A delicacy of the gods, said to have been made of honey, water, fruit, cheese, olive oil and barley. Tantalus, a son of Zeus, was
given the great honor of dining on Mount Olympus. He proved himself unworthy of the invitation. The exact nature of his
transgression is variously reported, but according to one version of the myth, he stole the gods' ambrosia. Tantalus was
condemned to an eternity of punishment for this crime.

Best fighter of the Greeks besieging Troy in the Trojan War. When the hero Odysseus journeyed to the Underworld to seek the
advice of the dead prophet Teiresias, he encountered the shade of Achilles. This hero had slain the Trojan hero Hector in single
combat and had himself been brought down only by the connivance of Apollo. The god guided the arrow of Hector's brother
Paris to the only vulnerable spot on Achilles' body - his heel.

Achilles would not have been vulnerable even in this part of his body had his mother, the sea-goddess Thetis, been allowed to
protect him as she intended. When he was an infant, she rubbed him each day with godly ambrosia, and each night she laid him
upon the hearth fire. Unfortunately, Achilles' father was unaware that this procedure would make his son immortal. And when he
unexpectedly came home one night to find his wife holding their baby in the flames, he cried out in alarm. Thetis was offended
and returned to her father, the Old Man of the Sea, leaving Achilles to his mortal fate.

Another version of the myth has Thetis attempting to protect her infant by dipping him in the river Styx. The infernal waters
indeed rendered Achilles' skin impervious to the likes of any mere Trojan arrow. But Thetis forgot that she was holding him by
the heel during the dipping process, so that part was unprotected.
 

Argonauts (AR-guh-nawts)
 

The group of heroes who sailed with Jason after the Golden Fleece. Their name derived from their vessel, the Argo. Among
them were Heracles, Orpheus and the heroine Atalanta. The Argonauts navigated between both the Clashing Rocks and the
Wandering Rocks and managed to avoid the fatal allure of the Sirens.

Athens

In history, the principle city of Greece, vying at times with Sparta for political supremacy. In mythology, ruled by Aegeus and his
son Theseus. Theseus first proved himself a hero by clearing various bandits and ruffians from the road between his birthplace of
Troezen and his father's kingdom. It was from Athens that the inventor Daedalus fled to the court of King Minos, where he
designed the Labyrinth.

Ares
The god of war, known to the Romans as Mars. Though an immortal deity, Ares was bested by Heracles in battle and was
almost killed when stuffed into a jar by two giants. When another hero wounded him during the Trojan War, he received scant
sympathy from his father Zeus. The throne of Ares on Mount Olympus was covered in human skin.
 

Atlantis (at-LAN-tis)
 

According to the philosopher Plato, an advanced civilization that sank beneath the waves, a legend based perhaps on Minoan
Crete. The fabled island-continent derives its name from the Titan Atlas. It was said to be out beyond the western headland
where the immortal giant holds up the heavens by means of a pillar on his back. Plato maintained that Atlantis was a real place,
not a myth. He in turn had heard of it from certain wise men of Egypt, whose civilization spanned the era when Atlantis was said
to have flourished, whereas earlier civilizations in Greece had been wiped out by natural catastrophes - or so the Egyptians said.

Plato's description of Atlantis bears pronounced similarities to the Greek island of Crete as it must have been during the heyday
of the Minoan culture. And whereas Atlantis was supposed to have sunk beneath the waves, Minoan Crete succumbed to the
monumental volcanic eruption of the neighboring island of Thera - which may well have been accompanied by a huge tsunami,
or tidal wave.

Acropolis (a-KROP-uh-lis)
 

The citadel of Athens. According to one version of the myth, it was from the Acropolis that King Aegeus hurled himself to his
death believing that his son Theseus had been killed by the Minotaur. The Acropolis was still serving as a defensive stronghold
in 1687, when the Venetians, bombarding the Turks, inadvertently exploded a store of gunpowder inside the Parthenon.

Bellerophon (beh-LAIR-uh-fon)
 
 

Tamer of the flying horse Pegasus and heroic vanquisher of the Chimaera, a monster so fantastic that it has entered our language
in the adjective chimerical, describing the improbable product of a wild imagination.

