Omicron; the lowercase form of the fifteenth letter of the Greek alphabet; uppercase Ο.
The ancient Greeks did not have lowercase letters in their alphabet; the lowercasel etters were not invented until the ninth century CE, i.e. about eleven hundred years ago.
The ancient Greeks had two Os in their alphabet: the long O and the short O; the names to distinguish the two pronunciations were devised by the scholars at the Library of Alexandria Egypt to assist non-Greek speakers in learning the language; the long O was named O-Mega and the short O was named O-Micron; Mega means Great, i.e. long and Micron means Small, i.e. short.
Letters of the Greek alphabet were also used as numerals; the letter omicron represented the number 70 and was written as a simple ο or as omicron followed by an acute accent, ο'.
Omicron; the uppercase form of the fifteenth letter of the Greek alphabet; lowercase ο.
The ancient Greeks had two Os in their alphabet: the long O and the short O; the names to distinguish the two pronunciations were devised by the scholars at the Library of Alexandria Egypt to assist non-Greek speakers in learning the language; the long O was named O-Mega and the short O was named O-Micron; Mega means Great, i.e. long and Micron means Small, i.e. short.
Letters of the Greek alphabet were also used as numerals; the letter omicron represented the number 70 and was written as a simple ο or as omicron followed by an acute accent, ο'.
OH bol
A unit of money, vulgarly called a Spit; one obol would buy a light meal; oarsmen on warships were paid 2 or 3 obols per day.
As to why the obol was called a Spit, the Greek word for obol is οβολος and is very similar to οβελος which means a spit or pointed pillar; word obelisk, i.e. a pointed pillar, is derived from οβελος.
Another name for Briareos; he and his brothers Kottos (Cottos) and Gyes are three of the most terrible creatures ever to be produced by Gaia (Earth) and Ouranos (the Heavens).
All three brothers have fifty heads and fifty arms sprouting from their massive shoulders; the Immortals use the name Briareos to name him but mere mortals call him Aigaios's son.
When the brothers were in the womb of Gaia, Ouranos would not let them be born; when they attempted to come out, Ouranos would push them back inside; Gaia made a sickle of flint and begged for one of her Titan children to attack Ouranos but only Kronos (Cronos) came to her aid; Kronos laid in ambush for his father and struck him down with the flint sickle; the three fifty-headed brothers were allowed to escape Gaia's womb and the blood of Ouranos created the Furies, the Giants, the Nymphs of the Ash Trees and the goddess of Love, Aphrodite.
Kronos had helped his mother Gaia free the monstrous brothers but he feared their strength and beauty and imprisoned them under the earth where they remained until the war between the Titans and the Olympians began; Zeus brought the three brothers back into the light and gave them nectar and ambrosia to renew their vitality; Briareos, Kottos and Gyes joined the Olympians in the war against the Titans.
After ten years of war, Zeus let loose all his fury and the earth and heavens trembled under his thunderbolts; at that moment, Briareos, Kottos and Gyes bombarded the Titans with three-hundred boulders that buried the Titans and ended the war.
Long after the war with the Titans, Thetis summoned Briareos to Mount Olympos (Olympus) to keep Hera, Poseidon (lord of the Sea) and Pallas Athene (Athena) from binding Zeus; when Briareos ascended Mount Olympos he simply sat beside Zeus and his fierce presence deflected all thoughts of aggression.
Obriareos was wedded to the daughter of Poseidon, Kymopoleia (Cymopoleia).
Iliad (Lattimore and Loeb), book 1, line 403
Iliad (Fagles), book 1, line 487
Iliad (Fitzgerald), book 1, line 462
Theogony, lines 149, 615, 712, 817 and 819
One of the Titans, i.e. one of the children of Gaia (Earth) and Ouranos (the Heavens).
Okeanos was the consort of Tethys; the daughters of Okeanos and Tethys are collectively called Okeanids; Okeanos was of the generation of Titans and is the personification of the Ocean-Stream which surrounds the lands of the Earth; all Rivers have Okeanos as their source and their destination.
Works and Days, lines 171 and 566
Theogony, lines 20, 133, 215, 242, 265, 294, 336, 362 and 777
A theater built in the city of Athens during the reign of Pericles (469-429 BCE) in which musical performances of the Panathenaea were held; the building was round and had a conical roof.
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The son of Laertes and Antikleia (Anticleia); the husband of Penelope and the father of Telemachos (Telemachus).
Odysseus has a page in the Immortals section of this site ... click on his photo to view that page.
The Odyssey is the story of the journey of the Greek hero Odysseus from Troy to his island home of Ithaka (Ithaca) after the Trojan War.
The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer are the epic poems which form the basis of the Epic Cycle which in their totality describe the sack of Troy and the return of the Greek heroes to their various homes.
The story is divided into twenty-four books and is presented in the form of a poem which dates from circa 700 BCE; The Iliad and The Odyssey are presumed to have been recited or sung for hundreds of years before being written down but that is not a proven fact; The Iliad and The Odyssey could have been written by Homer and then passed from generation to generation of singers who memorized the poem.
Odysseus was the king of Ithaka before the Trojan War began; he was recruited into the vast army assembled to attack Troy and sailed with twelve ships, which would have been approximately 2,400 men; when he finally returned home, Odysseus was alone, all of his companions were either causalities of the Trojan War or killed on the voyage home.
When the Trojan War was over, Odysseus left Troy with his surviving companions and his share of the plunder; when he stopped at the island of the Cyclops, he encountered a son of Poseidon (lord of the Sea) named Polyphemos (Polyphemus) and in a fight for his life, blinded the Cyclops; Odysseus was a man of clever talk and this trait usually served him well but after blinding Polyphemos, his sharp tongue earned him the wrath of Poseidon.
Zeus forbade Poseidon from killing Odysseus, so the lord of the Sea opted for torment and deprivation as the tools of Odysseus's punishment; some of the hardships Odysseus encountered were deadly but others were subtle yet equally torturous; whether he was being pelted with boulders by giants, attacked by immortal beasts or in the arms of a queenly Nymph, Odysseus was always prevented from reaching his home and family; the ordeal lasted for ten long years.
While Odysseus was suffering and lost, his family was also in torment; his son Telemachos (Telemachus) was twenty years old and wondering if his father was dead or simply lost; his wife Penelope was besieged by young men anxious to marry her and claim Odysseus's kingdom; Telemachos and Penelope coped with the situation as best they could.
Telemachos decided to go in search of news of his father; he went to the palace of King Nestor of Pylos and King Menelaos (Menelaus) of Sparta; the goddess Athene (Athena) was Telemachos's constant companion and inspiration.
Penelope was the finest weaver on the earth and she used her skills to forestall the throng of suitors who had invaded her home by pretending to weave a funeral shroud for Odysseus's aged father, Laertes; the ruse worked for a few years but Penelope was betrayed by one of her servants who told the suitors of the deception.
The situation on Ithaka reached a crucial point; the suitors were planning to murder Telemachos and force Penelope to choose a new husband; at that pivotal moment, Odysseus arrived on the island; Athene disguised him as an old man so that he could secretly observe the situation and decide on a course of action; after Odysseus saw the deplorable state of affairs, he shrugged off the disguise and began a murderous rampage amongst the suitors and disloyal servants.
The Odyssey is an adventure story with the discipline of a morality tale and blood-soaked action indicative of The Iliad; The Odyssey is a "must read" for all students regardless of your major interests; there are numerous translations of The Odyssey but many of them are flawed beyond reclamation; I personally recommend the translation by Richmond Lattimore; you can usually find this book at your local library or you can order it from the Book Shop on this site.
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The unfortunate king of the city of Thebes who inadvertently killed his father and married his mother.
Oedipus is one of the most well known names in Greek mythology; we hear his name today associated with a mental disorder which denotes the unhealthy attraction of a son to his mother and is called the Oedipus Complex.
The story of Oedipus begins with Oedipus's father, Laius; when Laius was a young man he fled his home in the city of Thebes and took refuge with King Pelops; for unknown reasons, Laius kidnapped Pelops's son; to be welcomed as a guest and then to violate that trust was one of the most serious crimes an ancient Greek could commit; as punishment for this crime, Apollon foretold that Laius would have a son that would kill him.
Laius was as arrogant as an adult as he was impulsive as a young man, so when he and his wife, Iokaste (Jocasta), had a son, they made one of their servants take the infant to Mount Kithaeron (Cithaeron), pierce and bind his ankles, and leave him for the beasts and elements to devour; they clearly wanted to defy the prophecy of Apollon.
The servant they chose to murder the boy could not carry out the murderous act and gave the child to a shepherd from a neighboring province; the child was finally presented to the king of the city of Corinth where he was named Oedipus and raised as part of the royal household; the name Oedipus means "swollen foot" and was derived from the injury to the boy's ankles.
The king and queen of Corinth, Polybos and Merope raised Oedipus as their son but when he became an adult he was told by the Oracle at Delphi that he would be the murderer of his father; Oedipus loved Polybos, who he assumed to be his natural father, and fled Corinth so that the prophecy could not be fulfilled.
While traveling, Oedipus encountered a nobleman and his guards; a confrontation ensued and Oedipus killed the nobleman, who was his true father, King Laius, and all but one of the guards; Oedipus apparently did not place any divine significance to the encounter and resumed his journey.
When he was near Thebes, Oedipus was stopped by the monster known as the Sphinx who demanded the answer to a riddle before he could pass; the Sphinx guarded the road into Thebes and was a curse to all travelers because if they could not answer her riddles, she killed them; no one had ever survived an encounter with the Sphinx until Oedipus arrived.
The riddle which Oedipus correctly answered was briefly referred to by Hesiod in Works of Days (line 533) and was presumably: What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon and three legs in the evening; the answer is Man, i.e. he crawls on all-fours as an infant, walks on his two legs in his prime and walks with a cane in old age; when Oedipus correctly answered her riddle the Sphinx killed herself thus lifting the curse from Thebes.
Oedipus and the Sphinx
Oedipus was welcomed at Thebes as a hero and, since King Laius was dead, he was asked to become the new king and marry Laius's widow, Iokaste; they lived for many years in peaceful prosperity and had four children, two boys and two girls.
When the children became young adults, a plague enveloped the land around Thebes; Oedipus sent his brother-in-law, Kreon (Creon) as an envoy to the Oracle at Delphi hoping to find a remedy for the blight that threatened the countryside; when Kreon returned, he told Oedipus that the oracle had told him that until the people of Thebes exposed and exiled the murderer of King Laius, the plague would continue.
Oedipus desperately begged the citizens of Thebes to come forward with any information which might expose the murderer of Laius; the blind prophet, Teiresias, reluctantly told Oedipus that he, Oedipus, was cursed by the Immortals and that he was the cause of all their sorrows; Oedipus flew into a rage against Kreon and Teiresias but before he could vent his anger a messenger arrived from Corinth to inform him that his assumed father, Polybos, was dead; Oedipus was momentarily relieved because the prophecy of Apollon had not been fulfilled, he had not murdered his father.
The only bodyguard to survive the attack on Laius, now an old man, was brought forward and when he related the circumstances of Laius's death, Oedipus realized that the nobleman he had killed on the road those many years ago must have been Laius; the messenger from Corinth also happened to be the same man who had taken the infant from Laius's servant on Mount Kithaeron and given it to Polybos.
