# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Bestiary >> Legendary Creatures >> Phoenix (Phoinix)

Translation

Phoenician?

Phoenix, Aberdeen Bestiary manuscript (1200), Aberdeen University Library

THE PHOINIX (Phoenix) was a fabulous, red-gold feathered bird whose body emitted rays of pure sunlight. The creature lived for five hundred years and feasted upon Arabian balsalm and frankinsense. When it died a new Phoinix emerged fully-grown from its body. It then encased its parent in an egg of myrrh and conveyed it to the great Egyptian temple of the Sun-God in Heliopolis.

PARENTS

THE PHOINIX (Herodotus 2.73, Ovid Metamorphoses 15.385, Apollonius of Tyana 1.38, Claudian Phoenix)

OFFSPRING

THE PHOINIX (ibid.)

ENCYCLOPEDIA

PHOENIX (Phoinix). A fabulous bird Phoenix, who, according to a belief which Herodotus (ii. 73) heard at Heliopolis in Egypt, visited that place once in every five hundred years, on his father's death, and buried him in the sanctuary of Helios. For this purpose Phoenix was believed to come fror Arabia, and to make lan egg of myrrh as large as possible; this egg he then hollowved out and put into it his father, closing it up carefully, and the egg was believed then to be of exactly the same weight as before. This bird was represented resembling an eagle, with feathers partly red and partly golden. (Comp. Achill. Tat. iii. 25.) Of this bird it is further related, thai when his life drew to a close, he built a nest for himself in Arabia, to which he imparted the power of generation, so that after his death a new phoenix rose out of it. As soon as the latter was grown up, he, like his predecessor, proceeded to Heliopolis in Egypt, and burned and buried his father in the temple of Helios. (Tac. Ann. vi. 28.) According to a story which has gained more currency in modern times, Phoenix, when he arrived at a very old age (some say 500 and others 1461 years), committed himself to the flames. (Lucian, De Mort. Per. 27; Philostr. Vit. Apollon. iii. 49.) Others, again, state that only one Phoenix lived at a time, and that when he died a worm crept forth from his body, and was developed into a new Phoenix by the heat of the sun. His death, further, took place in Egypt after a life of 7006 years. (Tzetz. Chil. v. 397, &c.; Plin. H. N. x. 2; Ov. Met. xv. 392, &c.) Another modification of the same story relates, that when Phoenix arrived at the age of 500 years, he built for himself a funeral pile, consisting of spices, settled upon it, and died. Out of the decomposing body he then rose again, and having grown up, he wrapped the remains of his old body up in myrrh, carried them to Heliopolis, and burnt them there. (Pompon. Mela, iii. 8, in fin.; Stat. Silv. ii. 4. 36.) Similar stories of marvellous birds occur in many parts of the East, as in Persia, the legend of the bird Simorg, and in India of the bird Semendar.
Source: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
CLASSICAL LITERATURE QUOTES

Hesiod, Precepts of Chiron Fragment 3 (from Plutarch de Orac. defectu 2.415C) (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C.) :
"A chattering crow lives out nine generations of aged men, but a stag's life is four times a crow's and a raven's life makes three stags old, while the Phoinix (Phoenix) outlives nine raves, but we, the rich-haired Nymphai (Nymphs), daughters of Zeus the aigis-holder, outlive ten Phoinixes."

Herodotus, Histories 2. 73 (trans. Godley) (Greek historian C5th B.C.) :
"There is another sacred bird, too, whose name is Phoinix (Phoenix). I myself have never seen it, only pictures of it; for the bird seldom comes into Aigyptos (Egypt) : once in five hundred years, as the people of Heliopolis say. It is said that the Phoinix comes when his father dies. If the picture truly shows his size and appearance, his plumage is partly golden and partly red. He is most like an eagle in shape and size. What they say this bird manages to do is incredible to me. Flying from Arabia to the temple of the Helios (the Sun), they say, he conveys his father encased in myrrh and buries him at the temple of Helios [i.e. in the temple of the Egyptian god Ra]. This is how he conveys him: he first molds an egg of myrrh as heavy as he can carry, then tries lifting it, and when he has tried it, he then hollows out the egg and puts his father into it, and plasters over with more myrrh the hollow of the egg into which he has put his father, which is the same in weight with his father lying in it, and he conveys him encased to the temple of the Sun in Aigyptos (Egypt). This is what they say this bird does."

Aelian, On Animals 6. 58 (trans. Scholfield) (Greek natural history C2nd A.D.) :
"The Phoinix (Phoenix) knows how to reckon five hundred years without the aid of arithmetic, for it is a pupil of all-wise nature, so that it has no need of fingers or anything else to aid it in the understanding of numbers. The purpose of this knowledge and the need for it are matters of common report. But hardly a soul among the Aigyptoi (Egyptians) knows when the five-hundred-year period is completed; only a very few know, and they belong to the priestly order. But in fact the priests have difficulty in agreeing on these points, and banter one another and maintain that it is not now but at some date later than when it was due that the divine bird will arrive. Meantime while they are vainly squabbling, the bird miraculously guesses the period by signs and appears. And the priests are obliged to give way and confess that thy devote their time 'to putting the sun to rest with their talk'; but they do not know as much as birds. But, in God's name, is it not wise to know where Aigyptos (Egypt) is situated, where Heliopolis whither the bird is destined to come, and where it must bury its father and in what kind of coffin?"

Philostratus, Life of Apollonius of Tyana 3. 49 (trans. Conybeare) (Greek biography C1st to C2nd A.D.) :
"'And the Phoinix (Phoenix),' he [the Indian sage Iarkhas (Iarchas) C1st A.D.] said, 'is the bird which visits Aigyptos (Egypt) every five hundred years, but the rest of that time it flies about in India; and it is unique in that it gives out rays of sunlight and shines with gold, in size and appearance like an eagle; and it sits upon the nest; which is made by it at the springs of the Nile out of spices. The story of the Aigyptoi (Egyptians) about it, that it comes to Aigyptos, is testified to by the Indians also, but the latter add this touch to the story, that the Phoinix which is being consumed in its nest sings funeral strains for itself. And this is also done by the swans according to the account of those who have the wit to hear them.'"

Ovid, Metamorphoses 15. 385 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) :
"These creatures [other races of birds] all derive their first beginnings from others of their kind. But one alone, a bird, renews and re-begets itself--the Phoenix of Assyria, which feeds not upon seeds or verdure but the oils of balsam and the tears of frankincense. This bird, when five long centuries of life have passed, with claws and beak unsullied, builds a nest high on a lofty swaying palm; and lines the nest with cassia and spikenard and golden myrrh and shreds of cinnamon, and settled there at ease and, so embowered in spicy perfumes, ends his life's long span. Then from his father's body is reborn a little Phoenix, so they say, to live the same long years. When time has built his strength with power to raise the weight, he lifts the nest--the nest his cradle and his father's tomb--as love and duty prompt, from that tall palm and carries it across the sky to reach the Sun's great city [i.e. Heliopolis in Egypt], and before the doors of the Sun's holy temple lays it down."

Statius, Silvae 3. 2. 101 (trans. Mozley) (Roman poet C1st A.D.) :
"Altars [in Egypt] the long-lived Phoenix prepares for his own death."

Claudian, The Phoenix (trans. Platnaeur) (Roman poet C4th A.D.) :
"There is a leafy wood fringed by Oceanus' farthest marge beyond the Indes (India) and the East where Dawn's panting coursers first seek entrance; it hears the lash close by, what time the watery threshold echoes to the dewy car; and hence comes forth the rosy morn while night, illumined by those far-shining wheels of fire, casts off her sable cloak and broods less darkly. This is the kingdom of the blessèd bird of the sun where it dwells in solitude defended b the inhospitable nature of the land and immune from the ills that befall other living creatures; nor does it suffer infection from the world of men. Equal to the gods is that bird whose life rivals the stars and whose renascent limbs weary the passing centuries. It needs no food to satisfy hunger nor any drink to quench thirst; the sun's clear beam is its food, the sea's rare spray its drink--exhalations such as these form its simple nourishment. A mysterious fire flashes from its eyes, and a flaming aureole enriches its head. Its crest shines with the sun's own light and shatters the darkness with its calm brilliance. Its legs are of Tyrian purple; swifter than those of the Zephyrs are its wings of flower-like blue dappled with rich gold.
Never was this bird conceived nor springs it from any mortal seed, itself is alike its own father and son, and with none to recreate it, it renews its outworn limbs with a rejuvenation of death, and at each decease wins a fresh lease of life. For when a thousand summers have passed far away, a thousand winters gone by, a thousand springs in their course given to the husbandmen that shade of which autumn robbed them, then at last, fordone by the number of its years, it falls a victim to the burden of age; as a tall pine on the summit of Caucasus, wearied with storms, heels over with its weight and threatens at last to crash in ruin; one portion falls by reason of the unceasing winds, another breaks away rotted by the rain, another consumed by the decay of years.
Now the Phoenix's bright eye grows dim and the pupil becomes palsied by the frost of years, like the moon when she is shrouded in clouds and her horn beings to vanish in the mist. Now his wings, wont to cleave the clouds of heaven, can scarce raise them from the earth. Then, realizing that his span of life is at an end and in preparation for a renewal of his splendour, he gathers dry herbs from the sun-warmed hills, and making an interwoven heap of the branches of the precious tree of Saba he builds that pyre which shall be at once his tomb and his cradle.
On this he takes his seat and as he grows weaker greets the Sun with his sweet voice; offering up prayers and supplications he begs that those fires will give him renewal of strength. Phoebus [Apollon or Helios the Sun], on seeing him afar, checks his reins and staying his course consoles his loving child with these words : 'Thou who art about to leave thy years behind upon yon pyre, who, by this pretence of death, art destined to rediscover life; thou whose decease means but the renewal of existence and who by self-destruction regainest thy lost youth, receive back thy life, quit the body that must die, and by a change of form come forth more beauteous than ever.'
So speaks he, and shaking his head casts one of his golden hairs and smites willing Phoenix with its life-giving effulgence. Now, to ensure his rebirth, he suffers himself to be burned and in his eagerness to be born again meets death with joy. Stricken with the heavenly flame the fragrant pile catches fire and burns the aged body. The moon in amaze checks her milk-white heifers and heaven halts his revolving spheres, while the pyre conceives the new life; Nature takes care that the deathless bird perish not, and calls upon the sun, mindful of his promise, to restore its immortal glory to the world.
Straightway the life spirit surges through his scattered limbs; the renovated blood floods his veins. The ashes show signs of life; they begin to move though there is none to move them, and feathers clothe the mass of cinders. He who was but now the sire comes forth from the pyre the son and successor; between life and life lay but that brief space wherein the pyre burned.
His first delight is to consecrate his father's spirit by the banks of the Nile and to carry to the land of Aegyptus (Egypt) the burned mass from which he was born. With all speed he wings his way to that foreign strand, carrying the remains in a covering of grass. Birds innumerable accompany him, and whole flocks thereof throng in airy flight. Their mighty host shuts out the sky where'er it passes. But from among so vast an assemblage none dares outstrip the leader; all follow respectfully in the balmy wake of their king. Neither the fierce hawk nor the eagle, Jove's [Zeus'] own armour-bearer, fall to fighting; in honour of their common master a truce is observed by all. Thus the Parthian monarch leads his barbarous hosts by yellow Tigris' banks, all glorious with jewels and rich ornament and decks his tiara with royal garlands; his horse's bridle is of gold, Assyrian embroidery embellishes his scarlet robes, and proud with sovereignty he lords it o'er his numberless slaves.
There is in Aegyptus (Egypt) a well-known city [Heliopolis] celebrated for its pious sacrifices and dedicated to the worship of the Sun [i.e. the Egyptian god Ra]. Its temples rest on a hundred columns hewn from the quarries of Thebes. Here, as the story tells, the Phoenix is wont to store his father's ashes and, adoring the image of the god, his master, to entrust his precious burden to the flames. He places on the altar that from which he is sprung and that which remains of himself. Bright shines the wondrous threshold; the fragrant shrine is filled with the holy smoke of the altar and the odour of Indian incense, penetrating even as far as the Pelusiac marshes, fills the nostrils of men, flooding them with its kindly influence and with a scent sweeter than that of nectar perfumes the seven mouths of the dark Nile.
Happy bird, heir to thine own self! Death which proves our undoing restores thy strength. Thine ashes give thee life and though thou perish not thine old age dies. Thou hast beheld all that has been, hast witnessed the passing of the ages. Thou knowest when it was that the waves of the sea rose and o'erflowed the rocks, what year it was that Phaëthon's error devoted to the flames. Yet did no destruction overwhelm thee; sole survivor thou livest to see the earth subdued; against thee the Fates gather not up their threads, powerless to do thee harm."

