Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...

, Adamanthea or Adamanteia was a

nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label= Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ...

who helped raise the infant

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...

to hide him from his father, Cronus. Her name comes from the Greek word (''adamas''), meaning "untameable" and , the Greek word for goddess.

Mythology

Adamanthea along with the goat-nymph Amalthea are revered as the foster mothers of Zeus. Reacting to a

prophecy In religion, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a '' prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law, or pr ...

from his mother Gaia that his own offspring would overthrow his supreme position in the pantheon, Cronus swallowed all of his children immediately after birth. Rhea, Zeus' mother and Cronus' wife, deceived Cronus by giving him a stone wrapped to look like a baby instead of Zeus, whom she instead gave to Adamanthea to nurse. Since Cronus ruled over the earth, the heavens and the sea, Adamanthea hid Zeus by dangling him on a rope from a tree, suspended between earth, sea and sky, and thus invisible to his father.

Note

Reference

* Bell, Robert E., ''Women of Classical Mythology: A Biographical Dictionary''. ABC-Clio. 1991. .

External links

ADAMANTHEA: Spiritual beings from Greek Mythology
Nymphs {{Greek-deity-stub