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Artemis • Greek Goddess of the Hunt and Moon - Facts and Information

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Artemis facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek goddess of the hunt, the forest, the Moon and archery, Artemis.

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Hestia • Facts and Information on Greek Goddess Hestia

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Hestia facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek goddess of the hearth and domestic life, Hestia.

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Ancient Greek depictions of the afterlife are far different from modern ideologies. While they share similarities, most Greek portrayals of the afterlife involved a single place: The Underworld.

The Underworld was a place where all human souls went after death. Contrary to popular belief, humans didn't go the Greek equivalent of heaven. Elysian Fields, also known as Elysium, was for heroes like Perseus and Achilles.

In "The Iliad," the Underworld dominion was between "Secret place on Earth." However, the Homeric hymn, "The Odyssey," described it as only accessible by crossing the ocean. Either way, the realm was separate from the land of the living, and one god resided over it. That god was Hades.

Hades is the god of the Underworld and the dead. In ancient Greece, few dared to utter his name. If they did, many were referring to his realm, which many called "Hades" as well. The god was a brother to the Twelve Olympian gods. Though he was born at the same time and shared the same lineage as the other Olympian guardians, his realm was far below Mount Olympus.

The Origins of Hades

Hades was the child of Cronus and Rhea. He was born after Hestia, Demeter, and Hera. But like his siblings before him, Hades was swallowed by Cronus upon birth. The Titan god feared that one of his offspring would take his throne. He ate them whole to prevent that prophecy from happening.

This act of swallowing his children continued until Rhea gave birth to his brother Zeus. Instead of giving Cronus the baby, Rhea swaddled a rock. Cronus swallowed it instead, allowing Zeus to grow to maturity.

When he was of age, Zeus forced Cronus to disgorge his siblings. Interestingly enough, Hades was the first son of Cronus and Rhea. However, he was the last to be regurgitated. As a result, he's both the oldest and youngest son.

The freeing of the Olympians kicked off a divine war called the Titanomachy. The ten-year war raged between the Titans and the new generation of gods, the Olympians. Zeus ended up freeing the Titans' beastly siblings from Tartarus. The Hecatoncheires and the Cyclops fought among the Olympians, eventually leading to the fall of the Titans.

Thus, a new era was born, and the Titans were imprisoned in Tartus.

Becoming Ruler of the Underworld

The end of the Titanomachy left many of the realms open for rule. Zeus took the mantle on Mount Olympus and was declared King of the gods. However, the Olympians had to decide who would rule over what realm. So, Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus drew lots to determine what domains they ruled.

Zeus became the god of the sky, Poseidon became the god of the sea, and Hades became the god of the Underworld, an unseen realm where human souls go after death. The Earth remained with the primordial goddess Gaia.

Hades took to the role quite well. He resided in his kingdom and rarely left. Instead, he spent most of his time within the boundaries created by the Rivers Acheron, Styx, Cocytus, Phlegethon, and Lethe. He interacted with very few but was close with figures that resided in the Underworld. For example, he had a connection to the Cerberus and the ferryman of the River Styx, Charon.

While he was heavily feared, Hades was more altruistic in nature than most ancient Greeks realized. He defended the rights of the dead and focused his attention on his domain only.

While he does appear in some legends, Hades cared very little about what happened in the land of the living. However, he did exercise his authority when heroes and gods entered his realm. The god of the Underworld strictly forbade any soul from leaving his dominion.

His anger and wrath would come out when anyone attempted to leave or when someone tried to steal souls. Two famous figures, Sisyphus and Pirithous, found out about his dedication the hard way. Hades spent much of his time punishing and torturing the two figures for their sins of attempting to bring souls back to the living realm.

Depictions of Hades

Because Hades rarely left his realm, stories of his wrath spread through ancient Greece. He became a feared figure, so much so that humans didn't dare speak his name. Greeks used a myriad of epithets to describe the deity.

Some popular names include:
"Zeus of the Underworld"
"The Other Zeus"
"The Infernal Zeus"
"The Grisly God"
"The Host of Many"
"The Attractor of Man"

Some also referred to Hades as "Plouton" and "Giver of Wealth."

Those nicknames are a product of Hades' other title. In addition to being the god of the Underworld, Greeks saw him as the god of hidden wealth.

This reputation likely came due to the fact that precious metals and gems came from the Earth below. Not surprisingly, the name "Plouton" would eventually evolve into his Roman name: Pluto.

Depictions of Hades were rare. To ancient Greeks, he was a ghastly figure worth fearing. Not only did they not utter his name, but they did their best to avoid portraying him in art.

In the rare instances when artists braved the perceived taboo, Hades was usually shown as a bearded regal god. To reflect his nature, artists often portrayed him as solemn and mournful.

Sculptors frequently put Cerberus, the three-headed guardian dog of the Underworld, by his side. He often wore a helmet, too. It was known as the "Helm of Darkness" or the "Cap of Invisibility."

Later works added a unique weapon presumable crafted by Hephaestus, a bident. It was similar to the three-pronged trident of Poseidon. However, it only featured two prongs.

Some scholars believe that it inspired the pitchfork shown in modern Christian depictions of the devil. Sometimes, the bident was a simple scepter.

As Plouton, this god had more flattering depictions. He usually held a cornucopia called the "Horn of Plenty."

Hades had many symbols. They most often included items related to his myths. For example, the god had a connection to pomegranates, snakes, dogs, chariots, and more. However, symbols like white poplar and cypress trees also represented the god of the Underworld.

Hades and Persephone

There aren't too many stories involving Hades directly. He's a central figure in Greek mythology, but he's most often mentioned in passing or shown whenever a hero enters the Underworld.

However, there is one famous story. It involves the abduction of Persephone.

Persephone was the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, the goddess of fertility and agriculture. According to this legend, the only time Hades entered the land of the living was to watch Persephone. He fell in love with her and wanted to take her as his bride.

Some versions of the tale are a little less "romantic." Instead of falling in love, Hades reportedly petitioned Zeus to give up a daughter to be his bride.

Either way, Haded knew that Persephone wouldn't want to go willingly. So, he devised a plan to take her. As she frolicked at Nysian Plain, Hades appeared to her in his golden chariot. Some versions say that Hades caused a flower to bloom and distract Persephone. Others say that he simply whisked her away while her maidens focused on something else.

Whatever the case may be, Hades abducted Persephone and took her into the Underworld.

That caused a great deal of pain for Demeter. She searched the ends of the earth for her daughter. Eventually, Hecate informed her of Hades' abduction. Helios, the all-seeing sun god, confirmed the events. That only enraged Demeter more.

She abandoned her divine duties, and the land became barren and infertile. The Olympians feared that her effect on the world would wipe out humanity entirely. So, Zeus sent god after god to beg Demeter to return to her duties. But, she refused.

Zeus sends the messenger god Hermes to the Underworld to retrieve Persephone in a last-ditch effort.

The Creation of the Seasons

How Hades responded is different from one iteration to the next. Some say that the god agreed, but only on the condition that Persephone eats a single pomegranate seed. In doing so, she would be bound to his realm.

In other versions, Persephone already ate the seed or had to escape Hades. Regardless, Persephone was now the Queen of the Underworld. She couldn't leave completely. With Demeter and Hades wanting Persephone to themselves, Zeus had to intervene.

