|
Megara (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Megara (; Ancient Greek: Μεγάρα) was a Theban princess and the first wife of the hero Heracles. Family Megara was the eldest daughter of Creon, King of Thebes, who was possibly the brother of Jocasta and uncle of Oedipus.Apollodorus, ''Library,'2.4.11 If Creon is the same figure, Megara's mother is likely Creon's wife Eurydice, and she would be the sister of Menoeceus (Megareus), Lycomedes, Haemon, and Pyrrha. Accounts of the names and number of Megara and Heracles' children vary based on the author. According to the mythographer Apollodorus, Megara was the mother of three sons by Heracles named Therimachus, Creontiades, and Deicoon. Dinias the Argive included the three children named by Apollodorus, however, he also added a fourth named Deion. Theban poet Pindar states that Megara bore Heracles eight sons. Alternatively, the Roman mythographer Hyginus named their sons as Therimachus and Ophites. Mythology Megara was married to Heracles by her f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Megaera
Megaera ( ; grc, Μέγαιρα, Mégaira, the jealous one) is one of the Erinyes, Eumenides or "Furies" in Greek mythology. ''Bibliotheca Classica'' states "According to the most received opinions, they were three in number, Tisiphone, "Megaera ... daughter of Nyx and Acheron", and Alecto". In other versions, she and her sisters, as well as the Meliae, were born of the blood of Uranus (mythology), Uranus when Cronus castrated him. In modern French (), Portuguese (), Modern Greek (), Italian (), Russian (), Ukrainian () and Czech (), this name denotes a jealous or spiteful woman. She is not to be confused with Megara (mythology), Megara, the wife of Heracles. Cultural depictions Minor planet 464 Megaira is named in her honour. The 1964 Hammer horror film ''The Gorgon'' revolves around the re-emergence of Megaera in a Central European village circa 1910. Magaera is one of the main characters in the ''The Twilight Zone (1985 TV series), Twilight Zone'' episode "Ye Gods", wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pindar
Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar is by far the greatest, in virtue of his inspired magnificence, the beauty of his thoughts and figures, the rich exuberance of his language and matter, and his rolling flood of eloquence, characteristics which, as Horace rightly held, make him inimitable." His poems can also, however, seem difficult and even peculiar. The Athenian comic playwright Eupolis once remarked that they "are already reduced to silence by the disinclination of the multitude for elegant learning". Some scholars in the modern age also found his poetry perplexing, at least until the 1896 discovery of some poems by his rival Bacchylides; comparisons of their work showed that many of Pindar's idiosyncrasies are typical of archaic genres rather than of only the poet himself. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos. Family Eurystheus was the son of King Sthenelus and Nicippe (also called Antibia or Archippe), and he was a grandson of the hero Perseus.Apollodorus, 2.4.5 His sisters were Alcyone and Medusa, and he married Antimache, daughter of Amphidamas of Arcadia. Their children were Admete, Alexander, Iphimedon, Eurybius, Mentor, Perimedes and Eurypylus.Athenaeus, ''Deipnosophistae'4.158(p. 219) Mythology Labours of Heracles In the contest of wills between Hera and Zeus over whose candidate would be hero, fated to defeat the remaining creatures representing an old order and bring about the reign of the Twelve Olympians, Eurystheus was Hera's candidate and Heracles—though his name implies that at one archaic stage of myth-making he had carrie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leipephilene
In Greek mythology, Leipephilene (Ancient Greek: Λειπεφιλήνη) was the daughter of Iolaus and Megara (mythology), Megara. She was renowned for her beauty which was compared to that of an Twelve Olympians, Olympian goddess. Leipephilene married Phylas and bore two children to him, Hippotes and Thero (mythology), Thero. The name form "Leipephilene" is a corruption, and has been variously emended by some editors as "Leipephile" (Λειπεφίλη), "Hippophile" (Ἱπποφίλη) or "Deiphile" (Δηιφίλη). The precise original form remains unknown.''Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft'', Band VA, Halbband 10, Thapsos-Thesara (1934), s. 2444, s. v. ''Thero'' Notes Women in Greek mythology References * Pausanias (geographer), Pausanias, ''Description of Greece'' with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918. Online version a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts. Family Iolaus was the son of Iphicles and Automedusa, daughter of King Alcathous of Megara. He married Megara, and through her became the father of a Leipephilene. Through this daughter, Iolaus was considered to have fathered the mythic and historic line of the kings of Corinth, ending with Telestes. Mythology Relationship with Heracles Iolaus often acted as Heracles' charioteer and companion. Plutarch, describing the Theban Sacred Band in his life of Pelopidas, said "It is a tradition likewise that Iolaus, who assisted Hercules in his labours and fought at his side, was beloved of him; and Aristotle observes that, even in his time, lovers plighted their faith at Iolaus's tomb." Adventures Iolaus provided essential help to Heracles in his battle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Labours Of Hercules
