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The Gods of Olympus
Olympian Gods
• Zeus
• Poseidon
• Apollo
• Ares
• Hermes
• Hephaestus
• Hera
• Hestia
• Demeter
• Athena
• Aphrodite
• Artemis
Hera
Hera
• Daughter of Cronus and Rhea
• Perhaps an ancient nature goddess
– One of the few not from Egypt (Hdts. ii.50)
• Born in Argos or Samos
• Patron of Sparta, Mycenae and Argos
• Represented with veil, peacock and scepter
Heraion at Argos
Hera
• Wife of Zeus
– Honored by other gods but inferior to Zeus
• Hieros Gamos
• Goddess of marriage and childbirth
• Mother of Ares, Hebe and Hephaestus
• Mostly a foil to Zeus:
– Jealous, argumentative.
Hera and Zeus
Hestia
Hestia
• Daughter of Cronus and Rhea
• Goddess of the hearth (home fire)
• Virgin goddess
• Presides over all sacrifices
• Home fire of the city in the Prytaneum
Athena
Athena
• Daughter of Zeus and Metis (wisdom)
– Tritogeneia; born near the river Triton
– Or; born from the head
• Goddess of the air
– Glaucopis; the blue-eyed one
– Athena, more than any other goddess, is the female representation of Zeus.
Birth of Athena
Pallas Athena
• Most common epithet
– Obscure origins, not a Greek word
• Iconic connections with Ishtar and Syrian warrior goddesses
– Pallas was a giant whom Athena killed and flayed using the skin to make her shield.
Athena
• Goddess of engineers, architects etc.
– All of the technical aspects of civilization
– Patron of the arts, both practical and aesthetic
• Protector of the state and society
– Supervisor of the laws and the assembly
• Goddess of War;
– As protector of the state
– Grand Strategy
Patron of Athens
• Competed with Poseidon
– Poseidon gave the Athenians spring water
– Athena gave them the olive tree
• Temple of Athena Parthenos on the Acropolis
Artemis
Artemis
• Daughter of Zeus and Leto
• Sister of Apollo
• A female counterpart to Apollo
– Goddess of the bow, sickness and death
– Also the saviour from these evils
• Goddess of the hunt and wild animals
• Virgin goddess
Arcadian Artemis
• More of a nature goddess
• Not associated with Apollo
• Chariot drawn by stags
• Goddess of the hunt and forest
Artemis of Ephesus
• Potnia Theron
• Originally Asiatic
• Born in Ephesus, not a sister of Apollo
• Fertility goddess
Demeter
Demeter
• Daughter of Cronus and Rhea
• Goddess of the Harvest
• Of vegetation and growth
• Of marriage
• Of the ‘first night’
• Mystery Religion
– Eleusis
– Arcadia
Demeter and Persephone
• Persephone (Core), daughter of Demeter
• Zeus promised her to Hades
– Hades captured her and took her to the underworld to be his wife.
– Demeter caused famine
– Zeus asked Hades to return Core
– Mother and daughter meet at Eleusis
– Core to spend three months a year in Hades
Aphrodite
Aphrodite of Melos
Aphrodite
• Daughter of Uranus
– ‘aphro’ = foam
• Aphrodite Urania (heavenly)
• Daughter of Zeus and Dione (Iliad v.370)
• Goddess of love (passion) and beauty
• Syrian Astarte, Persian Mithra
• Associated with the dove and the swan
Hierodouloi and Hetairai
• Temple of Aphrodite at Corinth and Cyprus
– Priestesses had intercourse with worshipers
– A Babylonian custom originally (Herodotus i.199)
• Hetairai
– Companions, courtesans
– Not just for sex, but etiquette and conversation
– Aspasia