Greek Mythology Quiz

10/28/25

What is a myth?

• A traditional story rooted in primitive

beliefs of cultures, believed to be true.

• Uses the supernatural to interpret

natural events

• Explains the culture’s view of the

universe and the nature of humanity

Timeline Myths

 The Reign of Cronos

 The Birth of Zeus

 Titanomachy

 Zeus and Hera

 Inachus

 The Olympians Reign

 The Birth of Hephaestus

 The Birth of Ares

 The Enchanted Thrones

 The Birth of Athena

 Melissa and the Bees

 The Birth of Apollo and Artemis

 The Birth of Hermes

 The Origin of Man

 The Gift of Fire

 Zeus and Io

 Pandora’s Box

In the Beginning

• ...was Chaos (shapeless nothingness)

• Chaos had two children:

◦ Night (darkness)

◦ Erebus (death)

• “All was black, empty, silent, endless.”

• Mysteriously, Love was born of

darkness and death.

And then…

• When Love was born, order and beauty

began to flourish.

• Love created Light and Day.

• Earth was created.

◦ She was the solid ground, but also a

personality.

• The Earth bore Heaven to cover her

and be a home for the gods.

Children of the Primordial Gods

• Mother Earth = Gaea (Gaia)

• Father Heaven = Ouranos (Uranus)

• They had three kinds of children:

◦ Three monsters with 100 hands and 50 heads

◦ Three cyclopes

◦ The Titans

• These were the first characters that had the

appearance of life, although it was unlike

any life known to man.

• First generation of gods, destined to be

defeated, so the Olympians can reign

Titans

• Children of Gaea and Ouranos

◦ Monster-like, gigantic creatures

◦ “...somewhat like men and yet unhuman”

(Hamilton, 78).

◦ “...shattering, overwhelming strength of

earthquake, hurricane and volcano” (79).

• Heaven chained them in the secret

place in the depths of the earth

• Cronos and Gaea colluded and

castrated (mortally wounded) Ouranos

◦ Furies were born from his blood

The Titans (The Elder Gods)

•  There were many of them.

•  Enormous size, incredible strength

•  Cronos (Saturn): Ruler of the titans

•  Rhea: Wife of Cronos

•  Ocean: River that encircled the world

•  Iapetus: Father of Prometheus,

Epimetheus, and Atlas (also Titans)

Parents of the Olympian Gods Cronos and Rhea

• Prophecy: Rhea would give birth to a son

who would overthrow Cronos

• Cronos swallowed all his children whole

upon birth

• Rhea gave birth to Zeus (6th child) and

stowed him away in Crete

◦ Expecting to swallow another baby, Rhea gave

him a rock wrapped in swaddling clothes instead

• Fully grown Zeus, colluded with Mother

Earth and Rhea to force Cronos to throw up

◦ Created Delphi

The Great War

• Cronos

◦ Titans: Atlas and

more

◦ Giants

V.S.

• Zeus

◦ Rhea

◦ Mother Earth

◦ Five freed siblings

◦ Unchained

monsters

◦ Titans: Iapetus,

Prometheus, and

Epimetheus

Atlas

• Zeus punished him for his insolence

• Condemned to carry the Earth on his

shoulders for eternity

Iapetus’ Children

•  Prometheus – Προμηθέας

◦ forethought (before thought)

•  wise, level-headed, patient

•  Epimetheus – Eπιμήθεας

◦ Afterthought

• scatterbrained, followed impulses,

changed his mind easily

Mankind

• Epimetheus was in charge of creating

mankind

• He created animals first

◦ gave them: strength, swiftness, courage, shrewd

cunning, fur, feathers, wings, shells etc.

• Prometheus had to take over:

◦ made man upright like the gods

◦ went to the Sun, lit a torch, and gifted fire to

mankind

◦ man got the best part of the animal during the

sacrifice (meat), while Zeus got fat, bones,

entrails, and the hide (burned)

Prometheus’ Punishment

• Zeus condemned him to be chained to the

mountain Caucasus

• Never slept

• An eagle would devour his liver every night

and it would grow back the following

morning

Epimetheus’ Punishment

• Created Pandora (Πανδώρα)

◦ full of gifts

◦ very curious, did not follow directions

• gave her to Epimetheus

• gave her a box full of harmful things (i.e.

despair, famine, suffering etc.) and forbid

her from opening it

• she did, all ills escaped to the world, only

HOPE was left

The Principal Gods

•  Cronos and Rhea

were parents of

◦ Zeus (Jupiter, Jove)

◦ Poseidon (Neptune)

◦ Hades (Pluto)

◦ Hera (Juno)

◦ Hestia (Vesta)

◦ Demeter (Ceres)

•  Other Olympians

include

◦ Athena (Minerva)

◦ Ares (Mars)

◦ Hebe (Juventas)

◦ Hephaestus (Vulcan)

◦ Apollo (Apollo)

◦ Artemis (Diana)

◦ Hermes (Mercury)

◦ Aphrodite (Venus)

◦ Dionysus (Bacchus)

◦ Persephone

(Proserpina)

Zeus

• Roman Name: Jupiter

(also Jove)

• Supreme god of the

Olympians.

• Fathered many

characters in

mythology

• Symbol: thunderbolt

• Animal: eagle

Ancient Greek Artifacts

• Marble statues were once painted

• Bronze statues would have had precious

  gems or glass for eyes.

