r/GreekMythology

Image 1 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 2 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 3 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 4 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 5 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 6 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 7 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
Image 8 — Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus
🔥 Hot ▲ 487 r/GreekMythology

Take a look at the characters in my upcoming Greek myth comic: Lion of Olympus

ART: the amazing Douglas Mora, social in the last side.

My comic is a detective noir set in the 1950’s following Heracles who finds his way back to godhood after abandoning his post as Protector of Mankind.

Here are all of the characters that my artist and I have done so far! What do you think?

u/Imhadez_ — 11 hours ago

Which goddess (or god) is this in the Salaborso (bologna). Hermes is on the far left, other symbols include a wheatsheaf, bee, and staff.

u/Lady_Rhino — 2 hours ago
🔥 Hot ▲ 94 r/GreekMythology+1 crossposts

Sylvia Mangano as Circe in 1954's ULYSSES

In my head-canon, this is the Circe for Ellie Wood/Linda Harrison's Who's Afraid of Diana Prince? unproduced pilot from the Adam West Batman '66 producers.

u/BeingNo8516 — 3 days ago

Hera Areia, Astarte, and Aphrodite

>...a distinctive group of terracotta figurines from Paestum portraying a naked standing goddess [...see image 3...] In the Aegean, the iconography in question can be associated with Phoenician Astarte or Cypriot Aphrodite. In places where the Greeks and Phoenicians came in contact with one another, there is often an overlapping in the persona of the two deities; in addition, a similar conflation sometimes occurs between these two deities and Hera.

-Rebecca Miller Ammerman (1991)

(sorry for reuploading, I tried censoring the nude form for Reddit’s sensibilities. Hope you like the gods in their underwear, lol)

As you may well have gathered from my previous post, Hera is and always has been a goddess of war. But she also had a number of connections to Astarte and Aphrodite! Who's everyone's favorite war goddess, apparently. While most of this post will be quoting Ammerman's article, I'll also include some added context from ancient sources.

Hera, Astarte, Aphrodite

>Sestieri (p.151-152), who made several observations on the group of naked goddess figurines as part of his gen eral survey in 1955 of the varied iconographies found among the terracottas dedicated in the sanctuaries of Hera at Paestum, noted the general similarities between the Paestan figurines and the imagery of the Oriental goddess Astarte.

>Hera's character was much more fluid than we give her credit for. Whenever I hear people reduce her to "just a goddess of marriage" I get very confused, because Hera had some of the most varied and seemingly unrelated domains of any of her siblings (aside from Zeus ofc).

>In addition, we know from inscriptions that by the fourth century B.C., Aphrodite had become fully equated with Astarte. [...]

>In the Aegean, figurines of the naked goddess are found at sites on the island of Rhodes and at the sanctuary of Hera on Samos. [...] Schmidt, in his study of Cypriot sculptures from the Samian Heraion, argues for close ties between Cyprus, Naukratis, Rhodes, and Samos in the seventh century B.C. with regard to the exchange of sculpture as well as mold technology. The image of the naked goddess seems to have traveled within a wide circuit of exchange and contact in the south eastern Mediterranean. [...]

>The proximity of the shrines of Hera and Aphrodite at the Etruscan port of Graviscae may also be a reflection of a special alliance between the goddesses [...]

This "special alliance" between Hera and Aphrodite can also be seen in the Spartan sanctuary of Hera, where they were identified with one another. Pausanias 3.13.8-9

>Not far from the hero-shrine [of the Dioscuri] is a hill, and on the hill a temple of Argive Hera, set up, they say, by Eurydice, the daughter of Lacedaemon [...] An old wooden image they call that of Hera-Aphrodite. A mother is wont to sacrifice to the goddess when a daughter is married.

back to the article:

>In thinking about the identity of the goddess who presided over the sanctuary, we may also want to consider in greater depth the possible conflation of the persona of Hera with that of Astarte and Aphrodite. [...]

>In a wider context, the dedication of an image of the naked goddess in a sanctuary of Hera is by no means uncommon. We have already seen that figurines of the naked goddess are found, for example, at the Heraion of Samos as well as that of Perachora. [...]

>A combined cult of Hera and Aphrodite is attested epigraphically at the Greek colony of Akrai in Sicily, where again the focus is on marriage rituals.

