sibyls

Female seers, antiquity

Sibyls were prophetesses in ancient Greek and Roman tradition, women believed to possess the ability to deliver prophecies inspired by the gods.

The most famous was the Cumaean Sibyl, who guided Aeneas through the underworld in Virgil's epic.

In later Christian tradition, sibyls were sometimes viewed as pagan counterparts to biblical prophets, appearing in medieval and Renaissance art alongside them.

Today sibyl may describe any female prophet or fortune-teller.

practitioner

seeress

Woman who foretells

prophetessWoman who foretells events
soothsayerOne who predicts futures
divinerOne who foretells events

clairvoyant · visionary · augur · oracle · pythia · medium · wise woman · seer · prognosticator · priestess

prophecy

oracle

Authoritative wisdom source

prophecyForetelling of future events
auguryOmen interpretation practice
omensProphetic signs or warnings

soothsaying · foretelling · prediction · presage · prognostication · revelation · portent · foresight · premonition · utterance

cultural

Michelangelo

Florentine sculptor and painter

Sistine ChapelVatican worship hall
RenaissanceEuropean cultural reawakening
VirgilClassical epic poet

Aeneid · medieval · Christian · apocalyptic · iconography · fresco · illuminated · manuscript

classical

Delphi

Greek prophetic sanctuary

PersianOf or from Iran
LibyanOf a Maghreb nation
ApolloSun deity, moonshot namesake

priestess · temple · sacred · grotto · cave · antiquity · Rome · Greece

divination

scrying

Visionary surface-gazing

runesOld Germanic script
necromancyCommunicating with the deceased
visionsImagined or prophetic sights

auspices · entrails · lots · signs · portents · dreams · ecstasy · frenzy · smoke · vapors

sibyls

seeress

oracle

Michelangelo

Delphi

scrying

sibyls

Opposites

Phrases

Categories

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