The Gods of Ancient Greece
Aphrodite
• Aphrodite is the
goddess of love,
desire, and beauty.
• She is the
daughter of Zeus
and Dione.
• She is married to
Hephaestus, and
cupid is her son.
Apollo
• Apollo is the god of
music, healing, and
truth.
• He is the son of Zeus
and Leto, and the
brother of Artemis.
• He is the archer.
Ares
• Ares is the god of
war.
• He is the son of
Zeus and Hera, and
was disliked by his
parents.
Artemis
• Artemis is the
goddess of nature,
animals, and hunting.
• She is the daughter of
Zeus and Leto, and
the sister of Apollo.
Athena
• Athena is the daughter
of Zeus.
• She is the goddess of
the city, handicrafts and
agriculture.
• Athena was born when
Zeus had a headache,
and sprung from Zeus’s
head in full armor. She
has no mother.
Demeter
• Demeter is the
goddess of fertility,
corn, grain, and
harvest.
• She is the daughter
of Cronus and Rhea.
Dionysus
• Dionysus is the god
of the vine who
invented wine.
• He has two sides one bringing joy,
and the other rage.
• He is the son of
Zeus and Semele.
Hades
• Hades is the god of the
underworld.
• He is the brother of Zeus
and Poseidon.
• After overthrowing their
father Cronus, Hades and his
brothers drew lots for shares
of the world. Hades had the
worst draw.
• He is the god of
blacksmiths and the
armor god.
• He uses the volcano as
his forge.
• Hephaestus has a bad
leg because Hera
threw him from mount
Olympus because he
was born ugly.
• He is the son of Zeus
and Hera, and the
husband of Aphrodite.
Hephaestus
Hera
• She is the goddess of
marriage.
• Hera is the wife and
sister of Zeus.
Hermes
• Hermes is the messenger
with winged sandals.
• He is the god of theives.
• Hermes is the son of
Maia and Zeus.
Hestia
• Hestia is the goddess
of the hearth
(fireplace) and home.
• Each polis had a
public hearth for
Hestia.
• She is the sister of
Zeus.
Cronus
• Cronus was the king
of the Titans until he
was overthrown by
his sons.
• Cronus fled.
• There were two
families of gods in
Greek mythology the Titans and then
the gods of Mount
Olympus.
Zeus with his father Cronus
Persephone
• The daughter of
Zeus and Demeter.
• She was abducted
by Hades, and
became the queen
of the Underworld.
• He is the Lord of
the Sea.
• Poseidon helped
overthrow his
father Cronus with
his brothers.,
• He was the first to
tame horses, and is
shown in art with a
trident in hand.
Poseidon
Zeus
• Zeus is the lord of
the sky and the
rain. He rules over
all of the gods.
• He is married to
Hera, but is known
for his many
indiscretions.
Oracles
• Greeks went to the oracle to find out
information on their future life on
earth, for this they turned to the
oracle.
• Greek oracle was a religious priest
or priestess who acted as a
communicator between man and
God. Every oracle had a distinct
method of divination. Motion of
objects in the spring, movement of
birds, rustle of leaves, interpreted
dreams, etc, were considered valid
indicators for understanding
messages from the gods.
• One of the most famous oracles was
the Oracle at Delphi.
Sacrifice
• The ancient Greeks considered
sacrifices as the appropriate
method to worship a god.
• Public worship was held to
obtain public blessings, rain,
good harvest, military
victories, etc.
• Private sacrifices were offered
for fulfillment of personal
goals, wishes and victories.
• Blood sacrifices of animals
such as oxen, sheep, horses,
swine, dogs, birds, fish, fowl
etc were common in the
temple of gods.
Temple/Prayer
• The Greek temples were part
slaughterhouse and part
barbecue. During sacrifices
and prayers, the people
offered the blood, bones and
hides of the slaughtered
animal to the gods.
• The remaining portions were
cooked and used up as food
for themselves.
• Greek prayers were not left up
to the individual.
Temples
• The Greek temples were small buildings that
contained a statue of the god the temple was
created for. Most of these temples did not have
a professional or full time clergy or priest.
Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
Who ruled all the Greek gods?
Who was the god of the Sea?
Who was the god of the Underworld?
Which goddess sprang from Zeus’ head wearing
her armor?
5. Who was the king of the Titans?
6. Who were the sons and daughters of Cronos?
7. Who was Zeus’ wife?
8. Which goddess had a public hearth in every polis?
9. Who is known as the archer and what is he god of?
10. Who the queen of the Underworld?