, Dice lived on earth during the Golden Age and the Silver Age, when there were no wars or diseases, men still did not know how to navigate, and they raised fine crops without effort. Over time, the humans grew greedy, and Dice grew sick from the sight of it. He proclaimed:

Behold which race the fathers of the golden age leave behind! But you will raise a more vile offspring! Of a certain wars and shedding of cruel blood will be for men and grave affliction will be established upon them.
ARATO: Fenóme 123

After speaking like this, Dice abandoned men and headed for the mountains but when the Bronze race populated the earth, which was made up of even more wicked men, Dice left the earth for good and flew up to the sky, where he formed the constellation of Virgo. The scales in her hands became the nearby constellation of Libra.

Dikaiosyne

The form Dikaiosyne (Δικαιοσυνη) appears only twice in the sources, and Orphic hymn 63 is dedicated to her. It can be translated as "Justice", but it differs from Díke (to whom the above Orphic hymn is dedicated) in that it rather expresses the feeling, practice or concept of justice, than Justice itself. If both appear together they could be adapted as Justice (Dike) and Equity (Dikaiosyne). Others tell us that the Persian king Darius offered a sacrifice in her name.