The Olympians:God and Goddesses of Ancient Greece

Greeks and their gods“The universe created the god”

Heaven (Uranus) and Earth (Gaia) were the parents of the first gods, the Titans. (Think about this symbolically for a moment. Everything is the result of a marriage of Earth and Sky)

The Titans possessed enormous strength and had a physique to match. Cronus rules the Titans, until his son Zeus dethroned him. (Though the Titans and supplanted, they remain important figures for many of the tales involving Greek heroes.)

Zeus became the leader of the Olympian goads, who resided at Mount Olympus. Mt. Olympus was a place not quite on earth, but not exactly heaven. It was untouched by weather, and its protected by the Seasons. However, unlike many belief systems, the Greeks gods have many faults: they are prone to fits of jealousy, vanity and temper tantrums.

Greek God Family Tree• Zeus• Hera• Poseidon

• Hades• Athena• Ares• Demeter• Aphrodite

• Apollo• Hermes• Artemis• Dionysus

• Uranus• Gaia• Cronos• Rhea• Altas• Prometheus

• Oceanus

Symbols: Thunderbolt, eagle, and oak tree.

Responsible for: • God of the Heavens. • Ruler of the Olympians.

(Nothing happens without his consent.

• His responsibilities tend to be mixed with those of older deities.

Connections:• Zeus is married to Hera, his

sister. • Brothers are Poseidon and Hades• Father of Athena, Ares,

Aphrodite (perhaps), Hercules, Perseus, and 100s of others. (See bullet 3 above for reason.)

Keep an eye out for Zeus in the Iliad.

Zeus tends to be connected in allegorical ways to other deities.

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Zeus (Jupiter) Lord of the Sky

Symbols: Cow and Peacock

Traits: • Hera is the protector of marriage,

particularly married women. • She tend to be punishing Zeus’ many

children, especially the mortal ones.

• She tends to be a jealous goddess.

Family: Hera is married to Zeus and is also his sister. Her children are Ares, Hebe and Hephaestus and a daughter, Ilithyia.

Though Hera is a background character in the Iliad she plays an important role in the Trojan war as a whole. Back

Hera (Juno): The Goddess of Marriage

Poseidon (Neptune): God of the Sea

Symbols: The trident, bulls and horses. (Known as the Earth Shaker)

Family: Poseidon is second in power to his brother, Zeus.

Responsible for: God of the Seas. He has many children. Including

the Cyclopses. (Odysseus oops.) Poseidon was an important God to

the Greeks, because they relied on the sea for much of their welfare. (Allegorically this is telling.)

Poseidon has little role in The Iliad because it all happens on the shore, but he is the most important God in the Odyssey.

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Hades (Pluto) God of the Underworld.Family: Brother of Zeus and “Husband” of Persephone.

Responsible for: The underworld. Not the Devil King of the Dead. Not liked by man or

God. Unwelcome in Olympus. Fair.

Athena (Minerva): Goddess of WisdomSymbols: The olive tree and owl

Family: Daughter of Zeus. Springs from his head fully grown and clad in armor.

Fast Facts: Athena=Athens? (Yes, Poseidon’s

unhappy about this.) One of the Greek’s favorite Gods. Described as a Goddess infatuated

with battle and craftsman. Her love of Battle is different than war.

(Ironic Much) Known as “The Gray Eyed Goddess.) Inventor of the Bridle; hence,

giving human use of the horse. Watch for her in The Iliad: She is the

protector of Achilles and has a major role in the start of the Trojan War.

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Ares (Mars): God of War

Symbols: The vulture, dog, color red

Family: Son of Hera and Zeus, though they hate him.

Important ideas: Ares is the god of War. (In

particular the bloodlust) Greeks do not like Ares.

(Romans seem to like him far more.)

Ares plays very little role in the Trojan War but he does do the bidding of the Aphrodite; hence, he fights on the side of the Trojans.

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Aphrodite (Venus): Goddess of Love and Beauty

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Symbols: myrtle tree, dove, swan and sparrow

Stuff to Know: • Goddess of love and beauty.• That Aphrodite’s beauty awe-

struck all men, no matter how wise.

• She has a major role on the Trojan war. • She is the protector of

both Paris and Aeneas. Allegorically:• The Three Graces were her

attendants.• The other Olympians forced her

to marry Hephaestus. • She has an affair with Ares,

he is will ing to do her bidding.

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Apollo: God of Truth, Life and Music

Symbols: Laurel, dolphin and lyre

Family: Apollo is Artemis’s twin brother and son of Zeus and Leto.

