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More info about the muses and what they mean.

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More info about the muses and what they mean.

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It goes more in depth about The Muses and their symbols.

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The Muses

"[The Muses] are all of one mind, their hearts are set upon song and their spirit is free from care. He is happy whom the Muses love. For though a man has sorrow and grief in his soul, yet when the servant of the Muses sings, at once he forgets his dark thoughts and remembers not his troubles. Such is the holy gift of the Muses to men."

~Hesiod~
It is well known (or it should be) that there were nine Muses who played, sang, danced, and inspired others to do the same. But there are other stories as well. Before the Classical idea of the nine Muses, Pausanias tells us of three Muses, different altogether from the nine we know. They were:

Melete, or Practice

Mneme, or Memory

Aeode, or Song

These were, I suppose, the three important parts of music, but Cicero added another to the three originals named Telsiopes. It was only later, when a Macedonian named Pierus came to Thespiae (where the Muses were known and worhipped) and renamed them the names of the nine Muses we know so well today. There are different stories of how those names were chosen. Some say Pierus only did this to make himself seem wiser. Some say it was what he found out from an oracle. Some say it he got word from a Thracian who happened to know (Thracians were more religious than Macedonians, and much wiser too). Many said that Pierus had nine daughters with the same names as the Muses and that the so-called children of the Muses were actually the children of Pierus' daughters. A poet named Mimnermus said there were two types of Muses, there were the old ones, the daughters of Uranus (the Heavens), and young ones (daughters of Zeus). Near the temple of the Muses is a portrait of their nurse, Eupheme.
Back to Classical Mythology. The Muses were sweet and gentle, but when they were challenged they were just as terrible as any other goddess. One man, Thamyris (who was the first man interested in other men, and had a thing for Hyacinthus for a while), was a beautiful minstel who challenged the Muses to a contest. If he won, he would lay with all of them, but if he lost, they were free to take anything they wanted. He lost, of course, and the Muses took his eyes and his minstrelsy as their prize.

There are cool stories about each of the Muses, and some other Muses you probably didn't know about. For example, Did you know Clio introduced the Phoenician alphabet to Greece? Si, sono veritabile.

Calliope Beautiful voice
Chief of the nine Muses. She was the patron of epic poetry. Calliope was the mother of Orpheus by the King of Thrace. There is a great story about Orpheus coming to the Myth Pages. Her symbol was a writing tablet. Calliope was probably the most mythically involved of the Muses, and you can find her on this site as the arbiter in the dispute between Aphrodite and Persephone over Adonis ( check it out). Calliope was also sometimes called the mother of Hymen (the god of marriage), Ialemus (sad song god), the Corybantes, the Sirens, etc. They're all very musical children, of course.k

Clio Proclaimer
One of the nine Muses. She was the patron of history, and inventor of historical and heroic poetry. From a union with King Pierus she bore a son, Hyacinthus. He was a handsome lad who was killed by his lover, Apollo. From his blood grew the flower that bears his name. She was also the person who brought the Phoenician alphabet to Greece. Her symbol was a scroll.

Erato Passionate or Lovely
The Muse of lyric poetry about love and eroticism. Ooooooh. She was also the patron Muse of parrots and crows, considering that she was the Muse of Mimicry, as well. I like her.

Euterpe Rejoicing Well or Pleasure Giver
The Muse of lyric poetry and music. But not ONLY that, she was also the cheerful muse (you know, there's always a cute one, a hard core one, a cheerful overly chipper one, well that would be Euterpe). She was in charge of joy and pleasure and . . . are you ready? FLUTE playing! Oh yes. How pleasureful. Her attribute was the double flute, that some say she invented (though I prefer the version that gave it's copyright to Athena.

Polyhymnia Many Songs
Okay, Polyhymia is the somber and beautiful one. She was the Muse of Sacred Hymn, and of Eloquence. She is shown in pictures as a serious woman usually in a position of meditation or thoughtfulness, sometimes with a finger to her mouth in thought. She wears long robes.

Melpomene Songstress
One of the Muses. She was the muse of Tragedy and that was it. She is often showing wearing the cothurnus (ie, boots traditionally worn by tragic actors), and she usually carries or wears the tragic mask. Sometimes she also carries a knife or club.

Terpsichore Rejoicing in the Dance or WhirlingThe Muse of dancing and choral singing. She could be recognized because she was the one dancing around with a lyre in her hands. Like her sister Calliope, Tersichore was a mother. Some say she bore the Sirens with the River God Achelous. The sagas of Thebes call her the mother of Linus by Apollo (others say Calliope and more ancient texts call Urania the true mother - see Urania for his story), also Hymen (like Calliope).

Thalia Festive or Flourishing
One of the nine Muses. She presided over comedy and pastoral poetry which explains why she holds a comic mask. But Thalia is the "country girl" of the group. She loves to traipse about meadows and forests and rural places that a city girl like me wouldn't know about. That's why she carries the shepherd's crook, as well.