Bellerophon was a citizen of Corinth who was exiled owing to a murder which he had committed. In those days it was possible
to be purified of the guilt of such a crime, and Bellerophon was in due course absolved by King Proetus of neighboring Tiryns.
The king's wife, generally identified as Stheneboea, made a pass at the young hero, and when he repulsed her advances she told
her husband that it was Bellerophon who made a pass at her.

King Proetus cloaked his indignation, not wishing to violate the sacred obligations of hospitality by doing harm to his guest. But
he contrived his revenge by asking Bellerophon to deliver a letter on his behalf to King Iobates of Lycia, his father-in-law. This
is somewhat surprising in that writing hadn't been invented yet, except perhaps a rudimentary form used for inventory-keeping
on the island of Crete and certain parts of the mainland. No wonder Bellerophon couldn't make out the meaning of the message
he was to deliver. Either that or the letter was sealed - although for that matter "letters" hadn't been invented yet either.

What the message said was: "Dear Iobates, please do me a favor and kill the person who hands you this." To do so proved
impossible, however, as Iobates was bound by the same strictures of hospitality as King Proetus. So instead he feasted
Bellerophon for a goodly number of days and nights, until at length he announced that he had a favor to ask of him. Assuming
that this had something to do with a return letter to Proetus, Bellerophon may well have been giving thought to establishing the
first postal service, when Iobates surprised him with the unexpected nature of his request. Would Bellerophon be so kind as to
rid the kingdom of the Chimaera?

Not wishing to sugarcoat the challenge, the king went on to describe the Chimaera as a fire-breathing monster directly related to
Heracles' nemesis the many-headed Hydra, and Cerberus, watchdog of Hades. The Chimaera had a lion's front, a goat's middle
and a snake's tail (or, in some alternative versions of the myth, the heads of these three beasts with some admixture of body
parts). In any case, it was truly ferocious.

Iobates was hoping to make good on his son-in-law's request to do away with Bellerophon, and he had hit upon the Chimaera
as the ideal agent in expediting his young guest's demise. And while one might think that he would have made little of the
Chimaera's dangers in order to instill a false sense of security, Iobates had sized up Bellerophon and deduced that he was a
sucker for a challenge - the bigger the better. And in fact Bellerophon was pleased at the opportunity to elevate himself from
mere postal-delivery person to authentic hero. He immediately began to plan his campaign of attack.

Word was that the Chimaera was virtually impregnable to any ground assault. Others had waded in on foot with spear or sword
- to their eternal regret. There was even a rumor of a mounted Thessalian who had come up short in the encounter, his horse
having been blasted out from under him by the Chimaera's fiery breath. With a keen sense of logistics, Bellerophon narrowed
down his viable options to an attack either by air or sea. The latter course being out by virtue of the inland nature of the
Chimaera's lair, he settled on the aerial option and immediately set out to procure himself a winged steed.

When Bellerophon was still a boy growing up in Corinth, he had yearned to ride the magic horse Pegasus, immortal offspring of
the god Poseidon and the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was born when the hero Perseus cut off Medusa's head. Like everyone
else, Bellerophon had been unable to so much as approach Pegasus. So he sought the advice of the seer Polyeidus.

Polyeidus suggested that Bellerophon spend the night in Athena's temple. In a dream, the goddess came to him and gave him a
golden bridle. And in the morning Bellerophon found Pegasus drinking at the spring of Peirene and slipped the bridle over his
head, rendering him tame and rideable. Thus once more, in manhood, Bellerophon sought out the Corinthian watering hole and
his trusty mount, and as he did so he gave thought to the essential issue of armament.

Clearly not just any sword or spear would do in fighting the Chimaera. For starters, a lance would be indispensable - the sort of
spear best suited to fighting on horseback. And even a proper lance was no guarantee of victory over so substantial a foe.

Again the gods came to Bellerophon's aid, suggesting that a lump of lead affixed to the end of the spear would have a decidedly
deadly effect. Firstly, when thrust into the monster's maw, it would cause the Chimaera to gag. And secondly, when melted by
the beast's fiery breath, it would trickle down into its innards and cause a fatal case of heartburn.