Iokaste confessed that she and Laius had plotted to murder their son but that she had no idea that the child had survived; with the entire story now exposed, Oedipus and Iokaste fully realized the utter hopelessness of their position; they had been manipulated by the machinations of the Immortals and there was no escape from the prophecies of Apollon; Iokaste retreated into the palace and hanged herself; Oedipus blinded himself and left Thebes as an exile; Oedipus's oldest son, Eteokles (Eteocles) took the throne of Thebes and exiled his younger brother, Polyneikes (Polyneices).
Polyneikes went to Argos and plotted revenge against his brother; one of Oedipus's daughters, Antigone, accompanied him into exile but his other daughter, Ismene, stayed in Thebes; after years of wandering, Oedipus and Antigone came to the town of Kolonus (Colonus) near Athens; they took refuge in a sanctuary of the Eumenides (the Furies) and were confronted by a group of elders from nearby Athens; Oedipus refused to leave the forbidden sanctuary and begged for an audience with the king of Athens, Theseus; everyone in Greece had heard of the infamy of Oedipus but Theseus took pity on him and promised to protect him from all harm.
At this time, Ismene found her father and sister in the sanctuary and warned them that Kreon was plotting against Oedipus and that her brothers were insane with ambition; Oedipus was unmoved by the news of his troubled kingdom because of a premonition of his impending death; he sent Ismene to the nearby spring to fetch water so that he might cleanse himself and show proper respect for the goddesses of the sanctuary where he was determined to stay until his appointed hour with death.
While Theseus was busy at the altar of Poseidon (lord of the Sea), Kreon appeared in the sanctuary and kidnapped Antigone; he said that Ismene was already his prisoner and that if Oedipus did not accompany him back to the border of Thebes, the girls would not be allowed to see him again; Oedipus could not return to Thebes because of his banishment but Kreon insisted that Oedipus would be a symbol of his (Kreon's) right to the throne; Oedipus denounced Kreon and cursed him for his outrageous behavior.
The cries of outrage from the Athenian elders did not stop Kreon but Theseus heard the commotion and sent soldiers to retrieve Ismene and Antigone; Kreon was unrepentant for his rashness but did not resist the authority of Theseus; at this time Polyneikes entered the sanctuary and begged his father to give his blessing for his impending attack on Thebes; Oedipus did not give his blessing but instead cursed Polyneikes and his brother, Eteokles, to an ignoble death.
Polyneikes and Eteokles, unlike their sisters, had turned their backs on Oedipus while he had been in exile and so Oedipus had no sympathy for the ungrateful and self-serving behavior of his sons; the sound of thunder in the sanctuary of the Erinys was proof positive to the Athenian elders and Theseus that Oedipus was blessed by the Immortals and that he was to be treated with respect; they concluded that no man could be blamed for fulfilling the will and prophecies of Zeus or Apollon.
Oedipus promised Theseus that if he was allowed to die in peace that Theseus and his heirs would remain the unchallenged rulers of Athens for all time; Theseus and Oedipus went into the nearby forest and, with no other witnesses, Oedipus was taken into the Underworld.
The second of three plays by Sophocles dealing with the life and death of King Oedipus; the trilogy is usually called The Theban Plays and also includes Oedipus Tyrannus and Antigone.
Cast of Characters:
Oedipus - The former king of Thebes
Antigone - The eldest daughter of Oedipus
Ismene - The youngest daughter of Oedipus
Theseus - The king of Athens
Kreon (Creon) - The king of Thebes
Polyneikes (Polyneices) - The eldest son of Oedipus
Oedipus at Kolonus was written towards the end of Sophocles's life and was produced posthumously circa 401 BCE.
This tragedy marks the end of the Oedipus saga; Oedipus and his daughter, Antigone, have come to the Grove of the Eumenides at Kolonus near Athens; Oedipus was once given a prophecy which said that he would die at a sanctuary of the Eumenides amidst earthquakes and the thunder of Zeus.
Once the blind and old Oedipus realizes that he has finally arrived at the Grove of the Eumenides, he is certain that the prophecy has been fulfilled and that he has come to the end of his long and painful life; the elders of Athens implore Oedipus to leave the sacred grove but he refuses; Theseus, the king of Athens, is summoned because he is a man of intellect and perception; Theseus is sympathetic to Oedipus and gives the old man every courtesy.
It seems that the only one of his children for which Oedipus has any respect is Antigone; she has been his faithful companion since he was forced to leave Thebes and has forsaken all of her own personal comforts and desires so that her long suffering father will have at least one person who sincerely cares about his wellbeing; Oedipus's final meetings with his daughter, Ismene, and his son, Polyneikes (Polyneices) are fraught with mean spirited exchanges; Ismene is too young to appreciate the full scope of the situation and Polyneikes is seeking his father's blessing on the impending attack on Thebes to wrest the throne from his brother, Eteokles (Eteocles); Oedipus makes the prediction that both Polyneikes and Eteokles will die without honor and he (Oedipus) does not seem to be bothered by that eventuality.
In fulfillment of the prophecy, Theseus accompanies Oedipus deep into the Grove of the Eumenides and, amidst an earthquake and the sound of thunder, Oedipus dies without a grave marker to indicate his final resting place.
I personally recommend the Penguin Classics version of The Theban Plays translated by E. F. Watling (ISBN 0140440038); the book includes the three plays dealing with Oedipus and his family: King Oedipus, Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone; you can find this book at your local library or you can order it from the Book Shop on this site.
The first of three plays by Sophocles dealing with the life and death of King Oedipus; the trilogy is usually called The Theban Plays and also includes Oedipus at Kolonus (Colonus) and Antigone; this play was produced circa 430 BCE and is also called Oedipus Rex and Oedipus the King.
Cast of Characters:
Oedipus - The king of Thebes
Jocasta - The wife/mother of Oedipus
Kreon (Creon) - The brother of Jocasta
Teiresias - The blind seer
This play is the foundation of the Oedipus saga and begins after Oedipus has been king of Thebes for over a decade; he married the widow of the former king and has four children; when the play begins, the city is suffering from what seems to be a god-sent plague; an affliction has effected the crops and the citizens are suffering from an illness of the body and soul; Oedipus sent his brother-in-law, Kreon, to the oracle of Apollon to ask the god's advice; Kreon returned and reported that a stain of murder has caused the problems for Thebes and when the unpunished murderer is driven from the country, the city will recover its prosperity.
It seemed obvious that the murder in question was of the former king of Thebes, Laius, because the murderer was never caught; Oedipus summons the blind seer Teiresias for his prophetic insights; Teiresias is reluctant to talk but Oedipus berates him and commands him to speak; Teiresias reluctantly tells Oedipus that it was he, Oedipus, who killed Laius; Oedipus is furious and denies the possibility; he believes that Teiresias is lying so that he and Kreon can usurp the kingship of Thebes and drive Oedipus out.
Oedipus dismisses Teiresias and then confronts Kreon with the conspiracy allegations; Kreon is incensed by the accusation but Oedipus does not believe him either and condemns Kreon to death; the queen, Jocasta, enters the scene and convinces Oedipus to let Kreon go free because she knows for a fact that Oedipus could not have murdered Laius; she tells Oedipus of an old oracle that was once given to Laius about how he would be killed by his own son; she says that when she and Laius did have a son, they abandoned the infant in the mountains and allowed it to die so that the prophecy could not be fulfilled; Jocasta reasons that since she has no living son, Laius must have been murdered by rogues and the prophecy about being killed by his own son was false.
Oedipus is stunned by this bit of news and tells Jocasta of an incident that happened to him before he came to Thebes; he had been raised in Corinth by King Polybus and his wife, Merope, as their son; when he became a young man, a drunken lout told Oedipus that he was not really Polybus's son; Oedipus secretly went to Delphi and asked the oracle for a clear answer to the question of his parentage; the Pythia did not answer his question directly but said that Oedipus was destined to kill his father, marry his mother and beget accursed children; in an attempt to prove the oracle false, Oedipus fled Corinth and made his way to Thebes; Oedipus and Jocasta are positive that he could not have killed Laius because he was not Laius's son.
A messenger arrives from Corinth with the news that Polybus has died of old age and if Oedipus will return, the people of Corinth will make him their king; Oedipus is joyous that he had no part in his father's death but tells the messenger that he still cannot return to Corinth because he's afraid that he might still become his mother's lover; the messenger tells Oedipus that he knows for a fact that Polybus and Merope are not his parents because he was the one who had brought Oedipus to Corinth as an abandoned orphan; the messenger relates how he had been given a child with pierced ankles by a Theban shepherd and he had taken the baby to Corinth where Polybus adopted it as his own son.
The Theban shepherd is summoned and he confirms everyone's worst fears; Oedipus was the son of Jocasta and Laius and he was the abandoned baby who was left in the mountains; all the facts fit into place and prove that Oedipus did, in fact, kill his father and unwittingly marry his mother; his children by Jocasta are also his brothers and sisters; the implications of these facts where too much for Jocasta and Oedipus to bear; Jocasta retires to her bedroom and hangs herself from the rafters; when Oedipus sees Jocasta's dead body, he pulls a broach from her dress and thrusts the pins in his eyes; the four orphaned children and Kreon are left to carry the weight of the family curse as Oedipus leaves Thebes as a blind and god-cursed exile; at the end of the play, the chorus sadly intones that you cannot judge whether any man has had a happy life until that life is over.
The two plays which make up the remainder of this tragic saga are: Antigone and Oedipus at Kolonus.
I personally recommend the Penguin Classics version of The Theban Plays translated by E. F. Watling (ISBN 0140440038); the book includes all three plays and is very well translated; you can find this book at your local library or you can order it from the Book Shop on this site.
The father of Hippodamia and a king of the district of Elis on the western Peloponnesian Peninsula.
Oenomaus offered Hippodamia to Pelops as a bride if the young suitor could defeat him in a chariot race; Pelops bribed Oenomaus's charioteer, Myrtilus, to sabotage the chariot and thus won the race and the hand of Hippodamia.
A Nymph of Mount Ida who was the lover of Alexandros (Paris) but was deserted by him for Helen.
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The island of the queenly Nymph, Kalypso (Calypso).
Kalypso detained Odysseus on Ogygia for seven years after he left the ruins of the city of Troy and tried desperately to return to his home on the island of Ithaka (Ithaca).
The poet Hesiod believed that Ogygia was "towards the west" but I personally believe that the true location is east of the Greek mainland.
Ogygia was the Navel of the Sea which might be interpreted to mean a variety of things but I feel comfortable in assuming that Kalypso's island was simply in the middle of Ocean ... that would mean that Ogygia was eastward past the Caucasus Mountains in the now dried up sea which has been called the Asiatic Mediterranean, i.e. an ancient body of water of which all that remains east of the Black Sea are the Caspian and the Aral Seas.
Placing Ogygia in the east instead of somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea actually makes Kalypso's home closer to where her father Atlas was stationed to hold up the heavens ... likewise Atlas's brother Prometheus was chained to the Caucasus Mountains.
Another substantial indication as to the eastern location of the island of Ogygia is the fact that when Odysseus sailed from the island, Kalypso told him to keep the constellation of Ursa Major (the Bear) on his right ... that would mean that the constellation would have been in the north as Odysseus sailed westward ... if Odysseus had been sailing from the west, Ursa Major would have been on his left.
