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Greek Mythology

As Greek mythology goes, the universe was once a big soup of nothingness. Then, two things happened: either Chaos or Gaia created the universe as we know it, or Ouranos and Tethys gave birth to the first beings. From there, the Titans were born, as well as the Olympians who eventually overthrew them. The gods then created humans, and all sorts of epic adventures ensued. Greek mythology is filled with all kinds of stories about love, betrayal, murder, war, and more.
If you're looking to learn more about Greek mythology, you've come to the right place. This guide will introduce you to some of the most famous Greek myths, as well as the gods and goddesses who populated them.

According to ancient Greek mythology, the hero Bellerophon with the aid of the winged horse Pegasus slew the monstrous creature known as the Chimera. Source: insima / Adobe stock
8 May, 2020 - 14:00 dhwty

Bellerophon – The Escapades of a Bad Boy Hero With Hidden Lessons

Bellerophon is a well-known hero in Greek mythology. He is best-known for the slaying of the Chimera, a monstrous fire-breathing creature with three heads. The hero was able to accomplish this feat...
Sophocles
18 July, 2020 - 15:51 dhwty

Sophocles: Archetypal Master of Greek Tragedy

Sophocles was a playwright who lived in Greece during the 5 th century BC. He is one of the three Greek writers of tragedy (the other two being Aeschylus and Euripides) whose works have survived till...
Achilles’ Shield: What’s the Meaning of the Iliad’s Most Symbolic Object?
12 April, 2021 - 14:46 Sarah Piraino

Achilles’ Shield: What’s the Meaning of the Iliad’s Most Symbolic Object?

The Iliad is one of the most famous epic poems created by the Greek poet Homer and the piece recounts the last weeks of the Trojan War. In book 18 of the series, Homer writes about Achilles’ shield...
Atlas was tasked with supporting the world on his shoulders. Source: rudall30 / Adobe Stock.
12 April, 2020 - 10:38 dhwty

Atlas: The God with the World on His Shoulders

Atlas is one of the most famous Titans in Greek mythology. He is best-known for bearing the sky on his shoulders, a punishment inflicted on him by Zeus following the Titanomachy . Although Atlas’...
Heracles wrestling the Mares of Diomedes.
28 April, 2017 - 14:06 Carly Silver

Heracles and the Mares of Diomedes: Greek Hero VS Man-Eating Beasts

By now, you’re probably aware that the Greek hero Heracles (a.k.a. Hercules) had to complete twelve arduous labors as retribution for killing his wife and kids in a divinely-induced rage. The eighth...
‘Diana and Actaeon’ (1602-1603) by Giuseppe Cesari.
27 January, 2019 - 22:18 dhwty

Diana and Actaeon: When an Innocent Encounter Turned Deadly

Diana and Actaeon is a story found in Classical mythology. The myth centers on the hero and hunter Actaeon, who is transformed by the goddess Diana (Artemis to the Greeks) into a stag, after which he...
Atreus and Thyestes. Two members of the House of Atreus.
2 May, 2019 - 23:50 Miriam Kamil

The Curse of the House of Atreus: A Dysfunctional Family Taken to Extremes

The Ancient Greeks often spoke of the Heroic Age, when nymphs and satyrs cultivated the mountains and gods played with mortals. Among the Greek myths that take place in the Heroic Age is the story of...
Jonah and the Whale by Pieter Lastman, (1621) (Public Domain)
19 November, 2021 - 22:25 John McHugh

How Jonah Was Swallowed By The Celestial Sea Serpent Cetus

The Old Testament saga of Jonah and his dreadful, three day and night confinement within the “belly of a whale” and disgorgement onto the shore remains one of the Bible’s most enthralling mysteries...
My Name Is Heracles, And I Have Father Issues
15 August, 2019 - 22:59 B. B. Wagner

My Name Is Heracles, And I Have Father Issues

The story of Heracles is considered one of the oldest of the Greek myths . Heracles’ popularity stretched from the western world to the far reaches of northern India. His likeness has appeared as...
King Menelaus, seen here finding Helen at Troy, is best known as her husband.
15 June, 2021 - 18:33 dhwty

Why We Should Remember Menelaus, the King Lost in his Wife’s Shadow

Menelaus, the mythological king of Mycenaean Sparta, is perhaps best remembered as the husband of Helen of Troy. While lost in his wife’s shadow, his story is inexorably entwined with that of the...
Pan
8 May, 2017 - 15:41 MartiniF

The Failed Sex God: The Horned God Pan and His Unrequited Lusts

"The bounteous Pan, the god of rural scenery, shepherdi, and huntsmen," as the poet Milton calls him, is the Greek god of woods and fields. Originally a pastoral god from Arcadia and depicted as a...
King Diomedes leader of the troops and unsung hero. Source: serhiibobyk / Adobe Stock.
2 December, 2019 - 14:04 B. B. Wagner

