This document provides an overview of Greek mythology, beginning with the Titans who preceded the Olympian gods. It describes Cronus overthrowing his father Ouranos and later being overthrown by his son Zeus. It then introduces the 12 major Olympian gods, describing each god's domain, symbols, strengths and weaknesses. The gods covered include Zeus, Hera, Demeter, Hermes, Aphrodite, Ares, Artemis, Apollo, Hephaestus, Athena, Hestia, and Poseidon.

1. Standing Atop
Mount Olympus
The Mythology of
Ancient Greece
Mythology In Art & Literature
Professor Will Adams
Valencia College

2. Before Mount Olympus:
Th e Titans –- Gaia and Ouranos
 The Titans were a giant
race of super-gods who
predated the Olympian
gods
 They were the aunts,
uncles and parents of the
Olympians
 The Titans were conceived
by the first two Greek
deities – Gaia & Ouranos
 Ouranos was the god of
the Sky and Gaia the
goddess of the Earth

3. Before Mount Olympus:
Th e Titans - Gaia and Ouranos
 Ouranos feared overthrow
by his children and threw
them into Tartarus
 Gaia conspired with her
children to overthrow
Ouranos
 Gaia helped her offspring
escape from Tartarus
 Cronos subsequently
castrates Ouranos with a
sickle, rendering him
powerless
 Unfortunately, Cronos
then repeats his father’s
pattern and begins killing
his children

4. Before Mount Olympus:
Th e Titans - Cronos and Rh ea
 Defeated his father
Ouranos by castrating
him
 Then married Rhea and
produced more children
 Feared overthrow by his
children, so ate each one
as it was born
 Rhea a tricks Cronos
into eating a rock so
that Zeus can escape
being eaten
 Zeus overthrows Cronos
and banishes him to the
Italic peninsula

5. Before Mount Olympus:
Th e Titans - Cronos and Rh ea
 Daughter of Gaia
and Ouranos
 Married her brother
Cronos and gave
birth to the
Olympian gods
 Known as “The
Mother of the Gods”
 Usually shown either
seated next to or in
a chariot drawn by
two lions

6. Th e Olymp ians
 The Olympian pantheon
consists of 12 central
deities
 All Olympian gods held a
throne on Mt Olympus,
though many of them
spent their time elsewhere
(i.e. Poseidon)
 The 12 Olympians: Zeus,
Hera, Hestia, Demeter,
Apollo, Ares, Hermes,
Hephaestus, Poseidon,
Aphrodite, Athena &
Artemis

7. The Olympians
Zeus
 Son of Cronos and
Rhea
 King of the Olympians
 Married to his sister
Hera
 God of the sky, uses
lightning and thunder
as weapons
 Gave birth to Athena
by himself when she
sprang fully-formed
from his head

8. The Olympians
Zeus
 Mated with many
mortals to produce
Greek heroes
 Symbols of Zeus: the
eagle, the scepter,
and cornucopia
 Abilities: physically
powerful, charming
personality
 Weakness:
wandering eye

9. The Olympians
H era
 Sister and wife of Zeus
 Goddess of marriage,
children and childbirth
 Traditionally thought to
have been the most
beautiful of the goddesses
 Usually involved in meting
out revenge on one of
Zeus’s lovers or their
offspring
 Gave birth to the lame god
Hephaestus as a response
to Zeus giving birth to
Athena by himself

10. The Olympians
H era
 She is also the
mother of the
Olympian god Ares
 Abilities: Determined
defender of
monogamy
 Weaknesses: Married
to philandering Zeus
 Symbols: peacock &
pomegranate

11. The Olympians
Demeter
 Goddess of fertility,
grain, and
agriculture
 Sister of Zeus and
Hera
 Responsible for the
creation of winter
 Abilities: controls the
fertility of the
Earth, grants
immortality to those
who learn her
Mysteries

12. The Olympians
Demeter
 Weaknesses: Quick to
wreak havoc when
crossed
 Symbols: sheaf of
grain, torch, scepter
 Closely associated
with the story of her
daughter
Persephone’s
abduction to the
Underworld