Claudian, The Rape of Proserpine 2. 78 ff (trans. Platnauer) (Roman poet C4th A.D.) :
"All the sweet airs of Panchaea's incense-bearing woods, all the honied odours of Hydaspes' distant [Indian] stream, all the spices which from the furthest fields the long-lived Phoenix gathers, seeking new birth from wished for death."

SOURCES

GREEK

Hesiod, Precepts of Chiron Fragments - Greek Epic C8th - 7th B.C.

Herodotus, Histories - Greek History C5th B.C.

Aelian, On Animals - Greek Natural History C2nd - 3rd A.D.

Philostratus, Life of Apollonius of Tyana - Greek Biography C2nd A.D.

ROMAN

Ovid, Metamorphoses - Latin Epic C1st B.C. - C1st A.D.

Statius, Silvae - Latin Poetry C1st A.D.

Claudian, Phoenix - Latin Poetry C4th A.D.

Claudian, Rape of Proserpine - Latin Poetry C4th A.D.

OTHER SOURCES
Other references not currently quoted here: Antiphron 175, Pseudo-Lactanius' Phoenix.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A complete bibliography of the translations quoted on this page.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
PHOENIX (Phoinix) - Fire-Bird of Greek & Roman Legend

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In ancient Greek and Roman legend the Phoenix was a fabulous, red-gold feathered bird whose body emitted rays of pure sunlight. The creature lived for five hundred years and feasted upon Arabian balsalm and frankinsense. When it died a new Phoenix emerged fully-grown from its body.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I For reason, ruling alone, is a force confining;
and passion, unattended, is a flame that burns to its own destruction. Therefore let your soul exalt your reason to the height of passion,
that it may sing; And let it direct your passion with reason,
that your passion may live through its own daily resurrection, and like the phoenix rise above its own ashes. - Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
The beautiful, legendary bird that lived in Arabia and, according to myth, consumed itself by fire every 500 years. A new, young phoenix - just as breathtaking - sprang from its ashes. In ancient Egypt, the phoenix represented the sun, which dies at night and is reborn in the morning. Greek mythology presents the stunning creature in the early morning - at dawn it bathes in water and sings an enchanting song. So beautiful is this song that the sun god Helios would stop his chariot to listen. There only exists one phoenix at a time. Upon its impending death, it builds a nest, sets itself on fire, and is consumed by the flames. A new phoenix springs forth from the pyre. Early Christian tradition adopted the phoenix as a symbol of both immortality and resurrection. Modern folklore utilizes the magnificant creature as a symbol of renewal, rebirth, and starting anew.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Legend and Mythological Story of the Phoenix.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I For reason, ruling alone, is a force confining; and passion, unattended, is a flame that burns to its own destruction. Therefore let your soul exalt your reason to the height of passion, that it may sing; And let it direct your passion with reason, that your passion may live through its own daily resurrection, and like the phoenix rise above its own ashes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
100 GREEK & ROMAN ALLUSIONS

Persephone

Persephone is the greek goddess of the underworld. Persephone is the name of a band from Albuquerque, NM.

Www.persephone.com is the site of a San Francisco pop band.

Persephone Books publishes re-discovered inter war novels.

There is a Persphone Theater.

Demeter is the goddess of agricultuer. Demeter Ampilfication designs and manufactures professional audio equiptment.

Demeter is a center for software services.

Demeter is the name of an alternitive rock band from London.

Demeter Matrix Alliance Inc. is a consultant angency.

This was a 10-year sea voyage. Odyssey Travel is a well-known travel agency.

Odyssey Cruise Lines is a cruise company.

Odyssey Records is a record company.

There is even an Odyssey Golf club line.

pegusus was the winged horse that was born from Medusa's head when she was killed. Pegasus Expedite Company is a national delivery/courier service.

Pegasus Satellite Systems is a provider of satellite entertainment services.

In Roman mithology, saturn is Zeus father. Modernly, Saturn is the name of a famous car company.

Saturn is also the 6th planet from the sun.

Minerva

Roman name for Athena, who was the virgin goddess of knowlege, gifted the humans with the olive tree. Minerva Oil company is an international food tradeing company.

atlas is the man who holds the world on his shoulders. modernly, the Atlas travel helps lost people get around.

Atlas Van Lines is also a famous travle company.

Mercury

This roman messanger god is better known as a model of a ford car.

There is also a record company named Mercury Records.

Mercury is also the first planet form the sun.

Mercury Marine manufactures outboard motors and MerCruiser inboard engines.

Mercury is also the name of an auto insurance company

Mercury is the name of one of the sites of the Envormental Protection Agency.

Race of gods preceding the Olympians. Titan Tool & Die Company manufactures tools for industry.

Spatans were Greek warriors. Spartan Corporation is a financial advisory company.

Also, Spartan Tool & Die is a national manufacturer and supplier to the auto industry.

Spartan Nutritional Products is a maker and distributor of health supplements (no wonder those spartans were so bulky).

Ira was the Roman goddess of anger and fury. There is a town of Ira in New York.

Ira Ryan is a bran of bicycles.

Ira Motor Gorup is an auto deaer in Boston, Massachusetts.

Ira Epstein and Company is a discount trading company

Venus

Roman for Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and love. Venus is the name of a famous beauty product company.

Venus International is a popular beauty talent agency.

Venus Tan Lines is a swimsuit manufacturer.

Venus Razor is a popular women's shaving accessory (works great :-)).

Venus Beauty Salon is found in most any city or town.

Venus is also the second planet from the sun.

Trojans were the inhabitants of the mighty city that was destroyed by the Greeks. Trojan Condoms international manufacturer of condoms and birth control products.

THS has there mascot as a Trojan as well.

Charon

Boatman who ferries the souls of the dead to the Underworld. Www.charon.com is a company offering solutiond to a "connected world" , kinda funny.

Delphi

Delpht was the sanctuary to Apollo and home to his famous Oracles. Modernly, Delphi Forums ( www.delphi.com ) is an on-line meeting place to promote discussions and to find answers.

Delphi is also the name of an international Automotive Group.

Hercules was the greatest greek hero (until he had a little meltdown). There is a company called Hercules, that makes top-selling video graphics card (their slogan is Legendary Strength, Quality and Performance).

There is also the Hercules transport plane used by the United States Air Force to carry large volumes of war material and food.

A company called Hercules Incorporated, is a maker of chemicals and allied products.

A titan whose name means "he who goes before the sun". www.hyperion.com is a company that specializes in "business analysis software."

Hyperion is also the name of a book publishing company.

Hermes was the Olympian Herald and Messenger god. Now a days, Hermes is a popular brand of soap.

Also, the FTD flower delivery company incorporates Hermes and his winged heels in their logo.

Orion was a giant hunter in greek mythology. There is a motion picture production company called Orion Pictures.

First known as the rainbow goddess, she is now known as a popular cottonball brand

The first woman in Greek mythology, whose name means "all-gifted". There is a company that sells quality gift merchandise called Pandora's Gift Boutique.

Aegis

In Mithology, this was Zeus and Athena's protective shield. Now, it is a a modern day insurance company called The Aegis Group. A shield is now an insurance company....funny.

Hydra was a nine headed sea serpent killed by Hercules in mithology. Www.hydra.com is a the name of an internet chess club. Im guessing boy nerds created that website.

Mars

Mars is the Roman god of war. The Hersheys company decided to name one of their candy bars after him. It is a very good chocolate cany bar if I may say so myself.

Mars is the fourth planet from the sun

This man was a very powerful warrior in the Trojan War. No wonder there is an Ajax cleaning product named after him...works great on the tub!

In Roman mithology, Vulcan was the god of Smiths and Forge. A manufacturing company called Vulcan Industries international makes steal products. The company name really fits them.

This was the three pronged speare of Posidion. Also modernly known as a very popular gum to make your teeth shine. This allusion is minty fresh!

Posidion and Neptune

Posidion is the Greek God of the sea. Modernly there is a common travle agency known as Posidion Travel.

Posidion Seafood is also a national brand of seafood products.

Neptune is the Roman name. Neptune Fresh Lobster Co. is another company using the God of the sea's name to sell seafood.

Neptune is also the eigth planet from the sun.

In mithology, he was originally known as the god of arts and music. In modern day New York City, there is the famous misic hall called the Apollo Theater

Another allusions to Apollo is the Apollo, which was a rocket.

Www.apollocimamas.co/uk is a site that showa film and movie times.

Better known today as Argus Security, specializing in comertial business protection. Argus was actually a giant watchman with one hundred eyes in mithology.

A Roman godess of dawn. In Colorado, there is a city called Aurora.

Midas was a king who turned all he touched into gold. Modern day, there is a popular brake and muffeler servace copany.

Nike is the winged goddess of victory who could run and fly at great speeds. Its no wonder the shoe brand Nike named themselves after her.

Aeolus was the god to the four winds, but modernly, he is better known as an online music store at www.aeolus-music.com.

Aeolus is also a synthesized pipe organ emulator

Polyphemus

Calypso is a nymph, and the daughter of the titan, Atlas. Calypso Technology is a leading software provider

Calypso is an Afro-Caribbean style of music

Pluto is the God of the underworld. In the cartoon Micky Mouse, his dogs name is Pluto.

Pluto is also the ninth planet from the sun.

Pluto Books publishes labor books

Www.pluto.net offers background info of bands, their gigs, and music samples.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
100 Greek and Roman Allusions - 100 allusions

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Persephone is the greek goddess of the underworld. Persephone is the name of a band from Albuquerque, NM. Www.persephone.com is the site of a San Francisco pop band. Persephone Books publishes re-discovered inter war novels. There is a Persphone Theater. Demeter is the goddess of agricultuer. Demeter Ampilfication designs and manufactures professional audio equiptment.

# data[].attributes.body
Allusions in everyday life

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
History for kids - Free history network for kids

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Greek Gods

Welcome to our Greek Gods and Goddesses page here on History for Kids. We have some fun facts and pictures for you to color. You will learn some interesting facts about each God as you read down the page. Take your time there is a lot of information on this page, check out the quick facts also if you just need a quick understanding and characteristics of each one.