Odyssey (Lattimore and Loeb), book 5, line 123; book 7, line 254; book 12, line 448; book 15, line 404; book 23, line 333
Odyssey (Fagles), book 7, line 282; book 12, line 485; book 15, line 454; book 23, line 377
Odyssey (Fitzgerald), book 7, line 273; book 12, line 573; book 15, line 491; book 23, line 373
Catalogues of Women, fragment 48
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There are towns in Thessaly, on the island of Euboea and in Messenia named Oichalia; the primary interest in ancient Greek history is the Oichalia where Herakles (Heracles) had his encounter with Prince Eurytos (Eurytus) but we cannot be exactly sure in which of these locations that encounter took place.
Eurytos was seeking a manly husband for his daughter Iole and devised an archery competition in which the winner would marry the fair Iole; Herakles, as subtle with his bow as he was brutal with his club, entered the contest and won; Eurytos must have known that Herakles was presumed to have murdered his first wife Megara, so it is difficult to blame Eurytos when he refused to allow Iole to marry Herakles; with no hesitation, Herakles killed Eurytos and his sons and, to add to Iole's dishonor and sorrow, Herakles took her as his mistress instead of his wife.
The story of Herakles and Eurytos is told in the fragmentary remains of The Taking of Oichalia and surviving pieces of art.
The existing fragments of The Taking of Oichalia may be summarized as follows:
Fragment 1 - Herakles sacked Oichalia for the sake of Iole, daughter of Eurytos; there are conflicting reports as to who actually wrote The Taking of Oichalia; some assert that Homer wrote the poem while he was a guest of Kreophylos (Creophylus) of Samos; others say that Kreophylos wrote the poem and Homer allowed Kreophylos to take credit for the composition;
Fragment 2 - A single line: Ragged garments, even those which now you see; a line from The Odyssey: book 14, line 343 in which the disguised Odysseus tells the swineherd Eumaios (Eumaeus) that he was taken as a slave and dressed in rags;
Fragment 3 - There are differences of opinion as to whether Eurytos had two or four sons;
Fragment 4 - While living in Corinth, Medeia (Medea) killed King Kreon (Creon) but left her children at the altar of Hera Akraea (Acraea) thinking that Jason would care for them; in their outrage, the people of Corinth killed the children and blamed Medeia.
For the complete translations of Homerica, including The Taking of Oichalia, I recommend the Loeb Classical Library volume 57, ISBN 0674990633; you can sometimes find this book at the library or you can order it from the Book Shop on this site.
One of the Argonauts; the father of Lesser Aias and Medon.
The Argonauts were a company of the greatest heroes and adventurers in ancient Greece; the Argonauts were assembled by Jason to assist him in retrieving the Golden Fleece from the land of Kolchis (Colchis); their name was derived from their ship, the Argo (Argo + nautes = Argo-seamen); the Quest for the Golden Fleece can be assumed to have occurred circa 1285 BCE.
When the Argonauts came to the Island of Ares they were attacked by birds which dropped their feathers like daggers; Oileus was wounded by the feathers but the Argonauts began pounding on their shields and frightened away the horrible birds; Oileus and his wife, Eriopis, were the parents of Lesser Aias (not Ajax); Medon was another son of Oileus (but not by Eriopis) and the half-brother of Aias.
Argonautika, book 1, lines 71-76 and book 2, lines 1030-1046
Iliad (Lattimore and Loeb), book 2, lines 527, 727 and 728; book 12, line 365; book 13, lines 66, 203, 694, 697 and 701; book 14, lines 441, 446 and 520; book 15, lines 333 and 336; book 17, line 256; book 23, lines 473, 488 and 754
Iliad (Fagles), book 2, lines 617, 829 and 830; book 13, lines 82, 803, 806 and 811; book 14, lines 521 and 608; book 15, lines 393 and 396; book 17 (Oilean Ajax), line 292; book 23 (Oilean Ajax), line 839
Iliad (Fitzgerald), book 2, lines 620 (misspelled as Oieus), 867 and 868; book 12, line 409; book 13, lines 77, 799, 804 and 817; book 14, line 520; book 15, line 387; book 17, line 286; book 23, lines 542 and 866
A Trojan soldier killed by Agamemnon.
When Agamemnon was raging through the Trojan defenses, he encountered Bienor and his companion, Oileus; Bienor was killed first and then Oileus jumped down from his chariot and confronted Agamemnon; Oileus died quite horribly when Agamemnon thrust his spear into Oileus's face; his helmet did not protect Oileus and the spear penetrated his brain; blood, brain and bone spattered from the wound; Agamemnon stripped Bienor and Oileus of their tunics and left their bodies lying on the battlefield as he went on to kill more Trojans.
Iliad (Lattimore and Loeb), book 11, line 93
Iliad (Fagles), book 11, line 108
Iliad (Fitzgerald), book 11, line 103
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The lord of Kalydon (Calydon) and the husband of Althaia (Althea).
Oineus was one of three sons of Portheus; his brothers were: Agrios (Agrius) and Melas; he also had a half-brother named Laokoon (Laocoon) who was born to a serving woman; Oineus lived two generations before the Trojan War which was circa 1250 BCE; assuming one generation to be thirty years, that would mean that Oineus lived circa 1310 BCE.
With his wife Althaia, Oineus had nine children: Pheres, Agelaos (Agelaus), Toxeus, Klymeneos (Clymeneus), Periphas, Gorga, Meleagros (Meleager), Deianeira (Deianira) and Tydeus; of the nine, Meleagros, Deianeira and Tydeus became important figures in Greek history.
Meleagros was one of the Argonauts and the leader of the Kalydonian Hunt (Calydonian Hunt).
The Argonauts, under the command of Jason and with the protection of the goddess Hera, sailed to Kolchis (Colchis) to retrieve the Golden Fleece; Oineus insisted that his half-brother Laokoon accompany Meleagros because Meleagros was still a very young man when the Quest for the Golden Fleece began.
Artemis (goddess of the Hunt) wanted to punish Oineus because he neglected to offer the first-fruits of the harvest to her; Artemis urged the Kouretes (Curetes) to attack Kalydon; Meleagros, after much delay and prompting from Oineus, finally fought and defeated the Kouretes but Artemis's wrath was not quelled; the goddess sent a savage boar to ravage the orchards of Kalydon; Meleagros assembled a company of brave warriors to hunt and kill the boar; the boar hunt became known as The Kalydonian Hunt; Meleagros killed the boar and presented the boar's hide to Atalanta (Atalante), who was the only woman to participate in the hunt; because he honored Atalanta with the prize of the hunt, a violent argument erupted and Meleagros killed his mother's brother (perhaps more than one of Althaia's brothers were killed); Meleagros's mother Althaia never forgave him for the death of her brother(s) and, true to an oracle, was instrumental in Meleagros's untimely death.
Tydeus was a commander of one of the armies known as the Seven Against Thebes; he was also the father of the Achaean hero Diomedes; as a young man, Tydeus was forced to flee Kalydon and sought sanctuary in Argos where he met Polyneikes (Polyneices) and joined the ill-fated attack on Thebes where he was killed.
When Tydeus's son Diomedes was fighting in the Trojan War, he encountered a Trojan ally on the battlefield; the Trojan ally, Glaukos (Glaucus), was bragging that he was descended from Bellerophontes (Bellerophon) when Diomedes realized that his grandfather Oineus had once entertained Bellerophontes and had proclaimed him as a guest-friend; Oineus and Bellerophontes exchanged gifts as proof of their oaths of friendship; Oineus gave Bellerophontes a red war-belt and Bellerophontes gave Oineus a golden double-handled drinking cup which Oineus, in turn, gave to Diomedes; Diomedes and Glaukos refused to fight one another and exchanged battle-armor because they were bound by the pledges of friendship made by Bellerophontes and Oineus.
Deianeira was the last mortal wife of Herakles (Heracles) and directly responsible for his tragic death; with the blessing of Oineus and the protection of Athene (Athena) and Nike, Herakles and Deianeira were married and had several children; while they were traveling, Herakles and Deianeira encountered the Centaur, Nessos; when Nessos attacked Deianeira, Herakles mortally wounded the Centaur; as he lay dying, Nessos convinced Deianeira that his blood was a powerful love potion; Deianeira put some of Nessos's blood on Herakles's cloak and it acted like a poison to the hero; Deianeira realized what she had done and killed herself in desperation.
After Althaia died, Oineus married a woman named Periboia (Periboea), daughter of Hipponoos (Hipponous) of Olenos (Olenus); there are two versions of how Periboia became Oineus's wife; 1) when Oineus stormed Olenos, he took Periboia as a prize and 2) Hipponoos became furious with Periboia when she was seduced by a man named Hippostratus and sent her to Oineus with the assumption that Oineus would kill her.
Oineus is thought to be the first man to cultivate grapes on the Greek mainland.
Argonautika, book 1, lines 192, 193 and (son of Oineus, Tydeus) 1046
Catalogues of Women and Eoiae, fragments 51 and 98
The Epigoni, fragment 6
The Kypria, fragment 17
Contest of Homer and Hesiod, section 325
Iliad (Lattimore), book 2, line 641; book 6, lines 216 and 219; book 9, lines 534, 540, 543 and 581; book 14, lines 117 and 119
Iliad (Loeb), book 2, line 641; book 6, lines 216 and 219; book 9, lines 535, 540, 543 and 581; book 14, line 117
Iliad (Fagles), book 2, line 735; book 6, line 259; book 9, lines 651, 655, 659 and 709; book 14, lines 143 and 145
Iliad (Fitzgerald), book 2, line 761; book 6, line 254; book 9, lines 651, 662 and 708; book 14, lines 134 and 136
A wine pitcher or jug usually with a trefoil-shaped mouth (Oino means Wine and Choe means Liquid Offering).
ee NEE ee
A water Nymph; the consort of Thoas and the mother of Sikinos (Sicinus).
Thoas was the king of the island of Lemnos and a son of Dionysos (a.k.a. Bacchus, god of Wine); when we are dealing with the children of the Immortals (demigods) we can never be sure if the events in their lives are divinely directed or merely happenstance; although he was the king of Lemnos, Thoas barely escaped certain death on the island and eventually found sanctuary with Oinoie; Thoas lived one generation before the Trojan War and his encounter with Oinoie can be dated to circa 1270 BCE.
When Thoas was king of Lemnos, the men of the island "conceived a fierce passion" for the women they had captured during their raids in Thrace; their fascination for the captive women finally exceeded the limits of toleration for their neglected wives; the women of Lemnos rose in revolt; they not only killed their husbands and the captive women but, to assure that there would be no retribution for their harsh justice, they began to kill all the other men of the island; in order to save his life, Thoas's daughter Hypsipyle put him in a chest and cast him adrift on the Aegean Sea; Thoas drifted southward in the Aegean Sea for over 270 miles (434.5 kilometers) until some fishermen found the floating chest and dragged it ashore on Oinoie's island; Thoas was still alive and subsequently became Oinoie's consort.
Sikinos was the son of Thoas and Oinoie; after his birth, the name of the island was changed from Oinoie to Sikinos
Argonautika, book 1, line 624
ee NEE ee
The original name for the island of Sikinos (Sicinos); one of the Dodecanese Islands located approximately 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of the island of Santorini.
Oinoie was named after a water Nymph who inhabited the island; she became the consort of Thoas when he was washed ashore on her island; the island was renamed Sikinos in honor of the son of Thoas and Oinoie.
Thoas was the son of Dionysos (a.k.a. Bacchus, god of Wine) and king of the island of Lemnos; when the women of Lemnos rose in a frenzy and began to kill the all the men on the island, Thoas's daughter Hypsipyle put him in a chest and cast him adrift on the Aegean Sea; Oinoie's island is approximately 270 miles (434.5 kilometers) south of Lemnos; fishermen found the floating chest and dragged it ashore on Oinoie's island; Thoas was still alive and became Oinoie's consort.
