GREEK and ROMAN MYTHOLOGY
Greek Mythology is derived from the Greek words ‘πᾶν’ pan – all, and ‘θεός’ theos – god, pantheon literally means ‘of all gods’. Although any polytheistic religion (religion with multiple deities) can have a pantheon – and they existed in Norse, Aztec and Sumerian cultures. In the classical pantheon there are twelve major deities. This group is known as the ‘Twelve Olympians’.
According to Greek Mythology, the world began when Gaia (the Earth) emerged from Chaos – an empty nothingness. She then gave birth to Ouranos (the Sky) and other primordial deities like Pontos (the Sea) and Ourea (the Mountains).
Together Gaia and Ouranos had twelve children – known as the Titans – including Cronos and Rhea, Zeus’s parents. The Titans rebelled against their father Ouranos, overthrew him, and Cronos became the ruler of the Gods until Zeus deposed him to rule over the Olympic Gods.
There is evidence for Greek religious practice involving twelve Gods from the late 6th Century BC. In the Homeric Hymn to Hermes, from around 500 BC, Hermes stands at Olympia on the bank of the river Alpheius and divides a sacrifice into twelve portions for the Gods. According to Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, the ruler Pisistratus established an altar of the twelve Gods in Athens around 522 BC.
GODS OF GREEK and ROMAN MYTHOLOGY
- ZEUS or JUPITER :
King of the Gods is Zeus – or his Roman equivalent, Jupiter – who rules over Mount Olympus and is the God of Thunder and Lightning, as well as Law and Order.
Zeus can be recognized by his symbols- the thunderbolt, the eagle and the oak tree – and as a Sky God he is often shown among clouds or sitting on top of Mount Olympus.
Zeus’ parents were the Titans, Cronos and Rhea, and he is the youngest brother of Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades and Poseidon (who are also Gods in the Pantheon). According to Greek Mythology, Zeus’ father Cronos learnt that one of his children was fated to dethrone him as leader of the Gods, so he ate them as soon as they were born. When Zeus was born, his mother Rhea hid him in a cave on the island of Crete, and instead fed Cronos a stone wrapped in swaddling clothes. When Zeus grew up, he forced Cronos to throw up his brothers and sisters, waged war on his father and won.
2. HERA or JUNO :
Hera – or Juno in Roman religion- is the wife and sister of Zeus, and is Queen of Gods.
Her symbols are the peacock, the cuckoo and the cow- animals she considered sacred- and her chariot is pulled by peacocks instead of horses.
She is the Goddess of Marriage, childbirth and fertility. She is depicted as reserved and calm in nature, she repeatedly sought revenge for Zeus’ many affairs with mortal and immortal women, punishing them and their offspring.
3. POISEDON or NEPTUNE :
God of the Sea, horses and earthquakes, Poisedon – or Neptune – is often shown driving a chariot of horses or sea creatures and wielding the trident he used to control the waves.
Poisedon’s symbols include his trident – a three- pronged spear – as well as the horses and dolphins that pull his chariot. On this ewer, Poisedon or Neptune is shown at the stem, riding a sea monster and holding his trident.
As his brothers Zeus and Hades rule the skies and the underworld, Poisedon was given control of the sea and protected sailors and seafarers.
His many children include both the winged horse Pegasus – whom he fathered with the Gorgon Medusa – and the Cyclops Polyphemus, who was blinded by Odysseus and his crew in Homer’s Odyssey
4. ARES or MARS :
This Romano- British statuette shows Mars, the Gods of War, fully decked, out in his characteristic armor, missing the original spear and shield he would once have held.
You can recognize Mars or Ares by his armor and weapons – usually a spear and a shield – and God is sometimes accompanied by a boar or a vulture.
The son of Zeus and Hera, Ares – Mars’ Greek counterpart – was the God of Bloodlust and Violent Warfare. His half – sister, Athena represented the more ‘noble’ aspects of civil conduct during war.
Although he was unpopular with the other gods of the classical pantheon, with the exception of his lover Aphrodite, Ares was particularly admired in Sparta as the ideal soldier.
By contrast his Roman equivalent, Mars was far more popular, seen as second only to Jupiter, and was considered to be the protector of Rome.
5. ATHENA or MINERVA:
Ares’ half-sister is the Greek Goddess Athena, goddess of reason, handicraft, wisdom and war. She is the daughter of Zeus and according to legend, sprang fully grown from his forehead, dressed in armor. She also gives her name to the city of Athens.
