Greek mythology - Griechische Mythologie

Athens is named after the goddess Athena, the founder of Corinth was Sisyphus, in the oracle too Delphi Apollo was worshiped, the Aesculapian staff is always wrapped in a snake, Hermes was the messenger of the gods and god of thieves, the Olympic Games take place every four years. This borrowing from Greek mythology and history could be spun further. Greece is more than gyros, tzatziki and ouzo, and it certainly doesn't hurt a visitor if he knows the most important deities from ancient times by name. This is what this page is made for, there are lexicons for more in-depth and more precise knowledge.

Olympian Zeus with Nike, the statue was one of the ancient wonders of the world. Painting in the Museum of Olympia

In the beginning there was chaos

or: The creation of the gods by man. First of all: the Greek gods were powerful, but not omnipotent. But they were immortal. And they resembled humans in many ways, especially when it came to their overly human-seeming weaknesses. Above all Zeus, who had more than 100 offspring, but very few were from a befitting wife.

Greece is big and mountainous. In the past it was very impassable. The Greeks worshiped their gods. Their settlements were sometimes quite far apart, and so were the ideas about their gods. These myths continued to be told. There were still no written documents. Someone specific Hesiod then tried to bring order to the chaos by epic breadth of the Theogonywho wrote down the origin of the gods. Logically, it starts at the beginning, and that was it chaos.

Hesiod did not reveal where the chaos came from. But he tried to bring structure to the mess. The deities of the first generation emerged, logically only out of chaos: The first of these was Gaia, or Gea, the earth. She was considered the mother goddess because everything living came from her, and she was at the same time the god of death because in the end she absorbed everything again. These were only two aspects of the same deity, but there were many of them. The siblings of Gaia were Tartaros, the evil part of the abyssal underworld, Eros, the God of love, furthermore Erebos and Nyx, they embodied darkness and night.

Pallas Athene, in front of the Academy of Sciences in Athens

The sky was also from Gaia Uranus, the sea Pontus and the mountains Ourea with the mountain nymphs, echo was one of them. Nyx was not idle either, among other things, sleep came from her Hypnos, the death Thanatos, age Geras, the dispute Eris and vengeance Nemesis. Now it gets confusing, because now these gods could connect with each other and create new beings. And they did that enough. The air emerged from the connection between Erebos and Nyx Aither, the day Hemera and Charon, the ferryman to the underworld. Surprisingly, only one of the first generation of gods held back: Eros was the only one from whom no descendants are known.

Apollo, statue in front of the Academy of Sciences in Athens

However, Gaia was busy. She began an incestuous relationship with her son Uranos, from whom a dozen titans emerged, 6 of them were male, the other 6 were female. The most famous of them are arguably Oceanus and Kronos. Gaia also had a relationship with her son Pontus, one of the children who developed from it was the Meres god Nereus. Uranos and Gaia had a few more children together, they were the three one-eyed children Cyclopes and the three Hekatocheiren, terrible creatures with a hundred arms and 50 heads. No wonder that Father Uranus was anything but happy with this part of the crowd. He banished them all to Uncle Tartaros in a dark place, only Kronos, the youngest of the Titans, was not present at the moment. But Gaia loved her children, and so she swore vengeance. Kronos was ready to help her.

When Uranos visited his mother again, the son jumped aside and removed his father's manhood with a sharp cut. The unexpected sacrifice fertilized Mother Earth one last time. From the drops of blood, in addition to a number of nymphs, the giants and especially the terrible ones grew Erinyes. Part of the victim ended up in the sea. It frothed up, and from that came it Aphrodite.

Now Kronos was in power. He freed his titan brothers and married his titan sister Rhea. However, his parents had prophesied that one of his children would disempower him. As a result, as soon as Rhea bore him a child, he devoured it immediately. Only with the last one, little Zeus, he hadn't paid attention. Instead of the child, he ate a stone wrapped in diapers. Zeus was born in Crete by the Nymph Amaltheia raised, and thanks to the caring care with plenty of goat's milk, he grew up quickly. He went to Kronos, defeated him in battle and freed his immortal siblings from his belly. In alphabetical order these were Demeter, Hades, Hera, Hestia and Poseidon. As was customary at the time, the men shared power among themselves. Poseidon got the sea, Hades got the underworld, and Zeus was allowed to make his home as boss on Mount Olympus. But first he had to win the battle against Kronos and the Titans. This only succeeded because he freed the Cyclops, who gave him thunder and lightning in gratitude.