Argonautika, book 1, line 624
Pain or Woe; the son of Nyx (Night); the brother of Momos (Blame) and the Hesperides.
Theogony, line 214
Any of the three thousand daughters of Okeanos (Ocean) and Tethys.
Zeus gave the Okeanids, Apollon and the Rivers the special obligation of having the young in their keeping.
Only a few of the Okeanids are mentioned by name; in many cases, the name of the Okeanid implies her sphere of influence or her personal characteristics; the following list includes the Okeanids as listed in Theogony and the Homeric Hymn to Demeter.
The Okeanids in Theogony
Theogony is a 1022 line poem by Hesiod from circa 750 BCE; Theogony deals with the origins and exploits of the Immortals and gives us the names of many of the Okeanids.
Admete - Unwedded - line 349
Akaste (Acaste) - Gentle - line 356
Amphirho - Sea-Girt - line 360
Asia - Asian - line 359
Chryseis - Golden - line 359
Dione - God-Like - line 353
Doris - Gift - line 350
Elektra (Electra) - Amber - line 349
Eudora - Dew - line 360
Europa (Europe) - European - line 357
Eurynome - Broad - line 358
Galaxaura - Prized-Wind - line 353
Hippo - Pasture - line 351
Ianeira - Lady of the Ionians - line 356
Ianthe - Delight - line 349
Idyia (Eidyia) - Skillful - line 352
Kallirhoe (Callirhoe) - Beautiful-Flowing - line 351
Kalypso (Calypso) - Exalted - line 359
Kerkeis (Cerceis) - line 355
Klymene (Clymene) - Renowned - line 351
Klytia (Clytie) - Famous - line 352
Melobosis - line 354
Menestho - Patient - line 357
Metis - Wise - line 358
Okyroe (Ocyrhoe) - Swift-Flowing - line 360
Ourania (Urania) - Heavenly One - line 350
Pasithoe - line 352
Peitho - Persuasion - line 349
Perseis (Perse) - Persian - line 356
Petraie (Petraea) - Living Among The Rocks - line 357
Plexaura - Strong-Wind - line 353
Plouto (Pluto) - Wealthy - line 355
Polydora (Polydore) - Richly Endowed - line 354
Prymno - Ship-Pilot - line 350
Rhodeia (Rhodea) - Lady of Rhodes - line 351
Styx - Hateful - line 361
Telesto - Priestess - line 358
Thoe - Encircler - line 354
Tyche - Good Fortune - line 360
Xanthe - Yellow-Haired - line 356
Zeuxo - Bridge - line 352
The Okeanids in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter
The Homeric Hymn to Demeter is a poem in praise of the goddess of the Harvest and includes the terrible ordeal of Demeter's daughter Persephone when the young goddess was abducted by her uncle Hades (lord of the Dead); the Okeanids were with Persephone in a rather idyllic scene as the young goddesses were busy gathering flowers in a meadow completely unaware of the fate which awaits Persephone; without being observed, Hades opened a hole in the ground and pulled Persephone down into the earth before she could scream or run away; when Demeter came looking for her daughter, the Okeanids were unable to help because they had no idea where Persephone had gone.
Admete - Unwedded - line 421
Akaste (Acaste) - Gentle - line 421
Chryseis - Golden - line 421
Kallirhoe (Callirhoe) - Beautiful-Flowing - line 419
Kalypso (Calypso) - Exalted - line 422
Elektra (Electra) - Amber - line 418
Galaxaura - Prized-Wind - line 423
Iache - Joyous Sound - line 419
Ianeira - Lady of the Ionians - line 421
Ianthe - Delight - line 418
Leukippe (Leucippe) - Driving White Horses - line 418
Melite (Melita) - Sweet - line 419
Melobosis - line 420
Okyroe (Ocyrhoe) - Swift-Flowing - line 420
Ourania (Urania) - Heavenly One - line 423
Phaino (Phaeno) - Revealer - line 418
Plouto (Pluto) - Wealthy - line 422
Rhodeia (Rhodea) - Lady of Rhodes - line 419
Rhodope - Rosy - line 422
Styx - Hateful - line 423
Tyche - Good Fortune - line 420
oh keh ah NOS
Ocean; one of the Titans, i.e. one of the children of Gaia (Earth) and Ouranos (the Heavens).
Okeanos was the consort of Tethys; the daughters of Okeanos and Tethys are collectively called Okeanids; Okeanos was of the generation of Titans and is the personification of the Ocean-Stream which surrounds the lands of the Earth; all Rivers have Okeanos as their source and their destination.
Works and Days, lines 171 and 566
Theogony, lines 20, 133, 215, 242, 265, 294, 336, 362 and 777
oh kee PEH teh
One of the Harpies; she and her sister Aello are the daughters of Thaumas and Elektra (Electra).
The poet, Hesiod refers to them as "Harpies of the lovely hair, winged women soaring aloft like birds"; they are the sisters of the rainbow goddess, Iris, and not described as the filthy monsters that we have come to imagine.
Their primary role in Greek mythology was when the Argonauts found the blind seer, Phineus, on the island of Thynias being tormented by the Harpies; Phineus had been blinded by Zeus and, as a double punishment, Helios (the Sun) had the Harpies steal his food; the winged sons of Boreas (North Wind), Kalais (Calais) and Zetes chased away the Harpies and freed Phineus from his curse but Zeus would not allow the brothers to harm the Harpies; Okypete's name means Swift-Flying.
Theogony, line 267
Argonautika, book 2, lines 188, 252, 264, 276, 289, 298, 432 and 461
oh kee ROH ee
An Okeanid, i.e. one of the three thousand daughters of Okeanos (Ocean) and Tethys.
Zeus gave the Okeanids, Apollon and the Rivers the special obligation of having the young in their keeping.
Theogony, line 360
The Greek name for what we commonly call a Spartan Cipher Rod; also called a Message Stick.
A method was needed to insure the security and privacy of messages and the Okytala was a simple solution to this problem.
A strip of paper or cloth was wrapped in a spiral around a round wooden rod and a message was written on the paper and then the paper was unwrapped and dispatched to the intended receiver; when the unwrapped paper was viewed, the message was incomprehensible but when the intended receiver re-wrapped the paper around a wooden rod of the same diameter the message became clear.
Lives, Lysander, chapter 19
Pindar, Olympian Ode 6, line 91
Greek comedy of the fifth century BCE which was derived from fertility rites in honor of Dionysos (a.k.a. Bacchus, god of Wine) and combined robust humor with biting personal and political satire.
The Greek dialect represented in The Iliad and The Odyssey; apparently Aeolic modified by Ionic.
A system of government which was common in ancient Greece where a few select people or families ruled the masses based on the assumption that their bloodline or intellect gave them a superior predisposition and right to rule.
A good example of this type of government would be the descendants of Herakles (Heracles) who ruled many Greek cities and geographical districts based solely on their claim of being in the direct bloodline of Herakles who was a descendant of the hero Perseus and Zeus.
Olympia is the city which was the site of the original Olympic Games and the magnificent Temple of Zeus.
Olympia is located in Elis in the northwestern part of the Peloponnesian Peninsula and situated just north of the Alpheios (Alpheius) River approximately seven miles east of the Ionian Sea; one of the most notable geographic landmarks of Olympia is the Hill of Kronos (Cronos) which is a small wooded hill slightly north of the Olympic sanctuaries and approximately 405 feet (123 meters) in height.
The area around Olympia was populated as early as 3000 BCE but there are several possibilities as to how and when Olympia and the Olympic Games were actually founded:
Herakles (Heracles) - One story as to how Olympia was founded relates to Herakles and his conquest of Elis after he had been cheated by King Augeas; Herakles's Fifth Labor was to clean the of stables King Augeas of Elis; after Herakles diverted the Alpheios and Peneios (Peneus) rivers through the stables and washed away the accumulated debris, Augeas refused to pay Herakles the prearranged price for the work; Herakles gathered an army and returned to Elis and took control of the country; he founded a sacred precinct on honor of his father Zeus and the first competitive games were held.
To get a time frame on the founding of Olympia by Herakles, we can use the Quest for the Golden Fleece and the Trojan War as references; Herakles was with the Argonauts when their voyage began but left before the Argo reached Kolchis (Colchis); the voyage of the Argo took place circa 1285 BCE and since Herakles was already dead (actually he ascended to Mount Olympos (Olympus) as an Immortal) before the Trojan War, the founding of Olympia and the first Olympic Games must have taken place between 1285 and 1250 BCE.
Pelops - Sculptures on the east pediment of the Temple of Zeus relate the story of how Pelops founded Olympia after his deadly dispute with King Oenamaus of Elis; in order to marry King Oenamaus's daughter Hippodamia, Pelops was required to defeat Oenamaus in a chariot race; Pelops cheated to win the race and Oenamaus presumably died in the competition; Pelops took control of Elis and eventually the entire peninsula which was them named after him, i.e. the Peloponnesian Peninsula; the actual founding of Olympia by Pelops is somewhat vague but if we accept the basis of the story as accurate, Pelops might have founded Olympia three generations before the Trojan War; that would be approximately 1310 BCE which would have been decades before Herakles supposedly founded Olympia.
Regardless of the tentative dating of the official founding of Olympia as a city, we can be certain that the area around Olympia was occupied as early as 3000 BCE.
Circa 3000, Olympia was a small town but as time went by, temples and shrines began to dominate the area; it is assumed that by 1400 BCE, i.e. before the Trojan War, the Mycenaeans dominated Olympia and the surrounding countryside; with the decline of Mycenaean influence, circa 1100 BCE, the Aetolians (Aitolians) moved into the area and founded Elis as a city-state in direct competition with the much older city of Pisa; soon after 900 BCE the first religious activities began at the Altis; the Altis was a grove which was sacred to Zeus and eventually became the site of the monumental Temple of Zeus circa 435 BCE.
A small wall was constructed around the Altis and the precinct became known as the Temenos; Zeus was the focus of worship and an oracle was established for the primary purpose of offering prophecies dealing with the outcome of battles and wars; emissaries would come from all parts of Greece to ask for Zeus's blessing in their military endeavors.
According to traditional historic records, the first Olympic Games were held circa 776 BCE with only several cities participating; the growth and popularity of the Olympic Games coincided with the popularity of the worship of Zeus; other altars were added to the Temenos and more and more cities began to participate in the Olympic Games; all of the cities involved in the Olympic Games were obliged to call a cessation of all hostilities while the Games were in progress; many contestants came from as far away as southern Italy and Africa; this allowed periodic renewal of the bonds between all citizens of the Greek speaking world.
During the early seventh century BCE the Altis and the area south of the Hill of Kronos were transformed; circa 600 BCE the first temple to be constructed was The Hereum which was dedicated to the goddess Hera; many cities began building treasuries in honor of Olympian Zeus and victors of the Olympic Games began dedicating statues of themselves.
