Acheron Cocytus and Phlegethon both flowed. The Roman poet Virgil called it the principal river of Tartarus, from which the Styx and Cocytus both sprang. The newly dead would be ferried across the Acheron by Charon in order to enter the Underworld. The Suda describes the river as "a place of healing, not a place of punishment, cleansing and purging the sins of humans". According to later traditions, Acheron had been a son of Helios and either Gaia or Demeter, who had been turned into the Underworld river bearing his name after he refreshed the Titans with drink during their contest
The Mouse Turned into a Maid the mouse takes place immediately following the act of love. This underlines the character of Aphrodite's test of the woman and explains the love-goddess' judgement in turning her back to her original form. In the light of this too, the posture of Faivre's sculpture exhibits an interesting ambiguity. The Mouse Turned into a Maid The mouse turned into a maid is an ancient fable of Indian origin that travelled westwards to Europe during the Middle Ages and also exists in the Far East. The story is Aarne-Thompson type 2031C in his list of cumulative tales, another example of which is