Physical Appearance
Neptune was one of the gods with a more imposing physical presence. Neptune was characterized to be a tall big man with long hair; his hair was almost all times blue and some times white or gray. His body seemed to be strong and healthy. He lived in a palace on the ocean floor made of sea materials and objects like shells, rocks, and seaweed. But He also had another castle in Mount Olympus where he was with the other great gods of Roman mythology. His most essential symbols were his trident, two sacred animals: dolphins and horses. Myths say he was the first to give life to a horse; therefore, horses come from the power of Neptune.
Powers
The Neptune god had full authority over the water; he controlled water, calming it, or making storms and earthquakes. This water also includes small masses surrounded by the earth. He was able to change his form to a horse and some time to dolphins. On the other hand, he could appear randomly in the dreams of some mortals he chose. His trident was able to move and control objects with ease and fight beasts. Transportation was another of his powers, and it was not limited between the infra world and the gods’ realm. He was considered one of the most powerful gods and sometimes only compared with Jupiter. Neptune was also in charge to “keep the earth up” this is a Latin expression. They thought that because the water was so vast on the planet, Neptune kept the earth at the level humans needed to survive.
Personality
Neptune was considered a character of bad-tempered and moody. If he was insulted, he looked for revenge. He was very self-confident and loved to cross the oceans many times with a golden chariot surrounded by dolphins. Romans fear a lot the madness of Neptune because of his immense power.
Neptune God Myths
Myth 1 :
Neptune assisted his brother Jupiter in some of his expeditions. He helped his brother attain supreme power. But also he acquired a lot of power for himself and was given the sea, islands, river, etc. Whatever attachment Neptune might have had to his brother at one period, it was over later. Neptune was expelled from heaven for plotting a conspiracy against Jupiter. He was supposedly culpable and fled, with Apollo, to Laomedon, king of Troy.
Myth 2:
Another tale was a contest between Minerva, Neptune, and Vulcano, where each of these gods created a creature. Vulcano, a human and Neptune, a bull. Finally, Minerva won making an olive tree. The fact because Romans sacrificed bulls o the name of Neptune because of this myth.
Myth 3:
Before Neptune became the king of the sea, there was another god who ruled the ocean. His name was Nereus. He was the son of Gaea and Pontus. He had 50 daughters; all were nymphs; these unique nymphs were called Nereids. Nereus was an old god, with no more young force to do his work. Neptune received a great gift from Nereus: Amphitrite, his daughter, and his future wife of Neptune. But, this was not Nereus’ only gift, the palace he owned later was also one of the presents.
Myth 4:
This is another version of how Neptune god married Amphitrite. The story said that Neptune was near an island with his dolphins showing his power, but suddenly he saw a beautiful creature, and he fell in love. Neptune saw her many times and tried to convince her to marry him, but she refused. Finally, without losing hope, he sent a nymph. That nymph found Amphitrite in a sea cave and talked to her for hours ( or days) until she was convinced.
Functions
At first, Neptune god was only a minor god, not considered very special. Then he won power over the sea and became a superior god in Roman mythology, approximately in the years 399-405 bc. From this point with his jurisdiction over the sea and all things related to it, when Romans started a fervor culture for him and built two temples in his name and a vital festival called Neptunalia. Their high interest was toward their crops, which in many cases, died in the dry season, that the reason why they commemorate a special day for Neptune on July 23.
Legacy
Neptune was based in the Greek god Poseidon, but he left more legacy that the Romans would expect. Because of his relationship with the ocean and water creatures. Neptune god is now a symbol of any topic involving water. He has inspired a lot of different movies. His name also inspired to call one of the planets of our solar system, the eighth planet discovered in 1846 and briefly after named Neptune or Neptuno.
Sources
http://www.crystalinks.com/neptunerome.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptune_(mythology)
http://www.cafeastrology.com/neptune.html
http://rome.mrdonn.org/romangods/neptune.html
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Neptune_(mythology)