The Pantheon of Greek Gods on Mount Olympus - An Introduction For Beginners - Part 2
- Imagining History
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
The Pantheon of Greek gods is mainly made up of the 12 deities (gods and goddesses) that the ancient Greeks believed lived atop Mount Olympus (also known as the Olympian Gods or the Gods of Mount Olympus). But because we love our readers so much, we've actually included 14 Greek gods and goddesses in this 2 part article - you'll find out why we simply couldn't miss out the bonus 2 gods later. You're welcome readers!
Feast your eyes on gods 8-14:
The Pantheon of Greek Gods - Part 2 - Gods E-Z
Hades
God of:
The Underworld
Relatives:
Brother to Demeter, Hera, Hestia, Poseidon and Zeus; and husband to Persephone
Fun Fact:
Hades was known for, well, not living on Mount Olympus. Okay, okay, so Hades isn't technically an Olympic god. He lives in the Underworld instead of Mount Olympus, so isn't part of the pantheon. But we couldn't make a list of the most important Greek gods without including him. Consider him a fun, bonus god. Like an ancient deal on Greek deities. Buy 12 gods, get a Hades free!
Hephaestus
God of:
Blacksmiths and metalwork
Relatives:
Son of Hera; married to Aphrodite
Fun Fact:
Hephaestus was ugly. I mean, really ugly. He was so ugly that, after he was born, his mother, Hera, threw the baby off Mount Olympus in disgust! Later, he proved himself to be invaluable as blacksmith to the gods. He was the only god skilled enough to make Zeus' lightning bolts for him. Hephaestus made Zeus' weaponry so powerful that the lightning bolts were like the nuclear bombs of the ancient world.
Hera
Goddess of:
Marriage and women - known as the Queen of the gods.
Relatives:
Sister of Demeter, Hades, Hestia, Poseidon and Zeus; married to Zeus and mother to Ares and Hephaestus and other minor gods.
Fun Fact:
Hera is well known for her rocky relationship with her husband Zeus. The King of the Gods often made his wife jealous by courting other women. As a result, Hera spent a lot of her time making life difficult for Zeus' illegitimate children, like Herakles (Hercules). Luckily for Herakles, being the offspring of Zeus meant he was a demi-god and could use his power to fend off Hera's attacks. Phew!
Hermes
God of:
Travellers - known as the Messenger God
Relatives:
Son of Zeus
Fun Fact:
Hermes is known for being super speedy. His speed helps in his duty as messenger god but also makes him ideal for his second role as god of thieves (perhaps we should re-dub him the God of the Speedy Getaway?). His speed is generated by his winged sandals, called Talaria, that allow him to fly quickly between the mortal world and the world of the gods. Because of this, he was given a third job; to guide the souls of the dead to the underworld. Spooky!
Hestia
Goddess of:
The hearth
Relatives:
Sister to Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon and Zeus
Fun Fact:
Hestia was the also the goddess of the home and family and was known for her gentle and caring nature. She disliked the constant in-fighting between the other gods and when Dionysus was being considered for one of the twelve thrones on Mount Olympus, Hestia stepped down and let Dionysus take her place. She took up her role of tending the sacred hearth of Olympus and provided a peaceful place for the other gods to retreat to when they needed a break from their disputes.
Poseidon
God of:
The sea
Relatives:
Brother to Demeter, Hera, Hades, Hestia and Zeus
Fun Fact:
Though Poseidon was technically one of the gods of Mount Olympus, he was more at home in his slightly damper abode in the ocean. As well as being god of the sea, he was also the god of horses and earthquakes. In fact, Poseidon loved horses so much, one of his children was a horse! Not weird at all.
Zeus
God of:
The Sky - known as the King of the Gods
Relatives:
Married to Hera; brother to Demeter, Hera, Poseidon, Hades and Hestia; and father to Ares, Athena, Aphrodite, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Dionysus and a bunch of Greek Heroes too! Phew! That's quite the family tree!
Fun Fact:
The King of the Gods had a liking for transforming himself into fun stuff. And we're not just talking animals here (although his list of transformations do include a swan, an eagle and a bull), one myth describes how he turned himself into a shower of gold! And the transfigurations don't stop at himself. His first wife annoyed him so much, he turned her into a fly and swallowed her!
Can't get enough of the Greek gods? Missed the first 7 entries of this line up? Fear not Greek history fans! You can check it out here: