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Stheno
In Greek mythology, Stheno ( or ; Greek: Σθενώ, 'forceful') was the eldest of the Gorgons, vicious female monsters with brass hands, sharp fangs and "hair" made of living venomous snakes. Mythology The daughter of Phorcys and Ceto, Stheno was born in the caverns beneath Mount Olympus. She and her sister Euryale were both immortal, but the third sister, Medusa, was not.Wilk, Stephen R. "Mythological Evidence for Ancient Observations of Variable Stars." Journal of the American Association of Variable Star Observers 24 (1996): 129-133. Of the three Gorgons, she was known to be the most independent and ferocious, having killed more men than both of her sisters combined. In Roman mythology, she was transformed into a Gorgon for her relationship to her sister Medusa, a priestess of Minerva, who was raped by the sea god Neptune in her goddess's temple. Furious with Medusa for this act of desecration, Minerva changed her into a terrible monster, along with her sisters Stheno ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gorgon
A Gorgon ( /ˈɡɔːrɡən/; plural: Gorgons, Ancient Greek: Γοργών/Γοργώ ''Gorgṓn/Gorgṓ'') is a creature in Greek mythology. Gorgons occur in the earliest examples of Greek literature. While descriptions of Gorgons vary, the term most commonly refers to three sisters who are described as having hair made of living, venomous snakes and horrifying visages that turned those who beheld them to stone. Traditionally, two of the Gorgons, Stheno and Euryale, were immortal, but their sister Medusa was not and was slain by the demigod and hero Perseus. Etymology The name derives from the Ancient Greek word (), which means 'grim or dreadful', and appears to come from the same root as the Sanskrit word (), which means a guttural sound, similar to the growling of a beast, thus possibly originating as an onomatopoeia. Depictions Gorgons were a popular image in Greek mythology, appearing in the earliest of written records of Ancient Greek religious beliefs such as those ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gorgons
A Gorgon ( /ˈɡɔːrɡən/; plural: Gorgons, Ancient Greek: Γοργών/Γοργώ ''Gorgṓn/Gorgṓ'') is a creature in Greek mythology. Gorgons occur in the earliest examples of Greek literature. While descriptions of Gorgons vary, the term most commonly refers to three sisters who are described as having hair made of living, venomous snakes and horrifying visages that turned those who beheld them to stone. Traditionally, two of the Gorgons, Stheno and Euryale, were immortal, but their sister Medusa was not and was slain by the demigod and hero Perseus. Etymology The name derives from the Ancient Greek word (), which means 'grim or dreadful', and appears to come from the same root as the Sanskrit word (), which means a guttural sound, similar to the growling of a beast, thus possibly originating as an onomatopoeia. Depictions Gorgons were a popular image in Greek mythology, appearing in the earliest of written records of Ancient Greek religious beliefs such as thos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cultural Depictions Of Medusa And Gorgons
The mythological monster Medusa, her sisters, and the other Gorgons, have been featured in art and culture spanning from the days of ancient Greece to present day. Medusa has been variously portrayed as a monster, a protective symbol, a rallying symbol for liberty, and a sympathetic victim of rape and/or a curse. She is perhaps best recognized by her hair of living snakes and ability to turn living creatures to stone. Medusa is an ancient icon that remains one of the most popular and enduring figures of Greek mythology. She continues to be recreated in pop culture and art, surpassing the popularity of many other mythological characters. Her likeness has been immortalized by artists including Leonardo da Vinci, Peter Paul Rubens, Caravaggio, Pablo Picasso, Auguste Rodin, and Benvenuto Cellini.Wilk, ''Medusa: Solving the Mystery of the Gorgon'', pg. 200 Ancient times to the Renaissance The Gorgoneion, or Gorgon head, was used in the ancient world as a protective apotropaic s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euryale (Gorgon)
