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 of ...

, Crius (; grc, Κρεῖος or Κριός, ''Kreios''/''Krios'') was one of the

Titans In Greek mythology, the Titans ( grc, οἱ Τῑτᾶνες, ''hoi Tītânes'', , ''ho Tītân'') were the pre-Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (Sky) and Gai ...

, children of

Uranus Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. Its name is a reference to the Greek god of the sky, Uranus (Caelus), who, according to Greek mythology, was the great-grandfather of Ares (Mars), grandfather of Zeus (Jupiter) and father of Cronu ...

and

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; from Ancient Greek , a poetical form of , 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea , is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthe ...

. Like other Titans, Crius lacks much characterization, with no unique domain or mythology of his own, instead apparently serving a purely genealogical function in mythology, to provide parentage for other figures.

Etymology

Although "krios" was also the ancient Greek word for "ram", the Titan's chthonic position in the underworld means no classical association with Aries, the ram of the

zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. The p ...

, is ordinarily made. Aries is the first visible constellation in the sky at the spring season, marking the start of the new year in the ancient Greek calendar.

Family

According to

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet i ...

, with Eurybia, daughter of

("Earth") and Pontus ("Sea"), he fathered Astraios, Pallas, and

Perses Perses may refer to: Characters in Greek mythology * Perses (Titan), son of the Titan siblings, Crius and Eurybia * Perses (son of Perseus) * Perses (brother of Aeetes), a son of Helios and the Oceanid Perseis People * Perses (brother of Hesiod ...

. The joining of Astraios with Eos, the Dawn, brought forth Eosphoros, Hesperus, Astraea, the other stars, and the winds.

Mythology

Joined to fill out lists of Titans to form a total matching the

Twelve Olympians upright=1.8, Fragment of a relief (1st century BC1st century AD) depicting the twelve Olympians carrying their attributes in procession; from left to right: Hestia (scepter), Hermes (winged cap and staff), Aphrodite (veiled), Ares (helmet and ...

, Crius was inexorably involved in the ten-year-long war between the Olympian gods and Titans, the

Titanomachy In Greek mythology, the Titanomachy (; grc, , , Titan battle) was a ten-year series of battles fought in Ancient Thessaly, consisting of most of the Titans (the older generation of gods, based on Mount Othrys) fighting against the Olympians (t ...

, though without any specific part to play. When the war was lost, Crius was banished along with the others to the lower level of

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

called Tartarus. As the least individualized among the Titans, he was overthrown in the

. M. L. West has suggested how

filled out the complement of Titans from the core group—adding three figures from the archaic tradition of

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracl ...

, Coeus, and Phoibe, whose name

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

assumed with the oracle, and Themis.M.L. West, "Hesiod's Titans," ''The Journal of Hellenic Studies'' 105 (1985), pp. 174–175. Among possible further interpolations among the Titans was Crius, whose interest for Hesiod was as the father of

and grandfather of

Hecate Hecate or Hekate, , ; grc-dor, Ἑκάτᾱ, Hekátā, ; la, Hecatē or . is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, snakes, or accompanied by dogs, and in later periods depict ...

, for whom Hesiod was, according to West, an "enthusiastic evangelist".

Genealogical tree

Notes

References

* Apollodorus, ''The Library'' with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
* Grimal, Pierre, ''The Dictionary of Classical Mythology'', Wiley-Blackwell, 1996. . *

, ''Theogony'' from ''The Homeric Hymns and Homerica'' with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White, Cambridge, MA.,Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
*

Hyginus 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 Gramma ...

, ''Fabulae from The Myths of Hyginus'' translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
* West, M.L., "Hesiod's Titans", in '' The Journal of Hellenic Studies'', Vol. 105, pp. 174–175. .

External links

CRIUS on The Theoi Project

CRIUS in Mythopedia

{{Authority control Greek gods Children of Gaia Titans (mythology) Characters in Greek mythology Condemned souls in Tartarus