So Bellerophon trekked all the way from Lycia to Corinth, located the fountain of Peirene and found Pegasus sipping therefrom.
Mounting up, the hero made a much speedier trip back to Lycia, swooped down on the Chimaera's lair and rammed home the
secret weapon. And with a great, gasping groan of rage, the Chimaera gave up the ghost.

Colchis (COL-chis)
 

The kingdom of Aeetes on the mysterious periphery of the heroic world. Here in the sacred grove of the war god Ares, Aeetes
hung the Golden Fleece until it was retrieved by Jason and the Argonauts.
 

Clashing Rocks
 

Twin crags that menaced Jason and the Argonauts; also known as the Symplegades. As the vessel bearing the Argonauts
approached the Clashing Rocks, Jason released a bird which flew between them first, causing them to spring together. As they
were drawing apart to repeat the process, the Argonauts shot the gap. The Clashing Rocks were different from the Wandering
Rocks.
 

Castor (CASS-ter)
 

Mortal brother of the immortal hero Polydeuces, together the Dioscuri or Hero Twins. Polydeuces was considered godly
enough to be admitted to heavenly Olympus, while his brother was dispatched to the Underworld as a mere mortal. But
Polydeuces interceded on his twin's behalf, on the plea that he could not bear eternal separation. The gods relented to the extent
that the two were allowed to remain together forever, spending half the year deep in the earth beneath their shrine in Sparta and
the other half on Olympus.
 

Elysian Fields (i-LEE-zhun or ee-LEE-zhun)
 

Paradise of the heroes, either in the Underworld or in the far West. Here the likes of Achilles lived on in splendid company, in
pleasant surroundings, in heroic pursuits of the hunt and banquet. By virtue of his spectacularly heroic achievements, Heracles
was given a home on Mount Olympus and a goddess for a wife. But part of him had come not from his father Zeus but from his
mortal mother Alcmene, and that part was sent to the Underworld. As a phantasm it eternally roams the Elysian Fields in the
company of other heroes.
 

Fields of Asphodel (ASS-fuh-del)
 

Dwelling place of most of the shades in Hades according to Homer, the bard who sang of the age of heroes. Asphodel was an
ugly weed with a pretty name, a grey and ghostly plant suited to an Underworld inhabited by bloodless wraiths.
 

Giants
 

Monstrous children of the goddess Earth; siblings of the Cyclopes and Titans. Some say that it was Zeus's overthrow of his
father Cronus and the other Titans that caused the Giants to meditate revenge. They stormed Mount Olympus, hurling boulders
and burning tree trunks. The Olympians were advised that they would go down in defeat unless aided by a mortal, so they
called in Heracles and prevailed with the hero's aid.
 

Glaucus (GLAW-ku)  click on the link !

Hades (1) (HAY-deez)
 

God of the dead, ruler of the Underworld, which was accordingly known as Hades. In various adventures, Hades abducted the
maiden Persephone, tricked the heroes Theseus and Peirithous and managed to get himself handcuffed by Sisyphus.

The god Hades was a dread figure to the living, who were quite careful how they swore oaths in his name. To many people,
simply to utter the word "Hades" was a frightening proposition. So they made up a euphemism, a word that meant the same
thing but with a more pleasant sound.

Since all precious minerals came from under the earth (the dwelling place of Hades) and since the god was wealthy indeed when
it came to the number of subjects in his kingdom of the dead, he was referred to as "Ploutos", wealth. This accounts for the
name given him by the Romans, who called Zeus Jupiter, Ares Mars, Hermes Mercury and Hades Pluto.

Hades (2) (HAY-deez)
 

Realm of the dead, either underground or in the far West of the world known to the early Greeks - or both. Named for the god
Hades, its ruler.

As is not surprising, the ancient Greeks did not know what to expect after death. Notions of the afterlife were various and
conflicting. Some thought that great heroes lucked out by traveling to the Elysian Fields, where they could hunt and feast and
socialize in pleasant company for eternity, while commoners were consigned to a lifeless and boring abode in the Fields of
Asphodel. First they'd drink the waters of Lethe, which caused them to lose all memory of their former lives and thus lack
anything to talk about.

