greek mythology

Titans

the deities in Greek mythology that preceded the Olympians; they were the children of the primordial deities Uranus (heaven) and Gaea (earth)

Zeus (Jupiter, in Roman mythology):

the god of the sky in ancient Greek mythology; chief Greek deity; considered the ruler, protector, and father of all gods and humans; often represented by symbols such as the lightning bolt and the eagle

Hera (Juno, in Roman mythology)

goddess of women, marriage, family and childbirth in ancient Greek religion; one of the twelve Olympians; sister and wife of Zeus

Prometheus

one of the Titans, the supreme trickster, associated with fire and the creation of mortals

the Fates

a group  of 3 weaving goddesses who assign individual destinies to mortals at birth

Narcissus

son of a river god; rejected all romantic advances, eventually falling in love with his own reflection in a pool of water, staring at it for the remainder of his life

Echo

mountain nymph [a mythological spirit of nature imagined as a beautiful maiden inhabiting rivers or woods] who was punished by Hera, who deprived her of speech, except for the ability to repeat the last words of another. Echo’s hopeless love for Narcissus, who fell in love with his own image, made her fade away until all that was left of her was her voice.

Sisyphus

a figure in Homer's Iliad; a trickster who receives eternal punishment for trying to cheat Death

Hades

 god of the underworld and of the dead

Persephone

goddess queen of the underworld, wife of Hades; also the goddess of spring growth, who was worshiped alongside her mother Demeter

Demeter

mother of Persephone; goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over grains and the fertility of the earth

Hercules/Heracles

son of Zeus and a mortal woman; famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures 

Perseus

Greek hero and a slayer of monsters before the days of the Trojan war & Hercules; beheaded the Gorgon Medusa

Medusa

the most famous of the monster figures known as Gorgons; usually represented as a winged female creature having a head of hair consisting of snakes; unlike the Gorgons, she was sometimes represented as very beautiful

Midas

most famous King of Phrygia, Midas is popularly remembered in Greek mythology for his ability to turn everything he touched into gold

Hermes

messenger of the gods; god of heralds and travelers; wore winged sandals

Athena

virgin goddess of wisdom and war and the adored patroness of the city of Athens

Aphrodite (Venus in Roman mythology):

Aphrodite (Venus in Roman mythology):

Icarus

Along with his father, Daedalus, attempted to escape from Crete by means of wings that Daedalus constructed from feathers and wax. Daedalus warned Icarus first of complacency and then of hubris, instructing him to fly neither too low nor too high, lest the sea's dampness clog his wings or the sun's heat melt them. Icarus ignores Daedalus’s instructions not to fly too close to the sun, causing the wax in his wings to melt. He falls out of the sky, plunges into the sea, and drowns. The myth gave rise to the idiom "don't fly too close to the sun".

Daedalus

skillful architect and craftsman, seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and power; created the Labyrinth (prison of the Minotaur, mythical creature with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man

Orpheus

the son of Apollo and the muse Calliope; very gifted musician who could move both gods and mortals with his playing; visited his wife Eurydice in the Underworld and tried to bring her back to earth but violated Hades’ rule and looked back to check she was behind him and lost her forever

Muses

a group of sister goddesses who are thought to inspire art, music, science, and literature. Often a poet will call upon a Muse to inspire him.

Apollo

one of the most important gods, seen as the most beautiful male deity; twin brother of Artemis (Diana), goddess of the hunt; god of all Greece, of the Sun; wards off evil;  god of shepherds, music, prophecy, poetry, archery; usually carries a golden bow and a quiver of silver arrows

Oedipus

mythical Greek king of Thebes; tragic hero, accidentally fulfilled a prophecy that he would end up killing his father and marrying his mother, thereby bringing disaster to his city and family; gouges his own eyes out when he learns the truth

Oracle at Delphi:

the name of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, amongst the most powerful women of the classical world, serves as medium through which divine prophecies are communicated

Sphinx

a mythical creature with the head of a human and the body of a lion with the wings of a falcon; treacherous and merciless, and will kill and eat those who cannot answer her riddle; her most famous riddle was: "What walks on four feet in the morning, two in the afternoon and three at night?". Oedipus was the first to answer it correctly: "Man: as an infant, he crawls on all fours; as an adult, he walks on two legs and; in old age, he uses a walking stick"; having heard Oedipus' answer, the Sphinx killed herself by throwing herself into the sea

Pandora

in Greek mythology, the first woman; had a jar (later, a box) containing all manner of misery and evil; she opened it and the evils flew out over the earth. Hope alone remained inside, the lid having been shut down before she could escape.

Paris

one son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy; said to have caused Trojan War

Helen

the most beautiful woman in the world at her time; married to Menelaeus but abducted by (in other versions, eloped with) Paris

Bacchus (Dionysus):

the god of wine and the power to inspire ecstasy; his followers were known for lavish drunkenness, parties (revels), and sexual activity (orgies)

Menelaus

husband of Helen of Troy, younger brother of Agamemnon, led the Spartans against the Trojans

Agamemnon

commanded Greek forces in Trojan War

Achilles

hero of the Trojan War, greatest Greek warrior, and is the main character of Homer's Iliad; was immune to harm in all of his body except for one heel, because when his mother Thetis dipped him in the river Styx as an infant to try to make him immortal, she held him by one of his heels(the term "Achilles' heel" has come to mean a point of weakness); he was given the choice to either gain glory and die young, or to live a long but uneventful life in obscurity. Achilles chose the former, and decided to take part in the Trojan War.

Hector

Trojan prince and greatest warrior for Troy in Trojan War; ultimately killed by Achilles, who carried his dead body around the city of Troy in his chariot to show off

Cassandra

said to be daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy; a Trojan priestess of Apollo but was cursed to utter true prophecies, but never to be believed (to be “a Cassandra” is to be someone who warns of impending disaster but no one listens)