Twelve Olymypians
--know Greek/Roman names, duties, symbols, family tree
Heroes
1.
Hercules (Greek: Heracles) --son of Zeus and Alcmena --strangled serpents in his crib as an infant—had
to perform 12 labors as punishment for killing his wife while he was insane.
2.
Jason --was sent to retrieve Golden Fleece (sheepskin)—his ship was the Argo, his crewmates were the
Argonauts—he got help from Madea, a witch, whom he later married
3.
Aeneas --Trojan son of Venus and Anchises, ancestor of Romulus and Remus
4.
Theseus --heir to the throne of Athens, later its king – her went to Crete and killer the Minotaur( ½ man,
½ bull)
5.
Perseus --killed Medusa, rescued and married Andromeda
6.
Bellerophon --rode Pegasus, killed the Chimaera (lion/goat/snake)
7.
Odysseus --king of Ithica, gone from there for 20 years due to the Trojan war – returned home to his
faithful wife Penelope
Creatures
1.
Cerberus – 3 headed underworld watchdog, once retrieved by Hercules
2.
centaur – ½ man, ½ horse creature (quite numerous)
3.
satyr – ½ man, ½ goat creature
4.
sphinx – lion/bird/woman creature, plagued city of Thebes with a riddle
5.
Hecatonchires – had 100 hands and 100 arms
6.
Cyclops – one eye each – Polyphemus was the Cyclops who harassed Odysseus
7.
gorgons – 3 snaky-haired creatures who had the power to petrify
8.
harpies – bird-women whose songs lured men to crash their ships
9.
Hydra – had 9 heads, was killed by Hercules
Well-Known Myths
1.
Midas – got Golden Touch as a reward but regretted it, got rid of it in a river
2.
Arachne – challenged Athena to a weaving contest, was turned into a spider
3.
Daedalus and Icarus – father and son who were imprisoned in the labyrinth, tried to fly out with wax
and feather wings, but Icarus flew too high, his wings melted, and he drowned
4.
Janus – two-faced Roman god of beginnings and doorways (thus January)
5.
Phaethon – son of Apollo, drove and wrecked the sun chariot one day, thus creating the Sahara desert
and the negro race
6.
Prometheus – created humans, stole fire from Mr. Olympus and gave it to them, was punished by
Jupiter by having an eagle tear out his liver every day
7.
Pandora – the first woman, opened her box and led out evils into the world
8.
Muses – nine goddesses, patronesses of the arts
9.
Hephaestus – was so ugly at birth ge was thrown from Mt. Olympus and got lame
10. Poseidon vs. Athena – fought for patronage of a new city in Greece – Poseidon created a spring of salt,
Athena created an olive tree – Athena won, city was called Athenae (Athens)
11. Theban Sphinx – monster with a riddle that was solved by Oedipus, who had unknowingly killed his
father and later married his mother
12. Athena – born from her father Zeus’ forehead to symbolize her wisdom
13. Niobe – her 14 children were killed by Apollo and Artemis due to her bragging
14. Cassandra – had power of prophecy but was cursed so that so one would believe her
15. Hermes – invented the lyre and stole cattle on the day of his birth
16. Echo – wasted away to nothing but a voice because of unrequited love
17. Sisyphus – had to roll a stone uphill forever in he underworld
18. Ixion – bound to a fiery wheel in the underworld
19. Tantalus – forever tantalized by unreachable food and water nearby in underworld
20. Orpheus – musician who went to underworld to retrieve his dead wife Eurydice
21. Trojan war – 1184 B.C.
Aqueducts: carried water from springs to Rome, via tunnels, channels, and arcades (channels raised on arches).
Rome eventually had 15 aqueducts, bringing to Rome a variety of waters. Romans used plumbing and created water
pressure via gravity in their pipes.
Baths: Thermae: public baths
balneum: private bath in the house
Baths of Caracalle: the most lavish, now the site of opera performances
Baths of Diocletian: the largest in ancient Rome
Rooms: frigidarium—cold room
caldarium—hot room
hypocaustum—sub-floor
heating
Tepidarium—warm room
unctorium—oiling room
City of Rome: Colosseum: amphitheater for gladiatorial games
business/shopping/governmental district
Cloaca Maxima: sewer system
Forum: central
Cirus Maximus: chariot-racing track
Campus Martius: ‘Field of Mars’ military training/exercise area
Tiber River: flows
through Rome
Seven Hills: Aventine, Caelian, Capitoline(highest), Esquiline, Palatine(palaces), Quirinal, Viminal
Clothing: Toga, tunica, stola, toga praetexta(kids/politicians), palla(shawl), bulla(necklace), soleae(sandals),
calcei(shoes)
Education: Pedagogus(slave who accompanied kids to school), ludus, schola=school, there were no public schools,
and only boys attended school
Government: consul(2 leaders, elected yearly), praetor(judge), curestor(treasurer), aedile(head of public
festivals/construction), censor(expelled the senators, took censuses)
House: culina(kitchen), triclinium(dinign room), cubiculum(bedroom), atrium(licing room), peristylium(outdoor
courtyard), tablinum(father’s office), latrina(toilet room), hortus(garden), vestibulum(entry hall)
Meals: ientaculum, prandium, cena
Foods: didn’t have tomatoes, potatoes, corn, bananas, oranges, turkey—favorites were apples, cabbage, pork, salad,
bread, olives, cheese, eggs
Names: most Roman men had three names – praenomen(‘first’ name, what friends called you), nomen(family name,
like your last name), cognomen(name of your branch of the family) – also there sometimes was an agnomen(an
official nickname) – girls were named from the feminine from of their father’s nomen
Months of the year: Januarius(from the god janus), Februarius, Martius(from mars), Aprilis, Maius(from Maia,
mother of Mercury), Junius(from Juno), Julius(after Julius Caesar), Augustus(after Octavian), September, October,
November, December – July used to be called Quintilis, August used to be Sextilis
Dates: Kalends: 1st of the month; Nones: 5th or 7th of the month; Ides: 13th or 15th of the month; "In March, July,
October, May, the Nones are on the 7th day, the Ides on the 15th day." All the other months use 5th and 13th for
Nones and Ides. Dates are arranged as the number of days before or after the Kalends, Nones, or Ides. For example,
March 11 would be expressed ante diem V Idus Martius or a.d. V Id. Mart.
Roads: the first was the Via Appia (312 BC) built by Appius Claudius from Rome to Capus, eventually on the
Brundisium – roads in the forum were Via Sacra and Via Nova – roads were built like walled buried in the ground
Roman History Review
Aeneas: son of Venus and Anchises, was from troy, had an affair with Carthaginian queen Dido, then went on to
Italy – his descendants were Romulus and Remus
April 753 BC – traditional founding date of Rome, by Romulus after vulture contes
Kings of Rome: Romulus, Numa Pompilius(religion), Tullus Hostilius(war), Ancus Martius(founded Ostia),
Tarquinius Priscus(Cloaca Maxima, Circus Maximus), Servius Tullius(son of Vulcan and a slave girl), Tarquinius
Superbus
510 BC: Superbus is expelled, Rome switches to Republican form of government(consuls)
Brutus and Collatinus: first two consuls
Punic Wars: 3 century BC, