Fun Facts About Zeus
I've always had a slight interest in classical archaeology- not enough to get my masters in it, but still quite interesting. I mean, who doesn't like watching a movie about Hercules or Zeus from time to time? Greek gods are pretty darn cool. Speaking of Greece, who's up for a vacation??
Did you know...
*Zeus, perhaps the most famous of all Greek gods, is known as the "Father of Gods and men." He rules over all the Olympians on Mount Olympus.
*The son of Cronus and Rhea, Zeus was indeed a baby at one point. He didn't just *poof* into existence like other gods. In fact, there was no creator god, just a bunch of other gods that did *poof* into existence from empty space and then proceeded to make more gods.
*Zeus' childhood was a bit unconventional. After being coerced by his mother, Gaia, Cronus castrated his father and ate all of his own children, save the youngest Zeus, because of his fear that he would get usurped by them. The only reason Zeus was saved was because his mother gave Cronus a swaddled stone to eat, instead of the child. Afterwards, he was taken to Mount Ida in Crete to be safe and hidden from his father.
*After being raised to manhood by nymphs in Crete, Zeus returned to his father and demanded that he regurgitate his older siblings. These famous siblings are Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter, and Hestia. Soon after, he realized that a war needed to be fought with the "bad" Titans in order to gain control of the world. He recruited the help of his siblings, and with them, was able to defeat the Titans (who were children of Gaia) and cast them away.
*It was a group of "good" Titans that bestowed upon him thunder and lightning, Zeus' famous weapons. Previously hidden from him by Gaia, these aided him in his conquest.
*Zeus chose to share the world with his two brothers now that the Titans were gone and out of their hair. Zeus got the sky and air, Poseidon got the sea, and Hades got the underworld.
*Zeus married his sister, Hera, and had with her many children, two being Ares and Hephaestus. However, he wasn't the most faithful of gods. He seduced many other gods and mortals to produce famous children, such as the twins Apollo and Artemis, Minos of Crete, Helen (of Troy), and Dionysus. His only non-mothered child was Athena, who was born out of his forehead. Aphrodite is sometimes credited as being Zeus' child, but legend has it that she was actually born out of the foam that bubbled around the severed genitals of Cronus' father after they were cut off and thrown into the sea.
*The city of Olympia, Greece was the cult center of Zeus. Here, the Temple of Zeus (built in the 5th century BC) once housed a magnificent gold and ivory statue of the god that stood 50 feet high (above photo). This statue, now destroyed, is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It is also in Olympia that, in 776 BC, the very first Olympic games were held. The games were dedicated to their favorite Olympian, Zeus.
~ Knowledge is Power ~
My learning experiences come from:
Catling, Christopher & Bahn, Paul. The Complete Practical Encyclopedia of Archaeology. London. Hermes House. 2009.
*****
Rodgers, Nigel. Everyday Life in Ancient Greece: People and Places.
London. Hermes House. 2010.