Athena

Athena was tall, strong, graceful, gray-eyed, and she liked owls. From the beginning, she was a pretty amazing goddess. In fact, even her birth was most unusual.

Zeus, the father of gods and goddesses, was also Athena's father. Her mother was a mortal woman named Metis. Older gods had warned Zeus that he would be in trouble if Metis gave birth to a daughter. So he swallowed Metis whole.

When it came time for Athena to be born, she sprang full grown out of Zeus's head. She was completely dressed in armor, as she always would be. She also carried a shield and a spear. As you might guess about a woman in armor, she was a great warrior.

Athena was also a goddess of wisdom. She taught people about arts and crafts. She also taught them how to think clearly and live well. She was often seen with an owl, so owls became a symbol of wisdom.

Athena didn't get along with the sea god Poseidon. For one thing, they were often rivals over one thing or another. Once the people of a new city were looking for a god to watch over and protect them. Athena and Poseidon both wanted the job.

To impress the city's citizens, the two gods gave them gifts. Poseidon struck the ground with his three-pointed spear, and water poured out. The water turned into a river that flowed into the sea. Poseidon told the people to build ships to sail to the sea. He said that they could travel everywhere. They could become the most powerful people on earth.

The citizens were indeed impressed. But then Athena told them to taste the water. It tasted awful. It was saltwater, which is impossible to drink.

Then Athena gave the citizens her gift. When she hit the ground with her spear, a tree magically grew up within seconds. She explained that it was a special tree-an olive tree. Its wood was good both for building houses and for heating those houses in winter. Better still, the tree's little green fruits, called "olives," were delicious. And oil made out of the olives was useful for cooking.

The citizens liked Athena's gift better than Poseidon's. Not only did they choose Athena to watch over them, they named the city after her. They called it Athens. Poseidon left in a huff, causing a serious flood on his way. But the Athenians weren't bothered very much. With Athena's help, their city grew to be strong and wealthy. Athens became one of the greatest cities of all time. Today it's the capital and the largest city of Greece.
Here are some historical facts about the city of Athens:

Athenians did their best to make their city live up to its name. Inspired by their tales about Athena's wisdom, Athens became a center of civilization.

Athenians turned their city into the world's first democracy.

Athenians wrote the world's first plays, both comedies and tragedies. Those plays were performed in an open-air theater. They are still popular today.

Some of history's greatest thinkers were Athenian. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were the city's most famous philosophers.

The world's first historians, Herodotus and Thucydides, lived in Athens.

Athenians created some of the world's most beautiful buildings. The ruins of its most famous temple, the Parthenon, are still standing today. The Parthenon once held a large statue of Athena.

The Athenian Hippocrates is said to be the father of medicine. He wrote a famous oath that is still spoken by doctors today.

Poseidon

The brothers Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon were the most important gods of all. Zeus was the strongest and wisest of the three and ruled over the earth. Hades ruled the Underworld, the world of the dead. Poseidon ruled the seas. He was also the god of earthquakes and horses.

Poseidon had a beard and long blue hair. He drove a golden cart called a chariot.

It was pulled by strange beasts that were half-horse and half-snake. Fish and dolphins always swam along beside the sea god's chariot.

Poseidon carried a three-pointed spear called a trident. He used this to start earthquakes or bring water out of the ground.

Like the sea he ruled, Poseidon could be either calm or stormy. As you might guess, the god of earthquakes had a short temper. He didn't get along with other gods. He didn't always get along with mortals, either.

The people of Troy once asked Poseidon to help build a wall around their city. He helped, but then he got angry when he didn't get paid for his work. He was Troy's enemy ever after that. When Troy fought a terrible war against Greece, Poseidon supported the Greeks.

Each god had a city to protect and watch over. The city showed its thanks by honoring that god especially. Maybe because he was ill-tempered, Poseidon had trouble finding a city to honor him. The people of Athens chose Athena instead of Poseidon as its protector. The people of Naxos chose Dionysus. The people of Aegina chose Zeus. Finally, all the gods had special cities except Poseidon. He was very unhappy and disappointed.

But at long last, the people of Atlantis chose Poseidon. Atlantis was a huge island, and its people loved and honored him. There he fell in love with a mortal princess named Clito. He built a palace for her, and they had ten sons. The sons grew up to be kings who ruled different parts of Atlantis. Those kings ruled wisely, and Atlantis became the greatest civilization in the world. Poseidon was proud and happy.

But bad times came. The first kings of Atlantis died, and their sons were bad rulers. And the sons who came after them were worse yet. Years passed, and Atlantis was no longer the world's greatest civilization. It was actually the worst. It had become both wicked and foolish.

Finally, the people of Atlantis forgot to worship Poseidon. The sea god became angry and used his trident to start a terrible earthquake. Atlantis sank beneath the waves, never to be seen again.

*Horses were very important in the ancient world. Poseidon's earliest worshippers may have been the people who first brought horses to Greece.
Here are some historical facts about Poseidon's story:
*There are many earthquakes in Greece. Not surprisingly, a god of earthquakes was taken very seriously there.

*The sea was very important to the Ancient Greeks. They were great explorers whose ships sailed to distant places.

*Fishermen in the ancient world caught tuna with a trident.

*Atlantis was thought to have been in a faraway ocean. Today we call that ocean the Atlantic.

*Atlantis was probably imaginary. Even so, some people still believe that it once was real. And people keep looking for it.

*Atlantis may have been based on a real place. There once was a large island called Thera. It was destroyed by a huge volcano. Like Atlantis, it sank into the sea.

Hermes

Hermes was the messenger god. He was young and intelligent-looking. He wore a winged hat and winged sandals, and he carried a magic wand. (We know what he looked like because so many sculptors made statues of him.)

Hermes was said to be the god of the marketplace. Oddly, he was also said to be the god of thieves. He himself was a clever thief. He started stealing early in life-actually on the day he was born.

His father was Zeus, the king of the gods. His mother was a young goddess named Maia. He was born in a mountain cave, and only a few minutes after his birth, Hermes decided to make himself a toy. He picked up a tortoise shell and tied strings across it, then plucked the strings. That was how Hermes invented the first musical instrument, which was called a lyre. And he invented music too!

His playing and singing put his mother to sleep. Then, when Hermes was still only an hour or two old, he left the cave and went out to look around at the world. He soon found a herd of cattle that belonged to the god Apollo. The baby Hermes liked the cattle and decided to steal them.

When Apollo wasn't looking, Hermes tied branches to the cows' tails. As he led them away, the branches dragged along and erased their hoof prints. Then he hid the cattle and went back to his cave. He climbed back up into his sleeping mother's arms. When she woke up, she had no idea that he'd even been away.

When Apollo managed to track down Hermes, he was surprised to see that the thief was just a newborn baby. Even so, he demanded his cattle back. Then Hermes started playing the lyre. Apollo was so delighted by the music that he let Hermes keep the cattle in exchange for the lyre. After that, Apollo carried the lyre everywhere and became known as the god of music.

Hermes never stopped being full of mischief. But when he grew up, the gods learned that they could count on him for one important task. With his winged hat and sandals, he ran and flew as fast as the wind, so Zeus named him the messenger of the gods.

Whenever the gods wanted to send messages to mortals, they gave the job to Hermes. Although he didn't always tell the truth himself, he always delivered those messages just the way he was supposed to.

*Along with the lyre, Hermes was said to have invented another musical instrument called a panpipe. It's a kind of flute that is still played today.

*Hermes was said to be the god of travelers. Statues of him could be found at crossroads throughout Ancient Greece. They were put there to bring travelers good luck.
Here are some interesting facts about Hermes' story.
*There were no telephones and no Internet in the ancient world. Messages were usually carried by runners on foot. So the god of messengers was considered a very important god.

*One of the most famous messengers of all time was a soldier named Pheidippides. Story has it that he ran from one city to another, carrying news that the Greeks had won the Battle of Marathon. He delivered the message and died. Today's marathon races are held in his honor.

*Hermes' magic wand was called a caduceus. It had wings, like his hat and sandals. It also had snakes wrapped around it. Today the caduceus is the symbol of the medical profession.

Ares

Ares was the god of war. He wore armor and a helmet, and he carried a shield, sword, and spear. He was big and strong and had a fierce war cry, but his war cry was mostly just a lot of noise. Ares didn't fight at all well. The armored goddess Athena was a much better warrior.

The Ancient Greeks didn't like war, and they didn't like Ares, either. They considered him a troublemaker. And like many troublemakers, Ares was a coward and a bully.

In fact, Ares was never really of use to anybody in a war. One time a group of giants declared war on the gods. The giants wanted to rule the entire universe. To keep Ares out of the fighting, they sneaked up on him and knocked him out cold, then they stuffed him into a jar.

The other gods heard Ares screaming for somebody to let him out. They just ignored him because they figured they could fight better without him. They went on to defeat the giants, and then they let Ares out of the jar after the battle was over. Ares bragged about how he could have beaten the giants if he'd been free. The other gods only laughed.

Ares never stayed loyal to one side or the other in a war. He just enjoyed watching people fighting and dying. The war between Greece and Troy was one of the worst ever fought, and even the gods joined in the battle. When the war started, Ares promised his mother, Hera, to help the Greeks. But he was in love with the goddess Aphrodite, so she easily talked him into helping the Trojans.

The Trojans would have been just as happy without Ares's help. Always the bully, he didn't pick fights with other gods. Instead, he challenged a mortal Greek warrior named Diomedes, but Diomedes wounded Ares.

Ares liked to cause pain for others, but he whined and complained whenever he got hurt. This time was no different. The wound he got from Diomedes wasn't very serious, but even so, Ares didn't keep fighting. He went running back to Olympus, the home of the gods, and wept and wailed to his father Zeus. Even though Zeus bandaged up Ares's wound, he was not at all proud of his warrior son.

That wasn't the only time Ares was wounded. The great hero Heracles wounded him twice, and one of those times he took away Ares's armor and weapons. Both times Ares ran away crying to Olympus.

*For a long time, historians thought that the city of Troy was just a legend. But the ruins of Troy have been found in modern-day Turkey.

*The Trojan War was also thought to be only a legend. But today some historians think that there really was such a war. It was fought between Greece and Troy.

*The Greeks had good reason to dislike war. The cities of Greece fought each other in a terrible war that lasted for 27 years. It's called the Peloponnesian War.
Here are some interesting facts about Ares's story:
*Although the Ancient Greeks didn't like Ares, the Ancient Romans admired him. They called him Mars. They told stories that made Mars sound like a hero.

*The Romans liked Ares because they thought that war was noble. The Romans spoke Latin. The Latin words for "war" and "beauty" are very similar. The word for "war" is "bellum." The word for "beauty" is "bellus."

Zeus

Zeus was the king of the gods. He and his brothers Hades and Poseidon were in charge of the whole universe. Hades ruled the Underworld, the world of the dead. Poseidon ruled the seas. Zeus, the greatest of the three, ruled the earth and the sky. He controlled the weather, causing wind and rain. He also caused thunder and lightning. He threw his thunderbolt like a spear.

Zeus was a good reminder that the gods were not perfect. For one thing, he was not all-powerful. His daughters, the three Fates, decided the futures of both gods and mortals. Zeus couldn't overrule their decisions.