In its earlier depictions, the underworld kingdom of Hades was such a dank and dark and moldering place that were it laid open
to the heavens, the gods themselves would turn away in disgust.
 

Harpies (HAR-peez)
 

Razor-clawed, smelly birds with the faces of women, who defiled the food of King Phineus of Salmydessus. The king was so
grateful to the Argonauts for ridding him of these pests that he suggested a means by which Jason and his shipmates might avoid
being crushed to death by the Clashing Rocks.
 

Hermes (HUR-meez)
 

A prankster and inventive genius from birth, Hermes was the messenger of the gods and guide of dead souls to the Underworld.
He aided the heroes Odysseus and Perseus in their quests.

Hermes was the son Zeus and a mountain nymph. As a newborn he was remarkably precocious. On his very first day of life, he
found the empty shell of a tortoise and perceived its utility as a sounding chamber. Stringing sinews across it, he created the first
lyre.

Hermes was known for his helpfulness to mankind, both in his capacity as immortal herald and on his own initiative. When
Perseus set out to face the Gorgon Medusa, Hermes aided him in the quest. According to one version of the myth, he loaned
the hero his own magic sandals, which conferred upon the wearer the ability to fly. Some say that Hermes loaned Perseus a
helmet of invisibility as well. Also known as the helmet of darkness, this was the same headgear that Hermes himself had worn
when he vanquished the giant Hippolytus. This was on the occasion when the gargantuan sons of Earth rose up in revolt against
the gods of Olympus.

Hermes' symbol of office as divine messenger was his staff, or caduceus. This was originally a willow wand with entwined
ribbons, traditional badge of the herald. But the ribbons were eventually depicted as snakes. To support this mythologically, a
story evolved that Hermes used the caduceus to separate two fighting snakes which forthwith twined themselves together in
peace.

It was Hermes' job to convey dead souls to the Underworld. And as patron of travelers, he was often shown in a
wide-brimmed sun hat of straw. Hermes was known to the Romans as Mercury. His most famous depiction, a statue by Bellini,
shows him alight on one foot, wings at his heels, the snaky caduceus in hand and, on his head, a rather stylized combination
helmet-of-darkness and sun hat.

Hephaestus (he-FESS-tus or he-FEE-stus)
 

Lame god of fire and crafts or the two together, hence of blacksmiths. Hephaestus was the son of Zeus and Hera or, in some
accounts, of Hera alone. He limped because he was born lame, which caused his mother to throw him off Mount Olympus. Or
in other accounts he interceded in a fight between Zeus and Hera, and Zeus took him by the foot and threw him from Olympus
to the earth far below.

Hydra (HYE-druh)
 

A many-headed monster slain by Heracles. Related to the Chimaera and Cerberus. As one of his Labors, Heracles sought the
Hydra's lair in the swamps of Lerna and forced it out into the open with flaming arrows. Wading bravely into the fray, he began
to hack at the monster with his sword. But every time he cut off one head, two grew in its place. Eventually, Heracles called on
his charioteer to bring a torch to cauterize the Hydra's severed neck each time a head was lopped. This prevented new heads
from sprouting. And when the final head was chopped off and buried beneath a rock, the monster died.

Icarus (IK-uh-rus)
 

Son of Daedalus who dared to fly too near the sun on wings of feathers and wax. Daedalus had been imprisoned by King
Minos of Crete within the walls of his own invention, the Labyrinth. But the great craftsman's genius would not suffer captivity.
He made two pairs of wings by adhering feathers to a wooden frame with wax. Giving one pair to his son, he cautioned him that
flying too near the sun would cause the wax to melt. But Icarus became ecstatic with the ability to fly and forgot his father's
warning. The feathers came loose and Icarus plunged to his death in the sea.

Iolaus (eye-oh-LAY-us)
 

Son of Iphicles who helped Heracles slay the Hydra. Iolaus was his uncle Heracles's charioteer. When in the course of one of
his Labors the great hero sought the Hydra in the swamps of Lerna, Iolaus conveyed him there in his chariot. And when
Heracles discovered that hacking off any one of the Hydra's multiple heads caused two more to grow in its place, Iolaus came
to his rescue. Each time a head was lopped, he cauterized the monster's neck with a torch before the others could sprout.