Urania Mountain Queen
Muse of astronomy and astrology (One of the nine Muses). Mother of a son Linus. His father was Amphimarus (a son of Poseidon), and that he became such a beautiful singer that Apollo grew jealous and killed him. For this, Linus is sacrificed to before the Muses as a hero. Urania is often pictured carrying a globe in one hand and a pair of compasses in the other. They say that Urania inspires only chaste love - but that's really more using Urania as an epithet of Aphrodite's - and in classical tradition she rests her foot on a turtle (the symbol of silence and retreat).

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Last Updated February 26,2006

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The Muses "[The Muses] are all of one mind, their hearts are set upon song and their spirit is free from care. He is happy whom the Muses love. For though a man has sorrow and grief in his soul, yet when the servant of the Muses sings, at once he forgets his dark thoughts and remembers not his troubles.

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This is not really one but multiple put together. I wasn't able to find one specific story.

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More info about muses and what they do and where they live. 

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More info about muses and what they do and where they live. 

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The Muses lived on the side of a mountain with Apollo but they weren't his wives.

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The famous muses of Greek mythology played an important part of ancient Greek culture. The nine daughters of the King of Gods Zeus and the Titan goddess of memory Mnemosyne were the very embodiment of the arts and sciences, and were thought to be the reason certain artists and thinkers were more gifted than others. They were immortal goddesses that inspired great works from both gods and humans alike.

The muses fittingly lived with Apollo, the god of music and the arts, who was their leader, but did not claim them as his wives. Instead, the muses lived with Apollo on the slopes of Mount Parnassus by the Castalian spring and roamed freely from there to spread their inspiration around the ancient world. They often became lovers of both gods and great artists, and their inspiration was highly desired by all artists and thinkers. Their very presence inspired greatness in men, but no one could truly keep them around for long, mimicing the fleeting nature of inspiration itself.

The muses of Greek mythology are particularly interesting in that they make it very clear what the values of their time were. Since the nine muses were to encompass all that was truly important to mankind, their very existence reveals much about the people of their time. It is clear by the nature of the muses that the ancient Greeks and Romans revered music, writing, dance, drama, history, and astronomy to a high degree. Each muse represented a different aspect of these areas, and were all considered equally important.

The 9 Muses of Greek mythology

Clio represented history and was portrayed holding a scroll.

Euterpe represented music and was portrayed playing a double flute.

Thalia represented comedy and held a comic mask, a shepherd's staff, or an ivy wreath.

Melpomene represented tragedy and held a tragic drama mask and an ivy wreath.

Terpsichorde represented dance and was often shown playing the lyre.

Erato represented the singing of love songs and poetry and also played a lyre.

Polyhymnia represented the sacred song and was always shown as melancholy and pensive.

Urania represented astronomy and held a celestial globe.

Calliope represented epics, both in writing and song, and carried with her a wax tablet with which to write on.

Return from the Muses of Greek Mythology to the List of Greek Gods and Goddesses.

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The famous muses of Greek mythology played an important part of ancient Greek culture. The nine daughters of the King of Gods Zeus and the Titan goddess of memory Mnemosyne were the very embodiment of the arts and sciences, and were thought to be the reason certain artists and thinkers were more gifted than others.

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Her symbol is multiple things. She carries a globe in one hand and a pair of compasses in her second hand. She also lays her foot on a turtle. ( silence and retreat) She is portrayed as the muse of astronomy and astrology.

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Her symbol is a comedy mask and a Shepard's crook. Thalia is the muse of Comedy and pastoral poetry.

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Her symbol is a plectrum. She is known as the muse of dancing and choral singing.

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Her symbol is a tragic mask. Melpomene is the muse of Tragedy, and dressed in boots that actors would wear.

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Her symbol is a veil. She is seen as the muse of Scared Hymn. she is the more serious muse and is seen in paintings as thinking.

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Her symbol is the flute. She is also known as the muse of joy and pleasure.

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Erato's symbol is the lyre (an instrument which resembles a harp) She represents lyric poetry about love and eroticism.

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The symbol for Clio is a scroll. She is the muse of history and heroic poetry.

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The symbol of Calliope is a writing tablet. She is known as the chief muse and she represents epic poetry.

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The muses were also seem in the 1980 movie 'Xanadu', about a man who gets inspiration from a muse which he falls in love with.

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The muses name means to have a desire and wish.

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The muses were born to Zeus and Mnemosyne. (Another one of Zeus's flings)

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In the beginning these divine creatures were nymphs of the mountains and the water. The author Hisiodus in his book Theogony writes, "Mnemosene slept on the mountains of Pieria with the son of Cronus and gave birth to these virgins who make us forget our worries and lessen our pain.

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The muses were featured in the movie "Hercules".

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This is Long Ago/ Gospel Truth I taken from Disney's Hercules