And although Zeus was often wise, he could also be foolish. He could be selfish and even cruel. He was not a good husband to Hera, the queen of the gods. And he was not a good father to many of his children. Not surprisingly, the other gods sometimes rebelled against his rule.

Still, Zeus most gods and mortals respected Zeus. He gave laws and justice to mortals. He taught them kindness and good manners. One story shows how much Zeus prized hospitality and kindness toward strangers.

Zeus liked to travel, sometimes in disguise. Once he was traveling with his son Hermes, the messenger god, in a land called Phrygia. They were both disguised as ordinary mortal men. They stopped at all the houses in Phrygia, asking for food and a place to stay the night. Time and time again, they were rudely turned away. Even rich people turned them away.

At last they arrived at the home of an elderly couple, a woman named Baucis and a man named Philemon. Baucis and Philemon were extremely poor. Even so, they treated the travelers kindly, inviting them into their home for food and drink. They allowed the disguised gods to spend the night.

The next day, Hermes and Zeus took off their disguises. Everyone could see that they were gods. Zeus punished the couple's Phrygian neighbors with a terrible flood. All houses were destroyed, except the little hut of Baucis and Philemon. Zeus turned it into a beautiful temple.

As a reward for their kindness, Zeus offered the couple anything that they wanted. Because they had lived happily together all their lives, they asked never to be parted. Even in death they wanted to remain together. Baucis and Philemon spent the rest of their lives serving as the temple's priestess and priest. When they died they turned into two trees growing out of the same trunk.

*Weather seemed even more mysterious in ancient times than it does today. It's no surprise that the god who controlled the weather was the most powerful god of all.

*Lightning and thunder were especially puzzling to ancient people. Many cultures have had gods of thunder and lightning. In Norse mythology, it was Thor. To the Finns, it was Ukko. To the Aztecs, it was Tlaloc.

*Lightning remained a mystery for thousands of years. During the 1700s, the American scientist and thinker Benjamin Franklin helped solve that mystery. He discovered the lightning was made up of electricity. Then he invented the lightning rods to protect houses and buildings. He was nicknamed "the Man Who Tamed the Lightning."

*In ancient times, travel was difficult and dangerous. Travelers depended on the kindness of people they met along the way. The Greeks even had a word for kindness toward strangers and travelers. They called it xenios.
Here are some interesting facts about Zeus's story:
Aphrodite

Aphrodite had an unusual birth. She rose up out of sea foam, beautiful and fully grown-up. She was the goddess of love, and she liked doves, sparrows, and swans. She was married to Hephaestus, the god of the forge, but not at all happily. She was really in love with Ares, the god of war.

Aphrodite and her son Eros were in charge of making people and gods fall in love. Eros used his magic bow and arrow to make that happen.

Oddly, this goddess of love helped start a terrible war. But she didn't really mean to. Eris, the goddess of discord, liked to stir up trouble. So one day Eris made a golden apple. She wrote the words "For the Fairest" on it. Then she threw this apple where the goddesses Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite would find it.

Each one of them thought she was "the Fairest"-the most beautiful goddess of all. They decided to hold a beauty contest. To judge the contest, they chose a mortal named Paris. He was a handsome Prince of Troy.

Each goddess took Paris aside and offered him a gift. If Paris chose Hera, she promised to make the ruler of the world. If he chose Athena, she promised to make him a victorious soldier. But Paris wasn't very ambitious or brave. He wasn't interested in either of those offers.

Then Aphrodite promised Paris the love of the most beautiful woman in the world. This appealed to Paris much more than the other offers did. So he judged Aphrodite "the Fairest" of the goddesses, and she got to keep the apple.

This was exactly what the troublemaking Eris had hoped for. The most beautiful woman in the world happened to be married already. Her name was Helen. She was the Queen of Sparta and the wife of King Menelaus.

When Helen and Paris ran away to Troy together, Menelaus was furious. He called all the great warriors of Greece together, and they declared war on Troy. Many thousands of warriors died in the Trojan War, which lasted ten years. It ended with the destruction of Troy.

*Today some historians believe that there really was a Trojan war. It was fought between Greece and Troy.

*The Romans called Aphrodite by the name Venus. The planet Venus is named after her.

*Venus is the planet closest to Earth. It is also the nearest planet in size to Earth. Next to the moon, it is usually the brightest object in the nighttime sky. Venus is easiest to see in the morning and evening. That's why it is called both the "Morning Star" and the "Evening Star."

*The Greeks pictured Aphrodite's son Eros as a handsome young man. The Romans called him Cupid. They came to picture him as a little boy with wings and a bow and arrow. Pictures of Cupid are very common on Valentine's Day.

*The goddess Venus was said to be the mother of the hero Aeneas. According to legend, Aeneas helped found the city of Rome. The real-life Roman general and dictator Julius Caesar claimed to be a descendent of Venus.
Here are some interesting facts about Aphrodite's story:
Hera

Hera was the queen of the gods and the protector of women. Her husband Zeus ruled the earth and sky. She was the mother of the war god Ares and the forge god Hephaestus. Her daughter, Ilithyia, was the goddess of childbirth.

Hera was beautiful and graceful. But she was also stern and bossy. And she could be very vain about her good looks. Hera was furious when she lost a beauty contest with Athena and Aphrodite. Another time, a mortal queen claimed to be more beautiful than Hera. The goddess turned that queen into a crane.

Although Hera was the goddess of marriage, her own marriage wasn't happy. For one thing, Zeus was always interested in other women. Hera had good reason to be jealous.
Once she sent a hundred-eyed monster named Argos to spy on Zeus. Even Zeus couldn't get away with much with Argos watching him!

Annoyed, Zeus called upon his son Hermes, the messenger god. He ordered Hermes to kill Argos. This was hard to do, because some of Argos's eyes were always awake and watching. But Hermes managed to put all those eyes to sleep. Then he killed Argos as Zeus had commanded.

Hera put Argos's eyes in the peacock's tail. The peacock was her favorite bird from that time on. Hera was also fond of cows, lions, and cuckoos.

Next, Zeus asked a young goddess named Echo for help. Echo was a wonderful storyteller. At Zeus's orders, Echo told Hera stories. That kept Hera's attention for hours and hours. Meanwhile, Zeus could sneak away and do whatever he wanted.

Hera figured out what was going on. She got very angry with Echo. This wasn't fair, of course. Echo couldn't help what she was doing. After all, she couldn't very well disobey the king of the gods. But when Hera was angry, she could be most unfair.

Hera cursed Echo. She took away Echo's power to tell stories. She even took away Echo's power to speak normally. Instead, Echo could only repeat things said by others.

Echo became so sad that she disappeared completely. But it is said that you can still hear her voice. If you shout in a canyon or valley, Echo might repeat your words.

*Hera was the goddess of the calendar year. The ancient Athenians didn't have just one calendar. Instead, they used a calendar for festivals, another for political matters, and another for the seasons.

*Today many cultures have different yearly calendars. The 12-month calendar mostly used in European and American countries is called the Julian calendar.

*Hera was a goddess who protected women. In Ancient Athens, women needed a protector. Even when Athens became a democracy, women had very few rights. An unmarried girl was ruled by her father; a married woman was ruled by her husband. Women could not become full citizens. Even male slaves had more rights than women did.

*Things were different in Sparta, Athens's warlike neighbor. Spartan men were often away fighting. When the men were gone, women took charge in many important ways. Some of the wealthiest and most powerful Spartan citizens were women. Even so, Spartan women could not hold political positions.

Artemis
Here are some interesting facts about Hera's story:
Artemis was the god Apollo's twin sister. She was goddess of the moon and of the hunt. She didn't like cities very much, preferring to roam forests and mountainsides.

She hunted with a silver bow and silver arrows. Like all good hunters, Artemis liked to protect wildlife. She took special care to watch over small animals.

Artemis was a strong-willed goddess. She knew what she wanted from an early age. Once when she was three years old, she was sitting on her father Zeus's knee. Zeus asked the little goddess what she most wanted in life.

First, she asked Zeus for three different names. These would fit her moods, which could be seen in the changing Moon. When she was cheerful and the moon was bright, she was called Selene. When she was in a bad mood and the moon was dark, she was called Hecate. The rest of the time she was called Artemis.

She also asked Zeus for loyal goddesses to hunt with. Zeus gave her lots of female followers called nymphs. Finally, she told Zeus that she never wanted to have much to do with men. So Zeus made sure that Artemis never fell in love with a man and never had a husband.

Although she wasn't interested in much except hunting, Artemis could also be a good warrior. In fact, she was a much better fighter than Ares, the god of war. She was also more clever. One time some giants declared war on the gods. The giants trapped Ares in a jar, so he couldn't do any fighting at all. Artemis tricked two of the giants by taking the shape of a deer and running between them. The giants both shot arrows at the deer, but killed each other instead.

Artemis was also clever about keeping men out of her life-both gods and mortals. The river god Alpheus fell in love with her and went chasing after her through the woods. Artemis smeared mud all over her own face, then told her nymphs to do the same. Alpheus couldn't tell Artemis and the nymphs apart. The river god gave up and went home, sad and disappointed.

Artemis was especially honored by a legendary race of women called Amazons. They were all warrior women who never married.

*The "Seven Wonders of the Ancient World" was a list made by the Greeks of man-made marvels. A temple of Artemis was on that list. The Great Pyramids of Egypt are the only wonders on the list still standing today.

*Because she was the goddess of the Moon, Artemis has a crater on the Moon named after her. A crater is a hollow place that was formed by collision with an object from outer space.

*The moon has long been believed to affect human moods and actions. One Roman name for the goddess of the moon was "Luna." The word "lunatic," meaning insane person, came from that name.

*A lunar eclipse happens when the earth passes between the sun and the moon. On February 29, 1504, the explorer Christopher Columbus was on the island of Jamaica. He knew that a lunar eclipse was coming, and that the moon would seem to disappear. The islanders didn't know what an eclipse was. Columbus used the eclipse to trick the islanders into doing whatever he wanted.

Hades

The brothers Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades were the most important gods of all. Zeus was the strongest and wisest of the three and ruled over the earth. Poseidon ruled the seas. Hades ruled the Underworld, the world of the dead. Hades had dark hair and a dark beard, and he drove a chariot drawn by four dark horses. He was married to Persephone, the queen of the dead.
Here are some interesting facts about Artemis's story:
Neither gods nor mortals liked Hades very much. This wasn't really fair. Hades wasn't mean or cruel. It just wasn't his job to be kind or merciful. His duty was to make sure the dead stayed in the Underworld forever.

Few mortals ever went to the Underworld and made it back alive. One of these was the great singer Orpheus. When his wife, Eurydice, died, Orpheus went to the Underworld to bring her back.

Orpheus's singing delighted Hades, so he agreed to let him take Eurydice back home. Hades made one rule, though. Orpheus wasn't allowed to look at Eurydice as they fled the Underworld. But along the way, Orpheus turned to see if Eurydice was still following him. So she had to stay in the world of the dead forever.

There aren't many stories about Hades. Because he rarely left the Underworld, he seldom had adventures. He just went about the unpleasant business of ruling the dead. When he did go out into the world of the living, it usually ended badly for him.

Once Hades left his realm in search of Sisyphus, the king of Corinth. Sisyphus was one of the cleverest mortals who ever lived. He managed to cheat death time and time again.

Hades planned to put Sisyphus in handcuffs and take him to the Underworld. Instead, the tricky king talked Hades into trying on the handcuffs himself. As long as Sisyphus held Hades hostage, nobody would ever die. The gods couldn't allow that, so they pestered Sisyphus into letting Hades loose.

