Editing Demeter (section)

===Demeter at Eleusis===

Demeter's search for her daughter Persephone took her to the palace of [[Celeus]], the King of Eleusis in Attica. She assumed the form of an old woman and asked him for shelter. He took her in, to nurse [[Demophon of Eleusis|Demophon]] and [[Triptolemus]], his sons by [[Metanira]]. To reward his kindness, she planned to make Demophon immortal; she secretly anointed the boy with [[ambrosia]] and laid him in the hearth's flames to gradually burn away his mortal self. But Metanira walked in, saw her son in the fire and screamed in fright. Demeter abandoned the attempt.<ref name=":1" /> Instead, once Persephone returned from the underworld, she and Demeter taught Triptolemus the secrets of agriculture, and he, in turn, taught them to any who wished to learn them. Thus, humanity learned how to plant, grow and harvest grain.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Siculus |first=Diodorus |year=1939 |title=The Library of History, Book V, 47-84 |url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/5D*.html |access-date=2024-06-10 |website=penelope.uchicago.edu}}</ref> The myth has several versions; some are linked to figures such as [[Eleusis (mythology)|Eleusis]], [[Rarus]] and [[Trochilus (mythology)|Trochilus]]. The Demophon element may be based on an earlier folk tale.<ref name=":1">Nilsson (1940), p. 50: "The Demophon story in Eleusis is based on an older folk-tale motif which has nothing to do with the Eleusinian Cult. It is introduced to let Demeter reveal herself in her divine shape".</ref>
[[File:Demeter, Mourner, marble relief, Knossos, 1st-2nd century AD, AMH, 145408.jpg|thumb|Demeter in mourning, marble relief from [[Knossos]], [[Archaeological Museum of Heraklion]].]]