Euryale ( ; grc, Εὐρυάλη, lit=far-roaming), in Greek mythology, was the second eldest of the Gorgons, the three sisters that have the hair of living, venomous snakes. Family Euryale and her sisters were daughters of primordial sea god and goddess Phorcys and Ceto, who personified the dangers of the sea.Pindar, ''Pythian Ode'' 12.20Nonnus, ''Dionysiaca'' 25.58 According to Hyginus, the parents of the Gorgons were Gorgon and Ceto. In some variations of the myth of Orion, she is the hunter's mother by Poseidon, who lay with her following Medusa's death. Mythology Euryale and her sister Stheno were immortal, whereas Medusa was mortal. Euryale, like Stheno and Medusa, also had the ability to turn anyone to stone with her gaze. In many stories, Euryale is noted for her bellowing cries, particularly in the tale of Medusa's death at Perseus' hands, in which her anguished howls could make stone crumble to sand. See also * Cultural depictions of Medusa and Gorgons No ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Graeae
In Greek mythology the Graeae ( grc, Γραῖαι; ; English translation: "old women", "grey ones", or "grey witches"; alternatively spelled Graiai and Graiae) were three sisters who had gray hair from their birth and shared one eye and one tooth among them. They were also called the Grey Sisters and the Phorcides ("daughters of Phorcys") (not to be confused with the three Gorgons, who were also daughters of Phorcys and were also called Phorcides). Names Their names were: # Deino (or Dino) (Δεινώ) # Enyo (Ἐνυώ) # Pemphredo (Πεμφρηδώ) or Pephredo (Πεφρηδώ) Etymology The word Graeae is probably derived from the adjective "old woman", derived from the Proto-Indo-European root , "to grow old" via grk-x-proto, gera-/grau-iu. Mythology The Graeae were daughters of the sea-deities Ceto and Phorcys (from which their name the Phorcydes derived) and sisters to the Gorgons.Harris, Stephen L., and Gloria Platzner. ''Classical Mythology: Images and Insi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cap Of Invisibility
In classical mythology, the Cap of Invisibility (Ἅϊδος κυνέη ''(H)aïdos kyneē'' in Greek, lit. dog-skin of Hades) is a helmet or cap that can turn the wearer invisible, also known as the Cap of Hades or Helm of Hades. Wearers of the cap in Greek myths include Athena, the goddess of wisdom, the messenger god Hermes, and the hero Perseus. Those wearing the Cap become invisible to other supernatural entities, akin to a cloud of mist sometimes used to remain undetectable. Origins One ancient source that attributes a special helmet to the ruler of the underworld is the '' Bibliotheca'' (2nd/1st century BC), in which the Uranian Cyclops give Zeus the lightning bolt, Poseidon the trident, and a helmet ''(kyneê)'' to Hades (or Pluto) in their war against the Titans. In classical mythology the helmet is regularly said to belong to the god of the underworld. Rabelais calls it the Helmet of Pluto, and Erasmus the Helmet of Orcus. The helmet becomes proverbial for tho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phorcys
In Greek mythology, Phorcys or Phorcus (; grc, Φόρκυς) is a primordial sea god, generally cited (first in Hesiod) as the son of Pontus and Gaia (Earth). Classical scholar Karl Kerenyi conflated Phorcys with the similar sea gods Nereus and Proteus. His wife was Ceto, and he is most notable in myth for fathering by Ceto a host of monstrous children. In extant Hellenistic-Roman mosaics, Phorcys was depicted as a fish-tailed merman with crab-claw forelegs and red, spiky skin. Parents According to Hesiod's '' Theogony'', Phorcys is the son of Pontus and Gaia, and the brother of Nereus, Thaumus, Ceto, and Eurybia. In a genealogy from Plato's dialogue ''Timaeus'', Phorcys, Cronus and Rhea are the eldest offspring of Oceanus and Tethys. Offspring Hesiod's '' Theogony'' lists the children of Phorcys and Ceto as the Graeae (naming only two: Pemphredo, and Enyo), the Gorgons (Stheno, Euryale and Medusa), probably Echidna (though the text is unclear on this point) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medusa