He established rules for Persephone. She had to spend a third of the year with her mother, a third of the year with Hades in the Underworld, and a third of the year with whomever she chose.

Persephone ultimately chose to spend the latter third of the year with Persephone. As a result, she only had to spend one-third of the year in the Underworld with Hades.

That third represents the winter season. The spring and summer are fruitful times of the year full of life and beauty. But according to the mythos, Demeter leaves Mount Olympus to grieve the absence of Persephone at her temple in Eleusis. During that time, the land goes barren as winter takes over.

Children of Hades and Persephone

There are some conflicting accounts about how many children the unorthodox couple had. Some poets say that the two didn't have offspring at all! However, most accounts agree that there were at least a couple of children. They could have been Zagreus and Macaria.

Melinoe, Plutus, and the Erinyes may have been born from Hades and Persephone as well.

Melinoe was a nymph invoked in one of the Orphic hymns. She was a bringer of nightmares and madness, which is fitting for the offspring of the King of the Underworld.

Plutus was the god of wealth. While some call him the progeny of Hades, he's most likely the son of Demeter and Iason.

The Erinyes, also known as the Furies, are called the daughters of Pluto in Virgil's "Aenid." The Furies are deities of vengeance.

Hades in Greek Myths

The story of Persephone is one of the most famous Hades tales. But, the god appears several times when other figures enter his domain.

Orpheus

Orpheus, the legendary musician and prophet, reportedly encountered Hades on his quest to find his wife. He wanted to bring Eurydice back from the dead. He pled Hades and Persephone, even going so far as to play his lyre to appease them.

It worked, and Hades let them make their way out of the Underworld. The only stipulation was that the two could not look back.

But as Orpheus crossed the opening to the land of the living, he looked back with joy at Eurydice. But because she was a few steps behind him, she had not crossed the threshold. She vanished into the Underworld.

Theseus and Pirithous

This pairing entered the Underworld to kidnap Persephone. They were on a quest to marry the daughters of Zeus. Theseus had already kidnapped Helen and left her with his mother. The two went to the Underworld to take Persephone for Pirithous.

Hades was well aware of their plan. Upon seeing them, he offered hospitality as a ruse. When the pair sat down for a feast, snakes wrapped around their feet. Hades punished them, with Pirithous remaining trapped for all eternity.

The god Hades reportedly forced Pirithous to sit on the "Chair of Forgetfulness." Theseus was eventually saved by Heracles (Hercules).

Sisyphus

Sisyphus was a mortal king who crossed Zeus. Zeus sent Thanatos, the god of death, to kill him. But Sisyphus was too cunning and ended up trapping Thanatos. In the meantime, no one could die. Ares, the god of war, had to free Thantanos and punish Sisyphus.

Yet again, Sisyphus found a way to "rig" the system. After his death, he instructed his wife not to perform funeral rites. In doing so, he disrupted the procession of the Underworld. Hades instructed him to go back to the land of the living to punish his wife. But of course, Sisyphus never returned as he was supposed to.

When he eventually died of old age, Hades tortured Sisyphus by forcing him to roll a boulder up a hill in the Underworld for all of eternity. If the boulder got close to the top of the hill, it would roll back down and force Sisyphus to try again.

Heracles

Heracles famously entered the Underworld during the last of his Twelve Labors. He was instructed to take the guardian Cerberus. After learning how to enter and exit the Underworld alive, he went to Hades to ask if he could take Cerberus. Surprisingly, Hades agreed as long as Heracles did not harm the three-headed dog.

Hades Trivia:

Hades is the Greek god of the Underworld and the god of the dead.

Hades was also known as Haides, Aidoneus, Plouton, Pluto, and Dis.

The god of the Underworld also had a connection to the Earth's riches. According to Greek mythology, he presided over hidden wealth.

The name "Hades" is also the name of the god's realm.

Hades is a child of Titans Cronus and Rhea.

Hades is most known for kidnapping and marrying Demeter's daughter, Persephone.

Hades and Persephone had at least two children. However, some accounts say they had more.

Hades had a couple of consorts outside of Persephone. They included Leuce, a nymph daughter of Oceanus, and Minthe, a nymph of the River Cocytus.

Hades presided over funeral rites and the right to due burial.

The god of the Underworld is often depicted alongside the guardian of his realm, the Cerberus.

Hades FAQs
Who is Hades wife? Who is Hades?
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Hades * Greek God of the Underworld - Facts and Information

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Hades facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek god of the dead and king of the underworld, Hades.

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Greek God of Trade, Eloquence and Messenger of the Gods

Hermes was one of the 12 Olympian Gods and was god of trade, thieves, travelers, sports, athletes, and border crossings, guide to the Underworld. He was the second youngest Olympian god and was the son of Zeus and Maia, one of the seven Pleiades and daughter of the Titan Atlas.

As the god of boundaries and transitions, Hermes was known to be quick and cunning and had the ability to freely move between the mortal and divine worlds. It is this skill that made him a luck-bringing messenger to the gods and intercessor between mortals and the divine.

He is also the patron and protector of travelers, herdsmen, thieves, orators and wit, literature and poets, athletics and sports, invention and trade. In some myths Hermes is also depicted as a trickster where he would outwit the gods either for the good of humankind or for his own personal amusement and satisfaction.

Both Homer and Hesiod portrayed Hermes as the author of skilled or deceptive acts, and also as a benefactor of mortals.

Facts about Hermes

Hermes was the son of Zeus and Maia, one of the Pleiades.

He primarily served as the herald or messenger of the gods.

Hermes was the god of shepherds, land travel, and literature. More specifically, he was known as a patron of poetry.

His interests were varied and widespread.

In his role as herald, it also fell to him to conduct souls to Hades.

As was the case with other gods, Hermes was known for abundant love affairs with goddesses.net/mortals/">mortals, goddesses, and nymphs.

According to some sources, Hermes was associated with fertility and good fortune.

Hermes is most often presented as a graceful youth, wearing a winged hat and winged sandals. This is how he appeared to Perseus when he and Athena arrived to help the hero kill Medusa.

Hermes was considered a "trickster" due to his cunning and clever personality.

Hermoea was the name given to the riotous festivals thrown in his honor.

Hermes was born in a cave on a mountain in Arcadia; he was conceived and born within the course of one day.

His son Pan was half man, half goat. Pan's mother was named Dryope, and she was terrified of her son's strange appearance.

Abderus, another of Hermes' sons, was a friend to Hercules. He met his fate when he was devoured by the Mares of Diomedes.

Hermaphroditus (also known as Aphroditus) was an androgynous deity and the offspring of Hermes and Aphrodite.

The tortoise is a symbol of Hermes.

Hermes freed Io, one of Zeus' lovers, from the giant Argus.

Hermes talked the nymph Calypso into releasing Odysseus.

Hermes played a part in the infamous love story of Orpheus and Eurydice. After Eurydice is granted one day on earth with her husband, it is Hermes who escorts her back to the underworld.

He was a patron of thieves. On the day of his birth, Hermes stole cattle from Apollo.

He was the only one other than Hades and Persephone who was allowed to leave the underworld without consequence.