Diomedes, the Unsung Hero of Troy

Any Greek epic by the poet Homer should never be read quietly to one’s self but spoken out loud to all who wish to listen, especially if it has to do with the Trojan War. His epic poems sing praises...
Polyphemus - Whose Prayer for Revenge Was the Origin of the Odyssey
9 February, 2020 - 14:00 dhwty

Polyphemus - Whose Prayer for Revenge Was the Origin of the Odyssey

Polyphemus is the cyclops found in the famous Greek mythological tale found in Homer’s Odyssey . This one-eyed beast, arguably the most famous of his kind, is presented as a man-eating monster, and...
Sisyphus
23 January, 2021 - 03:05 dhwty

The Sisyphus Myth: Cruel King Gets Eternal Punishment for Annoying Zeus

Doomed to forever roll a huge boulder up a steep hill, Sisyphus is a figure in Greek mythology who represents an impossible task. As his punishment in the Greek Underworld , each time Sisyphus neared...
Illustration depicting the mythological Talos god. Source: matiasdelcarmine / Adobe Stock
21 May, 2022 - 23:01 ancient-origins

Talos of Crete: A 2,000-Year-Old Tale of the First Robot God

Believe it or not, but ideas of artificial intelligence and automata were alive and well over 2,000 years ago within Greek mythology. The myth of Talos (‘Τάλως’)—the first robot-like creature in...
Helen of Troy
16 March, 2019 - 20:29 Miriam Kamil

Helen of Troy, The Beauty Who Sparked the Trojan War

In Greek mythology, Helen of Troy is known as the woman whose beauty sparked the Trojan War. But Helen’s character is more complex than it seems. When considering the many Greek and Roman myths that...
A Match Made in Greek Legend: What Happened When Heracles Met the Snake Woman?
24 March, 2017 - 12:56 Carly Silver

A Match Made in Greek Legend: What Happened When Heracles Met the Snake Woman?

While completing his Twelve Labors, the Greek hero Heracles (a.k.a. Hercules) got up to tons of mischief—and that included bedding a lot of women. In the process, he fathered a whole host of...
Cassandra of Troy is a tragic figure within Greek mythology. Source: Maksim Šmeljov / Adobe Stock
2 August, 2021 - 19:01 dhwty

The Ignored Prophet of Doom: The Curse of Cassandra of Troy

Best-known for her prophetic powers, within Greek mythology Cassandra is a princess of Troy who lived during the era of the Trojan War. Her gift of prophecy, however, was accompanied by a curse – no...
Roman bronze figure representing Silenus
17 January, 2015 - 21:55 aprilholloway

Ancient Roman bronze figure of mythological Silenus found on Danish island

A small Roman bronze figure representing Silenus, the mythological companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus, has been found on the Danish island of Falster. The miniature bust dates back nearly...
Arachne and the Spider in Dante
17 October, 2014 - 01:41 lizleafloor

The symbolic spider that wove its way through history

The spider is an ancient and powerful symbol found round the globe, and have always elicited a wide range of emotions in people: fear, disgust, panic, and sometimes curiosity and appreciation. This...
Midas and Dionysus by Poussin (1594-1665), showing the end of the myth in which Midas thanks Dionysus for freeing him of the gift/curse previously granted.
8 October, 2015 - 21:42 ancient-origins

Everything he Touched Turned to Gold: The Myth and Reality of King Midas

Almost everyone has heard the story of King Midas, the legendary king who turned everything he touched to gold. But how much myth and how much reality is there around this character? Was there really...
The Amazons were a tribe of warrior women. (Atelier Sommerland / Adobe Stock).
18 July, 2019 - 14:07 B. B. Wagner

The Amazons: The Real Female Fighters Dispelling Myth & Legend

Famous ancient Greek historian Herodotus once wrote of the Amazons - or as he called them Oier Pata (‘Killers of Men’) – a tribe of fierce warrior women. Though in today’s world, the name ‘Amazon’ is...
The Dramatic and Tragic Life of Ancient Greek Legend Daedalus
8 January, 2017 - 21:57 Veronica Parkes

The Dramatic and Tragic Life of Ancient Greek Legend Daedalus

Daedalus is hailed as one of the most skilled artists and craftsmen in the Ancient Greek world. Said to be the son of the gods Athena and Hephaestus, as well as the son of the mortals Alcippe (...
Odysseus, Off Course in the Baltic Sea
23 August, 2019 - 20:50 Roberto Volterri

Odysseus, Off Course in the Baltic Sea

Homer’s Odyssey tells of the adventures of the ancient seasoned mariner, Odysseus, hero of the Trojan War, who offended Poseidon and as a result was cursed to sail the seas and prolong his journey...

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