Angelo Lamparelli Captures Kybelé 'Mother of the Gods' for Vogue Portugal April 2021

A fashion story that AOC has anticipated is released in the pages of Vogue Portugal’s April 2021 issue. Originally from Phrygia, Kybelé - or, in Portuguese, Cibele -, was considered the "Mother of the Gods", or mother Goddess, and symbolized the fertility of nature, writes the magazine.

‘Kybelé’ was the dominant source of spiritual and supernatural power among early humans. She existed long before the rise of male power and dominance.

Just now AOC Googled for results on “goddesses preceded gods” and Google page one results all deal with Greek mythology. Search results focus on 5th century BC Greece and the Olympian Gods. They were preceded even in Greece by the Titans and “in the beginning’ Gaia, who emerged from Chaos.

Some Greek scholars highlight Chaos as the first God and Gaia as Mother Earth and the first Goddess. Others only cite Gaia as the first (God)ess and Mother Earth who emerged from the void of Chaos.

What’s relevant is the fact that gods and goddesses existed long before Greece and most scholars agree that Kybelé, Gaia and other names for powerful, female (sorry, but I don’t know what other word to use than ‘female’) deities existed long before the rise of monotheism and fifth century Greece.

In a note of irony, AOC would love to share the names of both goddesses featured in this important editorial, but only Ajok Daing can be identified via Models.com as the darker skin vision of Kybelé. Photographer Angelo Lamparelli [IG] does not name the models, who are styled by Özge Efek. / Hair by Marco Minunno; makeup by Martina D’andrea