Roman God of Architecture/Building/Construction?

[lozzalea]

Setting: Imperial Rome

Google Search: many combinations of roman gods/deities, myths, building, stone-workers, construction, craftsmanship etc, etc...

Google has pointed me to a couple of refereces that name Ceres as the Roman Goddess of Architecture, although most references seem to link her with agriculture instead. Hephaestus/Vulcan also came

Comments

[ami_ven]

My first thought is Athena- Minerva, in Rome. She's the goddess of Wisdom, Weaving and Defensive Warfare, but the general emphasis is on her being patroness of local affairs (she's also patroness of Athens), so she'd probably have an influence on architecture, too.

[sharaz_jek]

As far as I remember, wasn't her focus on local affairs specifically Athens-related?

[emiliglia]

Google was giving me through away lines about Vesta being associated with architecture, but I couldn't find anything more specific.

[hyarrowen]

Two possibilities (as quoted from the New Larousse Encyclopaedia of Mythology.)

Janus was... the god of all doorways: of public gates (through which roads passed) and of private doors... His two faces allowed him to observe both the exterior and interior of the house, and entrance and exit of public buildings.

Terminus. Social life received the protection of several divinities such as Terminus. He played a very important role, for he watched over property, which was a holy thing, and presided over the fixing of boundaries and frontiers. At first Terminus was only a title of Jupiter's; but a legend gave him popularity: it was told how Terminus - and Juventas - refused to make way for jupiter when Jupiter came to install himself on the Capitol. At first the god was represented by a plain block of stone. Later he was depicted as a column surmounted by a human head.

[anonymous]

Hestia: Greek Goddess

Hestia was the goddess of the hearth, home, architecture, domesticity, family, and the state.

She was one of only three virgin goddesses, next to Athena and Artemis. Although both Poseidon and Apollo wanted to marry her, Hestia made an oath to Zeus that she would remain forever pure and undefiled

[seachild_elf]

If you don't need an actual deity, but can settle for a mythological creature, cyclops might be the next best thing. While cyclopses? cyclopsi? they also had an affinity for metal work, they're said to have built the massive walls of Mycenae as well.