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THE GODS
ZEUS (JUPITER)
The chief of the gods
AKA: Lord of the Sky, Rain God, Cloud
Gatherer
Weapon: Thunderbolt
Breastplate: Aegis
Bird: eagle
Tree: oak
Oracle: Dodona
Father of MANY
POSEIDON (NEPTUNE)
The ruler of the sea and second in
command
AKA: Earth Shaker
Husband of Amphitrite (granddaughter
of Ocean)
Gave the first horse to man
Carried a trident
HADES (PLUTO)
Lord of the Underworld, King of the
Dead (but not death itself)
AKA: The god of Wealth (all minerals
and jewels under the Earth’s surface
were his)
Had a Helm of Darkness, which made
the wearer invisible.
His wife was Persephone
HESTIA (VESTA)
Goddess of the hearth, symbol of the
home
One of the virgin goddesses
She does not appear in myths, but
played a very important role in the
daily lives of Greeks and Romans.
In Rome her perpetual fire was cared for
by six virgin priestesses, called
Vestals.
HERA (JUNO)
Zeus’s wife and sister
The protector of marriage
Hated and sought revenge against every
woman with whom her husband had
relations.
She changed the outcome of the Trojan
War because of a past insult to her
beauty.
The cow and peacock were sacred to
her.
ARES (MARS)
The God of War
Son of Zeus and Hera (who both
detested him)
Homer called him murderous,
bloodstained, the incarnate curse of
mortals
His bird was the vulture, and he chose
the dog as his animal (remember the
“dogs of war” in Julius Caesar?)
PALLAS ATHENA (MINERVA)
Zeus had a headache;out popped Athena fully grown
and armed. Metis is her mother.
(FYI: Having a baby by oneself without a member of the
opposite gender to get things started is called
parthenogenesis .)
One of the virgin goddesses.
The Goddess of the City, protector of civilized life, and
inventor of the bridle, carrier of Aegis and a Medusa
shield
She defends the state and home from enemies, and is
the protector of weavers.
Her city was Athens, the olive was her tree, and the owl
was her bird, her temple the Parthenon
(Pallas is just part of her name; two goddesses were
merged…)
PHOEBUS APOLLO
The Archer God, lord of the silver bow,
The Healer, God of Light, and God of
Truths
Also famous for athleticism and music
Delphi was his oracle.
He defeated the serpent, Python.
His tree was the laurel, and his most
sacred animals were the crow and the
dolphin.
Always depicted as extremely handsome
(Phoebus means “bright”)
APHRODITE (VENUS)
The Goddess of Love and Beauty
Daughter of Zeus and Dione-or sprung
from the foam of the sea near Cythera
as the last of the Titans.
Her tree was the myrtle; the dove was
her bird—sometimes the swan or the
sparrow.
HERMES (MERCURY)
The messenger of the gods.
Son of Zeus and Maia (daughter of Atlas).
Known for winged sandals, a winged hat,
and the Caduceus (his magic wand).
Also god of thieves and travelers. He stole
Apollo’s cattle, but Zeus made him
return them. Apollo forgave him when
he presented him with an instrument he
invented-the lyre.
He was also a guide for the dead.
ARTEMIS (DIANA)
Apollo’s twin sister, daughter of Zeus
and Leto, and the third of the virgin
goddesses.
She was the Lady of Wild Things and the
Huntsman-in-chief to the gods.
She was also the Moon.
The cypress was her sacred tree, and all
wild animals were sacred to her—
especially the deer.
HEPHAESTUS (VULCAN)
The God of Fire, and the protector of smiths.
Sometimes the son of Zeus and Hera-sometimes
born from Hera alone to get even for Athena.
He was known for being ugly and deformed. He
was cast out of Olympus by either his father or
mother-depending upon which stories you
read.
In the Iliad he is married to Aglaia, in the
Odyssey he is married to Aphrodite.
He also made furniture, armor, and weapons for
fellow gods.
He provided the headache “cure” to Zeus.
Dionysus (Bacchus)
 The god of wine (or the vine)
 Son of Zeus and Semele
 Also the god of madness
 Symbols: ivy or grape vines; comedy
and tragedy masks
 Followers were maenads (wild women)
and Satyrs ( ½ man- ½ goat)
Demeter (Ceres)
 Goddess of the harvest
 Mother of Persephone
 Did not live on Mt. Olympus
 Her despair over her missing daughter
caused her to stop all agriculture from
producing
 Persephone’s kidnapping sparked the
“creation” of seasons
Click to see the Gods’ family
tree…
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http://www.webexhibits.org/greekgods/