Sisyphus himself finally died and went to the Underworld. The gods knew that he might still be up to mischief even there. So they sentenced him to an impossible task.

Sisyphus had to roll a huge boulder up a hill, only to have it roll back down again. Then he had to roll it back up the hill, only to have it roll down yet again. Poor Sisyphus had to do this again and again forever. At least it kept him from causing Hades any more trouble.

Eventually, the world of the dead itself came to be called Hades, after its king. A fierce three-headed dog named Cerberus guarded Hades. The river Styx flowed between Hades and the world of the living. A ferryman named Charon rowed dead souls across the Styx.

*The Ancient Greeks feared Hades so much that they avoided saying his name. Instead, they called him "Pluton," which meant "the Rich." This was because Hades' realm was said to be the home of precious stones and metals. The Romans renamed Hades "Pluto."

*Today, a plutocrat is someone who rules other people with wealth. A plutocracy is a government based on wealth.

*A small, distant object called Pluto was once thought to be the farthest planet from the sun. Today Pluto is no longer considered to be a planet at all. The farthest planet from the sun is called Neptune. This was the Roman name for Poseidon, the god of the sea.

*A task that seems pointless and endless is now sometimes called Sisyphean.

Apollo

Apollo was the twin brother of Artemis, the goddess of the hunt and the Moon. Like his sister, Apollo loved hunting with a bow and arrow. He was the god of wisdom, poetry, and music.

Apollo was a handsome god, with long black hair. He drove a golden chariot drawn by swans. He was the leader of the Muses, the nine goddesses of the arts.
Here are some interesting facts about Hades' story:
This god liked lions, wolves, stags, crows, and dolphins. He also liked cattle, and once had a herd of his own. The baby Hermes stole that herd from him. But Apollo let Hermes keep the cattle in return for his lyre. The lyre was a kind of harp that Hermes had made out of a tortoise shell.

When Apollo was still a young god, he wanted to know his future. So he went to a town called Delphi, where a priestess was said to tell fortunes. She was called an "oracle."

When Apollo arrived in Delphi, he found trouble awaiting him. A monster named Python was supposed to guard the oracle. But Python had turned cruel and was terrorizing the people of Delphi.

Apollo killed Python with his bare hands. Then the citizens of Delphi built a temple in his honor. The oracle kept telling people's fortunes there.

After that, Apollo became known as the god of prophecy-which means the ability to foretell the future. He was believed to always tell the truth.

Apollo was also known as great healer. However, he sometimes caused disease as well. His son, Asclepius, was the god of medicine for a while. But Asclepius grew so powerful that he could raise the dead. The gods couldn't allow that, so Zeus killed Asclepius with his thunderbolt.

Because Apollo was called the god of light, he was sometimes mistaken for the sun god. The real god of the sun was Helios, who drove a flaming chariot across the sky.

Helios once made a terrible mistake. He allowed his half-mortal son Phaeton to drive his chariot. But Phaeton couldn't control Helios's horses. He almost destroyed the world with that flaming chariot. Like Asclepius, Phaeton was killed by Zeus's thunderbolt.

*A huge snake called a python can be found in parts of Africa and Asia. It's named after the monster that Apollo killed.

*In ancient times Delphi was said to be the center of the world. Its ruins are still visited today.

*The Pythian Games were an athletic event held every four years in Delphi. They were named after the monster slain by Apollo. Those games were something like today's Olympics. The earliest Olympic games were also played in Ancient Greece.

*A priestess in Delphi really was believed to tell fortunes. Once she was asked about the Athenian philosopher Socrates. She said that no one in the world was wiser than he. Socrates was surprised, because he thought he knew nothing at all. He soon noticed that people who thought themselves wise knew no more than he did. So Socrates was truly wise in knowing himself to be ignorant.

*Today the word Apollonian means wise, prudent, and well thought-out. The god Dionysus was thought to be reckless and unruly, most unlike the calm and sensible Apollo. So the word Dionysian means wild, uncontrolled, and lacking reason.

Hephaestus

Hephaestus was the god of fire. He was a blacksmith whose forge was in a volcano. His helpers were one-eyed giants called Cyclopes. He worked in bronze, iron, silver, and gold. He also made things out of clay, including living creatures. From clay he made Pandora, the first mortal woman in the world.

Hephaestus made many useful things for the gods. For the messenger god Hermes, he made a winged hat and winged sandals. For the sun god Helios, he made a golden chariot to ride across the sky. For the Eros, the god of love, he made a silver bow with silver arrows.
Here are some interesting facts about Apollo's story:
Hephaestus was a good-natured god who usually got along well with everybody. Even so, his mother, Hera, once got angry with him. She threw him off Olympus, the mountain where the gods lived. When he hit the ground, he broke his foot. A goddess named Thetis nursed him back to health. But he walked with a limp ever after that.

Good-natured though he was, Hephaestus didn't forgive Hera. And he finally got even with her. He made a beautiful throne out of gold and offered it to her as a gift. When she sat on it, invisible chains wrapped around her wrists. She couldn't get out of the throne, which rose up into the air.

All the gods tried to talk Hephaestus into letting Hera loose. Hephaestus finally did when the beautiful goddess Aphrodite agreed to marry him. Theirs wasn't a happy marriage, though. Aphrodite was really in love with Ares, the god of war.

The goddess Thetis had a half-mortal son named Achilles. When Achilles was a baby, she bathed him in the river Styx. This was supposed to make him invulnerable, meaning impossible to hurt or kill. Even so, Thetis worried when Achilles got ready to go fight in the Trojan War.

Hephaestus made the best weapons and armor in the world. So Thetis asked Hephaestus to make a shield and armor for Achilles. Hephaestus was still grateful to Thetis for helping him after his fall from Olympus. So he was happy to do as she asked.

Hephaestus's armor didn't let Achilles down during the war. But Thetis had made one mistake. When she had dipped Achilles in the river Styx, she had held him by the heel. So his heel was not invulnerable. Achilles was killed by an arrow in his heel.

*Pandora, the woman Hephaestus made from clay, was said to have had a box of evils. She opened the box, letting all those evils loose in the world. Today, to "open a Pandora's box" means to cause a lot of trouble accidentally.

*The Romans gave Hephaestus the name Vulcan. That's where the word "volcano" comes from.

*The word "vulcanization" also comes from the name Vulcan. Vulcanization is a process for hardening rubber, especially for tires. It uses extreme heat and sulfur.

*Today, a person's weak spot is called an "Achilles's heel," after the story of how Achilles died.

*Human history is sometimes divided into three periods. These are named after the materials most used for tools in those times. The earliest was the Stone Age, followed by the Bronze Age, followed by the Iron Age. The stories about Hephaestus were told in the Iron Age, when blacksmithing was very important.

Hestia

The beautiful Hestia was the oldest of the gods of Olympus. She disliked gossip, so hardly any stories were told about he. But it would be a mistake to think she wasn't important. In some ways, she was the most important of all the gods.

From the earliest times, the other gods of Olympus all had duties. Hermes carried messages, Ares was in charge of war, Artemis watched over all hunters, and Zeus ruled over everybody. Other gods had other jobs. But for a time, no one seemed to know what Hestia was supposed to do.

One day the gods Poseidon and Apollo told Zeus that they both loved Hestia. Both of them wanted to marry her. They demanded that Zeus choose between them. Otherwise, war would break out among the gods. And such a war would have been terrible indeed.
Here are some interesting facts about Hephaestus's story:
But Hestia solved the whole problem very simply. She refused ever to have a husband. Zeus was relieved and grateful to avoid a war. As a reward, he gave Hestia the keys to Olympus. He put her in charge of the gods' everyday business. Hestia made sure that the gods always had plenty of food, clothing, and money. After all, even gods have to worry about such things!

Zeus also made Hestia the goddess of homes everywhere. It was she who taught mortals how to build houses. And every house had a sacred spot for her. That was the hearth, the center of family life.

Mortals prayed to Hestia more than to any of the other gods. Every family meal began and ended with a prayer to Hestia. Whenever a baby was born, the parents carried it around the hearth and prayed to Hestia. Mortals had a saying: "Begin with Hestia." In other words, when doing anything, always start out in the right way.

Hestia lived a quiet life, leaving fame and adventure to others. Zeus's half-mortal son Dionysus showed up on Olympus one day. He wanted to have a throne like the other important gods. Hestia gladly gave up her own throne for him. After all, she was too busy to spend much time sitting there.

Here are some interesting facts about Hestia's story:

*A hearth in an Ancient Greek home wasn't like today's fireplaces. It wasn't placed in a wall at the end of a room.

Instead, it was in the middle of the central room. Its coals burned all the time, whether for warmth or for cooking. In honor of Hestia, Greeks made sure that the fire never went out.

*Every Ancient Greek city also had a public hearth for all citizens. Hestia was sacred there also. When the people of one city founded another city, they took coals with them to light the new city's hearth. As in hearths in private houses, the fires in public hearths were never allowed to die out.

*In Ancient Rome, Hestia was called by the name of Vesta. The six priestesses in her temple were called Vestals. Like Vesta herself, they never married.

*An asteroid called Vesta is named after the goddess. An asteroid is a body that orbits the sun but is much smaller than a planet. Although Vesta is only the second largest asteroid, it is the one most visible from Earth. The largest asteroid is called Ceres, the Roman name for the goddess Demeter.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Athena Poseidon Hermes Ares Zeus Aphrodite Hera Artemis Hades Apollo Hephaestus Hestia Welcome to our Greek Gods and Goddesses page here on History for Kids. We have some fun facts and pictures for you to color. You will learn some interesting facts about each God as you read down the page.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Myth Man's Award-winning Mythology Homework Help

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Kids learn about Greek Mythology and the gods, goddesses, and heroes of Mount Olympus including Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Aphrodite, the Titans, Heracles, Achilles, Apollo, Artemis, and fun facts.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In ancient times, the Greek people believed their mythical world was real. Greek storytellers would travel from village to village, telling tales of gods and goddesses. Sometimes, they told tales of monsters. The children listening to these stories would shiver and ooh, but they weren't really scared. Everybody knew that in the story, a brave Greek hero would kill the monster, using courage, intelligence, and strength.

The Hydra was a terrible, mean, rotten swamp monsters with nine heads. There was nothing nice about the Hydra. Hercules fought this monster and finally won, but he had a tough time. Each time Hercules cut off one of the Hydra's head, two heads grew back in its place! The myth of the brave Greek hero Hercules and the Lernaean Hydra

Medusa was once a beautiful human woman, but she angered the goddess Athena. Athena punished her by turning Medusa's long gorgeous hair into squirming and wiggling poisonous snakes. The snakes did not bite Medusa, but they bit and killed anyone else who got too close. Plus, if you even looked at Medusa you would be turned to stone. It was never wise to anger the Greek gods, but this was an especially terrible punishment. It did not take long before Medusa turned into a terrible person, which is understandable, but still, she could not be allowed to hurt good people. The myth of the brave Greek hero Perseus and the evil monster Medusa.

The Harpies: Part human female and part bird, the three Harpies were winged monsters who snatched up evil doers in their sharp claws, and tortured them all the way to the Underworld, where they dropped them off from great heights. (If the evil doers were not dead already, the fall would certainly kill them.)

