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Rhadamanthus
In Greek mythology, Rhadamanthus () or Rhadamanthys ( grc, Ῥαδάμανθυς) was a wise king of Crete. As the son of Zeus and Europa he was considered a demigod. His name means "showing stern and inflexible judgement". He later became one of the judges of the dead and an important figure in Greek mythology. Family Rhadamanthus was, according to mythology, the son of Zeus and Europa and brother to Sarpedon and Minos (also a king and later a judge of the dead). Together with his brother, Rhadamanthus was raised by Asterion, their stepfather. He had two sons, Gortys (associated with Gortyn, Crete) and Erythrus (founder of Erythrae). Other sources (e.g. Plutarch, ''Theseus'' 20) credit Rhadamanthys rather than Dionysus as the husband of Ariadne, and the father of Oenopion, Staphylus and Thoas. In this account, Ariadne was the daughter of Minos, Rhadamanthys' brother; another Ariadne was the daughter of Minos's grandson and namesake, who features in Theseus's legend and was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarpedon (brother Of Minos)
In Greek mythology, Sarpedon ( or ; grc, Σαρπηδών) was a son of Zeus, who fought on the side of Troy in the Trojan War. Although in the ''Iliad'', he was the son of Zeus and Laodamia, the daughter of Bellerophon, in the later standard tradition, he was the son of Zeus and Europa, and the brother of Minos and Rhadamanthus, while in other accounts the Sarpedon who fought at Troy was the grandson of the Sarpedon who was the brother of Minos. Hero cult There was a temple of Sarpedon in Xanthos, in Lycia, perhaps associated with a supposed burial site there. There was also a temple and oracle of Apollo Sarpedonios and Artemis Sarpedonia at Seleuceia in Cilicia. According to Tertullian there was a shrine and oracle of Sarpedon in the Troad, although Tertuliian might have been confusing this for the oracle in Cilicia. There is evidence to suggest that Sarpedon was the subject of pre-Homeric non-Greek worship. Genealogy There were three separate traditions concerning the gene ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minos
In Greek mythology, Minos (; grc-gre, Μίνως, ) was a King of Crete, son of Zeus and Europa. Every nine years, he made King Aegeus pick seven young boys and seven young girls to be sent to Daedalus's creation, the labyrinth, to be eaten by the Minotaur. After his death, Minos became a judge of the dead in the underworld. The Minoan civilization of Crete was named after him by the archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans. Etymology "Minos" is often interpreted as the Cretan word for "king", or, by a euhemerist interpretation, the name of a particular king that was subsequently used as a title. According to La Marle's reading of Linear A, which has been heavily criticised as arbitrary, we should read ''mwi-nu ro-ja'' (Minos the king) on a Linear A tablet. La Marle suggests that the name'' mwi-nu'' (Minos) is expected to mean 'ascetic' as Sanskrit ''muni'', and fits this explanation to the legend about Minos sometimes living in caves on Crete. The royal title ''ro-ja'' is read o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greek Underworld
In mythology, the Greek underworld, or Hades, is a distinct realm (one of the three realms that makes up the cosmos) where an individual goes after death. The earliest idea of afterlife in Greek myth is that, at the moment of death, an individual's essence (''psyche'') is separated from the corpse and is transported to the underworld. In early mythology (e.g., Homer's ''Iliad'' and ''Odyssey'') the dead were indiscriminately grouped together and lead a shadowy post-existence; however, in later mythology (e.g., Platonic philosophy) elements of post-mortem judgment began to emerge with good and bad people being separated (both spatially and with regards to treatment). The underworld itself— commonly referred to as Hades, after its patron god, but also known by various metonyms—is described as being located at the periphery of the earth, either associated with the outer limits of the ocean (i.e., ''Oceanus'', again also a god) or beneath the earth. Darkness and a lack of sunlig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zeus
Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. His name is cognate with the first element of his ancient Roman religion, Roman interpretatio graeca, equivalent Jupiter (mythology), Jupiter.''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. His mythology and powers are similar, though not identical, to those of Indo-European deities such as Jupiter, Perkūnas, Perun, Indra, Dyaus, and Zojz (deity), Zojz. Entry: "Dyaus" Zeus is the child of Cronus and Rhea (mythology), Rhea, the youngest of his siblings to be born, though sometimes reckoned the eldest as the others required disgorging from Cronus's stomach. In most traditions, he is m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alcmene
In Greek mythology, Alcmene () or Alcmena (; Ancient Greek: Ἀλκμήνη or Doric Greek: Ἀλκμάνα, Latin: Alcumena means "strong in wrath") was the wife of Amphitryon by whom she bore two children, Iphicles and Laonome. She is best known as the mother of Heracles, whose father was the god Zeus. Alcmene was also referred to as Electryone (Ἠλεκτρυώνη), a patronymic name as a daughter of Electryon. Mythology Background According to the '' Bibliotheca'', Alcmene was born to Electryon, the son of Perseus and Andromeda, and king of Tiryns and Mycenae or Medea in Argolis. Her mother was Anaxo, daughter of Alcaeus and Astydamia.Apollodorus2.4.5/ref> Other accounts say her mother was Lysidice, the daughter of Pelops and Hippodameia,Plutarch, ''Lives'' Theseu7.1/ref> or Eurydice, the daughter of Pelops. According to Pausanias, the poet Asius made Alcmene the daughter of Amphiaraus and Eriphyle. Hesiod describes Alcmene as the tallest, most beautiful woman with wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Erythrae