Hera

• Roman Name:

Juno

• Zeus’s sister and

wife

• Jealous protector

of marriage

• Punished the

women Zeus fell

in love with

• Symbol: scepter

• Animal: peacock

Poseidon

•  Roman Name:

Neptune

•  God of the Seas

and Waters

•  “The Earthshaker”

•  Symbol: triton

•  Animal: seahorse

Hades

• Roman Name:

Pluto

• God of the

Underworld/ Dead

• Kidnapped

Persephone

• Symbol: Drinking

horn, scepter, Cypress,

Narcissus, key

• Animal: Cerberus

Hestia

• Roman Name:

Vesta

• Goddess of

Home

• Powerful

Protector

• Symbol: an

eternal flame

Demeter

• Roman Name:

Ceres

• Mother of

Persephone

• Goddess of

the Harvest

• A Goddess of

the Earth

• Symbol: corn

Stalk

Athena

•  Roman Name:

Minerva

•  Goddess of

Wisdom and

War Strategy

•  Sprang from

Zeus’s head

•  Animal: owl

•  Symbol: armor

Ares

•  Roman Name:

Mars

•  God of War

•  Son of Zeus and

Hera

•  Bloodthirsty and

merciless

•  Animal: dog

•  Symbols: Spear,

Helmet, Dog,

Chariot, Boar, Vult

ure, Flaming torch

Hephaestus

• Roman Name:

Vulcan

(Mulciber)

• God of

Fire/Forge

• Son of Zeus and

Hera

• Kind, unlike his

brother

• Symbol: Mallet,

fire, heat

Apollo

• Roman Name:

Apollo

•  God of

Light/Sun and

Music

•  Brother of

Artemis

• Symbol:

Laurel, lyre,

ray of light

Artemis

• Roman Name:

Diana

• Goddess of

the Moon/

Hunt

• Sister to

Apollo

• Symbol: bow

and arrow

• Animal: fawn

Hermes

• Roman Name:

Mercury

• Messenger of

the Gods

• Appears in

more myths

than any other

character

Aphrodite

•  Roman Name:

Venus

•  Goddess of

Love and

Beauty

•  Sprang from

the ocean foam

•  Symbol: foam,

rose

• Animal:

dolphin, dove

Dionysus

• Roman Name:

Bacchus

• God of Wine

• Patron god of

the Greek stage

• A God of the

Earth

• Symbol: grapes

• Animal: snake,

panther, leopard

Oracles

These were holy places specific to a

god or goddess.

• Humans could pose questions; the

god would answer through a chosen

intermediary.

• The prophet, seer, or oracle would

then deliver a prophecy

The Oracle of Delphi

⚫ The Pythia – high priestess of the Temple of

Apollo at Delphi

⚫ Before a prophecy she would purify herself

at the Castalian Spring

⚫Sit on a tripod and go into a trance-like state to

deliver prophecies

⚫ In her delirious state, she would utter

cryptic, sometimes nonsensical

pronouncements that were interpreted by

the priests

⚫ Visitors: all city states, kings, all walks of

life, influenced military proceedings, also

the world etc.

Persephone

•  Roman Name:

Proserpina

•  Goddess of the

Underworld

•  Daughter of

Zeus and

Demeter

•  Abducted by

Hades

•  Symbol:

pomegranate

•  Animal: rooster

Hebe

• Roman Name:

Juventas

• Goddess of Youth

• Cupbearer to the

Gods

• Restored youth to

the aged

• Symbol: chalice

Eros

 Roman Name:

Cupid

 Young God of

Love

 Son of Aphrodite

and Hephaestus

 Symbol: bow and

arrow

Iris

 Goddess of the

Rainbow

 Messenger for

Zeus and Hera

 Daughter of the

titan Thaumus

and the nymph

Electra

 Symbol: rainbow

The Muses

 Nine daughters of

Zeus and

Mnemosyne

 Inspired artists of

all kinds

 Goddesses who

presided over the

arts and sciences

 “He is happy whom

the muses love.”

The Graces

 Three Goddesses of

Grace and Beauty

 “They give life its

bloom.”

 Aglaia (Splendor)

 Euphrosyne (Mirth)

 Thalia (Good Cheer)

The Erinnyes (The Furies)

 Roman Name: Furiae or

Dirae (The Furies)

 Three Goddesses of

Vengeance

◦ Tisiphone

◦ Alecto

◦ Megaera

 They pursue and punish

evildoers.

 Terrible looking, snakes

for hair, eyes that wept

blood

The Fates

 Roman Name: Parcae, Moirae

 Three sisters

◦ Clotho (“The Spinner”)

◦ Lachesis (“The disposer of lots”)

◦ Atropos (“The cutter”)

 They weave, measure, and cut the thread of

life for humans.

The Satyrs

 Gods of the woods

and mountains

 “Shepherd gods”

 Goat men (like Pan)

 Companions of

Dionysus

 They like to drink,

dance, and chase

nymphs.

The Minotaur

 Half man half bull

 Terrorized the people of Crete

 Was kept in a labyrinth

 Primordial and brutish

The Gorgons

 Three snake-

haired monsters

 Medusa is most

well-known

 Their look turns

men to stone.

The Centaurs

 Half man, half

horse

 Savage creatures

(except Chiron)

 Followers of

Dionysus

The Hydra

 Many-headed serpent-

like monster

 Offspring of Typhon

and Echidna

 Sibling of Cerberus and

Chimaera

Cerberus

 Three-headed dog

 Known as the hound of

Hades

 Guarded the gates of

the Underworld so no

one would leave or

enter without

permission

 Sibling of Hydra and

Chimaera

The Chimaera