Typhon was an especially scary monster. He had one hundred snake heads. The Typhon scared everybody, gods and mortals. Zeus finally killed this horrible monster using his lightening bolts. Thank goodness for Zeus!

Here are some ancient Greek monster myths retold for kids by Lin Donn. Keep in mind, these are just stories. Don't let these creepy monsters scare you one bit.

The myth of the brave Greek hero Theseus and the Minotaur, the monster in the maze

The myth of the brave Greek hero Perseus, the beautiful human Andromeda, and the sea god, Poseidon

In the Cyclops Cave and The Story of the Sirens - two very short stories from the Odyssey

Kerberos (Cerberus) - The Three-Headed Dog

Hercules and the Stymphalian Birds

Hercules and the Lernaean Hydra

Perseus and Medusa

A list of some of the ancient Greek monsters of myth (from Wikipedia) Note to our students: We included this list so you could see how many monsters there were in the ancient Greek mythical world. Keep in mind, these monsters were never real. They never existed. Don't let them scare you because they are just stories. But the ancient Greeks loved to hear about the Greek heroes who took on monsters and won! The ancient Greek storytellers had to keep their stories fresh and interesting, while being true to the major characteristics of the monsters already created by themselves and by other storytellers. They were paid with food, clothing, goods, and a place to sleep for the night. The best of the storytellers were very comfortable in ancient times. They followed a route. They did not, for the most part, wander aimlessly. People looked forward to their arrival. It was a big deal. Storytellers had to be creative to keep their interest. They told the same stories over and over, because people wanted to hear them. They added to stories. They created a new story with the same monster or mythical being.

All of these stories were told orally. They were not written down. Storytellers had to remember them. Artists and authors today still create stories and art featuring the monsters and mythical beings of the ancient Greeks, each in their own way but staying true to the main characteristics of each. For example, the Cyclops always has one eye and Cerberus is always a three-headed dog. After that, it's up to the storyteller. Scholars suspect that storytellers met on purpose while traveling and shared their stories. That way, the same story would be told by different storytellers, which gave the story a feeling of truth that it might not have any other way. The storytellers would tell the same story to a point, and then expand it in some way. The Greeks were not only creative. They were very clever.

Thanks to the storytellers, the people soon had a common language. They learned to speak Greek because it was the language of the storytellers. They had a common history. They had common heroes. They had a common religion. They began to think of themselves as one people.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ancient Greek Myths for Kids: Greek Monsters - Ancient Greece for Kids

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In ancient times, the Greek people believed their mythical world was real. Greek storytellers would travel from village to village, telling tales of gods and goddesses. Sometimes, they told tales of monsters. The children listening to these stories would shiver and ooh, but they weren't really scared.

# data[].attributes.headline
Allusions in 4th grade literature- Prezi

# data[].attributes.subject
Allusions in 4th grade literature- Prezi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Greek Mythology Allusions in 4th Grade Literature

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Greek Mythology Allusions in 4th grade Literature

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Of all the Ancient Greek facts, their stories of the gods have to be one of the most fascinating!Join National Geographic Kids as we meet some of them...
It was believed that the family of Greek gods lived in a cloud palace above Mount Olympus (the highest mountain in Greece). These gods were thought to have special powers, and each had control over a different aspect of life. Many of them also appear in the tales of Greek mythology.

Zeus was the king of the gods, and the most powerful. He was the god of the sky and thunder, and controlled the weather. He had different powers, his most famous being the ability to hurl lightning bolts at those who displeased him! He hated dishonesty, and would punish those who lied or broke promises.

Hera was Zeus' wife and queen of the gods. She was the goddess of women, marriage and family. Hera was well worshipped by the Ancient Greeks, and the oldest and most important temples of the region were built in honour of her. Her sacred animals were the cow, lion and peacock.

Poseidon was the brother of Zeus, and god of the sea and earthquakes. Although one of the gods of Mount Olympus, he spent most of his time in the ocean. His weapon was a trident which was said to be so powerful it could shake the earth and shatter any object! He had a reputation for being bad-tempered and moody, and would seek revenge on those who angered him.

Did you know we have a FREE downloadable Greek Mythology primary resource? Great for teachers, homeschoolers and parents alike!

Aphrodite was the goddess of love and beauty. The Greeks believed Aphrodite was created from the foam of the sea on the shores of Paphos, Cyprus. She was considered the most beautiful of the gods, and later married Hephaestus, god of metalwork and fire. Her sacred animal was the dove.

Hades was Zeus and Poseidon's elder brother. Although a god of Mount of Olympus, Hades rarely left his dark kingdom, the underworld, where he ruled over the dead. Because he represented death, Hades was the most feared of the Ancient Greek gods - some people even refused to say his name! Hades was aided in the underworld by his three headed dog, Cerberus.

A son of Zeus, Hermes was the messenger of the gods. He was also responsible for guiding the dead to the underworld. Hermes was said to be the fastest of the gods and wore winged sandals and a winged hat. He was also known for his intelligence and wit, and would help Zeus with his important decisions.

Demeter was the goddess of agriculture, vegetation and crop growth. She was also associated with the seasons. The Ancient Greeks believed that her daughter, Persephone, was taken from her for four months each year, during which Demeter would grieve and withdraw her gifts from the world, creating winter.

A son of Zeus, Apollo was the Greek god of music, arts, light and medicine. He was famous for playing the lyre (an instrument a bit like a small U-shaped harp) - and he was also believed to have invented the lute (a pear-shaped string instrument). Although associated with health and healing, together with his twin sister Artemis, he could bring disease and plague to humans.

Athena was the Greek goddess of wisdom, skill and war. She taught humans various skills and crafts such as weaving, and would protect heroes during war. She was said to be Zeus' favourite daughter, so much so that he would allow her to use his weapons - even this blastastic thunderbolt! Her sacred animal was the owl.

Love reading about the Ancient Greeks? Then be sure to check out our other fab features...

Photos: Getty Images UK

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Greece! - National Geographic Kids

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Of all the Ancient Greek facts, their stories of the gods have to be one of the most fascinating!Join National Geographic Kids as we meet some of them... It was believed that the family of Greek gods lived in a cloud palace above Mount Olympus (the highest mountain in Greece).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Who were the Greek gods? We list them here and give you profiles - suitable for schools.

# data[].attributes.body
Encyclopedia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
King of Mycenae and leader of the Greeks during the Trojan War, his leadership skills were only equalled by his selfishness, the latter famously upsetting Achilles when he stole the hero's female war-booty Briseis. After 10 years of war, the king was killed by his jealous wife Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus while he was enjoying his coming-home banquet. The famous gold Mask of Agamemnon from Mycenae, in fact, predates him by four centuries.

Goddess of love, beauty, and desire; her whisperings could derange both men and gods. She was especially worshipped on Cyprus, where she was believed to have risen from the foaming sea where Kronos threw the genitalia of his father Uranus. Unwilling wife of Hephaistos, she had famous flings with Ares, Hermes, and Dionysos.

Dashing and handsome, the son of Zeus and Leto was the god of healing and the arts. Twin brother of Artemis, his famous offspring include Orpheus and Asclepius. Often represented holding a lyre, he was immensely popular and had many temples and sanctuaries dedicated to him, notably at Delos and Delphi where his oracle dwelt.

Arachne

The talented Lydian weaver who foolishly challenged Athena to a sewing competition. Arachne does indeed produce a mesmerising cloth, but Athena loses her cool and destroys it. When the girl hangs herself as a consequence, the goddess transforms her into a spider so that she can go on weaving forever.

Argonauts

The group of heroes who sailed on the Argo with Jason in his quest for the Golden Fleece. The team included Hercules, Theseus, the Dioskouroi, Atalanta, Orpheus, and Meleager.

Argus (aka Argos Panoptes)

The one-hundred-eyed monster of dubious parentage. Set to guard Io by Hera, the creature did not see his demise coming at the hands of Hermes.

Ariadne

The daughter of King Minos of Crete who helped Theseus escape the Minotaur's labyrinth by giving the hero a ball of string so that he might find the entrance again. Not getting much reward for her efforts she was shortly after dumped on Naxos where Dionysos picked her up to become the god of wine's consort.

The god of medicine, he learnt his skills from his father Apollo and passed them on to such luminaries as Hippocrates. His medicinal skills were so effective that Zeus killed him with a thunderbolt for threatening the mortality of humanity. Asclepius' sanctuary at Epidaurus was famed throughout the ancient world and he is often depicted holding his staff ( bakteria) with a sacred snake coiled around it.

Atalanta

The hero huntress who accompanied Meleager on the Calydonian boar hunt. Her other achievements included slaying a pair of centaurs and beating Peleus at wrestling. Long a maiden, she only consented to marry the man who could beat her in a foot-race. Hippomenes won her hand by dropping apples on the track to distract Atalanta, but the pair's matrimony was short lived for, after making love in a temple of Zeus, they were punished by the god who transformed them into lions.

Athena

The maiden goddess of wisdom, war, and crafts, she was Zeus' favourite daughter and patron of Athens, which dedicated the Parthenon to her. In art, she often wears armour and a helmet pushed back on her head as in the silver coins of Athens.

Bellerophon

Cadmus

Calliope

The half-horse and half-man creatures who, often drunk, represented passions unabated and unbridled chaos. Living in Thessaly, some could be wise such as Chiron, tutor of Achilles, Hercules, and Asclepius. A popular subject in art, they appeared on several metopes of the Parthenon.

Cerberus

The ferocious three-headed hound of Hades which protected the entrance to the Underworld.

Charon

The ferryman who transports the souls of the dead across the river to Hades.

The sea monster which haunted the straits between Sicily and the Italian mainland, later rationalised as a whirlpool. Odysseus managed to escape it by grabbing onto an overhanging tree.

Chimera

The fire-breathing monster which is front-part lion with a snake's tail and the head of a goat on its back. Slain by the hero Bellerophon, it was the offspring of either Typhon and Echidna or reared by Amisodarus.

Chiron

The wise centaur who tutored Achilles, Jason, and Asclepius. He was especially knowledgeable of medicine and is often portrayed carrying a ready snack of hares over one shoulder.

Circe

The sorceress daughter of Helios and Perse who changed Odysseus' men into pigs. Although the hero himself could resist Circe's charms and magic by using the 'moly' plant, the group stayed on her island for a whole year, eventually acquiring useful advice for the perils of the journey home.

Clio

The Muse of history and often depicted holding a scroll.

Cyclopes

Danaids

The 50 daughters of Danaus who, avoiding marriage with the 50 sons of Aegyptus, fled with their father to Argos. The girls were pursued, though, and, on their wedding night, Danaus instructed them to kill the 50 men. One girl did not, Hypermestra, and she founded the dynasty of Argos. As a punishment for the dreadful deed (at least in Roman mythology) the girls must fill a large bowl with water down in Hades, made a neverending task as it has holes in it.

Dawn (aka Eos)

The winged daughter of Hyperion and Theia who rides a two-horse chariot across the sky each morning. Partial to handsome chaps she bagged the hunters Cephalus or Orion and the Trojan prince Tithonus, depending on the version of the myth. She asked Zeus to give the latter lover immortality but omitted to request eternal youth so that the poor fellow eventually withered away and was locked in a room as a mere keepsake. She was the mother of Memnon.

Daughter of Kronos and Rhea, she was the goddess of fertility and agriculture. She managed to negotiate the release of her daughter Persephone from Hades and both were the focus of the Eleusinian Mysteries cult. In art, she often carries a torch, sceptre, or stalk of grain.

