A pair of carved coral earrings featuring the heads of Demeter and Persephone with pendant amphorae. Demeter is the Greek goddess of agriculture, fertility and harvest and represents the autumn season. Her daughter, Persephone, is the goddess of Spring. In Greek mythology the story of Demeter and Persephone is used to explain the order of the seasons and goes like this: Persephone was captured by the god of the underworld, Hades. Upon discovering Hades' terrible crime, Demeter, in her anger and bereavement, punished the world for the loss of her daughter by causing crops to die and creating a great famine. Eventually, Zeus, king of the gods, intervened and ordered Hades to return Persephone to her mother. Before doing so, Hades convinced Persephone to eat six pomegranate seeds knowing that eating just these small morsels while in the Underworld would ensure that she would have to return to him for six months of each year. Demeter's joy at her reunion with her daughter brings the spring/growing season/end of famine. When Persephone is forced to return to Hades in the fall, Demeter's sadness brings the fall and winter.