The Greekiest Greek of them all:• Apollo is a prominent figure

in the arts including poetry and music.

• God of medicine. (Ironically he often brings plagues and “pestilence.”

Fights for the Trojans throughout the Trojan War.

Artemis (Diane): Goddess of the Hunt and Moon

Symbols: Cypress tree and deer.

Family: The Maiden Goddess is the twin sister of Apollo. Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and Leto. .

Goddess of: The hunt. She is one of the Archer “Gods”

One of the “Virgin Goddesses”

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Dionysus (Bacchus): God of the Vine; in other words wine and the party.

Symbol: the grape vine, wine

Family: The son of Zeus. Hera tried to kill him while he was a child.

What to know: Then you better thank this God.

Known for his gentleness he saved sailors from a watery death by turning them into dolphins.

Dionysus is the inventor of wine. The Romans begin a cult devoted

to him. (Mark Antony joined this cult, check out why during Julius Caesar)

Not mentioned much in most of Greek Mythology.

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Demeter (Ceres): Goddess of the Harvest and Hearth

Symbols: The hearthstone

Family: Demeter is the sister of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. She is also the mother of Persephone whom she never let out of her sight.

Kindest of them all: Demeter is the Goddess of the

Harvest. The Romans have a cult

dedicated to her. Demeter was devastated when

her daughter, Persephone, was kidnapped by Hades. Each spring, Demeter would greet her daughter at the entrance from the underworld.

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Hermes (Mercury): Messenger of the Gods

Symbols: Winged sandals, low helmet, and Caduceus (his wand).

Family: Hermes is the son of Zeus and Maia, Atlas’s daughter.

What to know: “The Messenger” Hermes is one of the most

mentioned gods. “The voice” of Zeus. God of: Merchants and

Traders. Known as a Master Thief. Sometimes

known as the God of thieves as well.

Look for him in the Iliad as the voice of Zeus.

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Hephaestus (Vulcan): God of Fire

Symbols: Hephaestus does not have any specific symbols like the other Gods.

Family: He is the son of Hera. He married Aphrodite at Zeus’s order.

Responsible for: Smiths He is rarely welcome in Olympus

The best armor and weapons a hero may wield.

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Works Cited

D’Aulaire, Ingri, and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire. D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths. Garden

City, New York: Doubleday and Co, 1962.Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. Boston: Little, Brown and Co, 1940.Head of Dionyssos (Romn copy based on Greek prototype). 2nd-3rd century A.D. Museum of Fina

Arts, Boston, MA 11 April 2006 <http://www.mfa.org/collections/search_art.asp?id=153840&coll_keywords=&coll_accession=&coll_name=&coll_artist=&coll_place=&coll_medium=&coll_culture=&coll_classification=&coll_credit=&coll_provenance=&coll_location=&coll_has_images=&coll_on_view=&coll_sort=0&coll_sort_order=0&coll_package=2350&coll_start=4>Oil bottle (lekythos)in the form of Aphrodite. 400-375 B.C. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA

11 April 2006 <http://www.mfa.org/collections/search_art.asp?coll_keywords=&coll_accession=&coll_name=&coll_artist=&coll_place=&coll_medium=&coll_culture=&coll_classification=&coll_credit=&coll_provenance=&coll_location=&coll_has_images=&coll_on_view=&coll_sort=0&coll_sort_order=0&coll_package=2350&coll_start=21>.Pan Painter. Mixing Bowl. 470 B.C. Museum of Fina Arts, Boston, MA. 11 April 2006. <http://www.mfa.org/collections/search_art.asp?recview=true&id=153654&coll_keywords=&coll_accession=&coll_name=&coll_artist=&coll_place=&coll_medium=&coll_culture=&coll_classification=&coll_credit=&coll_provenance=&coll_location=&coll_has_images=&coll_on_view=&coll_sort=0&coll_sort_order=0&coll_package=235 0&coll_start=31>.Statue of Athena the Virgin (Athena Parthenos). 138-238 A.D. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA.

11 April 2006 <http://mfa.org/collections/search_art.asp?coll_package=2350&coll_start=11>.Statuette of Zeus. 4th century B.C. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA. 11 April 2006

<http://mfa.org/collections/search_art.asp?recview=true&id=262639&coll_keywords=zeus+statuette&coll_accession=&coll_name=&coll_artist=&coll_place=&coll_medium=&coll_culture=&coll_classification=&coll_credit=&coll_provenance=&coll_location=&coll_has_images=&coll_on_view=&coll_sort=0&coll_sort_order=0&coll_package=0&coll_start=1>.