Circa 572 BCE, the Spartans assisted the inhabitants of Elis to take control of Olympia by subjugating the Pisatans; it wasn't until circa 490 BCE that Olympia came into its peak of influence; the democratization of Elis coincided with a new enthusiasm for the Olympic Games; by 472 BCE, two extra days were added to the games making the events last for five days; two years later construction commenced on the Temple of Zeus and other monumental buildings of the Altis; the Temple of Zeus, with the gold and ivory statue of Zeus, was not completed until 436 BCE; the statue of Zeus became one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
The Olympic Games had always been a unifying event for the Greeks but in 364 BCE, during the 104th Olympiad, hostilities broke out between the Eleians and Arcadians; the Arcadians wanted to reinstate the Pisatans as the governing power over Olympia; the Eleians were able to retain control of the Olympic sanctuary but lost part of their territory in the conflict.
The next major renovation to the Olympic Sanctuary began at the time of Philip II of Macedon; he began construction of a complex called the Philippaeum but it was not completed until after his assassination in 336 BCE; Philip's son, Alexander (the Great), took control of most of Greece after his father's death and the city of Olympia and the Sacred Precincts became more prosperous then ever before; the stadium was connected to the sanctuary by the narrow Echo Colonnade and the sanctuary became the focus of wealthy sovereigns who furnished it with elaborate statuary; pilgrims visited the site from as far away as Egypt and Anatolia.
After the Roman conquest of Greece circa 145 CE, the ceremonies and games continued at Olympia; it wasn't until 475 CE that the Temple of Zeus was finally destroyed but the Olympic Games continued until 393 CE when the Roman emperor, Theodosius I, banned all pagan related activities.
The four year span between the Olympic Games.
The Olympic Games began in 776 BCE and were celebrated at four year intervals; in 300 BCE, this four year interval became known as the Olympiad and was used to reckon time and date historical events; even though the Olympic Games were officially outlawed circa 261 BCE by the Christian Roman emperor Theodosius, the Greeks used the Olympiad time frame until 393 CE, which would have been the 293rd Olympiad.
Athletic competitions originating at the city of Olympia in the district of Elis on the Peloponnesian Peninsula.
The Odes of Pindar make it clear that the first Olympic Games held at Olympia were initiated by Herakles but it is traditionally held that the first athletic games to by held there were started by the eponymous founder of the Peloponnesian Peninsula, Pelops, at the turn of the second millennium BCE; the Olympic Games differed from the original games of Pelops in that they were open to all free-born Greek men regardless of where they lived, whereas the games of Pelops were more of a local event.
The first Olympic Games are officially dated 776 BCE but the true origins of the contests reaches back into prehistory and the ultimate hero, Herakles (Heracles); we can approximate the dates of these events by using the Trojan War as a benchmark; the Trojan War was fought circa 1250 BCE and we know that Herakles was of the generation before the war, i.e. from 1300-1250 BCE; during the course of his Twelve Labors, Herakles was in Elis cleaning the stables of King Augeas but trouble arose when Augeas refused to pay the wage for cleaning the stables; Herakles exacted his revenge by killing prince Eurytos of Oichalia, and also killing a son of Poseidon (lord of the Sea) named Kteatos.
Herakles then gathered an army and sacked Augeas's city, Pisa; he used the spoils of the conquest to establish the sacred precinct that would become the site of the Olympic Games; he dedicated six double alters to the twelve Olympian Immortals near the tomb of Pelops; he measured out the Altis (the sacred precinct of Zeus) by the river Alpheios (Alpheius) and named a nearby and snow covered landmark the Hill of Kronos (Cronos).
A ceremony was held to dedicate the site and the first games; the Fates (Moirai) and Time (Chronos) stood in attendance as Herakles divided the plunder from Pisa and made an offering of the best portion to the Immortals; Herakles declared that the games would be held every four years in honor of Zeus.
The games were held in late August or early September when the third day of the ceremonies would coincide with the full moon; the only official prizes to be awarded were wreaths of olive leaves taken from a tree growing in the sacred precinct of Zeus; victors of the various contests were always honored by their home cities and were often given lifetime honors and legal entitlements as recognition of their physical prowess; when the chariot horses of Philip II of Macedon won the games in 356 BCE, he was so proud that he had special coins minted and had a circular monument built at Olympia to commemorate the event; when someone suggested that Alexander the Great should compete in the games because of his phenomenal running abilities, he jokingly replied that he would be glad to compete if all the competitors were kings.
One of the most inspiring aspects of the Olympic Games was the remarkable cessation of all hostilities between the participating Greek cities during the games; heralds were sent out and all military conflicts would temporally stop so that the competitors and spectators could travel to and from the games unmolested.
The games continued with few interruptions from 776 BCE until 393 CE when the Roman emperor, Theodosius I, banned all pagan related activities; the Olympic Games were not re-instituted until 1896 CE as a result of the persistent efforts of Baron Pierre de Coubertin; the 1896 games were held in Athens and the tradition has continued ever since.
Pindar, Olympian Ode 10, lines 24-59
The twelve immortal gods and goddesses who occupy Mount Olympos (Olympus).
The Olympians are: Zeus, Hera, Hades, Histia (Hestia), Demeter, Poseidon, Athene (Athena), Aphrodite, Apollon, Artemis, Hephaistos (Hephaestus) and Ares.
The first six Olympians were the children of Kronos (Cronos) and Rheia (Rhea) but when the original six Olympians had children of their own, the number of Olympians increased until it stabilized at twelve; the reason there are twelve Olympians seems to relate to the twelve houses/signs of the zodiac which also accounts for the twelve months of the year.
Each of the Olympians has a specific dominion and special attributes; although the other, non-Olympian, Immortals may assist the Olympians with their responsibilities, the Olympians are the supreme authority in all matters relating to their domains; Zeus however rules over all Immortals and has the final word in every divine decision.
Zeus - The son of Kronos and Rheia who freed his brothers and sisters after Kronos swallowed them; Zeus is master of all the Immortals and god of the Sky.
Hera - A daughter of Kronos and Rheia; the sister/wife of Zeus and queen of the Immortals.
Hades - A son of Kronos and Rheia; lord of the Underworld.
Histia - A daughter of Kronos and Rheia; goddess of the Hearth.
Demeter - A daughter of Kronos and Rheia; goddess of the Harvest.
Poseidon - A son of Kronos and Rheia; lord of the Sea.
Athene - The daughter of Zeus and Metis; goddess of Wisdom.
Aphrodite - The Foam-Born goddess of Love.
Apollon - The son of Zeus and Leto; god of Oracles.
Artemis - The daughter of Zeus and Leto; goddess of the Hunt.
Hephaistos - The son of Hera; god of Invention.
Ares - The son of Zeus and Hera; god of War.
Sometimes, other gods are substituted for the original twelve Olympians but the number always remains constant at twelve:
Hermes - Messenger of the Immortals.
Dionysos (Bacchus) - god of Wine.
When Herakles (Heracles) ascended to Mount Olympos to join the Immortals, he refused to allow himself to be included as one of the Olympians because he knew that one of the other gods or goddesses would have to lose their rank in order for him to be included among the twelve.
(375-circa 316 BCE) The wife of Philip II of Macedon and the mother of Alexander the Great and a daughter named Kleopatra (Cleopatra).
Olympias was the daughter of Neoptolemus (Neoptolemos) of Molossia; her name was Myrtale but she assumed the name, Olympias, and is generally referred to by that name; she was Philip's third wife and they were married in the autumn of 357 BCE; as the niece (or sister) of prince Arybbas of Epirus, it is very likely that the marriage was a political maneuver on the part of Philip in order to aid the expansion of his growing empire; Philip's previous two wives had died soon after their marriages but there was no implication of foul play related to their deaths; the historian, Plutarch, contends that Philip and Olympias met when they were quite young during the rites of the Elysian Mysteries and were immediately smitten with one another; in order for that to be true, Olympias would have had to been a very young girl which makes Plutarch's story seem a little more romanticized than factual.
Philip traced his linage back through Herakles (Heracles) to Zeus; Olympias's family traced their linage back to Achilles, who was semi-divine through his mother, Thetis.
By all accounts, Olympias was an eccentric young woman and most historians tend to cast her in a very ignoble light; she was eighteen years old when she married Philip and thoroughly committed to the orgiastic rites of Dionysos (a.k.a. Bacchus, god of Wine); this cult association involved the use of snakes in the rituals and this practice gave rise to the story that Alexander was actually the son of the Egyptian god, Ammon, who seduced Olympias in the form of a snake; it was also widely believed that Philip lost his right eye in battle because he had secretly observed Olympias with Ammon in the guise of a snake; whether Olympias tried to encourage the belief that her son, Alexander, was divine is a matter of pure speculation but there are many clues that indicate that Alexander believed that he was descended from Ammon; while he was in Egypt he made an arduous pilgrimage to the temple of Ammon and, when he asked the priest if he had caught and killed all the assassins of his father, the priest answered that his true father could not be killed thus implying that Alexander was the son of the god, Ammon, and not of a mortal father.
When Philip married his fourth wife, Kleopatra, Olympias moved back to Epirus to show her displeasure; soon after Philip's assassination, in 336 BCE, Olympias moved back to Macedon and arranged for the death of Kleopatra as well as Kleopatra's son and father.
When Alexander left Macedon to invade Persia in 334 BCE, he left Antipater in charge of maintaining the peace and sending new troops as needed to the Persian front; Olympias and Antipater were in constant conflict as to his administration of the government; Alexander wrote Olympias constantly from Persia and urged her to be reasonable and tolerant with Antipater; Alexander loved his mother dearly and was patient with her but he was also a strong willed young man who would listen to different sides of an argument and then do as he thought best regardless of who he might offend; he is reputed to have said, after reading one of Olympias's demanding letters, that she was asking a very high price for the nine months he resided in her womb; by late 331 BCE, Olympias was so frustrated with Antipater, and Alexander's unwillingness to take her side against him, that she moved back to Epirus; Olympias's daughter, Kleopatra, married Alexander of Epirus who was Olympias's brother.
After Alexander's death in 332 BCE, Olympias stayed on in Epirus and was forced to take sides in the internal fighting between Alexander's generals for control of various portions of the empire that Alexander had conquered; her affiliation with Polyperchon against Kassander (Cassander) resulted in the death of the nominal queen of Epirus, Eurydike (Eurydice); she also instigated a purge of all those she thought were against her in Macedon; upon returning to Macedon in 317 BCE, Olympias mustered an army against Kassander but the army deserted and she was forced to surrender to Kassander in the spring of 316 BCE; she was brought before the Macedonian Assembly and, at the insistence of Kassander, condemned to death; the sentence was carried out by the victims of her murderous purge from the previous year; Kassander furthered Olympias's disgrace by not giving her a proper burial.
Plutarch's Lives, Alexander, II.1,3, V.4, IX.3,5, X.4, XXV.4, XXXIX.4,5, LXVIII.3, LXXVII.1
Diodorus Siculus, book 16.72.1, book 16.91.4, book 17.108.7, book 17.114.3, book 17.117.1, book 17.117.2
A mountain in northeastern Greece on the boundary of Thessaly and Macedonia; Mount Olympos is the highest mountain in Greece, rising to a height of 9,570 feet (2,917 meters).
Mount Olympos has been the home of the Olympian Immortals for millennia; the first Immortals to occupy Mount Olympos were Eurynome, a daughter of Okeanos (Ocean), and her consort Ophion; the length of time Eurynome and Ophion resided on Mount Olympos is not known but they were finally forced off the mountain by the Titans, Kronos (Cronos) and Rheia (Rhea); the arrival of the overbearing Titans on Mount Olympos forced Eurynome and Ophion to seek sanctuary in the sea.