Zeus had married. His wife was called Metis. He was also prophesied that one day a son would disempower him. Without further ado, he ate his pregnant wife. After that he got a headache, and Hephaestus smashed his skull at his behest, as an immortal he could risk it. Out of his head arose daughter Athena in full armor, a girl, so he remained the boss.

The titans were defeated and trapped in the depths of Tartarus. But Gaia was offended. She gave birth to the monster Typhon, which rushed towards Olympus together with the giants. Ultimately, Zeus had no choice but to call his son Heracles, conceived with Alcmene, to help, since he had the power to kill the giants.

Finally it was possible for the gods to sit in peace on Mount Olympus, to feed on nectar and ambrosia and to live peacefully together, but for Zeus it was too boring in the long run, he preferred to go to the people and increase the number of his descendants .

The divine dozen

or:The 12 gods at the company's headquarters in Olymp. Actually there are more than 12 gods there. However, only those who are significant in the hierarchy are counted, and not all Greek writers see this in the same way. Therefore only one of the most popular listings here.

The dozen did not always have the same cast. Instead of Dionysus it was once Hestia, and Hades was also counted among the twelve Olympian gods. In addition, some less important deities lived on Olympus.

Gods or people

Zeus hurling lightning

Lower gods and demigods

In addition to the Olympic dozen, there were a number of gods that were considered less important. Because of their large number, only a few of them are listed:

• Hestia, the virgin goddess of the family and the hearth fire, sister of Zeus
• Harmonia, Goddess of harmony, daughter of Ares and Aphrodite
• Lift, Goddess of youth, daughter of Zeus and Hera
• Hades, also called Pluton, god of the underworld and his wife Persephone
• the goddess of the dawn Eos, the sun god Helios, the moon goddess Selene
• the shepherd god Panwho found no place in Olympus because of his goat feet
• the goddess of victory Nike
• the Nereids, 50 daughters of the sea god Nereus
• the Muses, the patron goddesses of the arts
• the three Graces, Daughters of Zeus

Sphinx, museum in Delphi

• Asclepius, the god of healing, son of Apollo. Well, Asclepius's mother was a mortal, but he was the son of a god and therefore immortal, so he was worshiped as a demigod. He wasn't the only one of its kind.
• Heracles, also a demigod, belongs in this series, the father was - as with many other demigods - a certain Zeus, his mother was called Alcmene. And this came from a Mycenaean king, who in turn was the son of Perseus. Whose mother was a certain Danae, and the father - well, also a certain Zeus. So Zeus had a relationship with his own granddaughter.

Gods, too human

Mythical creature Griffin, Museum Delphi

In general, Zeus and his amorous adventures. It kindled as soon as he saw a beautiful woman among mortals or among immortals. And he used all kinds of tricks to approach them. There is the somewhat controversial story of a certain one Leda. To get near her, he turned into a swan. The project worked, and Leda gave birth to eggs, which resulted in the Beautiful Helena and the twins Castor and Pollux. Another time he found the Phoenician king's daughter Europe so lovely that he turned into a bull to be close to her. And so it continues. The God Hermes was at one one night stand conceived with one of the Pleiades, the nymph Callisto became a mother through Zeus and many more. Incidentally, Zeus also fell in love with a certain one Ganymede and made him cupbearer on Olympus.

The god Apollo was also known for his affairs. Once he introduced the virgin Daphne after, which was therefore transformed into a laurel bush by her father. His best known son was Asklepios.