He was the god of boundaries, both literal and figurative.

More articles that mentions Hermes
Hermes Coloring Pages Children of Zeus Pandora's Box Aphrodite's Children
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Hermes facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek god of trade and messenger to the gods, Hermes.

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Poseidon • Facts and Information on Greek God Poseidon

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Poseidon facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek god of the sea, Poseidon.

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⚡️Zeus ⚡️• Facts and Information on Greek God of the Sky

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Greek Goddess of Love, Beauty & Eternal Youth

Aphrodite is the Goddess of Love and Beauty and according to Hesiod's , she was born from the foam in the waters of Paphos, on the island of Cyprus. She supposedly arose from the foam when the Titan Cronus slew his father Uranus and threw his genitals into the sea.

However, according to Homer, in Iliad, Aphrodite may instead be the daughter of Zeus and Dione. As with so many Greek deities, there are many stories about the origins of the gods.

Many gods believed that her beauty was such that their rivalry over her would spark a war of the gods. Because of this, Zeus married Aphrodite to Hephaestus - he wasn't seen as a threat because of his ugliness and deformity.

Despite this marriage to Hephaestus, Aphrodite had many lovers. Her lovers include both gods and men - including the god Ares and the mortal Anchises. She also played a role in the story of Eros and Psyche in which admirers of Psyche neglected to worship Venus (Aphrodite) and instead worshipped her. For this, Aphrodite enlisted Eros ( Cupid) to exact her revenge but the god of love instead falls in love with the girl.

Later, Aphrodite was both Adonis's lover and his surrogate mother. This led to a feud with Persephone in which Zeus decreed Adonis should spend half of the year with Aphrodite and half of the year with Persephone.

Facts about Aphrodite

Aphrodite was the goddess of fertility, love, and beauty.

Two different stories explain the birth of Aphrodite. The first is simple: She was the child of Zeus and Dione.

According to the second story, however, Aphrodite rose from the foam of the sea.

Aphrodite was married to Hephaestus, but Aphrodite did not enter into this union of her own volition.

She and Ares conceived Harmonia, who eventually married Herodotus.

She was the mother of Hermaphroditus by Hermes.

She was also the mother of Dinlas by Ares. Dinlas was a chaotic God who was sent to Hades by his parents.

Aphrodite and her son Eros (Cupid) teamed up to cause Zeus to fall in love with a human named Europa.

Aphrodite loved Adonis. She saw him when he was born and determined then that he should be hers. She assigned Persephone to his care, but Persephone fell in love with Adonis also and would not give him back. Finally, Zeus had to mediate. He judged that Adonis should spend half the year with each.

Aphrodite used a swan-drawn car to glide easily through the air.

Although Aphrodite and Hera were not friends, Hera went to the Goddess of Love for help as she endeavored to assist the heroes in their Quest of the Golden Fleece.

Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena were the top three contenders for a gold apple marked "For the Fairest." They asked Zeus to judge the contest, but he refused. Paris, son of the King of Troy, judged the contest instead. Each of the three goddesses promised him something in return; he chose Aphrodite as the winner of the apple. This story of the Judgment of Paris was considered to be the real reason behind the Trojan War.

During the Trojan War, Aphrodite fought on the side of Paris.

Aphrodite rescued Paris from Menelaus by enveloping him in a cloud and taking him back to Troy.

Aphrodite owned a girdle that contained her enchantments; Hera borrowed it once to seduce Zeus in order to distract him from the Trojan War.

Aphrodite gave Harmonia a necklace that brought disaster to a later generation.

Prostitutes considered the Goddess of Love their patron.

Aphrodite had a few mortal lovers. One of the most notable was the Trojan shepherd Anchises. The two of them conceived Aeneas.

Corinth was the center of Aphrodite's worship.

Early Greek art depicted the goddess as nude.

She was the model for the famous sculpture Venus de Milo.

Aphrodite and Cupid initiated the love between Jason (hero of the Quest of the Golden Fleece) and the daughter of the Colchian King.

Learn about the children of Aphrodite

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Ares is the god of war, one of the Twelve Olympian gods and the son of Zeus and Hera. In literature he represents the violent and physical untamed aspect of war, which is in contrast to Athena who represents military strategy and generalship as the goddess of intelligence.

Although Ares embodied the physical aggression necessary for success in war, the Greeks were ambivalent toward him because he was a dangerous, overwhelming force that was insatiable in battle.

He is well known as the lover of Aphrodite, who was married to Hephaestus, and though Ares plays a limited role in literature, when he does appear in myths it is typically facing humiliation. For example, one famous story of Ares and Aphrodite exposes them to ridicule by the gods when her husband Hephaestus trapped them both naked in a bed using a clever device he made.

The Roman counterpart to Ares was Mars, who was known as a father to the Roman people. Because of this, he was a less aggressive and physical form, revealing a more calm and understanding demeanour.

Facts about Ares

Ares was most notably referred to as the God of War; he represented the unpleasant aspects of battle.

He was the son of Zeus and Hera, both of whom hated him (according to Homer).

He was most often characterized as a coward in spite of his connection to war; he responded to even the slightest injury with outrage.

According to some sources, Ares was described as Aphrodite's lover and was held in contempt by her husband, Hephaestus. The affair between them was not a secret among the Olympians.

Ares was never very popular-either with men or the other immortals. As a result, his worship in Greece was not substantial or widespread.

He came from Thrace, home of a fierce people in the northeast of Greece.

His bird was the vulture.

The Amazons, warrior women, were his daughters. Their mother was a peace-loving nymph named Harmony.

Otus and Ephialtes, twin giants, imprisoned Ares for a lunar year by binding him with chains of brass; he was eventually rescued by Hermes.

He always took the side of Aphrodite in the Trojan War. He fought for Hector (a Trojan) until a Greek warrior, Achilles, pierced him with a spear that was guided by Athena. He then departed the battlefield in order to complain to Zeus about Athena's violence.

Harmonia, Goddess of Harmony, was the daughter of Ares and Aphrodite.

He also had a son Dinlas with Aphrodite.

Eros (more commonly known as Cupid) was also the child of Ares and Aphrodite.

Tereus, a son of Ares, was known to have inherited his father's abhorrent qualities.

He was the biological father of at least three of Hercules' enemies: Cycnus, Lycaon, and Diomedes.

He had a sister named Eris, who was the Goddess of Discord.

Hebe, another sister of his, was the Goddess of Youth.

Ares rarely figures into mythology stories, but when he does, he usually suffers some form of humiliation.

He was associated with two other war deities: Enyalius and Enyo.

He had many offspring, which is characteristic of nearly all of the notable Greek gods. He conceived more mortal children than divine children.

In art, Ares is generally depicted wearing a spear and a helmet.

The other children of Zeus and Hera are Hebe and Hephaestus.

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Hera is the Queen of the Gods and is the wife and sister of Zeus

She is known for being the Goddess of Marriage & Birth. Despite being the Goddess of Marriage, she was known to be jealous and vengeful towards the many lovers and offspring of her husband Zeus.

She was also known to turn her anger towards mortals who crossed her as well - for example, Paris, who chose Aphrodite over Hera as the most beautiful goddess at the marriage of the sea-nymph Thetis to a mortal called Peleus.