Lethe
 

A river in Hades whose waters caused forgetfulness. It was on the banks of another Underworld river called the Styx that the
shades, or ghostly remains, of the dead congregated to seek passage to the Afterlife. Unless they bribed Charon to ferry them
across the stream, they wandered aimlessly on the near bank forever. But those who made it across the Styx did not have much
more to anticipate. Once they had drunk from the waters of Lethe, they were left with nothing to reminisce about for eternity.

Midas (MYE-das)
 

Mythological possessor of the "Midas touch", the power to transmute whatever he touched into gold. Midas was a king of
Phrygia, a region nowadays part of Turkey. One day some of his farmhands brought him a satyr they had caught napping in the
vineyard. This creature, part man, part goat, still groggy and much the worse for wear, had been thoroughly trussed up to keep
him from escaping. Midas immediately recognized Silenus, right-hand satyr to the god Dionysus, and ordered him set free.

Silenus explained that he and his master had just returned from the East where they had been engaged in spreading the
cultivation of the grape. Dionysus had brought back a tiger or two, an ever-expanding flock of followers and one very drunken
satyr. Silenus had conked out in Midas's vineyard to sleep it off. Now he was grateful to the king for treating him with dignity,
and so was Dionysus. The god was so pleased, in fact, that he offered to grant whatever Midas should wish for.

Now, you didn't get to rule a kingdom in those days without a pretty active grasp of what makes for a successful economy.
Midas didn't have to think twice. As the simplest plan for the constant replenishment of the royal treasury, he asked that
everything he touch be turned to gold.

Arching a godly eyebrow, Dionysus went so far as to ask if Midas were sure. To which the king instantly replied, "Sure I'm
sure." So Dionysus waved his pinebranch sceptre and conferred the boon.

And Midas rushed back home to try it out. Tentatively at first, he laid a trembling fingertip upon a bowl of fruit and then a stool
and then a wooly lambkin. And when each of these had been transmuted in a trice into purest gold, the king began to caper
about like the lambkin before its transformation.

"Just look at this!" he crowed, turning his chariot into a glittering mass of priceless-though-worthless transportation. "Look what
daddy can do!" he cried, taking his young daughter by the hand to lead her into the garden for a lesson in making dewy nature
gleam with a monotonous but more valuable sheen.

nectar (NEK-tur)
 

Beverage of the gods, which conferred immortality on any mortal lucky enough to partake of it. In this regard, nectar was like
ambrosia, the divine food. The theft of either was a serious offense. Tantalus was condemned to an eternity of hunger and thirst,
with water and fruit always just out of reach, for a crime which may well have involved stealing ambrosia from the gods.

Olympians (uh-LIM-pee-uns or oh-LIM-pee-uns)
 

The supreme gods of the Greek pantheon, who were thought to dwell on the peaks of Mount Olympus or somewhere in the
sky. High in the clouds, they lived in a marvelous palace and diverted themselves from time to time by interfering in the lives of
the mortals below.

The king of the Olympian gods was Zeus. He sat on a throne of Egyptian marble, inlaid with gold. A purple ram's fleece
cushioned the seat. Queen Hera's throne was ivory. Over it hung a full moon. To the side of Hera sat Ares, the god of war. His
throne, of burnished brass, had a cushion covered in human skin. The throne room, or council hall, was in the midst of the
sumptuous palace, built for the Olympians by the Cyclopes, industrious one-eyed giants.

There were twelve supreme Olympians, although the precise configuration of the divine counsel convening on Mount Olympus
was subject to change over time. At one point, for instance, Hestia, goddess of the hearth, was a member, but she grew tired of
the godly bickering and gladly gave her place to the god of wine, Dionysus.

Demeter's daughter Persephone was sometimes but not often considered to be one of the twelve. As Hades' wife, her proper
throne was in the Underworld. Nor was the god of the dead, Hades himself, an Olympian, even though he was Zeus's brother.
On the other hand, Zeus's other brother Poseidon shared the lofty heights of Olympus when he was not breasting the waves in
his seaborne chariot. He is often depicted carrying a three-pronged spear, or trident, symbol of his power as god of the sea.

