Phoebus Apollo
(Apollo)
Cronus m. Rhea
Hestia
Hades
Poseidon
Zeus m. Leto
Apollo
Artemis
Demeter
Hera
Zeus
Apollo’s Birth
• Leto was the daughter of the
Titans Coeus and Phoebe. She
was an early and favorite lover
of Zeus. Zeus married Hera while
Leto was pregnant. Although the
pregnancy began before the
marriage, Hera was still jealous
of Leto.
• Hera pushed Leto out of
Olympus. As she wandered, no
place would allow her to stay for
fear Hera would be offended.
Finally, the desolate
rocky island of Delos
accepted her.
Leto first gave birth to
Artemis
Then, after another
nine days of labor,
Artemis helped Leto
give birth to her twin
brother, Apollo.
Leto was forced by the
anger of Hera to
wander carrying her
two babies
Apollo Belvedere, Roman
marble, ca 2nd cent. CE
Artemis the Huntress, Roman
copy in marble of a Greek
bronze, ca. 4th cent. BCE
Niobe and her Children
Niobe, queen of Thebes,
boasted that she
deserved more tribute
than Leto, since Leto
only had 2 children and
Niobe had 7 sons and 7
daughters. Enraged at
Niobe’s hubris, Artemis
and Apollo Niobe’s
children, except for the
youngest daughter.
Death of the Children of Niobe, redfigure amphora, ca. 460 BCE
Artemis and Apollo Piercing Niobe’s Children with their Arrows, by Jacques-Louis
David
Apollo is the god of reason and
intelligence, music (the lyre),
prophecy, medicine, and the sun.
His symbols include the sun, lyre,
bow and arrow, raven, dolphin,
wolf, swan and mouse.
Apollo with
his lyre, by
Millet,
Opera,
Paris
Apollo and Python
In Greek
mythology,
Python was the
earth-dragon of
Delphi. Python
became the
enemy of
Apollo, who, at
only 4 days old,
killed her and
remade Delphi
and the oracle
his own
Apollo at Delphi
As the patron of
Delphi, Apollo
was an oracular
god—the
prophetic deity
of the Delphic
Oracle. The
Delphic Oracle
was the most
important oracle
in the ancient
Greek world.
Apollo’s son, Asclepius
Apollo
Medicine and healing were
associated with Apollo, whether
through the god himself or
mediated through his son, yet
Apollo was also seen as a god who
could bring ill-health and deadly
plague.
Apollo in the Trojan War
During the Trojan
War, Apollo was on
the side of the
Trojans. He shot
arrows infected
with the plague
into the Greek
encampment
during the Trojan
War and aided
Hector during his
duel with Ajax.
THE TROJAN WAR - DUEL OF AJAX & HECTOR, Red-figure
Amphora
Apollo in the Trojan War
When Aeneas was
injured, Apollo
rescued him. First,
Aphrodite tried to
rescue Aeneas, but
Apollo had to help.
Apollo in the Trojan War
Later, Apollo
aided Paris in
the killing of
Achilles by
guiding the
arrow of his
bow into
Achilles' heel.
Apollo in His Chariot, Luca Giordono
Daphne and Apollo
In the myth, Phoebus
Apollo teases Cupid for
toying with a weapon more
suited to a man (bow and
arrow), at which point
Cupid wounds him with a
golden arrow that rouses
love; simultaneously,
however, Cupid shoots a
leaden arrow into Daphne,
causing her to be repulsed
by Apollo.
Daphne and Apollo
Following a
spirited chase by
Apollo, Daphne
prays to her
father, Peneus,
for help, and he
changes her into
the laurel tree,
sacred to Apollo.
Apollo and Daphne, Antonio del Pollaiuolo
Daphne and
Apollo
Even in this form Apollo
loves her, feels her
heartbeat beneath the
trunk, embraces the
branches as if they were
arms. He says:
“Since you cannot be my
wife, you shall be my
tree. Always you shall
wreathe my hair, my lyre,
my quiver. You shall
accompany the Roman
generals when the joyous
triumph hymn is sung”
Apollo and Daphne, by John William Waterhouse
Apollo’s Loves
With Hecuba, wife
of King Priam of
Troy, Apollo had a
son named Troilus.
An oracle
prophesied that
Troy would not be
defeated as long as
Troilus reached the
age of twenty alive.
To fulfill the prophecy, Achilles ambushed and killed him.
Apollo’s Loves
Apollo also fell in love with
Cassandra, daughter of
Hecuba and Priam, and Troilus'
half-sister. He promised
Cassandra the gift of prophecy
to seduce her, but she rejected
him afterwards. Enraged,
Apollo indeed gifted her with
the ability to know the future,
with a curse that she could
After the Trojan War, Cassandra
only see the future tragedies
is taken as a concubine and slave
and that no one would ever
girl by King Agamemnon
believe her.
Apollo’s Lyre
As an infant,
Hermes escaped
while his mother
was sleeping.
Hermes ran to
where Apollo was
grazing his cattle.
The infant Hermes stole a number of his cows and took
them to a cave, covering their tracks. In the cave, he found a
tortoise and killed it, then removed the insides. He used one
of the cow's intestines and the tortoise shell and made the
first lyre.
Apollo’s lyre
When Apollo accused Hermes of the theft, Hermes began to
play music on the lyre. Apollo fell in love with the instrument
and offered to allow exchange of the cattle for the lyre.
Apollo and Pan
Pan, the goat-like god
of the forests,
compared his music
with that of Apollo,
and challenged
Apollo to a contest of
musical skill.
Pan played his pipes,
which satisfied
himself and his
follower, Midas, who
happened to be
present.
Then Apollo struck the strings of his lyre.
Apollo and Pan
At once victory was
awarded to Apollo, and all
but Midas agreed with the
judgment. He dissented,
and questioned the justice
of the award. Apollo would
not suffer such a depraved
pair of ears any longer, and
caused them to become
the ears of a donkey.
Apollo and Marsyas
Marsyas was a satyr who
challenged Apollo to a
contest of music. He had
found a flute on the ground,
tossed away after being
invented by Athena because
it made her cheeks puffy. The
contest was judged by the
Muses. After they each
performed, both were
deemed equal until Apollo
decreed they play and sing at
the same time.
Apollo and Marsyas
As Apollo played
the lyre, this was
easy to do. Marsyas
could not do this as
he only knew how
to use the flute and
could not sing at
the same time.
Apollo was
declared the
winner because of
this.
Apollo and Marsyas
Apollo skinned
Marsyas alive in a
cave near for his
hubris to challenge
a god. He then
nailed Marsyas'
shaggy skin to a
nearby pine-tree.
Marsyas' blood
turned into the
river Marsyas.
Apollo’s Temples
As one of the most
important and
diverse of the
Olympians, Apollo
has numerous
temples built in his
honor:
Corinth
Delphi
Rome
Pompeii