In images and statues, Hera is portrayed as being majestic and solemn, crowned with the polos - a high cylindrical crown worn by many of the Great Goddesses.

Even before her marriage with Zeus, she ruled over the heavens and the Earth. This is one reason why she is referred to as 'The Queen of Heaven' - ruling over Mount Olympus where all the gods and goddesses live.

Even the great Zeus feared his wife Hera. Her never-ending hatred of Heracles, the illegitimate son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmene stemmed from his continuous adultery and, amongst other things, Hera raised a storm at sea in order to drive Heracles out of his course to kill him.

Zeus became so angry that he hung her in the clouds by a golden chain, and attached heavy anvils to her feet. Her son Hephaestus tried to release his mother from her humiliating position, for which Zeus threw him out of heaven, and his leg was broken by the fall.

Powers of Hera

Hera could control human bonds and relationships as well as fertility, birth and reproduction. She could make others pregnant or get pregnant herself - Hephaestus was born without help from Zeus.

Hera's abilities also included manipulating curses, for example- transforming humans into beasts or making them insane. One nymph she cursed was Echo, who could only ever repeat the words of others.

Facts about Hera, Queen of the Olympian Gods

Hera was Queen of the Olympian gods.

She was the wife and sister of Zeus.

Hera was a jealous wife, and she fought with Zeus frequently over his extramarital affairs and illegitimate children. For this reason, Hera was known for punishing offending husbands.

She was the protector of women, presiding over marriages and births.

She had three children with Zeus - Hebe, Ares, and Hephaestus.

While Hera was worshipped in all parts of Greece, temples were erected in her honor at Argos and Salmos.

The peacock was sacred to her.

Hera had few, if any, redeeming qualities. She never forgot an injury.

The Titans Ocean and Tethys brought her up.

Hera is often described as "cow-faced," although she was also called the chief among the immortals in beauty.

Though she may have been physically attractive, her vindictive personality makes her less so.

The Trojan War would have ended in peace, but Hera had a vested interest in its outcome and influenced Zeus to either switch sides or remain neutral.

Hera had no concept of justice when angry or jealous; she could not forgive the women with whom Zeus had sexual relations-even if they were innocent of wrongdoing.

Ilithyia, a daughter of Hera's, assisted women in childbirth.

In the story of the Quest of the Golden Fleece, Hera was a gracious protector of the heroes.

Paris awarded Aphrodite the Golden Apple over Athena and Hera.

Hera punished one of Zeus's love interests, Io, by putting her in the charge of Argus. Argus had a hundred eyes and kept vigilant watch over her so that Zeus could not come to her aid.

Hera turned Callisto into a bear because Zeus fell in love with her.

Hera arranged the death of Semele, another of Zeus's mortal conquests, although she did not directly cause it.

Hera never forgave Hercules for being Zeus's son, but when Hercules died and was taken to heaven, he and Hera reconciled. While in heaven, Hercules married Hera's daughter Hebe.

In some stories, it was at Hera's orders that Dionysus was torn to pieces. He was brought back to life, and it is this resurrection that was celebrated in theatres.

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Apollo • Greek God of the Sun - Facts and Information

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Apollo facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek god of the sun, light, music and prophecy.

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Greek God of Wine & the Grape Harvest

Dionysus was the ancient Greek god of wine, winemaking, grape cultivation, fertility, ritual madness, theater, and religious ecstasy. His Roman name was Bacchus. He may have been worshiped as early as 1500-11000 BCE by Mycenean Greeks. As wine was a major part of ancient Greek culture, Dionysus was an important and popular figure in mythology. He was one of the twelve Olympians, although he was the last to arrive, and his unusual birth and upbringing marked him as an outsider.

Earlier images and descriptions of Dionysus depict him as a mature male, bearded and robed holding a fennel staff tipped with a pine-cone. However, in later images the god is show to be a beardless, sensuous, naked or semi-naked androgynous youth. He is described in literature as womanly or "man-womanish".

He was the son of Zeus and the mortal Semele, making Dionysus semi-device or a hero.

Dionysus Origins

The most common origin given for Dionysus was that he was the son of Zeus and Semele. Zeus seduced and impregnated the beautiful princess of Thebes, but then a jealous Hera tricked Semele into demanding that Zeus reveal his true form to her. As a mortal, Semele could not look upon a god's true form without dying.

Zeus managed to rescue the unborn Dionysus by sewing him into his thigh. A few months later, Dionysus was born from Zeus's thigh. Other versions state that Dionysus's mother was Persephone or Demeter and that Hera sent Titans to kill the infant Dionysus. Regardless of the mother's identity or the nature of the near-death, the myths remained consistent that Zeus sewed Dionysus into his thigh. Thus, Dionysus was known to have been twice-born and was sometimes called "dimetor" (of two mothers).

After Dionysus was born from Zeus's thigh, he was taken to Silenus and the rain nymphs of Mount Nysa to be raised hidden from Hera's wrath. In some versions, he was later taken to be cared for by Semele's sister Ino. Once Dionysus was grown, he learned to cultivate grapes and became the first to turn them into wine. He then wandered across Asia teaching mortals the secrets of winemaking. After his long sojourn, Dionysus ascended Mount Olympus and became the last-arriving of the twelve Olympians.

The Outsider

Because Dionysus was the only Olympian with a mortal mother, because he was raised on the mythical Mount Nysa (which was believed to be either far to the south or the east), and because he wandered Asia before arriving in Greece, Dionysus was seen as an outsider. This was an inherent part of his cult, which often focused on the more subversive elements of his nature. Dionysus was often called Eleutherios, meaning "the liberator," because his wine, music, and ecstatic dance freed his followers from self-consciousness and the restraints of society.

Indeed, as the "twice-born" god, Dionysus had crossed the boundary between life and death, and he was often portrayed as the god who crossed the boundary between the civilized and uncivilized and the known and unknown. He was represented as a god of chaos and the protector of misfits.

Facts about Dionysus

Dionysus was primarily known as the God of the Vine.

He was also referred to as Bacchus.

Dionysus and Demeter, the Goddess of the Corn, were the supreme deities of the earth.

Unlike the immortal gods, who were often hostile toward human beings, Dionysus and Demeter were benevolent toward mankind.

Dionysus was the younger of the two, and little is known about how he came to take his place beside Demeter to be worshipped.

Dionysus and Demeter were worshipped at Eleusis, a little town near Athens.

Dionysus was a happy god during the harvest, but during the winter he languished along with the rest of the Earth.

Dionysus was the last god to enter Olympus.

Dionysus was the son of Zeus and the Theban princess Semele. He was the only god who had a mortal parent.

He was born in Thebes.

He was born of fire and nursed by rain. His birth corresponds to the development of grapes: heat ripens the fruit and water keeps it alive.

Upon reaching adulthood, Dionysus wandered the Earth, teaching men the culture of the vine.

Many festivals were held in honor of Dionysus: the Lesser or Rural Dionysia, the Greater or City Dionysia, the Anthesteria, and the Lenaea.

Dionysus was variously represented in art as a full-grown bearded man, as a beast, and as a slight youth.

