ABSTRACT
The Eleusinian mysteries, originally celebrated at Eleusis near Athens, developed from the story of Ceres’ grief for her daughter Proserpina when she was abducted in Sicily by Pluto, god of the under-world; they provided Spenser with opportunities for elaborating on the cults of Elizabeth as moon queen and as the fruitful corn goddess and mother Demeter-Ceres (Yates 1975:76-8).
