The Amazons
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
The Amazons were a race of warrior women who lived in a region known today as Turkey. They were known as Androktones, or “killers of men.” The Amazon name is derived from the word amazoi, which means “breast less” in Greek. It is believed they were given this name because they would remove the right [...]
Pandora
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
Pandora was the first woman in Greek mythology. She was created by Hephaestus as retribution after Prometheus stole fire from heaven. Zeus ordered Hephaestus, the god of craftsmanship, to create a woman whose descendants would torment all men.
Mythology
Hephaestus created Pandora from earth and water, and she was given gifts from the gods. Aphrodite bestowed beauty [...]
Achilles
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
Achilles has been described as the most handsome warrior to fight in the Trojan War. He was seen as a great hero and is the main character in the Iliad. Achilles was also the subject of great speculation with regard to his close relationship with Patroclus.
Mythology
Achilles was born in Farsala to the king of the [...]
Hephaestus
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | 1 Comment
Hephaestus was the crippled, homely looking god of fire, blacksmiths, craftsmen, volcanoes, and the smith’s furnace. He is depicted with his symbols of the smith’s hammer, tongs, and an anvil.
It is said Hephaestus had the skill and talent to make beautiful works of metal and weave them with magic. Most of the metallic possessions of [...]
Hermes
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
Hermes was the messenger of the gods, carrying correspondence between gods and humans. He wore winged shoes and used them to fly between Mount Olympus and the land of the mortals.
He was the escort to travelers, helping them have a safe journey. Hermes would escort the dead to the underworld, and was said to be [...]
Hebe
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | 3 Comments
Hebe was the attendant to the gods, serving them cups of ambrosia and nectar on Mount Olympus. She was the goddess of youth and the patron goddess to young brides.
Her duties included helping Hera hitch her horses to her chariot, and she would help bathe and dress her brother, Ares. She also served as an [...]
Dionysus
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
Dionysus was a major figure in Greek mythology, presiding most notably over wine and all of its influences. He inspired madness and chaos and made it his mission to relieve his people of their worries. He was the communicator of the dead, and his symbols included the bull, the serpent, wine, and the toxic ivy [...]
Artemis
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
Artemis was the maiden, or virgin, goddess of the hunt. She is usually depicted with her famous bows and arrows, but was also pictured with hunting spears, flaming torches, or as a dancing goddess holding a lyre. She eventually became known as the goddess of the moon as well, while her brother Apollo became synonymous [...]
Athena
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | 1 Comment
Athena is perhaps the most celebrated Olympian god in all of Greek mythology. She is the namesake and patron goddess of the city of Athens. Throughout her life she never married or had a lover, and so was also known as Athena Parthenos, meaning “Athena the virgin.” As such, the great Parthenon in Greece was [...]
Aphrodite
Posted on | February 16, 2008 | No Comments
Aphrodite is the nubile, beautiful goddess of love, beauty, and sexual desire. She has been celebrated in a festival throughout Greece known as the Aphrodisiac, where men would have sexual intercourse with Aphrodite’s priestesses in order to pay homage to her. Her unending beauty and beguiling ways were the source of much consternation and bloodshed, [...]
« go back — keep looking »