The Titans were the children of Gaia (Earth) and Ouranos (the Heavens); Ouranos named his children Titans to mean Strainers, i.e. they strain the limits of propriety and indulge in every form of excess; Kronos is perhaps the worst of the Titans and is commonly referred to as devious or devising; Kronos gained his supremacy by mutilating his father but was fated to be dethroned by one of his own children; Kronos refused to accept his fate and began to swallow each of his children as they were born; when the sixth child was born, his sister/wife Rheia substituted a stone in the infant's place and Kronos swallowed it down without knowing that he had been fooled.
True to unalterable fate, the un-swallowed child became Kronos's doom; when the infant grew to manhood, he attacked Kronos and the swallowed children were disgorged from the Titan's stomach; there were six children in all and their first act was to make Mount Olympos their home thus becoming the first Immortals to call themselves Olympians.
The new rulers of Mount Olympos were: Zeus, Hera, Hades, Histia (Hestia), Demeter and Poseidon.
The number of Olympian gods and goddesses grew from six to twelve as children of the original children of Kronos and Rheia began to have children of their own; the reason the number of Olympians remains constant at twelve seems to relate to the signs/houses of the zodiac which also accounts for the twelve months of the year.
The right to occupy Mount Olympos was by no means guaranteed to the Olympians; there were several attempts to oust them from their mountain stronghold.
As the Olympians became more powerful, the Titans became more unruly; finally, an all out war was unavoidable and thus the War of the Titans began; the Olympians gathered all the Immortals who had been wronged by Kronos and the other Titans; the Titans gathered their allies and the war began; the fighting was furious but the Titans were finally defeated and imprisoned in the Underworld.
The second challenge to the Olympians came from a beast named Typhoeus; he was the youngest child of Gaia (Earth) and Tartaros (Tartarus); he was a monstrous marvel to behold; he had a hundred snake-heads sprouting from his enormous shoulders; each snake-head had eyes that glittered with fire and each of the snake-heads could create sounds that were subtle or horrible, from an echoing whistle to the bellowing of bulls; Typhoeus was strong and willful enough to have ruled the other Immortals if Zeus had not perceived the threat he posed and attacked him with unchecked fury; after a fierce battle, Typhoeus was imprisoned under the earth.
The next challenge to the authority of the Olympians came from the children of one of the Olympians; Otos (Otus) and his brother Ephialtes were the monstrous sons of Iphimedeia (Iphimedea) and Poseidon (lord of the Sea); second only to the mighty hunter Orion, Otos and Ephialtes were the most handsome men (demigods) to ever exist; the two brothers were also the tallest men ever to reside on the earth.
Before the two boys reached adulthood, they brought about their own doom by daring to try and reach the heavens; the two rebellious boys tried unsuccessfully to pile Mount Ossa on top of Mount Olympos and then put Mount Pelion on top of that; their crime was so outrageous that Zeus commanded Apollon to kill Ephialtes and Otos with a rain of arrows.
Mount Olympos has remained the abode of the Olympians throughout the millennia and there no reason to believe that they will ever reside anywhere else; as mortals, we may climb to the highest peak of Mount Olympos but we will never see the Olympians or their divine palaces because they are shielded from our sight by the Gates of Heaven which form a veil that can only be opened by the Hours.
Approximate East Longitude 22º 21' and North Latitude 40º 05'
An ancient Greek city in northeastern Greece on the Chalkidike (Chalcidice) Peninsula.
The spirit of Tumult or Battle-Noise.
Shield of Herakles, line 155
The twenty-fourth and last letter of the Greek alphabet; represented as Ω in the uppercase and ω in the lowercase.
The ancient Greeks did not have lowercase letters in their alphabet; the lowercase letters were not invented until the ninth century CE, i.e. about eleven hundred years ago.
The ancient Greeks had two Os in their alphabet: the long O and the short O; the names to distinguish the two pronunciations were devised by the scholars at the Library of Alexandria Egypt to assist non-Greek speakers in learning the language; the long O was named O-Mega and the short O was named O-Micron; Mega means Great, i.e. long and Micron means Small, i.e. short.
Letters of the Greek alphabet were also used as numerals; the letter omega represented the number 800 and was written as a simple ω or as omega followed by an acute accent, ω'.
The fifteenth letter of the Greek alphabet; represented as O in the uppercase and o in the lowercase.
The ancient Greeks did not have lowercase letters in their alphabet; the lowercase letters were not invented until the ninth century CE, i.e. about eleven hundred years ago.
The ancient Greeks had two Os in their alphabet: the long O and the short O; the names to distinguish the two pronunciations were devised by the scholars at the Library of Alexandria Egypt to assist non-Greek speakers in learning the language; the long O was named O-Mega and the short O was named O-Micron; Mega means Great, i.e. long and Micron means Small, i.e. short.
Letters of the Greek alphabet were also used as numerals; the letter omicron represented the number 70 and was written as a simple ο or as omicron followed by an acute accent, ο'.
The queen of Lydia who was the master of Herakles (Heracles) after he had been forced into slavery for the murder of Iphitos (Iphitus); she and Herakles had a son named Agelaos (Agelaus).
The Omphalos was a stone at the city of Delphi that covered a depression in the ground that was thought to be the Navel of the World; the name, Omphalos, literally means Navel; although the original stone has been lost for almost two thousand years, it is thought to have been conical in shape and endowed with supernatural powers; there is a replica of the stone on display at the entrance to the ruins of the Temple of Apollon at Delphi but we cannot be certain of the shape or size of the original stone; the traveler and historian, Pausanias, reported (circa 160 CE) that he had seen a stone of unremarkable size that was said to be the original stone.
The Omphalos was placed at Delphi in the dawn of time by Zeus; when his devious father, Kronos (Cronos), attempted to swallow all of his newborn children, his (Kronos's) sister/wife, Rheia (Rhea), substituted a stone in place of her sixth child (Zeus) and Kronos swallowed it down without suspecting that he had been tricked; when Zeus attained manhood, he assaulted his father and the stone and his five swallowed siblings were vomited up; Zeus placed the stone at Delphi to be a portent and marvel to mortals for all time.
Theogony, lines 495-500
Pausanias, x. 24.6
oh NEE roh ee
The Tribe of Dreams; the children of Nyx (Night).
Theogony, line 212
(?-497 BCE) The brother of King Gorgos (Gorgus) of the city of Salamis on the island of Cyprus.
Cyprus was a part of the Persian Empire but when the Ionians rebelled from Persian rule, Onesilos used the occasion to capture the city of Salamis and usurp his brother's throne; he was able to win every city on the island except Amathus, which stayed loyal to the Persians.
The Persians, with the help of the Phoenician navy, soon mounted an attack on Cyprus; some of the Ionian colonies sent ships to assist Onesilos and they faced, and defeated, the Phoenician navy; Onesilos led the army against the Persian general, Artybius, and was defeated; the Ionian ships retreated and five months later, the Persians had regained control of the island.
Gorgos was reinstated as king of Salamis and Onesilos's head was placed on a pole on the gates of the city of Amathus; as time passed, bees built a hive in Onesilos's hollow skull and the people of Amathus asked an oracle what they should do; the oracle advised them to bury the skull and institute a yearly sacrifice in honor of Onesilos.
Histories, book 5.104-105 and 5.108-115
One of the Thirty Tyrants elected to rule the city of Athens after the end of the Peloponnesian War (404 BCE).
Having lost the war to the Spartans, the citizens of Athens elected thirty men to lead the new post-war government; these men became known as the Thirty Tyrants; the short lived government they comprised was an oligarchy; an oligarchy is a system of government allowing a few select people or families to rule a city or region based on the assumption that their bloodline or intellect gave them a superior predisposition and right to rule.
The tyrants immediately began to prosecute Athenians who had been Spartan informers and collaborators during the long, hard war; the punishment of the guilty seemed appropriate to the common citizens and aristocrats alike but it soon became clear that the executions and banishments were going beyond the bounds of necessity or prudence; open hostilities soon developed between members of the Thirty and their authority and rule came to an end after one year.
Hellenica, book 2.3
Proioxis; the Spirit of Pursuit or Onrush, i.e. as in charging into battle or chasing enemies.
Shield of Herakles, line 154
A reference to the son of King Lykurgos (Lycurgus) of Nemea who was killed in infancy by a serpent (or dragon) and in whose name the Nemean Games were initiated; the child's name was Archemoros but he was called Opheletes to imply a debt or obligation.
The consort of the Okeanid, Eurynome; he and Eurynome were the first to occupy Mount Olympos (Olympus); they were forced off the mountain and returned to the sea by the Titans, Kronos (Cronos) and Rheia (Rhea).
Argonautika, book 1, line 503
One of the three tribes which made up the Lokrians (Locrians); they occupied the coastal area of eastern-central Greece.
The other two tribes were named: the Epiknemidian (Epicnemidian) and the Ozolian; the Lokrian colonists who went to Italy near Mount Zephyrium were called the Zephyrians or the Epizephyrians.
An oracle can be defined as: 1) a person endowed with prophetic gifts, 2) a shrine or sanctuary dedicated to a prophetic deity or 3) the prophetic message which a deity provides.
The ancient Greeks were very keen on the messages that oracles provided; political decisions were made and battles were fought according to the advice that oracles gave; the messages which oracles rendered were considered to be the words of the Immortals and were in the form of predictions or commandments.
The messages which the oracles gave were often ambiguous and incomplete and as the blind prophet, Phineus, explained to the Argonauts when describing the way Zeus imparted his guidance through revelations, "For he himself wishes to deliver to men the utterances of the prophetic art incomplete, in order that they may still have some need to know the will of heaven."
There were numerous oracular sites in the ancient world and they were dedicated to Immortals such as Zeus and Apollon and heroes such as Amphiaraus and Trophonius; the oldest oracular shrine in ancient Greece was established in the city of Dodona by one of two Egyptian priestesses who had been carried away by Phoenicians and sold as slaves; the inhabitants of Dodona told the historian Herodotus that the first oracle arrived, not as a woman, but as a black dove with human speech; Herodotus discounted this story but did not doubt the veracity or antiquity of the oracle.
Histories, book 2.55-59
This was perhaps the best known oracle in the ancient world and was dedicated to and sanctioned by the god Apollon circa 700 BCE; the actual date for the choice of the site of the oracle goes back to the dawn of time when Zeus attained godhood; when his devious father, Kronos (Cronos), attempted to swallow all of his newborn children, his (Kronos's) sister/wife, Rheia (Rhea), substituted a stone in place of her sixth child (Zeus) and Kronos swallowed it down without suspecting that he had been tricked; when Zeus attained manhood, he assaulted his father and the stone and his five swallowed siblings were vomited up; Zeus placed the stone at Delphi to be a portent and marvel to mortals for all time.
The geographical location of the city of Delphi made it easily accessible to all the Greeks and thus added to its popularity; Delphi was considered to be the Navel of the World; the priestesses of Apollon, known as the Pythia, would sit atop tripods and render the prophecies in hexameter verse.
Great reverence was given to the Oracle of Delphi and many private citizens as well as all the major cities erected treasuries to house their tributes to Apollon; there are many references to the correctness of the prophecies provided by the Pythia but there were also occasions where the prophecies were misinterpreted and led to disaster; perhaps the most famous example of a misinterpreted prophecy is described by Herodotus in the case of King Kroesus (Croesus), of Lydia, when he sent an emissary to Delphi asking if he should fight or surrender to the invading Persian army; the Pythia said that if Kroesus fought the Persians he would destroy a mighty empire; Kroesus mustered his army and took the field against the Persians and was captured after his army was soundly defeated; thus a mighty empire was destroyed just as the Pythia had predicted; the only problem was that the empire which was destroyed was not the one that Kroesus had imagined.
