Myth Overview

In Roman mythology, the Golden Bough was a tree branch with golden leaves that enabled the Trojan hero Aeneas (pronounced i-NEE-uhs) to travel through the underworld, or land of the dead, safely. The bough was said to be sacred to Proserpina (pronounced prah-sur-PEE-nuh; the Roman version of Greek goddess Persephone, pronounced per-SEF-uh-nee), the queen of the underworld, and was associated with the goddess Diana (the Roman version of the Greek goddess Artemis, pronounced AHR-tuh-miss).

The story of Aeneas and the Golden Bough is found in the Aeneid, the epic poem by the Roman poet Virgil (pronounced VUR-juhl). According to this tale, the spirit of Anchises (pronounced an-KY-seez), Aeneas’s dead father, appears and tells Aeneas to visit the underworld, where he will learn what the future holds in store for people. First, however, Aeneas must find the oracle known as the Sibyl of Cumae (pronounced KYOO-mee), who will lead him to the land of the dead.

Aeneas locates the oracle, who informs him that he cannot pass through the underworld safely without the Golden Bough. When Aeneas enters the forest to look for the sacred branch, two doves lead him to an oak tree that shelters the bough of shimmering golden leaves. Aeneas gets the Golden Bough and returns to the Sibyl of Cumae.

Together Aeneas and the Sibyl enter the underworld. With the Golden Bough in his possession, the hero is able to pass safely through the various dangers and obstacles there. At the deadly and magical river Acheron (pronounced AK-uh-ron), the boatman Charon (pronounced KAIR-uhn) sees the sacred bough and takes Aeneas and the Sibyl across the water to the kingdom of Hades (pronounced HAY-deez). There Aeneas finds the spirit of his father.

The Golden Bough also appears in other legends, particularly in connection with the goddess Diana. According to some accounts, it was a custom among worshippers of Diana for a slave to cut a branch from a sacred tree and then kill the priest responsible for guarding the tree. The slave took the priest’s place and was later killed himself in the same way.