Athena – and Minerva, her Roman equivalent – is often shown wearing a helmet to demonstrate her prowess in war, and her symbols include the owl and the olive tree. In the founding myth of Athens, Athena beats Poisedon in a competition over patronage of the city by growing the first olive tree, hence its association with her. By contrast, Poisedon gave Athens a spring of salted water which was far less useful to the city.
6. DEMETER or CERES :
Demeter – and her Roman counterpart Ceres- was the Goddess of agriculture and the harvest and is often depicted with crops such as barley and wheat, or a cornucopia of produce. Demeter also presided over the fertility of the earth and the natural cycle of life and death.
She was the Mother of Persephone who was abducted by Hades and forced to live in the underworld for six months of the year. According to Greek Mythology, when her daughter was abducted, Demeter searched for her continuously, preoccupied with grief, and as a result, her attention was diverted from the harvest and plants began to die. When Persephone returned, Demeter cared for the earth again and things began to grow and this cycle was said to create the seasons.
7. APOLLO :
Apollo is the only God in the Classical Pantheon to share the same name in both Greek and Roman traditions. The twin brother of Artemis – or Diana – Apollo has many associations including the sun, music, archery, prophecy and healing.
His symbols include the sun, a bow and arrow, a lyre, and a swan. Apollo and Artemis were the children of Zeus and Leto. On hearing of Leto’s pregnancy, Hera – Zeus’ wife – banned Leto from giving birth on land. Leto found the island of Delos (a floating island) and was not anchored to the mainland, and gave birth to Apollo and Artemis safely there.
When the twins were born, swans are said to have circled the island seven times – hence their association with Apollo – and the island later became sacred to him. Zeus also gave his son a golden chariot pulled by swans as a gift.
8. ARTEMIS or DIANA :
Apollo’s twin sister Artemis – or Diana – was the Goddess of the hunt, wild animals, chastity and childbirth.
She is often shown with a stag or hunting dog and you can recognize her as the only Goddess who wears a shorter dress, with the hem lifted and tied with a belt so she could run with ease.
One of her most famous myths is the story of the hunter Actaeon. According to Ovid’s Metamorphoses Actaeon stumbled into Diana’s grove as she bathed, catching a glimpse of the Goddess naked. In retribution, she splashed him with water, cursing him and transforming him in to a deer, and he was subsequently killed by his own hunting dogs.
9. APHRODITE or VENUS :
Goddess of love, sex and beauty – Aphrodite – or Venus – is said to have emerged from the white foam generated when the Titan Cronos threw the severed testicles of his father, Ouranos, into the sea.
Aphrodite’s symbols include doves, roses and myrtles. This marble relief shows the Goddess with a dove next to her right foot, holding a palm branch – symbolic of victory – in her left hand.
Although Aphrodite was married to Hephaistos, the master blacksmith, she had multiple affairs including with the God Ares. She is almost always accompanied by Eros, the God of love or lust or Cupid in the Roman tradition.
Her name gives us the word ‘aphrodisiac’, while the word ‘venereal’ is derived from Venus.
10. HEPHAISTOS or VULCAN:
Aphrodite’s husband was Hephaistos – or Vulcan – the God of fire, a master blacksmith and craftsman to the Gods.
Hephaistos made weapons and tools for the Gods and select mortals – like Hermes’ helmet and winged sandals, Achilles’ armor and Aeneas’ shield.
His symbols include the anvil, hammer and tongs and this earth ware saucer shows him forging an arrow, accompanied by his wife and three putti – winged infants.
Hephaistos became the patron of craftsmen, and volcanic fires were often considered to be his workshops. Vulcan gives his name to ‘volcano’ and less excitingly, vulcanised rubber.
11. HERMES or MERCURY:
The messenger of the Gods was Hermes, known as Mercury in ancient Roman religion, and he was also a pastoral God, protecting livestock and travelers.
Hermes’ symbols include the caduceus – a staff intertwined with two snakes – as well as his winged sandals and cap, and a tortoise. Hermes was the second youngest of the Olympian Gods, older only than Dionysos, was the son of Zeus and the nymph Maia. He could travel quickly between divine and mortal worlds with his winged sandals and was responsible for transporting souls to the underworld. He was also the patron God of merchants and thieves.
12. DIONYSOS or BACCHUS:
Dionysus, the youngest of the Olympian Gods, he is the son of Zeus and the mortal woman Semele. Dionysus was the God of wine, vines, fertility and festivity. He is most often shown with grapes and vines, as well as big cats like panthers, leopards and tigers. For Romans he was known as Bacchus, and the Bacchanalia – or Dionysia – were raucous festivals celebrating God.