13. The Olympians
H ermes
 Son of Zeus & nymph
Maia
 Known as the Messenger
God
 God of thieves,
commerce, travelers,
athletics, invention &
shepherds
 Abilities: Clever, bold,
and able to subdue
enemies with music
 Weaknesses: None
 Symbols: Winged
sandals, serpent-twined
staff, tortoise-shell lyre

14. The Olympians
Ap hrod ite
 Aunt of Zeus and
Hera
 Born from the severed
genitals of Ouranos
 Goddess of love &
beauty
 Abilities: dazzling
beauty and sexual
prowess
 Weaknesses: A bit
conceited
 Symbol: her girdle

15. The Olympians
Ap hrod ite
 Won the Contest of
the Golden Apple (also
known as The
Judgment of Paris)
between herself, Hera
and Athena
 Indirectly responsible
for beginning the
Trojan War
 She is married to the
lame god Hephaestus,
son of Hera
 Continually flirts with
Ares, god of war

16. The Olympians
Ares
 God of War
 Sole legitimate son of
Zeus & Hera
 Thought of as irritable,
gruff and war-like, his
parents did not care
much for him
 Carries a torch for his
aunt Aphrodite
 Strengths: Fearless in
battle
 Weaknesses: Impulsive
and bloodthirsty
 Symbols: the spear,
vulture, dogs

17. The Olympians
Artem is
 She is the goddess of
the Hunt & the
natural world
 Daughter of Zeus and
the nymph Leto (twin
sister of the god
Apollo)
 Described as a
tomboy-like god, she
spends most of the
time in the forest with
her maidens hunting

18. The Olympians
ARtem is
 Strengths: She is
physically strong,
defender of childbirth
and the natural world
 Weaknesses: She has a
serious dislike of men
(as in the story of
Acteon) and opposes
marriage
 Symbols: her bow and
her hunting hounds.

19. The Olympians
Apo llo
 He is Artemis’s twin
brother
 Apollo is the god of
the Sun, knowledge,
& the arts
 Traditionally
represented as
golden-haired and
quite beautiful
 Symbols: the sun,
the bow, the chariot

20. The Olympians
Apo llo
 Strengths: Creative
and a great
supporter of the
arts
 Inherited his father’s
wandering eye
 He was entrusted
with carrying the
sun into the sky
each morning and
returning it to the
sea each evening
with his chariot.

21. The Olympians
H ep haestus
 He is the god of the Forge,
Metalcraft & Fire
 He is the son of solely Hera
 Aphrodite is his wife
 He was born with a club-
foot, for which his mother
cast him off Mt Olympus
 Strengths: Very cunning
and crafty
 Weaknesses: A mean and
vindictive drunk
 Symbols: the forge, the fire

22. The Olympians
Ath ena
 Goddess of Wisdom &
Military Strategy
 Daughter of solely Zeus
 Patron god of the city of
Athens, which is named for
her.
 Often referred to as “grey-
eyed Athena”
 Sprang fully-formed from
her father’s head after he
swallowed her mother
 Strengths: Rational and
intelligent, powerful in war
but also a proponent of peace
 Weaknesses: Often pragmatic
to a fault
 Symbols: The owl, wolves,
and her armor

23. The Olympians
H estia
 Goddess of the Hearth and
Home
 Sister of Zeus and Hera
 Virginal protectress of
family
 Typically seen as shy,
demure, and homely
 Strengths: Calm and
gentle support of the
family and homelife
 Weaknesses: Aloof
 Symbols: the hearth
containing a tamed fire
 Immune to Aphrodite’s
powers, she could not be
coerced into loving anyone

24. The Olympians
Pos ei don
 God of the Sea
 Brother of Zeus and Hera
 Credited his creating both
horses and zebras
 Lost a competition for the
love of the people of
Athens to Athena
 Strengths: Creative at
biological engineering
 Weaknesses: Warlike,
moody & unpredictable
 Symbols: the trident,
horses
 Fathered Pegasus the
flying horse from his
liaison with Medusa

25. Telos