Erythrae or Erythrai ( el, Ἐρυθραί) later Litri, was one of the twelve Ionian cities of Asia Minor, situated 22 km north-east of the port of Cyssus (modern name: Çeşme), on a small peninsula stretching into the Bay of Erythrae, at an equal distance from the mountains Mimas and Corycus, and directly opposite the island of Chios. It is recorded that excellent wine was produced in the peninsula. Erythrae was notable for being the seat of the Erythraean Sibyl. The ruins of the city are found north of the town Ildırı in the Çeşme district of Izmir Province, Turkey. History According to Pausanias (Paus. 7.3.7), the Erythraeans said they came originally from Crete under the leadership of Erythrus ('Red'), son of Rhadamanthus, and at the same time inhabited by Lycians, Carians, and Pamphylians. At a later period came Knopos (Strab. 14.633), son of Codrus, with an Ionian colony, whence the city is sometimes called Cnopopolis. The city did not lie exactly on the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Syssitia
The syssitia ( grc, συσσίτια ''syssítia'', plural of ''syssítion'') were, in ancient Greece, common meals for men and youths in social or religious groups, especially in Crete and Sparta, but also in Megara in the time of Theognis of Megara (sixth century BCE) and Corinth in the time of Periander (seventh century BCE). The banquets spoken of by Homer relate to the tradition. Some reference to similar meals can be found in Carthage and according to Aristotle (''Politics'' VII. 9), it prevailed still earlier amongst the Oenotrians of Calabria. The origin of the ''syssítia'' is attributed to Rhadamanthus, the legendary lawgiver of Knossos of Crete. This is explained by Cleinias of Crete in conversation with an Athenian and a Spartan, in Plato's dialogue the Laws. Lycurgus of Sparta certainly made use of the practice in Sparta. Sparta In Sparta, where the system was most evolved, they were also called ''pheiditia'' (, The term is probably a corruption of ''phil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thoas (king Of Lemnos)
In Greek mythology, Thoas (Ancient Greek: Θόας, "fleet, swift") was a son of the god Dionysus and Ariadne, the daughter of the Cretan king Minos. He was the king of Lemnos when the Lemnian women decided to kill all the men on the island. He was the only man to survive the massacre, having been saved by his daughter Hypsipyle. He is sometimes identified with the Thoas who was the king of the Taurians when Iphigenia was taken to the land of the Taurians and became a priestess of Artemis there. Family Thoas was the son of Dionysus and Ariadne. According to the mythographer Apollodorus, after the god Dionysus fell in love with Ariadne he carried her to Lemnos where they produced four sons Thoas, Staphylus, Oenopion, and Peparethus. However, according to Plutarch, by some accounts Oenopion and Staphylus were instead the sons of Theseus and Ariadne. Thoas was the father of Hypsipyle, and according to the ''Iliad'', by her and Jason, the grandfather of Euneus. Other sources say t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gymnasium (ancient Greece)
The gymnasium ( grc-gre, γυμνάσιον, gymnásion) in Ancient Greece functioned as a training facility for competitors in public games. It was also a place for socializing and engaging in intellectual pursuits. The name comes from the Ancient Greek term '' gymnós'', meaning "naked" or "nude". Only adult male citizens were allowed to use the gymnasia. Athletes competed nude, a practice which was said to encourage aesthetic appreciation of the male body, and to be a tribute to the gods. Gymnasia and palaestrae (wrestling schools) were under the protection and patronage of Heracles, Hermes and, in Athens, Theseus. Etymology The word ''gymnasium'' is the latinisation of the Greek noun γυμνάσιον (''gymnasion''), "public place for physical exercises; exercise area", in pl. "bodily exercises" and generally "school", which in turn is derived from the common Greek adjective (''gymnos'') meaning "naked" or "nude", by way of the related verb γυμνάζω (''gymnazo''), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dionysus
In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans called him Bacchus ( or ; grc, Βάκχος ) for a frenzy he is said to induce called ''bakkheia''. As Dionysus Eleutherios ("the liberator"), his wine, music, and ecstatic dance free his followers from self-conscious fear and care, and subvert the oppressive restraints of the powerful. His ''thyrsus'', a fennel-stem sceptre, sometimes wound with ivy and dripping with honey, is both a beneficent wand and a weapon used to destroy those who oppose his cult and the freedoms he represents. Those who partake of his mysteries are believed to become possessed and empowered by the god himself. His origins are uncertain, and his cults took many forms; some are described by ancient sources as Thracian, others as Greek. In Orphic religion, he wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heracles
Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive descent through Amphitryon, Heracles receives the epithet Alcides, as "of the line of Alcaeus", father of Amphitryon. Amphitryon's own, mortal son was Iphicles. He was a great-grandson and half-brother (as they are both sired by the god Zeus) of Perseus, and similarly a half-brother of Dionysus. He was the greatest of the Greek heroes, the ancestor of royal clans who claimed to be Heracleidae (), and a champion of the Olympian order against chthonic monsters. In Rome and the modern West, he is known as Hercules, with whom the later Roman emperors, in particular Commodus and Maximian, often identified themselves. The Romans adopted the Greek version of his life and works essentially unchanged, but added anecdotal detail of their own, so ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gortys (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Gortys (Ancient Greek: Γόρτυνα) may refer to the following Arcadian princes: * Gortys, son of King Tegeates of Tegea and Maera, daughter of the Titan Atlas. He was the brother of Scephrus, Leimon, Archedius, and Cydon. Together with the last two brothers, they migrated to Crete on their own free will and that after them were named the cities Cydonia, Gortyna and Catreus. In some accounts, Gortys was called the son of Rhadamanthys, son of Europa and Zeus. * Gortys, founder of the city Gortys in Arcadia on a river which was also called after him. He was son of King Stymphalus and brother of Agamedes.Pausanias, 8.4.8 Notes References * Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ..., ''Description of Greece'' with an English Translation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
