Minerva’s Shrine

She was a goddess of arts, crafts, teaching, and music (she invented the flute), and in these aspects enjoyed festivals called Quinquatria held in her honor in Rome. As Minerva Medica (also Athena Hygeia) she was the goddess of healing.

Chester is famous for its Roman ruins, Tudor buildings and Medieval two-tier shopping rows. Beneath the streets of the city there is evidence of an ancient Roman town and fortress dating back nearly 2,000 years. The Romans called the city Deva during the 1st and 2nd centuries.

Jupiter loved all his children, but if he had to pick a favorite, it would probably have been Minerva, the goddess of wisdom. Minerva was a powerful force, and one of the deities who made up the Dei Consentes, the Roman Council of 12 gods.

Roman Chester Chester owes its existence as a city and its plan to the Romans who established the legionary fortress of Deva in AD 76 in an advantageous position close to the Welsh mountains on a raised outcrop at the lowest bridging point on the River Dee.