To say that the prophecies of Oracle at Delphi were believed literally and without question is unrealistic; there were doubters even among the citizens of Delphi; when the Persian army led by Xerxes was marching towards Delphi in 480 BCE with the undisguised intentions of looting the treasuries, the citizens and temple workers asked the god if they should bury or remove the riches to protect them from the Persians; Apollon said that they should do nothing because he was well able to defend his temple and its treasures; regardless, all but sixty citizens and one prophet fled Delphi; as the Persians approached the temple of Athene (Athena) Pronaia, on the outskirts of the sacred precinct, the prophet Akeratus (Aceratus) saw weapons magically coming out of the temple; as the Persians came closer, bolts came from the skies and two large boulders fell from Mount Parnassos (Mount Parnassus) and killed many of the invaders; as if this was not enough, the larger than life images of two ancient heroes entered the fray, they were Phylakus (Phylacus) and Autonous whose shrines were nearby; the temple and city were undamaged by the Persians and the credibility of the Oracle at Delphi reached new heights.
Histories, book 1.53; book 8.35-39
Theogony, lines 495-500
Pausanias, x.24.6
The shrine of Zeus in the city of Dodona was the oldest and most revered oracle in ancient Greece.
Messages were interpreted by priests, known as Selloi, who interpreted the rustling of oak leaves or the sound of the waters of a spring; Dodona was situated in the far northwestern part of the Greek mainland in the district of Epirus.
The Oracle at Dodona was established by one of two Egyptian priestesses who had been carried away by Phoenicians and sold as slaves; the inhabitants of Dodona told the historian Herodotus that the first oracle arrived, not as a woman, but as a black dove with human speech; Herodotus discounted this story but did not doubt the veracity or antiquity of the oracle.
Histories, book 2.55-59
The oracle associated with the river Acheron.
The Acheron is the river in the Underworld over which Charon ferries the souls of the dead; Herodotus relates the story of the king of the city of Corinth, Periander, who sent an emissary to the Oracle of the Dead; the king's dead wife, Melissa, revealed through the oracle the hiding place of some treasure that she had hidden that Periander could not have found without her help.
Histories, book 5.92
A Nymph of a mountain; a Nymph is literally a Bride.
The consort of Boreas (North Wind) and the mother of the winged brothers, Kalais (Calais) and Zetes.
Argonautika, book 1, line 212
A trilogy written by the Athenian tragic poet, Aeschylus, which centers around the murder of Agamemnon after his return from Troy and the retribution meted out by his son, Orestes.
Part one, Agamemnon, describes the murder of the victorious hero after his return from Troy.
Part two, The Libation Bearers (Choephore), is the story of the murderous revenge meted out by Agamemnon's son, Orestes, against his mother Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra) and her lover Aegisthus (Aigisthos).
Part three, the Eumenides, is the trial and acquittal of Orestes and lays the philosophical basis for the difference between revenge and justice.
If you wish to read these plays I suggest The Complete Greek Tragedies, Aeschylus II, edited by David Grene and Richmond Lattimore, ISBN 0226307948; you can find this book at your library in the 800 section or you can order it from the Book Shop on this site.
The son of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra); after the murder of his father, Orestes went into hiding until he returned to Argos to avenge his father's murder by killing his mother and her lover, Aegisthus (Aigisthos); he later gained absolution for his actions.
A tragedy by Euripides produced circa 408 BCE.
Cast of Characters:
Orestes - Son of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra)
Elektra (Electra) - Daughter of Agamemnon and Klytemnestra (Clytemnestra)
Helen - Wife of Menelaos; the sister of Klytemnestra and daughter of Tyndareus
Menelaos (Menelaus) - King of Sparta, husband of Helen and uncle of Orestes and Elektra
Hermione - Daughter of Helen and Menelaos and the cousin of Orestes and Elektra
Tyndareus - Father of Klytemnestra and Helen
Pylades - Friend and companion of Orestes
Apollon - The god who ordered Orestes to kill his mother, Klytemnestra
The anguish and tragedy of Agamemnon, his ancestors and his children, seems to never end; Orestes obeyed the oracle of Apollon and killed his mother for her wanton murder of her husband, Agamemnon, and now Orestes is beset by the phantom-like Eumenides (the Furies) and drifts in and out of madness; Elektra pleads with the gods and the spirit of her dead father to save them and relieve Orestes from the intermittent insanity that has plagued him since he killed his mother.
The people of Argos, with few exceptions, will not speak to Orestes or Elektra and the two await helplessly for their death sentence to be proclaimed; Helen came to Argos to visit the grave of her sister, Klytemnestra, but she had to come secretly because she is hated in all of Greece for the thousands of men who died to save her from the Trojans; when Menelaos arrives, Orestes begs him to speak out in his behalf to get the people of Argos to not enact the death sentence; Menelaos tells Orestes to be patient but essentially does nothing to help.
When Tyndareus arrives he is full of hatred for Orestes and Elektra; he denounces his daughters (Helen and Klytemnestra) but says that the crime of matricide is far worse than any crime his daughters committed; he asks the people of Argos for the death sentence without hesitation for his grandchildren.
Pylades urges Orestes to speak in his own behalf to try to convince the people of Argos that his crime was justified and that he was only following the commandment of Apollon when he killed his mother; the only effect Orestes has by speaking in his own defense is to have the death sentence mitigated so that he and Elektra have the option of killing themselves instead of being stoned to death; with death as their sure fate, Orestes and Elektra hatch a plot to kill Helen, take Hermione hostage and thus force Menelaos to act forcefully and save their lives; considering the fact that this play is a tragedy, the ending is relatively happy; Orestes has to stand trial before the gods for the crime of matricide but is promised by Apollon that he will one day marry Hermione and rule Argos; Apollon also promises that Elektra and Pylades will marry and live happily in Pylos.
This play is one of Euripides's best; the characters are dynamic and the storyline is direct and forceful; I am still surprised to see that Helen is so despised and spoken of with such venom; playwrights such as Euripides and others seem to hold Helen personally responsible for the Trojan War while at the same time freely admitting that she was simply a pawn of the Immortals and not really to blame for the deaths of the thousands of young Greek men who died at Troy; in this play, for example, even Helen's servants hate her and her own father calls her vile names.
I personally recommend the translations compiled by Richmond Lattimore and David Grene; you can find this and other plays by Euripides in the 882 section of your local library or you can order them from the Book Shop on this site.
A metallic compound which we would call yellow brass.
Orichalcum is a combination of eighty percent copper and twenty percent zinc (with small amounts of lead, tin and other metals); orichalcum was said to have been dug from the ground in a pure state on the island of Atlantis; the Romans used orichalcum for coins.
Plato, Kritias (Critias))
A Mycenaean stronghold in north-central Boeotia on the western shore of Lake Kopais.
The Hunter; a Giant who was renowned for his hunting abilities and his lack of modesty.
After a life of adventure and controversy, Orion finally became eternal by being placed in the heavens as a constellation; the reason and manner of his ascension into the sky depends on which ancient author you care to believe.
In The Odyssey of Homer, we hear the story of Orion and the goddess Eos (Dawn); when Hermes told the goddess Kalypso (Calypso) that Zeus had commanded her to release Odysseus and allow him to continue his journey home, Kalypso complained bitterly that other Immortals had been allowed to take mortal lovers and now she was being forced to release Odysseus; her argument did not seem too convincing because she used the example of Eos and Orion; it seems that the Immortals insisted that Eos and Orion be separated and so Artemis was called upon to kill Orion; when Odysseus finally left Kapypso's island, he sailed with the constellation of Orion clearly visible in the sky. (Odyssey, book 5, lines 121 and 274)
Also in The Odyssey, we are told that Orion was the most handsome man (demigod) to ever walk the earth; he even exceeded the manly beauty of Otos (Otus) and Ephialtes; when Odysseus went to the entrance to the Underworld, he saw Orion herding the animals he had killed while he still walked the earth so even though he had been elevated to the heavens his 'shade' made its abode in the Underworld.
Orion's most famous hunt was his relentless pursuit of the daughters of Atlas, the Pleiades, which may have been the cause of both hunter and prey being placed in the sky as constellations.
Another story concerning Orion is told in The Astronomy where he is said to be the son of Poseidon (lord of the Sea) and Euryale; he was given the power to walk upon the water as if it were land; he went to the island of Chios and outraged Merope, the daughter of Oenopion, by his drunkenness; Oenopion blinded Orion and he fled to the island of Lemnos; Hephaistos (Hephaestus) took pity on the blind hunter and gave him a servant named Kedalion (Cedalion) to act as his guide; Orion carried Kedalion on his shoulders to point out the roads and help him find his way around the world; while in the east, Orion was healed by Helios (the Sun) and resumed his prideful and indulgent life; when he ventured to the island of Crete he hunted with Artemis and Leto; his zeal for hunting made him boast that he would kill every wild animal on the earth; outraged by his boasting, Gaia (Earth) sent a giant scorpion to kill Orion and, after his death, Artemis and Leto persuaded Zeus to place Orion in the heavens as a constellation.
The Astronomy, fragment 4
Iliad (Lattimore and Loeb), book 18, lines 486 and 488; book 22, (Orion's Dog) line 29
Iliad (Fagles), book 18, lines 568 and (the Hunter) 570; book 22, (Orion's Dog) line 35
Iliad (Fitzgerald), book 18, lines 559 and 562; book 22, (Orion's Dog) line 34
Odyssey (Lattimore and Loeb), book 5, lines 121 and 274; book 11, lines 310 and 572
Odyssey (Fagles), book 5, lines 134 and (the Hunter) 301; book 11, lines 353 and 656
Odyssey (Fitzgerald), book 5, lines 127 and 283; book 11, lines 359 and 681
Oath; one of the most troublesome children of the goddess, Eris (Discord).
Theogony, line 231
Works and Days, lines 219 and 804
The site of the oracular shrine of Amphiaraus where prophecy was given to the supplicants by means of dreams.
When you slept at the shrine, the spirit of Amphiaraus would enter your dreams with visions of the future; the city is located on the border between Attica and Boeotia near the eastern coast of the Greek mainland.
The name which the Arabians used to denote Dionysos (a.k.a. Bacchus, god of Wine).
According to the historian Herodotus, the Arabians only worshiped Aphrodite (goddess of Love) and Dionysos; Aphrodite was worshiped under the name Alilat, i.e. The Goddess.
Herodotus mentions this connection between Dionysos and Orotalt when he was relating the pledge of peace that the Persian king, Cambyses, made to the Arabians so they would assist the Persian army by providing water for crossing the desert of the Sinai Peninsula and thus allowing the Persians to attack King Amasis of Egypt; the two men making the pledge would allow a third man to cut their hands and smear their blood on seven stones, all the while calling on Orotalt (Dionysos) and Alilat (Aphrodite) to witness the pledge; Herodotus says that Orotalt and Alilat were the only two Immortals the Arabians honored and that men would crop their hair like Dionysos by cutting it round the head and shaving the temples.
Histories, book 1.131; book 3.8
The most skillful musician in ancient Greece; the son of the Muse, Kalliope (Calliope).
Orpheus's ability as a musician was so profound that he was said to have moved the boulders and changed the course of rivers simply by playing the lyre; he charmed the oak trees of his native province of Pieria and marched them to Thrace where they still stand in close order.
When his beloved wife, Eurydike (Eurydice), died he followed her into the Underworld; his wit and talent charmed Hades (lord of the Underworld) and Orpheus was allowed to return Eurydike to the surface of the earth provided that he lead the way and not look back to see if Eurydike was following him; at the very last moment Orpheus was compelled to look around and, by doing so, Eurydike was returned to the land of the dead and lost to Orpheus until he also died.
When Jason formed a band of heroes to join him in the quest for the Golden Fleece, Orpheus became an Argonaut and on several occasions saved the crew-members from certain doom; when their ship, the Argo, came near the island of the Sirens, Orpheus played such beautiful melodies on the lyre that the sailors, with two exceptions, were able to maintain their wits and not be tempted by the Siren song.
Argonautika, book 1, lines 23, 33-34, 495, 540, 915 and 1134; book 2, lines 161, 685 and 928; book 4, lines 905, 1160, 1409 and 1547
The two-headed dog of Geryon (Geryones) which was slain by Herakles (Heracles) during his Tenth Labor.
Orthos was the offspring of the half-Nymph/half-snake, Echidna, and Typhaon; Orthos was the oldest of three monsters born to Echidna and Typhaon, the others included: Kerberos (Cerberus) and the Hydra; also, in union with his mother, Orthos fathered the Sphinx and the Nemean Lion.
Theogony, line 309
An island in the harbor of the city of Syracuse on the island of Sicily.
The Nymph Arethusa was transformed into a spring on Ortygia by Artemis so that the Nymph could escape the unwanted advances of the god of the river Alpheios (Alpheius); in The Odyssey (book 15, line 404) Ortygia is said to be the turning place of the Sun; Ortygia was the location of the citadel of Dionysius I when he took complete control of the government of Syracuse, circa 404-3 BCE.
The Greek rendering of the name of the Egyptian god of the dead, Asar.
According to the historian, Herodotus, the Egyptian god Osiris was somehow equated with the Greek god of Wine, Dionysos (a.k.a Bacchus); he states that the only two gods worshiped throughout Egypt were Isis (Ast) and Osiris; exactly how Osiris and Dionysos are similar or equal is not explained.
The name of Osiris raises an interesting problem in our modern use of his name and the common rendering of ancient names in general; for example, when we use the Greek names of the builders of the three Egyptian pyramids at Giza, we normally use the Greek renderings of all three names, i.e. Cheops, Chephren and Mykerinus (the Egyptian names for the same three men are: Kufu, Chafre and Menkaure); we can correctly use the Greek or the Egyptian names but to mix the Greek and Egyptian names would be confusing and incorrect.
If you were to say, The Greeks called the Egyptian god of the dead Osiris, you would be correct, but if you were to say, The Egyptian god of the dead was Osiris, you would be incorrect, i.e. his Egyptian name was Asar.
Histories, book 2.42, 2.47, 2.123, 2.144 and 2.156
OH sah
Mount Ossa; a mountain in eastern Greece in Thessaly; 6,490 feet (1,978 meters) in height.
Mount Ossa was intended to be part in an assault to the authority of the Olympians and the sanctity of the heavens when two children of Poseidon (lord of the Sea) tried to uproot Ossa from its foundations; Otos (Otus) and his brother Ephialtes were the monstrous sons of Iphimedeia (Iphimedea) and Poseidon; second only to the mighty hunter Orion, Otos and Ephialtes were the most handsome men (demigods) to ever exist; the two brothers were also the tallest men ever to reside on the earth.
Before the two boys reached adulthood, they brought about their own doom by daring to try and reach the heavens; the two rebellious boys tried unsuccessfully to pile Mount Ossa on top of Mount Olympos and then put Mount Pelion on top of that; their crime was so outrageous that Zeus commanded Apollon to kill Ephialtes and Otos with a rain of arrows.
OH sah
Rumor; the messenger of Zeus.
Agamemnon, the commander of the Greek army besieging the city of Troy, had an evil dream induced by Zeus in which he was told to arm the Achaeans (Achaians) and attack the city; Agamemnon called his most trusted advisors together and told them of the dream; Nestor addressed the council and said that if anyone else had been given such a dream he would dismiss it but, since Agamemnon was the recipient, they should take it as an omen and do as the dream had instructed and attack the city with all their forces.
Agamemnon sent messengers to alert the army; in a blaze, Ossa walked among the men and hastened them to the assembly.
Iliad (Lattimore and Loeb), book 2, line 93
Iliad (Fagles) Book 2, line 109
Iliad (Fitzgerald) book 2, line 106
In ancient Greece, ostracism was a legal punishment that was used to ban corrupt officials and inept military leaders from cities and districts.
The practice was sometimes misused by politicians and merchants to remove rivals from the political arena and exclude business competition; in Athens, ostracism was legally binding for ten years.
The words Ostracize and Ostracism come from the Greek word Ostrakon (Οσρακον) which is literally a potshard, i.e. a piece of clay from a broken pot; the Athenian citizens used an ostrakon to cast their vote against another citizens who they thought to be corrupt or inept by inscribing the name of the disfavored citizen on the shard and then depositing it in an urn at a public meeting.
The son of Pharnaspes and one of the richest men in the Persian Empire; he was one of the seven Persians who successfully mounted the revolt which deposed the usurper, Smerdis, from the throne of the Persian Empire.
When the second king of the Persian Empire, Kambyses (Cambyses), was occupied with the subjugation of Egypt, a Mede named Smerdis assumed the role of Kambyses's dead brother, also named Smerdis, and claimed the throne for himself; Kambyses had secretly arranged the murder of his brother, Smerdis, and therefore knew that the Smerdis on the throne was not his brother but before Kambyses could return to confront the false-Smerdis and reclaim his throne, he accidentally wounded himself with his own sword and died.
The false-Smerdis was very clever at concealing his true identity and never left the palace or allowed high ranking Persians to see him; the false-Smerdis not only bore the same name as Kambyses's brother but was also physically similar to him, with one exception: the Median Smerdis had no ears; Kambyses had inflicted a punishment on the Mede that required that his ears be lopped off.
Otanes was the first to suspect that something was wrong and devised a plan to determine the truth of the matter; Otanes's daughter, Phaedyme, was the wife the true-Smerdis and was occasionally required to attend the false-Smerdis as part of his pretense to the throne; Otanes instructed her to secretly feel Smerdis's head to see if he had any ears; Phaedyme bravely obeyed her father and recognized the false-Smerdis for what he was.
Otanes began to recruit other Persians in what would ultimately be a rebellion; with the help of Gobryas, Intaphrenes, Megabyzus, Darius, Aspathines and Hydarnes, Otanes plotted to murder the false-Smerdis and reclaim the throne of the empire for the Persians; the seven rebels fought their way into the false king's chamber and killed him; when the populace found out what had transpired, a wave of violence swept the city and only darkness saved the Medes from complete extermination.
The seven men then debated as to which type of government to establish; the former king, Kambyses, had been cruel and excessive in the extreme and Otanes argued for a democratic government; Darius argued for another monarchy and finally won the others to his point of view; Darius was installed as the third king of the Persian Empire in 521 BCE.
For being the organizer of the revolt, Otanes was promised special consideration by means of yearly gifts from the king; he and the other rebels were granted special privileges in the new kingdom and were allowed to have an audience with the king at any time unless he was with one of his wives; Darius took several wives including Otanes's daughter Phaedyme.
When Darius decided to bring the island of Samos under his dominion, he gave Otanes instructions that the island was to be taken without bloodshed or enslavement and that Otanes was to put a man named Syloson in charge of the island; when the Persians arrived, the ruler of Samos, Maeandrius, willingly handed over control of the island but after prompting from his brother, Charilaus, he decided to ferment an armed resistance against the Persians and then flee the island with his riches; the result was disastrous; Otanes was caught off guard by the Samiots and, after the death of many of the Persian captains, he ordered his troops to kill everyone they encountered; Otanes's over-reaction made Syloson the new tyrant of an uninhabited island; later, after he had a prophetic dream, Otanes repopulated the island of Samos.
Histories, book 3.68-88 and 3.139-149
oh TOS
Otos and his brother Ephialtes were the monstrous sons of Iphimedeia (Iphimedea) and Poseidon (lord of the Sea); Iphimedeia was married to a man named Aloeus but she was seduced by Poseidon and the magnificently terrible brothers were the result of that union; although they were incredibly large, Ephialtes and Otos were really quite beautiful; second only to the mighty hunter Orion, Otos and Ephialtes were the most handsome men (demigods) to ever exist; the two brothers were by far the tallest men ever to reside on the earth; when they were nine years old, they were nine cubits across and nine fathoms tall; the units of measurement (yards, cubits and fathoms) varies with each translator but the number nine is used consistently.
In The Iliad, we are given an amazing story which demonstrates the physical prowess and audacity of Otos and Ephialtes; after a confrontation with the gigantic brothers, Ares (god of War) was bound in chains and imprisoned in a cauldron; Ares remained in that humiliating and helpless situation for thirteen months until he was finally freed when Eeriboia, the stepmother of Otos and Ephialtes, told Hermes of Ares's plight.
Before the two brothers reached adulthood, they brought about their own doom by daring to try and reach the heavens; the two rebellious boys tried unsuccessfully to pile Mount Ossa on top of Mount Olympos (Olympus) and then put Mount Pelion on top of that; their intentions were so outrageous that Zeus commanded Apollon to kill Otos and Ephialtes with a rain of arrows.
Iliad (Lattimore and Loeb), book 5, lines 384-390
Iliad (Fagles), book 5, lines 384-390
Iliad (Fitzgerald), book 5, lines 384-390
Odyssey (Lattimore and Loeb), book 11, lines 305-320
Odyssey (Fagles), book 11, lines 348-363
Odyssey (Fitzgerald), book 11, lines 352-371
One of the nine Muses; her name means Heavenly One; she was the consort of Poseidon (lord of the Sea) and the mother of Amphimarus.
For more information on Ourania and her sisters, I suggest that you consult the Muses page in the Immortals section of this site.
Theogony, line 78
An Okeanid, i.e. one of the three thousand daughters of Okeanos (Ocean) and Tethys.
Zeus gave the Okeanids, Apollon and the Rivers the special obligation of having the young in their keeping.
Theogony, line 350
The Heavens; he was the first-born of Gaia (Earth) and in all ways her equal.
Ouranos has a page in the Immortals section of this site ... click on his name to view that page.
The Mountains; the offspring of Gaia (Earth) without consort; the brother of Ouranos (the Heavens) and Pontos (the Sea).
Theogony, line 129
The goddess of violence and outrage.
Works and Days, line 217
Publius Ovidius Naso; (43 BCE-18 CE) a Roman poet who, departing from the serious nature of classical poetry, was witty and superficial.
Ovid is mentioned here only because of his treatment of the Greek myth of Jason and Medeia (Medea); his play, Medeia, does not survive but the fact that the subject would have interest to the Romans shows the enduring power and universal appeal of the characters and backdrop of the story of Jason, the Argonauts and the Quest for the Golden Fleece.
One of the three tribes which made up the Lokrians (Locrians).
The Ozolian tribe occupied an area on the Gulf of Corinth; the other two tribes were named: the Opuntian and the Epiknemidian (Epicnemidian); the Lokrian colonists who went to Italy near Mount Zephyrium were called the Zephyrians or the Epizephyrians.