Dionysos

The bad boy of Mt. Olympus, he was the god of wine, merriment, and theatre. The son of Zeus and Semele could subvert the best intentions of gods and men with his wine and is often portrayed alongside his rowdy entourage of satyrs, nymphs, and maenads.

Echidna

The half-snake, half-woman monster who was the daughter of Phorcys and Ceto. With Typhon, she created more monsters, many of which Hercules and other heroes fought, including Cerberus, the Chimera, and the Lernaean Hydra.

Erato

The Muse of singing.

The forever youthful primaeval god of passionate desire, who brings irrepressible feelings and wild impulses to whoever his loosely aimed arrows hit. Assistant to Aphrodite, he was the protector of homosexual love.

Europa

The daughter of Phoenician king Agenor or Phoenix, who was abducted by Zeus who transformed himself into a bull. Arriving on Crete, the couple had three children: Minos, Rhadamanthys, and Sarpedon. Zeus gave her a hound who always got its quarry, Talos the bronze man, and a javelin which always hit its target. Europa later married the Cretan king Asterius.

Euterpe

The Muse of lyric poetry and often portrayed playing a double aulos or flute.

Fates (aka Moirai)

The three goddesses who personified Fate. They were Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos, and were daughters of Zeus and Themis.

Winged creatures, born from the blood of Uranus, who punish the wicked by dispensing disease and madness. Daughters of Earth and Sky, they also protected senior family members.

Gaia

The primaeval earth goddess. With Tartarus, she gave birth to the monster Typhon. In art, a popular depiction is Gaia giving the baby Ericthonius (an Athenian hero) to Athena.

Ganymede

The handsome Trojan prince who caught Zeus' eye and was transported by the god (or his eagle) to Olympus where he serves as a cup-bearer.

Giants

Born from Ge and the blood of Gaia or Uranus, these unruly and immensely strong creatures fought the Olympian gods but were defeated when the latter had help from Hercules. This battle, the Gigantomachy, was a popular subject in Greek temple sculpture. Their number included Pallas, Alcyoneus, Porphyrion, Polybotes, Ephialtes, Hippolytus, Enceladus and Eurytus. They were all either killed or imprisoned beneath the volcanoes of Greece and Italy.

Gorgons

Graeae

The three sisters who share one tooth and one eye between them. The hero Perseus consulted them on the whereabouts of Medusa and got his answer by stealing their eye. They were the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto, and are named as Pemphredo, Enyo and Deino.

Three (or more) goddesses who personified charm, grace, and beauty in all its forms from the aesthetic to the intellectual. Offspring of Zeus and Eurynome, they were also accomplished at poetry, dancing, and music, and particularly associated with spring flowers.

Hades

The moon goddess associated with witchcraft, magic, doorways, and creatures of the night - especially hounds and ghosts. Hesiod makes her daughter of Perses and Asteria. She is often depicted with three faces representing her role as guardian of crossroads.

Hector

The wise and noble son of the Trojan king Priam; he is the great hero of the city but falls at the hands of Achilles during the Trojan War. In vengeance for his killing of Patroclus, his body is dragged around the city walls behind the chariot of his slayer. Priam successfully appeals to Achilles for the restoration of his son's body whose funeral closes the .

The god of the sun who rode his golden chariot across the skies each day. Son of the titans Hyperion and Theia, he was famously represented by the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world.

Hephaistos

The genius blacksmith and god of fire, metallurgy, and crafts, he was lame after he was thrown from Mt. Olympus by either Zeus or his mother Hera, upset at his ugliness. Husband of Aphrodite under false pretences, from his workshop on Mt. Etna he created such wonders as the aegis of Zeus, the helmet of Hermes, the first woman Pandora, and the great shield of Achilles.

Hera

The famously jealous wife of Zeus, often with good reason, she was the goddess of marriage and family. Representing the ideal woman and fidelity, the daughter of Kronos and Rhea would take awful revenge on many of her husband's lovers and resulting offspring, especially Hercules. Patron of Argos, she was the mother of Ares, Hephaistos, and Hebe, amongst others.

Hercules

The semi-divine hero and son of Zeus and Alkmene, who performed such prodigious deeds that he won immortality and his place amongst the Olympian gods. His 12 mighty labours included slaying monsters like the Lernaean Hydra, the Stymphalian Birds, and the ferocious three-headed hound of Hades, Cerberus. He is usually portrayed in art carrying a huge club and wearing the skin he ripped from the Nemean Lion, another of his victims.

Hermes

The herald and messenger of the gods was himself the god of trade, wealth, luck, language, thieves, and travel. Son of Zeus and Maia (daughter of Atlas), he was an impish seeker of amusement but had a more serious role as leader of dead souls to the River Styx. Patron of the home, he is often depicted wearing winged sandals or hat and holding his herald's staff or kerykeion.

The virgin goddess of the hearth, home and hospitality who is the daughter of Kronos and Rhea.

Horae (aka Hours)

The daughters of Zeus and Themis, who personified the seasons. They are Eunomia (Good Order), Dike (Justice) and Eirene (Peace) with their mother as the fourth and representing Divine Law. The three sisters guard the gates of Mt. Olympus.

Hypnos

The son of Nyx (Night) and personification of Sleep, he lives in the Underworld. Often depicted as a winged youth, he touches the head of the tired with a branch or pours a magic liquid on them to induce slumber.

Icarus

The son of the master craftsman Daedalus, who flew too close to the sun and so the wax melted on his artificial wings fashioned by his father in order to escape King Minos of Crete. Falling into the sea and drowning, the stretch of waters in that area became known as the Icarian Sea, and then, when Hercules dragged the washed up body to an island, he renamed that place Icaria in honour of the fallen youth.

The king of the Lapiths in Thessaly who, in order to avoid paying the handsome bridal gifts for his future wife Dia, prepared a trap for her father Eioneus. This was a concealed pit, at the bottom of which was a charcoal fire. Invited for absolution at Mt. Olympus following the murder of Eioneus, Ixion then attacked Hera. Zeus had fooled him, though, into thinking a cloud was actually Hera and then punished Ixion by having him tied to an ever-spinning wheel of fire in Hades.

Jason

The hero whose father Aison had been robbed of his kingdom by Pelias, and when Jason came to claim his rightful inheritance, Pelias sent him on the impossible task of finding the Golden Fleece. Happy to oblige, Jason assembled his crew - the Argonauts of the ship Argo - and, with help from Athena, brought back the Fleece to Thessaly along with his sweetheart Medea. Pelias refused to give up the throne, Medea killed him with a potion, and the couple settled, in any case, in Corinth.

Kronos (aka Cronus)

The Titan who was the son of Uranus and Gaia. He killed and castrated his father and then married his sister Rhea to produce the Olympian gods. Afraid he would be overthrown like his father, Kronos devoured all of his children, but Rhea saved Zeus, whom she hid on Crete, giving her husband a rock as a substitute. Gaia contrived for Kronos to cough up his children, who, led by Zeus, promptly did overthrow him. Kronos was then imprisoned in Tartarus. In other versions, he is king of a Golden Age and rules a land of paradise.

Leto

Daughter of the Titans Coeus and Phoebe, she is the mother (with Zeus) of Apollo and Artemis, giving birth to her offspring on the island of Delos, hence its important sanctuary to Apollo.

Maenads

The female followers of Dionysos who participated in frenzied rituals of dancing and music.

The satyr who was gifted at playing the aulos but, after foolishly challenging Apollo to a musical competition, lost and was flayed alive for his troubles.

Medea

The daughter of Aeetes, king of Colchis and granddaughter of Helios, she was skilled in the arts of magic and potions. She helped Jason steal the Golden Fleece by charming the dragon which protected it. She then hampered the pursuit of the Argonauts by dismembering her young brother Apsyrtus. In another shocking episode, she tricked Pelias' daughters into chopping him up and boiling him in a big pot as a punishment from Hera. Medea fled to Corinth with Jason, but rebuffed by the hero, she killed his new love Glauke and then her own children in spite. Fleeing again, this time in a dragon-pulled chariot to Athens, she would later try to poison Theseus, thus fully completing her reputation as an all-round bad egg.

Medusa

The gorgon whose stare turned onlookers to stone. She had once been very beautiful but was transformed into a hideous gorgon by Athena after she had been raped by Poseidon in one of the goddess' temples. Killed by the hero Perseus, from the blood of her decapitated torso sprang Chrysaor and the winged horse Pegasus.

Meleager

He was a hero who successfully led an all-star expedition to hunt and kill the Calydonian boar which had been terrorising central Greece. Known as an all-round good egg, he had also been one of the argonauts with Jason who found the Golden Fleece.

Melpomene

The Muse of tragedy plays, hence usually portrayed holding a tragedy theatre mask.

Menelaos

Metis

The first wife of Zeus and personification of Intelligence. Zeus swallowed her as he feared she was pregnant with a child who would overthrow him. From this action sprang Athena, born from the god's head.

Minos

The king of Crete whose palace at Knossos contained the labyrinth and Minotaur. The terrible half-man, half-bull creature was the fruit of Minos' wife Pasiphae's amorous engagement with a bull sent by Poseidon to punish the king for not sacrificing a prize bull to the god as promised. Minos extracted yearly tribute from Athens in the form of young men and women who were sacrificed to the Minotaur, but the hero Theseus managed to slay the Minotaur and end the practice. Minos was the son of Zeus and Europa but was mortal as his sticky end reveals. Falling out with Daedalus, the architect of his labyrinth, the king pursued him to Camicus but was boiled in his bath by the king's daughters there. In the afterlife, he was made a judge of souls along with his brother Rhadamanthys.

Minotaur

The half-man, half-bull creature which was the fruit of Minos' wife Pasiphae's amorous involvement with a bull sent by Poseidon. Haunting the labyrinth of Knossos, he would be killed by the Athenian hero Theseus, keen to put an end to the yearly sacrificial offerings of young men and women.

Mnemosyne

The Titan who was the personification of Memory and mother of the nine Muses.

Muses

Nine masters of the arts. Daughters of Zeus and Memory (Mnemosyne), they gave the arts to mankind so that they might forget their troubles and to inspire artists of all kinds. They were: Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia, and Urania.

Nemesis

Both a goddess and the personification of retribution. Daughter of Oceanus and Night, she is relentless and merciless, especially punishing hubris.

Nereid

The sea nymphs who are the daughters of Nereus. They can assist sailors and are often in the company of Poseidon.

Nessus

The centaur who unwisely picked a fight with Hercules and was struck by the hero's arrow for his troubles. In his revenge, though, Nessus tricked Hercules' wife Deianeira into using his blood which acted as a poison and killed his slayer when Deianeira coated her husband's cloak with it.

Night (aka Nyx)

Born from Chaos she personifies Night and is feared by both gods and men. Connected to oracles, she is also the mother of Sleep (Hypnos).

Niobe

The daughter of Tantalus and wife of Amphion of Thebes, she foolishly boasted that as she had so many children she was superior to Leto. The goddess promptly sent her children Apollo and Artemis to put Niobe in her place. Apollo killed all Niobe's sons with his bow, and Artemis did the same to the daughters. The distraught mother then became a rock on Mt. Sipylus which, washed continually with waters, mimicked Niobe's weeping forever.