In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those who gazed into her eyes would turn to stone. Most sources describe her as the daughter of Phorcys and Ceto, although the author Hyginus makes her the daughter of Gorgon and Ceto. Medusa was beheaded by the Greek hero Perseus, who then used her head, which retained its ability to turn onlookers to stone, as a weapon until he gave it to the goddess Athena to place on her shield. In classical antiquity, the image of the head of Medusa appeared in the evil-averting device known as the '' Gorgoneion''. According to Hesiod and Aeschylus, she lived and died on Sarpedon, somewhere near Cisthene. The 2nd-century BC novelist Dionysios Skytobrachion puts her somewhere in Libya, where Herodotus had said the Berbers originated her myth as part of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Echidna (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Echidna (; grc-gre, Ἔχιδνα, "She-Viper") was a monster, half-woman and half-snake, who lived alone in a cave. She was the mate of the fearsome monster Typhon and was the mother of many of the most famous monsters of Greek myth. Genealogy Echidna's family tree varies by author. The oldest genealogy relating to Echidna, Hesiod's ''Theogony'' (c. 8th – 7th century BC), is unclear on several points. According to Hesiod, Echidna was born to a "she" who was probably meant by Hesiod to be the sea goddess Ceto, making Echidna's likely father the sea god Phorcys; however the "she" might instead refer to the Oceanid Callirhoe, which would make Medusa's offspring Chrysaor the father of Echidna. The mythographer Pherecydes of Athens (5th century BC) has Echidna as the daughter of Phorcys, without naming a mother. Other authors give Echidna other parents. According to the geographer Pausanias (2nd century AD), Epimenides (7th or 6th century BC) had Echidna as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Venomous Snake
Venomous snakes are species of the suborder Serpentes that are capable of producing venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The venom is typically delivered by injection using hollow or grooved fangs, although some venomous snakes lack well-developed fangs. Common venomous snakes include the families Elapidae, Viperidae, Atractaspididae, and some of the Colubridae. The toxicity of venom is mainly indicated by murine , while multiple factors are considered to judge the potential danger to humans. Other important factors for risk assessment include the likelihood that a snake will bite, the quantity of venom delivered with the bite, the efficiency of the delivery mechanism, and the location of a bite on the body of the victim. Snake venom may have both neurotoxic and hemotoxic properties. There are about 600 venomous snake species in the world. Evolution The evolutionary history of venomous snakes can be traced back to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Female Legendary Creatures
Female (symbol: ♀) is the sex of an organism that produces the large non-motile ova (egg cells), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the male gamete during sexual reproduction. A female has larger gametes than a male. Females and males are results of the anisogamous reproduction system, wherein gametes are of different sizes, unlike isogamy where they are the same size. The exact mechanism of female gamete evolution remains unknown. In species that have males and females, sex-determination may be based on either sex chromosomes, or environmental conditions. Most female mammals, including female humans, have two X chromosomes. Female characteristics vary between different species with some species having pronounced secondary female sex characteristics, such as the presence of pronounced mammary glands in mammals. In humans, the word ''female'' can also be used to refer to gender in the social sense of gender role or gender identity. Etymology and usage T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Typhon
Typhon (; grc, Τυφῶν, Typhôn, ), also Typhoeus (; grc, Τυφωεύς, Typhōeús, label=none), Typhaon ( grc, Τυφάων, Typháōn, label=none) or Typhos ( grc, Τυφώς, Typhṓs, label=none), was a monstrous serpentine giant and one of the deadliest creatures in Greek mythology. According to Hesiod, Typhon was the son of Gaia and Tartarus. However, one source has Typhon as the son of Hera alone, while another makes Typhon the offspring of Cronus. Typhon and his mate Echidna were the progenitors of many famous monsters. Typhon attempted to overthrow Zeus for the supremacy of the cosmos. The two fought a cataclysmic battle, which Zeus finally won with the aid of his thunderbolts. Defeated, Typhon was cast into Tartarus, or buried underneath Mount Etna, or in later accounts, the island of Ischia. Typhon mythology is part of the Greek succession myth, which explained how Zeus came to rule the gods. Typhon's story is also connected with that of Python (the serpen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
