thumb|Winged Poena witnessing the murder of [[Atreus on a red-figure Apulian amphora by the Darius Painter, 4th-century BC.]]

In Greek mythology, Poena or Poine () is the spirit of punishment and the attendant of punishment to Nemesis, the goddess of divine retribution. Some depictions are of a single being, and some depictions are of multiple beings—in the plural, the name is Poenai (); the Poenai are akin to the Erinyes.

The Greek word ' () means "a recompense or a punishment". From this word is derived the Latin word poena meaning "pain, punishment, penalty", which in turn gave rise to English words such as subpoena and pain.

References

Bibliography

  • Internet Archive.
  • LacusCurtius – Poena
  • Georg Autenrieth, A Homeric Dictionary
  • Poine: a study in ancient Greek blood-vengeance. By Hubert Joseph Treston, published in the United Kingdom, by Longmans, Green and Co., in 1923.