>The best known example of such an equivalence is given by the gold tablets from Pyrgi, where the Astarte of Phoenician text is named Uni (i.e., the Etruscan equivalent of Hera) in the Etruscan formulation. On Malta, it appears that Astarte was later equated with Juno Regina, a Latinized form of Hera.

>Another manifestation of the overlapping of the personalities of these deities would be that Hera, Aphrodite, and Astarte could all be styled as Hoplosmia: that is, the goddess could [...be] symbolized by the brandishing of a spear.

>At Argos, Elis, and Crotone, Hera may be described as Hoplosmia and her warlike character is also manifest at Samos. At Paestum too, archaeological and epigraphical evidence suggests that hera possessed a martial character.

>From her sanctuary in the urban center, an Archaic inscription addresses the goddess as one who can strengthen one's military prowess. In addition, several Archaic terracotta figurines [see image 4] dedicated there portray a goddess whose raised right arm once held a spear.

>With regard to Aphrodite, literary sources refer to the goddess as hoplosmia at Sparta, Corinth, Cythera, and Cyprus.

Ourania

Now for another epithet they share: Ourania. An ancient gemstone (see image 5) depicts Hera Ourania ("Heavenly Hera"), goddess of lions, seated atop a lion; with the two divine Dioscuri in her entourage, in front and behind her. This is hardly the first time we've seen the Dioscuri in the company of Hera. The Golden Ass mentions a play in which the two boys accompany the goddess to the Judgement of Paris (awkward, for Paris). I remember another occassion as well, though the details slip my mind. They were sons of Zeus who lived in Heaven, so by some accounts, that necessarily means that Hera had nursed them when they were little. They were also princes of Argos, so that makes sense.

The dedicator doing so for good luck indicates an association between Hera and luck (her crown here also subltly associates her with Tyche and Cybele-- not gonna get into that, their numistatic representations stress me out) and probably victory/skill in war. Much like how Aphrodite's Ourania epithet was invoked in Sparta as a part of her war-goddess persona.

Amazons

The Amazons were Hera's granddaughters, and insofar as she was associated with the mother goddess, they prayed to her as well as Ares and Artemis, particularly for seafaring aid, according to Diodorus.

The Amazons were also, on some occasions, related as Aphrodite's daughters, as with the Iliad D scholiast on Iliad 3.189:

>The Amazons are said to be the daughters of Ares and Aphrodite and raised along the Thermodon river in Scythia. They received the name Amazons because their right breasts {mazo-} are cut away since they get in the way when they shoot arrows. Melanippe and Hippolyte, the daughters of Ares, were the leaders of the Amazons’ army. They tried to bring Phrygia under their control because it had good grazing for horses and was rich in vines. They readied their whole army, came into the aforementioned region, and set up their camp along the Sangarios river. The kings of Phrygia at the time were Mygdon and Otreus, who marshalled their own armies and came to the same place as the Amazons to prevent them from advancing across their borders. Priam, the king of Troy, marched with them against the Amazons, being at that very moment in the full prime of life.

There is some evidence of Hera fearing for their wellbeing, such as when she encouraged the Amazons to fight against Heracles and presumably aided them as best she could. As shown (on image 2), Hera wielded an Amazonian shield, designating her as both a divine female warrior and a savage relative of the Amazons. This is of particular import especially as we previously established her as a goddess of shields, so she would be quite particular about those things. The shield itself, along with her spear, implicates her as a particular sort of skirmisher in combat. This aligns with her depiction in the Dionysiaca, where she is shown to use a shield made of clouds to perform similar enough functions.

Outside of the 2nd Argive temple of Hera was a metope featuring an Amazon (as seen on image 6).

Closing

Though Hera despised that Ares had betrayed her in the Trojan war (at the behest of Aphrodite), she directed none of that ire towards Aphrodite herself. Their relationship was cordial, even surrounded by the din of war. After all, Aphrodite wasn't the one who betrayed her. It was Ares' fault for agreeing to go along with it despite his oaths, not Aphrodite's for being clever in her own way.

Iliad 14.190ish

>Once Hera had dressed her body in this finery,

>she left the room and summoned Aphrodite.