Others in the pantheon were Aphrodite, goddess of beauty, and her husband Hephaestus, master craftsman of the gods;
Hermes, the Olympians' messenger, and Apollo, god of prophecy and healing. Athena often carries a spear because she is
goddess not just of crafts but of the science of war as well. And Artemis the huntress is equipped with a bow.

oracle (OHR-a-kul)
The answer given by a god to a question asked by a mortal supplicant. Or the human agent conveying the divine response. Or
the place where the answer was given.

Oracles were often hard to understand. King Croesus of Lydia was so wealthy that his name gave rise to the expression, "as
rich as Croesus". He consulted the famous Oracle of Delphi before he rebelled against the Persian empire. Croesus was told
that if he proceeded, a mighty empire would fall. Croesus took this as an endorsement of his plan, and the oracle came true.
Unfortunately the empire that fell was his own.

Styx (stiks)
 

The principle and most famous river of Hades, generally thought of as forming its border. When they first journeyed to the
Underworld, the ghostly remains of the dead congregated on the near shore of the Styx, seeking passage from the ferryman
Charon. If they presented a bribe, they were allowed to cross the river. If not, they roamed the near side for eternity.

Flying creatures with lethal, metallic feathers who infested the Stymphalian marsh in Arcadia. When Heracles had to confront
these man-eaters as one of his Labors, he was aided by Athena. The goddess gave him a pair of castanets. With these
noisemakers, he caused the birds to take wing. Then he brought them down by the dozens with arrows from his bow.

Tartarus (TAR-tuh-rus)
 

The Underworld zone of eternal torment, where the greatest sinners were punished for their transgressions. The worst of these
offenders were deemed to be those who had sinned against the gods themselves. The greatest crime of all was to abuse the
gods' hospitality. All the more so since to be on familiar terms with the great deities was a particular favor, reserved for the
elect.

Thus the hero Bellerophon was guilty of the greatest presumption when, in his later years, he dared to ride the winged horse
Pegasus to the very gates of Olympus. Apparently he imagined that his heroic conquest of the Chimaera qualified him
automatically for admission to the company of the gods. Zeus repaid this arrogance by sending a horsefly to sting Pegasus. The
flying horse reared and Bellerophon was flung from its back, falling so far and landing so hard that he was crippled for life. He
spent the remainder of his days a miserable, wandering outcast.

Tantalus, on the other hand, was invited to share not just Zeus's table but the great god's secrets. But Tantalus dared to tell
these secrets to his fellow mortals. Or, some say, he stole Zeus's ambrosia. (Nectar and ambrosia were the special treats of the
gods. Nectar was fermented honey, or mead. Ambrosia may have been a concoction of honey, water, fruit, cheese, olive oil
and barley.) For either or both of his transgressions, Tantalus was consigned to Tartarus - as far beneath Hades as Hades is
beneath the sky.

The fifty daughters of Danaus murdered their husbands on their wedding night, driving daggers into their hearts and chopping off
their heads. In fairness, they had not sought the marriages and were acting on their father's homicidal instructions. All the same,
they were condemned in the afterlife to a perpetual labor of carrying water from the river Styx in jars - jars that leaked like
sieves.

For throwing his father-in-law into a fiery pit, Ixion had to be purified by Zeus. Then he ungratefully tried to seduce the great
god's wife. Hera warned her husband what was afoot, and Zeus fashioned a cloud into Hera's likeness. Ixion made a pass at the
cloud and was caught in the act. In punishment, he spends eternity in the lowest level of the Underworld, chained to a fiery
wheel.

Wandering Rocks
 

Two rocks in the sea somewhere near Sicily that not only wandered but crashed together on any ship passing between - just
like the Clashing Rocks, but in a different location. The fifty daughters of the Old Man of the Sea helped the Argonauts survive
this peril on their return from Colchis with the Golden Fle

Xanthus (ZAN-thus)
 

An immortal horse belonging to Achilles. Hera gave Xanthus the power of speech so that he could warn Achilles that he was
about to die in the Trojan War. Achilles had already been warned by his mother Thetis, a goddess of the sea.