The Labours of Hercules or Labours of Heracles ( grc-gre, οἱ Ἡρακλέους ἆθλοι, ) are a series of episodes concerning a penance carried out by Heracles, the greatest of the Greek heroes, whose name was later romanised as Hercules. They were accomplished at the service of King Eurystheus. The episodes were later connected by a continuous narrative. The establishment of a fixed cycle of twelve labours was attributed by the Greeks to an epic poem, now lost, written by Peisander, dated about 600 BC. Having tried to kill Heracles ever since he was born, Hera induced a madness in him that made him kill his wife and children. Afterwards, Heracles went to the Oracle of Delphi to atone, where he prayed to the god Apollo for guidance. Heracles was told to serve Eurystheus, king of Mycenae, for ten years. During this time, he was sent to perform a series of difficult feats, called labours. History Driven mad by Hera (queen of the gods), Heracles slew his sons ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which survive intact, between 60 and 30 BC. The history is arranged in three parts. The first covers mythic history up to the destruction of Troy, arranged geographically, describing regions around the world from Egypt, India and Arabia to Europe. The second covers the time from the Trojan War to the death of Alexander the Great. The third covers the period to about 60 BC. ''Bibliotheca'', meaning 'library', acknowledges that he was drawing on the work of many other authors. Life According to his own work, he was born in Agyrium in Sicily (now called Agira). With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about his life and doings beyond his written works. Only Jerome, in his ''Chronicon'' under the "year of Abraham 1968" (49 BC), w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hera
In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she is queen of the twelve Olympians and Mount Olympus, sister and wife of Zeus, and daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. One of her defining characteristics in myth is her jealous and vengeful nature in dealing with any who offend her, especially Zeus' numerous adulterous lovers and illegitimate offspring. Her iconography usually presents her as a dignified, matronly figure, upright or enthroned, crowned with a ''polos'' or diadem, sometimes veiled as a married woman. She is the patron goddess of lawful marriage. She presides over weddings, blesses and legalises marital unions, and protects women from harm during childbirth. Her sacred animals include the cow, cuckoo and the peacock. She is sometimes shown holding a pomegranate, as an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orchomenus (Boeotia)
Orchomenus ( grc, Ὀρχομενός ''Orchomenos''), the setting for many early Greek myths, is best known today as a rich archaeological site in Boeotia, Greece, that was inhabited from the Neolithic through the Hellenistic periods. It is often referred to as " Minyan Orchomenus", to distinguish it from a later city of the same name in Arcadia. Ancient history According to the founding myth of Orchomenos, its royal dynasty was established by the Minyans, who had followed their eponymous leader Minyas from coastal Thessaly to settle the site. In the Bronze Age, during the fourteenth and thirteenth centuries BCE, Orchomenos became a rich and important centre of civilisation in Mycenaean Greece and a rival to Thebes. The palace with its frescoed walls and the great beehive tomb show the power of Orchomenos in Mycenaean Greece. A massive hydraulic undertaking drained the marshes of Lake Kopaïs, making it a rich agricultural area. Like many sites around the Aegean Sea, Orcho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minyans
According to Greek mythology and legendary prehistory of the Aegean region, the Minyans or Minyae ( el, Μινύες, ''Minyes'') were an autochthonous group inhabiting the Aegean region. The extent to which the prehistory of the Aegean world is reflected in literary accounts of legendary peoples, and the degree to which material culture can be securely linked to language-based ethnicity have been subjected to repeated revision. The Mycenaean Greeks reached Crete as early as 1450s BC. Greek presence on the mainland, however, dates to 1600 BC as shown in the latest shaft graves. Other aspects of the Minyan period appear to arrive from northern Greece and the Balkans, in particular tumulus graves and perforated stone axes. John L. Caskey's interpretation of his archaeological excavations conducted in the 1950s linked the ethno-linguistic "Proto-Greeks" to the bearers of the Minyan (or Middle Helladic) culture. More recent scholars have questioned or amended his dating and doubte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mosaic Panel Depicting The Madness Of Heracles (Hercules Furens), From The Villa Torre De Palma Near Monforte, 3rd-4th Century AD, National Archaeology Museum Of Lisbon, Portugal (12973806145)
A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly popular in the Ancient Roman world. Mosaic today includes not just murals and pavements, but also artwork, hobby crafts, and industrial and construction forms. Mosaics have a long history, starting in Mesopotamia in the 3rd millennium BC. Pebble mosaics were made in Tiryns in Mycenean Greece; mosaics with patterns and pictures became widespread in classical times, both in Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Early Christian basilicas from the 4th century onwards were decorated with wall and ceiling mosaics. Mosaic art flourished in the Byzantine Empire from the 6th to the 15th centuries; that tradition was adopted by the Norman Kingdom of Sicily in the 12th century, by the eastern-influenced Republic of Venice, and among the Rus. Mosaic fell ou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fabulae
Gaius Julius Hyginus (; 64 BC – AD 17) was a Latin author, a pupil of the scholar Alexander Polyhistor, and a freedman of Caesar Augustus. He was elected superintendent of the Palatine library by Augustus according to Suetonius' ''De Grammaticis'', 20. It is not clear whether Hyginus was a native of the Iberian Peninsula or of Alexandria. Suetonius remarks that Hyginus fell into great poverty in his old age and was supported by the historian Clodius Licinus. Hyginus was a voluminous author: his works included topographical and biographical treatises, commentaries on Helvius Cinna and the poems of Virgil, and disquisitions on agriculture and bee-keeping. All these are lost. Under the name of Hyginus there are extant what are probably two sets of school notes abbreviating his treatises on mythology; one is a collection of ''Fabulae'' ("stories"), the other a "Poetical Astronomy". ''Fabulae'' The ''Fabulae'' consists of some three hundred very brief and plainly, even crudely, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_Pompeian_Art.jpg "Click for more on -> Hera")