Young females who hang around natural features such as rivers, springs, mountains, caves, and particular trees. They are often found in the company of Artemis and Pan, and they can help hunters and sailors but may be prone to abduction where handsome youths are concerned. If rebuffed, they could turn violent, as in the case of Echenais who blinded the Sicilian herdsman Daphnis.

Oceanus

The Titan son of Uranus and Gaia. His waters encircle the world and so is the source of all rivers. His wife is Tethys with whom he fathered the Oceanids and river-gods.

Odysseus

The wily king of Ithaca known for his quick wits, courage, and leadership. The son of Laertes and Antikleia, he was instrumental in the Trojan War by persuading Achilles to join the cause and coming up with the ruse of the Trojan Horse. The voyage back home from Troy turned into an epic adventure and subject of Homer's . He encountered the Sirens, the Cylcops Polyphemos, visited Hades, and spent an age with the lovely Calypso, but eventually made it back to his faithful wife Penelope and son Telemachus.

The king of Thebes who tragically confused his family relations, killing his father and, after solving the riddle of the sphinx, marrying his mother Epicaste (later Iocasta), both by mistake. Following his mother's suicide, and blinding himself for his stupidity, their descendants were cursed to endure many miseries. He is the subject of the famous tragedy named after him by Sophocles.

Olympus

The home of the Olympian gods and Greece's highest mountain at 2,918 m.

Orion

The mighty hunter who was the son of Poseidon and Euryale, one of the Gorgons. He famously had 50 sons with 50 different nymphs, tried to woo Artemis, and famously pursued the Pleiades, but was shot by the huntress goddess and transformed into a constellation for his troubles. The appearance, rise and fall of his stars was used as a guide for when to perform certain agricultural tasks by ancient farmers.

Orpheus

Son of Apollo and the Muse Calliope, no wonder Orpheus was a virtuoso musician and poet. His lyre-playing calmed the Sirens on Jason's Argonaut expedition for the Golden Fleece and charmed Persephone to release from Hades his dead love Eurydice. He won his case but broke his promise not to look back on leaving the underworld and so his love was taken from him forever. Distraught, the great artist never played again, and he met a sticky end, ripped apart by the Maenads for being miserable.

Pan

The pastoral god who dwelt amongst the mountains, caves, and rivers of Greece. With the legs and horns of a goat, the patron of shepherds was the inventor and master of the syrinx or panpipes, which had been the nymph of the same name, but she panicked at Pan's attention and transformed herself into reeds, which the god then blew to create musical sounds.

The first woman, made by Hephaistos (or in other versions Prometheus) and beautified by the impressive team of Athena, Hermes, Aphrodite, and the Graces; she opened the jar she was expressly told not to and so let out all the ills of the world leaving inside, caught on the lip, only one consolation: hope.

Pegasus

The winged horse of Bellerophon, which was born from Zeus and the blood of Medusa. Pegasus helped the hero slay the Chimera and then enjoyed a semi-retirement on Mt. Olympus, where he brings Zeus' thunderbolt whenever required. The horse was a popular design on coins, especially those of Corinth.

Penelope

The faithful wife of Odysseus, who warded off many suitors while her husband was fighting during the Trojan War and then dallying on his long odyssey home. One of her delaying tactics was to tell her suitors she first had to finish weaving a shroud for Odysseus' father Laertes, but each night she pulled out what she had woven that day. She is the mother of Telemachus.

Penthesilea

The amazon daughter of Otrere and Ares, who accidentally killed her colleague Hippolyte. She later led an army to assist Priam during the Trojan War but was killed by Achilles.

Persephone (aka Kore)

She was the goddess of vegetation, especially grain. Abducted by Hades to live with him in the Underworld, the beautiful goddess was eventually released, but by a trick of a pomegranate seed, she was compelled to return to Hades for a portion of the year. This was symbolic of the agricultural cycle or the common practice of burying seeds underground. Like her mother Demeter, she was an important focus of the Eleusinian Mysteries and Thesmophoria festival.

Perseus

Helped by Athena and given the invisible-making cap of Hades and a giant sword and winged sandals from Hermes, the hero made good on his rash promise to king Polydectes and beheaded Medusa. On his way home, he won the hand of fair Andromeda, the Ethiopian princess who was tied to a rock and left to Poseidon's dreadful sea-monster in punishment for her mother Cassiopeia's boast she was prettier than the Nereids, the sea-gods children. Using the head of Medusa, the hero turned the monster to stone and rescued Andromeda.

Pleiades

The seven daughters of Atlas and the nymph Pleione, who, pursued by the hunter Orion, were immortalised by Zeus and became the constellation of that name. The rising of the stars in May and descent in October/November were used as guides by ancient farmers for when to harvest and plough.

Polyphemus

The one-eyed cyclops who captured Odysseus and his men in Homer's Odyssey. The giant was the son of Poseidon, and he ate two of his prize each morning and evening until Odysseus got him drunk and blinded him. In revenge, the cyclops cursed the hero to endure all manner of delays on his onward journey home.

Polymnia

The Muse of hymns to the gods and heroes.

Poseidon

The god of the sea and bringer of storms and earthquakes, he often meddled in the plans of his brother Zeus. Son of Kronos and Rhea, he had many children, including Theseus, was responsible for such monsters as the Minotaur, and had a temple at Sounion dedicated to him.

Priam

The king of Troy who was the son of Laomedon and father of Hector and Paris (along with 48 other sons and several daughters, including Cassandra). He persuaded Achilles to return Hector's body for proper burial with a moving speech in Homer's version of the Trojan War. The pious king was killed by Neoptolemus when his city was finally sacked.

The trickster Titan who stole fire from the workshop of Hephaistos and gave it to mankind. Zeus punished him for his interference by having an eagle eat his liver every day after he was taken to the far away east where he was chained to a rock. After many years of this terrible fate, Prometheus was finally relieved by a passing Hercules who shot the eagle with an arrow.

Rhea

The Titan who was both sister and wife of Kronos, with whom she bore the Olympian gods. She protected Zeus by giving her husband a rock wrapped in cloth to swallow as a substitute after he had a mind to eat all his offspring.

Satyr (aka Silens)

The lustful and wine-loving wild men of nature who had some animal features and followed Dionysos. Intelligent yet mischievous, the most famous of their number was Silenus, wise tutor of Dionysos.

The monster which lived in a cave and preyed on passing sailors and sea-life going through the straits between Sicily and the Italian mainland. She had twelve feet, six heads, three rows of teeth and the bark of a dog. She is the daughter of Hecate.

Selene

The moon goddess. She was the daughter of Hyperion (or Helios) and Theia, who fell in love with Endymion. Unfortunately, Zeus took a disliking to the handsome youth and set him to sleep forever in a cave on Mt. Latmus to be visited every now and then by the goddess (the dark phase of the Moon).

Silenus

The satyr who was father of all the other satyrs. He was the wise tutor of Dionysos.

Half-bird half-woman creatures who lured sailors to their doom with beautiful singing. Odysseus famously avoided their call by tying himself to the mast of his ship when he passed their home near Scylla and Charybdis. With his escape they were fated to commit suicide, hence their frequent portrayal in art diving into the sea.

The king of Corinth who cheated death twice by escaping Hades, the second time by arranging for his wife to forget the necessary funeral offerings to the gods. He lived to a ripe old age, but Zeus punished him for his impertinence by having him forever roll a stone up a hill when he reached the underworld for the third and last time.

Styx

The eldest daughter of Oceanus and the personification of a river in Arcadia. Thetis, in one version of the myth, dipped Achilles into Styx's waters to make her son immortal. Later, she became the river that runs through Tartarus in the deepest part of the Underworld.

Talos (aka Kalos)

The bronze automaton made by Hephaistos to protect Europa, who then switched guard duties to Crete. He saw off trespassers by throwing large stones or heating himself red-hot and then embracing his victims. In some traditions he is killed by his jealous uncle Daedalus, in others, he is killed by Medea who released his magic life-source liquid, stored in his foot.

Tantalus

The rich king of Sipylus who was granted the honour of dining with the gods but somehow disgraced himself, either by stealing the gods' ambrosia or tricking them into eating his son Pelops whom he had previously boiled. Zeus punished him for his wickedness in one of those delicious tortures he often dished out. Down in Hades, Tantalus had to stand in a pool of water which drained every time he tried to take a drink from it, and above him dangled fruit which withdrew from his reach each time he tried to grab one (hence the verb 'tantalise').

Tartarus

The son of Gaia and Aether (Sky), he was the father of Typhon. It is also the name of the deepest level of Hades, where particularly wicked people like Sisyphus and Tantalus were punished, and where the unruly Titans are imprisoned.

Terpsichore

The Muse of dance.

Tethys

The Titan daughter of Gaia and Uranus who represented rivers along with her brother and consort Oceanus. She was the mother of the Oceanids (sea nymphs).

Thalia

The Muse of comedy theatre, hence usually depicted holding a comic theatre mask.

Themis

The primordial goddess, daughter of Gaia and Uranus, who was associated with prophecies, laws, and justice. Hesiod makes her the second wife of Zeus with whom she bore the Hours and Fates.

Theseus

The hero king of Athens who battled Amazons, centaurs, various villains, and most impressive of all, the Minotaur that dwelt in King Minos' labyrinth on Crete. He slew the dreadful creature and escaped the maze by using a ball of twine given to him by Ariadne. Tragically, on the return home, the hero forgot to change his sail from black to white and so his father Aegeus thought him dead and threw himself into the sea, thereafter known as the Aegean in his honour.

Thetis

The sea nymph who was the daughter of Nereus, wife of Peleus, and mother of Achilles. She transformed herself into many forms while her husband-to-be courted her but their eventual wedding was attended by the gods. She famously dipped her son into the River Styx (or held him over a sacred flame) to make him invincible with only his heel where she held him being left mortal.

Titans

The 12 terrible and mighty Titans preceded the Olympian gods with whom they battled for control of the universe and lost. Zeus then imprisoned them in Tartarus, the deepest part of Hades. Amongst their number were Kronos, Hyperion, Oceanus, and Rhea.

Triton

The fish-tailed monster who was the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite. He fought with Hercules but also helped Theseus. In Greek art, he sometimes blows a conch shell and his offspring carry the same name.

Typhon

Born from Gaia and Tartarus, he is the monster with 100 fire-blowing snake heads which make all the sounds of the animal kingdom. Zeus struck him down with his thunderbolt and imprisoned him in Tartarus deep in Hades, but he still causes trouble such as the occasional typhoon.

Urania

The Muse of astronomy and so often depicting holding a sphere.

Uranus (aka Ouranos)

The sky god who was born from Gaia. The pair marry and together they produce many other gods. One of these, Kronos, castrates his father and takes over his role as master of the universe. The genitalia of Uranus, cast into the sea, produces the goddess Aphrodite.

Zeus

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
King of Mycenae and leader of the Greeks during the Trojan War, his leadership skills were only equalled by his selfishness, the latter famously upsetting Achilles when he stole the hero's female war-booty Briseis. After 10 years of war, the king was killed by his jealous wife Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus while he was enjoying his coming-home banquet.

# data[].attributes.headline
Modern Day Allusions to Mythology -Prezi

# data[].attributes.subject
Modern Day Allusions to Mythology -Prezi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Modern Day Allusions to Mythology Venus Saturn Car Company Goddess Dike Achilles Heel Achilles Heel Statue Modern Venus Razors Tennessee Titans Venus razors are a subgroup of the Gillette razor company. Venus is named after the Roman goddess. Venus was beautiful because she was