Dionysus was insulted by Lycurgus, one of the kings in Thrace. Dionysus initially retreated and took refuge in the sea, but later he imprisoned Lycurgus for opposing his worship.

Performances of tragedy and comedy were a part of the festivals thrown in his honor.

Dionysus was also honored in lyric poetry.

Dionysus was once captured by pirates because he looked like the son of a king. They kidnapped him, envisioning the ransom his parents would pay upon his return. Aboard the ship, the pirates were unable to confine him; the ropes fell apart when they touched Dionysus.

Dionysus rescued the princess of Crete, Ariadne, and subsequently fell in love with her. Upon her death, Dionysus placed the crown he had given her among the stars.

Though Dionysus was mostly a kind and generous deity, he could be cruel when necessary. Pentheus, a king of Thebes, tried to stop the frenzied worship of Dionysus. He attempted to imprison the God of Wine, while hurling insults and accusations at him. Dionysus explained his own eminence calmly, but Pentheus was unreceptive. Dionysus caused the Theban women to go mad so that they thought Pentheus a wild beast. They tore Pentheus limb from limb.

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Dionysus Facts & Info * God Of Wine, Pleasure & Festivity

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Dionysus facts, information and stories from ancient Greek mythology. Learn about the Greek god of wine and the grape harvest, Dionysus.

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Persephone's story actually focuses more on her mother, Demeter, and what happens when Persephone disappears. The young goddess is also the daughter and niece of Zeus, and the wife and niece of Hades when she becomes the queen of the Underworld.

Daughter of Demeter

Persephone is a true nature child, being the daughter of the goddess of the harvest. Her mother is also affectionately known as Mother Nature. Persephone is a living example of youth, beauty, and life, and draws the attention of the king of the dead (Not to be confused with death itself, who is Thanatos).

While picking flowers with her companions, Persephone is lured away from the group by the most interesting, beautiful, and sweet-smelling blooms she has ever encountered. As she attempts to gather them, a great chasm opens in the earth and Hades bears upon her riding his monstrous chariot pulled by magnificent black stallions. He sweeps her away to the depths of the kingdom of the dead.

Demeter looks everywhere for her child, causing mayhem and destruction as she goes. At first Zeus does not see a need to seek out Hades and confront him about the abduction of Persephone, but when Demeter's horrible sadness causes her to neglect her duties as a goddess, the earth begins to suffer. Crops die, animals become barren, and the land becomes cold and lifeless. Zeus appeals to Hades, but finds out that the problem is a lot more complicated than just asking for her release.

The underworld has many rules, one of which is that should a mortal consume anything while in the underworld, that mortal cannot leave it. Supposedly unbeknownst to Hades, Persephone has swallowed several pomegranate seeds. Zeus is usually a stickler for the rules, unless it restricts him from getting something that he truly wants, but it this instance, he has to consider the fate of the world. He decrees that Persephone must be returned to Demeter for everyone's sake, and that she and Hades must share their time with her. They each get six months of the year with her.

When Hermes guides her out of the underworld and back to her mother, the earth begins to thaw. The earth experiences spring and summer while Persephone and Demeter are together. While she is with Hades, the earth feels Demeter's lament during autumn and winter. There is also a story about these two seasons that concerns Persephone as the queen of the Underworld.

Queen of the Underworld

While Persephone is more reasonable and compassionate than her fierce, but fair husband, she causes conflict when she does a favor for Aphrodite.

Apparently the goddess of love has fallen for the beautiful youth Adonis. When he dies, Aphrodite gives him to Persephone for safekeeping, but the goddess falls in love with him herself.

When she refuses to give him up, Zeus must again intervene with a similar resolution. The two goddesses must share him for six months out of the year, with Persephone claiming him during the autumn and the winter.

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Persephone * Facts and Information on the Goddess Persephone

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Persephone's story actually focuses more on her mother, Demeter, and what happens when Persephone disappears. The young goddess is also the daughter and niece of Zeus, and the wife and niece of Hades when she becomes the queen of the Underworld. Daughter of Demeter Persephone is a true nature child, being the daughter of the [...]

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Zeus, in ancient Greek religion, chief deity of the pantheon, a sky and weather god who was identical with the Roman god Jupiter. His name may be related to that of the sky god Dyaus of the ancient Hindu Rigveda. Zeus was regarded as the sender of thunder and lightning, rain, and winds, and his traditional weapon was the thunderbolt. He was called the father (i.e., the ruler and protector) of both gods and men.

According to a Cretan myth that was later adopted by the Greeks, Cronus, king of the Titans, upon learning that one of his children was fated to dethrone him, swallowed his children as soon as they were born. But Rhea, his wife, saved the infant Zeus by substituting a stone wrapped in swaddling clothes for Cronus to swallow and hiding Zeus in a cave on Crete. There he was nursed by the nymph (or female goat) Amalthaea and guarded by the Curetes (young warriors), who clashed their weapons to disguise the baby's cries. After Zeus grew to manhood he led a revolt against the Titans and succeeded in dethroning Cronus, perhaps with the assistance of his brothers Hades and Poseidon, with whom he then divided dominion over the world.

As ruler of heaven Zeus led the gods to victory against the Giants (offspring of Gaea and Tartarus) and successfully crushed several revolts against him by his fellow gods. According to the Greek poet Homer, heaven was located on the summit of Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece and the logical home for a weather god. The other members of the pantheon resided there with Zeus and were subject to his will. From his exalted position atop Mount Olympus Zeus was thought to omnisciently observe the affairs of men, seeing everything, governing all, and rewarding good conduct and punishing evil. Besides dispensing justice-he had a strong connection with his daughter Dike (Justice)-Zeus was the protector of cities, the home, property, strangers, guests, and supplicants.

Zeus was well known for his amorousness-a source of perpetual discord with his wife, Hera-and he had many love affairs with both mortal and immortal women. In order to achieve his amorous designs, Zeus frequently assumed animal forms, such as that of a cuckoo when he ravished Hera, a swan when he ravished Leda, or a bull when he carried off Europa. Notable among his offspring were the twins Apollo and Artemis, by the Titaness Leto; Helen and the Dioscuri, by Leda of Sparta; Persephone, by the goddess Demeter; Athena, born from his head after he had swallowed the Titaness Metis; Hephaestus, Hebe, Ares, and Eileithyia, by his wife, Hera; Dionysus, by the goddess Semele; and many others.

Though regarded by Greek religionists everywhere as omnipotent and the head of the pantheon, Zeus's very universality tended to reduce his importance compared with that of powerful local divinities like Athena and Hera. Although statues of Zeus Herkeios (Guardian of the House) and altars of Zeus Xenios (Hospitable) graced the forecourts of houses, and though his mountaintop shrines were visited by pilgrims, Zeus did not have a temple at Athens until the late 6th century bce, and even his temple at Olympia postdated that of Hera.

In art Zeus was represented as a bearded, dignified, and mature man of stalwart build; his most prominent symbols were the thunderbolt and the eagle.

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Zeus, in ancient Greek religion, chief deity of the pantheon, a sky and weather god who was identical with the Roman god Jupiter. His name may be related to that of the sky god Dyaus of the ancient Hindu Rigveda. Zeus was regarded as the sender of thunder and lightning, rain, and winds, and his traditional weapon was the thunderbolt.