The sea god Poseidon was also not so careful about his marriage. He had a relationship with Medusa of all people. Pallas Athene then gave the lady a terrible outfit with snake hair and scale armor. The hero Perseus managed to behead this terrifying figure. A horse sprang from her head, even with wings. Pegasus was the name of the proud horse.

Legendary figures and mythical creatures

As you can see with Pegasus, extraordinary animals could also be produced by common gods and humans. This is called a chimera today, the ancient Greek original had a lion's head, was partly a goat and partly a snake. A few more samples like this:

• a Centaur was half horse, half human. Most of them were wild and unrestrained, the Centaur Chiron was an exception: he taught Asklepios the art of healing and is also said to have brought up Achilles.
• a siren was half human and half bird. Sirens could beguile men with their singing, as in that Odyssey is reported.
• the Minotaur, half human and half bull, lived in the Palace of Knossós and was made by Theseus defeated.
• the sphinx was also known in Greece. It had the body of a lion and the head of a woman and had wings. The hero Oedipus could the city Thebes free from this monster.

Building an ancient Greek temple

Floor plan shapes of ancient Greek temples

The Greek word for temple is Naos and means Living. This means that these temples served as dwellings for the gods or the sanctuaries, statues, gifts etc. made for them, and cult activities such as sacrifices or worship took place in the open air. In this respect, many small buildings within a temple area can also be referred to as temples, even if they are called under the name Treasure house knows.

Temples have changed enormously in the course of Greek history. Initially only small buildings made of bricks or wood, over the centuries they developed into monumental halls made of fine material, planned according to fixed rules. After the conquest by the Romans, they took over a large part of the Greek gods, but their cult activities were different, the temples built during this time corresponded to Roman ideas. After the introduction of Christianity, an almost 1000-year-old epoch of Greek temple architecture ended.

Layout

Ante temple Doric style, in the frieze triglyphs and metopes

A Greek temple basically had a main room called Cella, in which a statue was placed, in which there were cult objects. The side walls of this cella were called Anten. A simple type of temple is an Ante temple, it is closed on three sides, the temple area Naos is open to the front to the anteroom Pronaossupported by two pillars. If pillars were also attached to the back of the temple for reasons of symmetry, then the corresponding room was called Opisthodoma.

A simple modification was the ante on the Naos to restrict, then the pronaos had to be supported on the front with at least four columns. This form was called Prostylos.

The temples, which are surrounded by a wreath of columns, are more elaborate. This creates a covered approach, called Pteron. Larger temples also had several wreaths of columns, sometimes the columns on the cella were only indicated by pilasters or half-columns.

There were rules for the number of columns, which were probably based on aesthetic reasons. The number of front pillars was always an even number, the number of pillars on the long side was then double this number plus 1. After that, the following combinations were common: 4: 9, 6: 13, 8: 17

Instead of the rectangular shape of the Naos there was one too Tholos called rotunda with comparable variations. They too were often surrounded by pillars. A special feature is the one that only consists of a roofed round column Monopteros with a clearly visible cult figure in the middle.

construction

Temple of Concordia in Agrigento

Substructure

Every construction starts with a foundation. And that had to be carefully designed with the temples. A marble column more than 10 m high has its own weight and it was designed to carry the roof load. Hence, the underground foundation became first Stereobat created with stone blocks. The conclusion formed the Eythyneria, an absolutely even layer. Only now did the visible multilevel foundation, called Krepis. The top step had the name Stylobate, she had to carry the pillars or Toichobatas they are the temple walls Anten had to carry.

columns

Tympanum Temple of Zeus in Olympia, in the middle a Centaur

Depending on the architectural style, one differentiates the columns, easiest by the capitals, the upper end.

• Doric columns usually stand directly on the stylobate, they become slimmer towards the top, their exterior is decorated with sharp-edged channels and channel-shaped cavities. The Doric capital is simple: at the top is the bulging column neck Echinus, on it sits a square plate, called an abacus, on which the entablature rests.
• Ionic columns stand on a base, they also have fluting, but they are more blunt. The column neck is decorated with Volutes, snail-shaped twisted ornament, on top of which lies a small abacus plate.
• Corinthian columns stand on a pedestal that Attic base. Their fluting are similar to those of the Ionic columns, but often still decorated. The basic shape of the Corinthian capital is chalice-shaped, it is decorated with acanthus leaves and the abacus is also decorated with it.

Entablature

Lion head as a gargoyle, Temple of Apollo, Museum Delphi

The part above the pillars is the architrave, it consists of horizontal beams that rest on the capitals of the columns. Above it runs a frieze around the entire temple, it is divided into the somewhat protruding ones Triglyphs, between which the plates of the Metopes were appropriate. Most of the metopes were designed as richly decorated reliefs, on which sometimes entire stories were depicted. A cornice followed above the frieze Geison and the Sima the edge of the roof with its gargoyles, often designed as animal heads. At the front of the temple, the cornice formed a gable triangle, the Tympanum was usually richly decorated with reliefs or sculptural figures.

Worship of gods

Sacrifice and offerings

The Greek gods had a lot of very human characteristics, starting with their appearance, which they could, however, change at will. They were loving, jealous, angry, and caring. They were said to have the full range of human behavior. They were venerated, temples and other sanctuaries were built for them, and sacrifices were made to them. Not exactly a little if you think of the common term for it Hecatomb goes out: 100 cattle (in words: one hundred!) were slaughtered in honor of the deity. Not in the temple, which was built as the dwelling of God, but outside on an age or on several. Even the most important god couldn't do anything with 100 cattle, so the meat served as a sacrificial meal for those present. It was primarily a sacrifice for the donor, and often it was that Polis, i.e. the public sector. Later it was also goats and sheep, and the hundred was no longer so precise, a dozen was enough, but the term hecatomb remained.

Instead of animal sacrifices, other foods were also offered, and wine was also a popular offering. But you could also bring gifts to the god: small statues, gold or bronze plaques. These then migrated to the temple inventory or to the treasure houses built especially for this purpose, as with the oracle in Delphi or at the sports facilities of Olympia.

Cultural worship nique ta mere

Olympia, that was a different form of veneration, the fair sporting competition of honest athletes. Even if there were often black sheep among them. Such Panhellenic Games were held not only in Olympia, but in practically every major polis, including the Pythian Games in Delphi and the Isthmian Games in Corinth and the Nemean Games in Nemea. It wasn't just sporting competitions, at the Pythian Games and the Asklepieia in Epidaurus there were also music and singing performances according to the motto Asklepios is looking for the superstar. In such competitions, Emperor Nero also tried to add himself to the list of winners.

oracle

The oracles were an attempt to get in touch with the gods. The best known is in Delphi, but also in Olympia and in Dodona there were oracle sites. It was a special form Necromancy, the oracle of the dead near Ephyra at today's location Parga, there they tried to get in touch with their loved ones who had died. There were oracles in Asia Minor in Didymos and Klaros.

Important places of worship

Given the abundance of temple complexes, only a few representative or well-preserved sanctuaries and temple complexes are listed here.

presentation

Archer "Paris" from the Temple of Aphaia in Aegina, Exhibition "Colorful Gods of Antiquity", Pergamon Museum Berlin 2010

Traditionally one has the temples and statues in the plain white of the noble marble in the memory, and one cannot imagine to see these buildings and figures in shrill bright colors. However, this color was known from written records. Remnants of color pigments make it possible to reconstruct the original color with the help of modern spectroscopic methods. The results of this research have been shown in a traveling exhibition since 2003 Colorful gods of antiquity.

literature

• Zeus & Co, Greek mythology - something completely different. Otus Verlag St. Gallen, 2005, ISBN 978-3-907-200-31-5 , P. 128.
• Dimiter Inkiow: When Zeus burst his collar. German paperback publisher, 2008 (2nd edition), ISBN 978-3-423-71243-9 ; 135 pages. € 5.95
• Katerina Servi: Greek mythology. Ekdotike Athenon, 2011, ISBN 960-213-375-9 , P. 184. € 10

Web links

• Gods and legendary figures from Greek mythology
• Greek gods
• Greek Gods, German

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