>Some distance from the other gods, she said to her:

>“My dear child, will you agree to do

>what I ask of you, or will you refuse,

>because you’re angry with me in your heart,

>since I help Greeks and you aid the Trojans?”

>Zeus’s daughter Aphrodite answered her:

>“Hera,

>honoured goddess, daughter of great Kronos,

>say what’s on your mind. My heart tells me

>I should do what you ask, if I can,

>if it’s something that can be carried out.”

u/quuerdude — 20 hours ago

What if Paris had chosen Hera over Aphrodite and Athena?

Ok so based on the assumed fate that the Trojan war was fated to happen a Troy was bound to fall regardless (because yeah) how might have things played out if he’d picked Hera? I’m curious on what it would be like if Hera was allied with Troy against Athena and Aphrodite and the other Greek aligned gods.

Yes I could have asked what would happen if he’d chosen Athena but I love Hera so I went with her as my example.

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u/Silly_Rip_4115 — 14 hours ago

ANY STARTER BOOKS FOR THE BEGINEERS

so i recently saw some myths about greek mythology and i was pretty curious abt what greek mythology really is so i have decided to read few books abt that but i am still figuring out which book to start from ... any suggestions guys?

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u/Aggravating-Walk6227 — 23 hours ago

Myths on Hades structuring the underworld?

Are there any myths regarding Hades bringing some type of structure to the underworld? Or how he got Thanatos under his employ? Or how he got Nyx and her family to let him rule it without them opposing him?

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u/Nerdy_Hedonist — 17 hours ago
▲ 5 r/Nietzsche+1 crossposts

Apollo & Dionysus: Greek Myth and the Birth of Tragedy

In this video I recite the opening passage from Nietzsche's classic work, The Birth of Tragedy. This recording was originally made for my website journal as a means of showcasing the foundational ideas behind my journalism, and even my own personal philosophy, of which Nietzsche's oeuvre is a major influence. I thought I'd upload it to my YouTube channel too, as others might appreciate an introduction to Nietzsche's philosophy in a bitesize fragment. I'm not so much asking a question, rather positing a concise reflection on the impact of his ideas on my current frame of mind, so hopefully this in itself qualifies as a discussion.

I narrate other great passages of N on the channel too, in addition to several other classic works of poetry, philosophy, and mythology, with more to come.

You're welcome to check it out. The full, transcribed excerpt is supplied in the comments section.

Apollo & Dionysus: Greek Myth and the Birth of Tragedy

youtu.be
u/TheLightUnseen — 2 days ago

Hidríades en los textos

Necesito ayuda para un proyecto. Si me pudierais dar citas o nombres de obras donde se mencionen o tengan algún papel los siguientes tipos de ninfas hidríades: Oceánides, Pegeas, Potámides, Heléades, Limnades y Creneas. En cuanto a citas, mínimo una de no mucho más de una línea o media línea de largo por cada tipo de ninfa me bastaría. Gracias por adelantado.

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u/ImaginationLonely787 — 18 hours ago

Zooble is Cassandra (Greek myth)

Zooble from _The Amazing Digital Circus_ it's like Cassandra from Greek mythology exceptions instead of Prophecies of the future it's clear communication of the truth.

Though they don't speak of future calamities, they are the voice of reason and the character with the most Insight that is often ignored, and hated particularly by Caine.

Caine often complains and inevitably crashes out because he doesn't know what the humans of the circus want and need, but consistently ignores and dismisses- and outright gets frustrated and angry with - the one character that plainly and clearly communicates these needs.

They were the ones that also said that the reason they are not being intentionally tormented was because Caine want their approval ("The only thing holding Caine back is that he likes us; I wouldn't push it.")

Despite the knowledge that his benevolence the only thing that was keeping him from going evil torture mode, Zooble (like Cassandra) still feels compelled to speak the truth even though it means that they are the subject of Caine's ire – much like how Cassandra was still compelled to warn people of what was coming, even though she knew they wouldn't listen.

This is just my opinion. I was wondering if anyone else agreed, or if any other characters in the circus reminds you of any myths (outside of the biblical ones because we already have Cain and Abel which I think is pretty self-explanatory)

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u/MurpheysTech — 15 hours ago
Week