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Dionysus, also spelled Dionysos, also called Bacchus or (in Rome) Liber Pater, in Greco-Roman religion, a nature god of fruitfulness and vegetation, especially known as a god of wine and ecstasy. The occurrence of his name on a Linear B tablet (13th century bce) shows that he was already worshipped in the Mycenaean period, although it is not known where his cult originated. In all the legends of his cult, he is depicted as having foreign origins.

Dionysus was the son of Zeus and Semele, a daughter of Cadmus (king of Thebes). Out of jealousy, Hera, the wife of Zeus, persuaded the pregnant Semele to prove her lover's divinity by requesting that he appear in his real person. Zeus complied, but his power was too great for the mortal Semele, who was blasted with thunderbolts. However, Zeus saved his son by sewing him up in his thigh and keeping him there until he reached maturity, so that he was twice born. Dionysus was then conveyed by the god Hermes to be brought up by the bacchantes ( maenads, or thyiads) of Nysa, a purely imaginary spot.

As Dionysus apparently represented the sap, juice, or lifeblood element in nature, lavish festal orgia (rites) in his honour were widely instituted. These Dionysia ( Bacchanalia) quickly won converts among women. Men, however, met them with hostility. In Thrace Dionysus was opposed by Lycurgus, who ended up blind and mad.

In Thebes Dionysus was opposed by Pentheus, his cousin, who was torn to pieces by the bacchantes when he attempted to spy on their activities. Athenians were punished with impotence for dishonouring the god's cult. Their husbands' resistance notwithstanding, women took to the hills, wearing fawn skins and crowns of ivy and shouting the ritual cry, "Euoi!" Forming thyai (holy bands) and waving thyrsoi (singular: thyrsus; fennel wands bound with grapevine and tipped with ivy), they danced by torchlight to the rhythm of the aulos (double pipe) and the tympanon (handheld drum). While they were under the god's inspiration, the bacchantes were believed to possess occult powers and the ability to charm snakes and suckle animals, as well as preternatural strength that enabled them to tear living victims to pieces before indulging in a ritual feast ( ōmophagia). The bacchantes hailed the god by his titles of Bromios ("Thunderer"), Taurokeros ("Bull-Horned"), or Tauroprosopos ("Bull-Faced"), in the belief that he incarnated the sacrificial beast.

In Orphic legend (i.e., based on the stories of Orpheus), Dionysus-under the name Zagreus-was the son of Zeus by his daughter Persephone. At the direction of Hera, the infant Zagreus/Dionysus was torn to pieces, cooked, and eaten by the evil Titans. But his heart was saved by Athena, and he (now Dionysus) was resurrected by Zeus through Semele. Zeus struck the Titans with lightning, and they were consumed by fire. From their ashes came the first humans, who thus possessed both the evil nature of the Titans and the divine nature of the gods.

Dionysus had the power to inspire and to create ecstasy, and his cult had special importance for art and literature. Performances of tragedy and comedy in Athens were part of two festivals of Dionysus, the Lenaea and the Great (or City) Dionysia. Dionysus was also honoured in lyric poems called dithyrambs. In Roman literature his nature is often misunderstood, and he is simplistically portrayed as the jolly Bacchus who is invoked at drinking parties. In 186 bce the celebration of Bacchanalia was prohibited in Italy.

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The followers of Dionysus included spirits of fertility, such as the satyrs and sileni, and in his rituals the phallus was prominent. Dionysus often took on a bestial shape and was associated with various animals. His personal attributes were an ivy wreath, the thyrsus, and the kantharos, a large two-handled goblet. In early Greek art he was represented as a bearded man, but later he was portrayed as youthful and effeminate. Bacchic revels were a favourite subject of vase painters.

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Dionysus | Powers, God, Parents, Meaning, Symbols, & Facts

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Dionysus, also spelled Dionysos, also called Bacchus or (in Rome) Liber Pater, in Greco-Roman religion, a nature god of fruitfulness and vegetation, especially known as a god of wine and ecstasy. The occurrence of his name on a Linear B tablet (13th century bce) shows that he was already worshipped in the Mycenaean period, although it is not known where his cult originated.

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Apollo, byname Phoebus, in Greco- Roman mythology, a deity of manifold function and meaning, one of the most widely revered and influential of all the ancient Greek and Roman gods. Though his original nature is obscure, from the time of Homer onward he was the god of divine distance, who sent or threatened from afar; the god who made men aware of their own guilt and purified them of it; who presided over religious law and the constitutions of cities; and who communicated with mortals through prophets and oracles his knowledge of the future and the will of his father, Zeus (Roman: Jupiter). Even the gods feared him, and only his father and his mother, Leto (Roman: Latona), could easily endure his presence. He was also a god of crops and herds, primarily as a divine bulwark against wild animals and disease, as his Greek epithet Alexikakos (Averter of Evil) indicates. His forename Phoebus means "bright" or "pure," and the view became current that he was connected with the Sun. See Helios.

Among Apollo's other Greek epithets was Nomios (Herdsman), and he is said to have served King Admetus of Pherae in the lowly capacities of groom and herdsman as penance for slaying Zeus's armourers, the Cyclopes. He was also called Lyceius, presumably because he protected the flocks from wolves ( lykoi); because herdsmen and shepherds beguiled the hours with music, scholars have argued that this was Apollo's original role. In art Apollo was represented as a beardless youth, either naked or robed. Distance, death, terror, and awe were summed up in his symbolic bow. A gentler side of his nature, however, was shown in his other attribute, the lyre, which proclaimed the joy of communion with Olympus (the home of the gods) through music, poetry, and dance.

Though Apollo was the most Hellenic of all gods, he derived mostly from a type of god that originated in Anatolia and spread to Egypt by way of Syria and Palestine. Traditionally, Apollo and his twin, Artemis (Roman: Diana), were born on the isle of Delos. From there Apollo went to Pytho ( Delphi), where he slew Python, the dragon that guarded the area. He established his oracle by taking on the guise of a dolphin, leaping aboard a Cretan ship, and forcing the crew to serve him. Thus, Pytho was renamed Delphi after the dolphin ( delphis), and the Cretan cult of Apollo Delphinius superseded that previously established there by Earth ( Gaea). During the Archaic period (8th to 6th century bce), the fame of the Delphic oracle spread as far as Lydia in Anatolia and achieved Panhellenic status. The god's medium was the Pythia, a local woman over 50 years old who, under his inspiration, delivered oracles in the main temple of Apollo. The oracles were subsequently interpreted and versified by priests. Other oracles of Apollo existed on the Greek mainland, on Delos, and in Anatolia, but none rivalled Delphi in importance.

Of the Greek festivals in honour of Apollo, the most curious was the octennial Delphic Stepterion, in which a boy reenacted the slaying of the Python and was temporarily banished to the Vale of Tempe.

Although Apollo had many love affairs, they were mostly unfortunate: Daphne, in her efforts to escape him, was changed into a laurel, his sacred shrub; Coronis (mother of Asclepius) was shot by Apollo's twin, Artemis, when Coronis proved unfaithful; and Cassandra (daughter of King Priam of Troy) rejected his advances and was punished by being made to utter true prophecies that no one believed.

