Cornucopia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Cornucopia (disambiguation).

Cornucopia held by the Roman goddess Aequitas on the reverse of this antoninianus struck under Roman Emperor Claudius II.

The cornucopia (Latin Cornu Copiae), also known as the Horn of Plenty or Harvest Cone, is a symbol of food and plenty dating back to the 5th century BC.

In Greek mythology, Amalthea raised Zeus on the milk of a goat. In return Zeus gave Amalthea the goat's horn. It had the power to give to the person in possession of it whatever he or she wished for. This gave rise to the legend of the cornucopia. The original depictions were of the goat's horn filled with fruits and flowers: deities, especially Fortuna, would be depicted with the horn of plenty.

In modern depiction, the cornucopia is a hollow, horn-shaped wicker basket typically filled with various kinds of festive fruit and vegetables. The cornucopia has come to be associated with Thanksgiving.

The cornucopia is also a favourite design for corn dolly making.

The sampo of Finnish mythology is also a source of plenty.

In science fiction the term cornucopia (machine) is sometimes used for molecular assemblers.