The tale told by the ancient Romans is that Cronus departed from Greek soil when he and his Titan allies were conquered by the Olympians. In Italy, the name of this god was changed from Cronus to Saturn. As Saturn, the god fled to Latium in an attempt to escape from the wrath of his son Jupiter.
Saturn demonstrated his leadership abilities and became a ruler in Latium. As a king of Latium, Saturn was responsible for the remarkable achievements of this legendary time, a time which was thought of as the Golden Age of ancient Italy. According to the myth, Saturn introduced agriculture to his people by teaching them how to farm the land. For this reason Saturn was thought of as a god of fertility and agriculture.
There was even a Roman festival named after Saturn - the Saturnalia. This festival was celebrated during the winter, and it was a time of gift giving, feasting, and merriment. Indeed, the Saturnalia is an appropriate festival to Saturn, for it appears to evoke the prosperity and peace of Rome's mythical Golden Age.
In early myth, Saturn was associated with the obscure Italian goddess Lua. However later legends claim that he was married to Ops, a Roman goddess of the harvest who was identified with the Greek goddess Rheia.
The name Saturn is sometimes spelled Saturnus.
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