In Italy Apollo was introduced at an early date and was primarily concerned, as in Greece, with healing and prophecy; he was highly revered by the emperor Augustus because the Battle of Actium (31 bce) was fought near one of his temples.

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Apollo | Facts, Symbols, Powers, & Myths

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Apollo, byname Phoebus, in Greco-Roman mythology, a deity of manifold function and meaning, one of the most widely revered and influential of all the ancient Greek and Roman gods.

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Who led the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece? Who is the Roman equivalent of the Greek god Ares? From fruits to winged sandals, test your knowledge in this study of Greek and Roman mythology.

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Hera | Characteristics, Family, & Worship

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Hera, in Greek religion, a daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea, sister-wife of Zeus, and queen of the Olympian gods. The Romans identified her with their own Juno. Hera was worshipped as goddess of marriage and of the life of women. She was patron of the cities Argos and Samos.

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Ares, in Greek religion, god of war or, more properly, the spirit of battle. Unlike his Roman counterpart, Mars, he was never very popular, and his worship was not extensive in Greece. He represented the distasteful aspects of brutal warfare and slaughter. From at least the time of Homer-who established him as the son of the chief god, Zeus, and Hera, his consort-Ares was one of the Olympian deities; his fellow gods and even his parents, however, were not fond of him (Iliad, Book V, 889 ff.). Nonetheless, he was accompanied in battle, by his sister Eris (Strife) and his sons (by Aphrodite) Phobos and Deimos (Panic and Rout). Also associated with him were two lesser war deities: Enyalius, who is virtually identical with Ares himself, and Enyo, a female counterpart.

Ares' worship was largely in the northern areas of Greece, and, although devoid of the social, moral, and theological associations usual with major deities, his cult had many interesting local features. At Sparta, in early times, at least, human sacrifices were made to him from among the prisoners of war. In addition, a nocturnal offering of dogs-an unusual sacrificial victim, which might indicate a chthonic (infernal) deity-was made to him as Enyalius. During his festival at Geronthrae in Laconia, no women were allowed in the sacred grove, but at Tegea he was honoured in a special women's sacrifice as Gynaikothoinas ("Entertainer of Women"). At Athens he had a temple at the foot of the Areopagus ("Ares' Hill").

The mythology surrounding the figure of Ares is not extensive. He was associated with Aphrodite from earliest times; in fact, Aphrodite was known locally (e.g., at Sparta) as a war goddess, apparently an early facet of her character. Occasionally, Aphrodite was Ares' legitimate wife, and by her he fathered Deimos, Phobos (who accompanied him into battle), Harmonia, and-as first told by Simonides in the 6th century bce- Eros, god of love. By Aglauros, the daughter of Cecrops, he was the father of Alcippe. He was the sire of at least three of Heracles' adversaries: Cycnus, Lycaon, and Diomedes of Thrace. On vases, Ares is usually the typical armed warrior. The Parthenon frieze contains a group of Olympians, among whom Ares, in unwarlike garb, has been tentatively identified. He also appears on the great frieze of the altar at Pergamum.

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Ares | God, Myths, Siblings, Family, & Facts

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Ares, in Greek religion, god of war or, more properly, the spirit of battle. Unlike his Roman counterpart, Mars, he was never very popular, and his worship was not extensive in Greece. He represented the distasteful aspects of brutal warfare and slaughter.

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Persephone, Latin Proserpina or Proserpine, in Greek religion, daughter of Zeus, the chief god, and Demeter, the goddess of agriculture; she was the wife of Hades, king of the underworld. In the Homeric "Hymn to Demeter," the story is told of how Persephone was gathering flowers in the Vale of Nysa when she was seized by Hades and removed to the underworld. Upon learning of the abduction, her mother, Demeter, in her misery, became unconcerned with the harvest or the fruitfulness of the earth, so that widespread famine ensued. Zeus therefore intervened, commanding Hades to release Persephone to her mother. Because Persephone had eaten a single pomegranate seed in the underworld, however, she could not be completely freed but had to remain one-third of the year with Hades, and spent the other two-thirds with her mother. The story that Persephone spent four months of each year in the underworld was no doubt meant to account for the barren appearance of Greek fields in full summer-after harvest, before their revival in the autumn rains, when they are plowed and sown.

Adam Augustyn.

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Persephone, Latin Proserpina or Proserpine, in Greek religion, daughter of Zeus, the chief god, and Demeter, the goddess of agriculture; she was the wife of Hades, king of the underworld. In the Homeric "Hymn to Demeter," the story is told of how Persephone was gathering flowers in the Vale of Nysa when she was seized by Hades and removed to the underworld.

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Aphrodite, ancient Greek goddess of sexual love and beauty, identified with Venus by the Romans. The Greek word aphros means "foam," and Hesiod relates in his Theogony that Aphrodite was born from the white foam produced by the severed genitals of Uranus (Heaven), after his son Cronus threw them into the sea. Aphrodite was, in fact, widely worshipped as a goddess of the sea and of seafaring; she was also honoured as a goddess of war, especially at Sparta, Thebes, Cyprus, and other places. However, she was known primarily as a goddess of love and fertility and even occasionally presided over marriage. Although prostitutes considered Aphrodite their patron, her public cult was generally solemn and even austere.

Some scholars believe Aphrodite's worship came to Greece from the East; many of her attributes recall the ancient Middle Eastern goddesses Ishtar and Astarte. Although Homer called her "Cyprian" after the island chiefly famed for her worship, she was already Hellenized by the time of Homer, and, according to Homer, she was the daughter of Zeus and Dione, his consort at Dodona. In Book VIII of the Odyssey, Aphrodite was mismatched with Hephaestus, the lame smith god, and she consequently spent her time philandering with the handsome god of war, Ares (by whom she became the mother of Harmonia, the warrior twins Phobos and Deimos, and Eros, the god of love).

Of Aphrodite's mortal lovers, the most important were the Trojan shepherd Anchises, by whom she became the mother of Aeneas, and the handsome youth Adonis (in origin a Semitic nature deity and the consort of Ishtar-Astarte), who was killed by a boar while hunting and was lamented by women at the festival of Adonia. The cult of Adonis had underworld features, and Aphrodite was also connected with the dead at Delphi.

Aphrodite's main centres of worship were at Paphos and Amathus on Cyprus and on the island of Cythera, a Minoan colony, where in prehistoric times her cult probably originated. On the Greek mainland, Corinth was the chief centre of her worship. Her close association with Eros, the Graces (Charites), and the Horae (Seasons) emphasized her role as a promoter of fertility. She was honoured by the Roman poet Lucretius as Genetrix, the creative element in the world. Her epithets Urania (Heavenly Dweller) and Pandemos (Of All the People) were ironically taken by the philosopher Plato (in the Symposium) to refer to intellectual and common love; rather, the title Urania was honorific and applied to certain Asian deities, while Pandemos referred to her standing within the city-state. Among her symbols were the dove, pomegranate, swan, and myrtle.

Representations of Aphrodite in early Greek art are fully dressed and without distinguishing features that differentiate her from other goddesses. She first attained individuality at the hands of the great 5th-century-bce Greek sculptors. Perhaps the most famous of all statues of Aphrodite was carved by Praxiteles for the Cnidians. The first full-scale female nude, it later became the model for such Hellenistic masterpieces as the Venus de Milo (2nd century bce).

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Aphrodite, ancient Greek goddess of sexual love and beauty, identified with Venus by the Romans. The Greek word aphros means "foam," and Hesiod relates in his Theogony that Aphrodite was born from the white foam produced by the severed genitals of Uranus (Heaven), after his son Cronus threw them into the sea.

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Hades | Characteristics, Family, & Mythology

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Hades, in ancient Greek religion, god of the underworld. He was a son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea and brother of the deities Zeus, Poseidon, and Hera. He ruled with his queen, Persephone, over the dead, though he was not normally a judge, nor did he torture the guilty, a task assigned to the Furies.

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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

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Hermes | Characteristics, Family, & Myth

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Hermes, Greek god, son of Zeus and the Pleiad Maia; often identified with the Roman Mercury. Hermes was associated with the protection of cattle and sheep. In the Odyssey, however, he appears mainly as the messenger of the gods and the conductor of the dead to Hades.

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Artemis, in Greek religion, the goddess of wild animals, the hunt, and vegetation and of chastity and childbirth; she was identified by the Romans with Diana. Artemis was the daughter of Zeus and Leto and the twin sister of Apollo. Among the rural populace, Artemis was the favourite goddess. Her character and function varied greatly from place to place, but, apparently, behind all forms lay the goddess of wild nature, who danced, usually accompanied by nymphs, in mountains, forests, and marshes. Artemis embodied the sportsman's ideal, so besides killing game she also protected it, especially the young; this was the Homeric significance of the title Mistress of Animals.

The worship of Artemis probably flourished in Crete or on the Greek mainland in pre-Hellenic times. Many of Artemis's local cults, however, preserved traces of other deities, often with Greek names, suggesting that, upon adopting her, the Greeks identified Artemis with nature divinities of their own. The virginal sister of Apollo is very different from the many-breasted Artemis of Ephesus, for example.

Dances of maidens representing tree nymphs ( dryads) were especially common in Artemis's worship as goddess of the tree cult, a role especially popular in the Peloponnese. Throughout the Peloponnese, bearing such epithets as Limnaea and Limnatis (Lady of the Lake), Artemis supervised waters and lush wild growth, attended by nymphs of wells and springs (naiads). In parts of the peninsula her dances were wild and lascivious.

Outside the Peloponnese, Artemis's most familiar form was as Mistress of Animals. Poets and artists usually pictured her with the stag or hunting dog, but the cults showed considerable variety. For instance, the Tauropolia festival at Halae Araphenides in Attica honoured Artemis Tauropolos (Bull Goddess), who received a few drops of blood drawn by sword from a man's neck.

The frequent stories of the love affairs of Artemis's nymphs are supposed by some to have originally been told of the goddess herself. The poets after Homer, however, stressed Artemis's chastity and her delight in the hunt, dancing and music, shadowy groves, and the cities of just men. The wrath of Artemis was proverbial, for to it myth attributed wild nature's hostility to humans. Yet Greek sculpture avoided Artemis's unpitying anger as a motif. In fact, the goddess herself did not become popular as a subject in the great sculptural schools until the relatively gentle 4th-century-bce spirit prevailed.

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Artemis, in Greek religion, the goddess of wild animals, the hunt, and vegetation and of chastity and childbirth; she was identified by the Romans with Diana. She was the daughter of Zeus and Leto and the twin sister of Apollo. Among the rural populace, Artemis was the favorite goddess.

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Hestia, in Greek religion, goddess of the hearth, daughter of Cronus and Rhea, and one of the 12 Olympian deities. When the gods Apollo and Poseidon became suitors for her hand she swore to remain a maiden forever, whereupon Zeus, the king of the gods, bestowed upon her the honour of presiding over all sacrifices.

She was worshipped chiefly as goddess of the family hearth; but, as the city union was only the family union on a large scale, she had also, at least in some states, a public cult at the civic hearth in the prytaneion, or town hall. Hestia was closely connected with Zeus, god of the family in its external relation of hospitality and its internal unity. She was also associated with Hermes, the two representing domestic life on the one hand, and business and outdoor life on the other. In later philosophy Hestia became the hearth goddess of the universe.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Adam Augustyn.

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Hestia, in Greek religion, goddess of the hearth, daughter of Cronus and Rhea, and one of the 12 Olympian deities. When the gods Apollo and Poseidon became suitors for her hand she swore to remain a maiden forever, whereupon Zeus, the king of the gods, bestowed upon her the honor of presiding over all sacrifices.

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Poseidon, in ancient Greek religion, god of the sea (and of water generally), earthquakes, and horses. He is distinguished from Pontus, the personification of the sea and the oldest Greek divinity of the waters. The name Poseidon means either "husband of the earth" or "lord of the earth." Traditionally, he was a son of Cronus (the youngest of the 12 Titans) and of Cronus's sister and consort Rhea, a fertility goddess. Poseidon was a brother of Zeus, the sky god and chief deity of ancient Greece, and of Hades, god of the underworld. When the three brothers deposed their father, the kingdom of the sea fell by lot to Poseidon. His weapon and main symbol was the trident, perhaps once a fish spear. According to the Greek poet Hesiod, Poseidon's trident, like Zeus's thunderbolt and Hades' helmet, was fashioned by the three Cyclopes.

As the god of earthquakes, Poseidon was also connected to dry land, and many of his oldest places of worship in Greece were inland, though these were sometimes centred on pools and streams or otherwise associated with water. In this aspect, he was known as enosichthon and ennosigaios ("earth-shaker") and was worshipped as asphalios ("stabilizer"). As the god of horses, Poseidon is thought likely to have been introduced to Greece by the earliest Hellenes, who also introduced the first horses to the country about the 2nd century bce. Poseidon himself fathered many horses, best known of which was the winged horse Pegasus by the Gorgon Medusa.

Poseidon came into conflict with a variety of figures in land disputes. Notable among these was a contest for sovereignty over Attica, which he lost to the goddess Athena. Despite losing, Poseidon was also worshipped there, particularly at Colonus (as hippios, "of horses").

Poseidon's offspring were myriad. He was the father of Pelias and Neleus by Tyro, the daughter of Salmoneus, and thus became the divine ancestor of the royal families of Thessaly and Messenia. Many of his sons became rulers in other parts of the ancient Greek world. Otherwise he had many monstrous offspring, including giants and savage creatures, such as Orion, Antaeus, and Polyphemus. Progenitor of many, with several consorts, Poseidon also was married to the Oceanid Amphitrite, with whom he also had multiple offspring, including the sea creature Triton.

The chief festival in Poseidon's honour was the Isthmia, the scene of famous athletic contests (including horse races), celebrated in alternate years near the Isthmus of Corinth. His character as a sea god eventually became his most prominent in art, and he was represented with the attributes of the trident, the dolphin, and the tuna. The Romans, ignoring his other aspects, identified him with Neptune as sea god.

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Poseidon, in ancient Greek religion, god of the sea (and of water generally), earthquakes, and horses. He is distinguished from Pontus, the personification of the sea and the oldest Greek divinity of the waters. The name Poseidon means either "husband of the earth" or "lord of the earth."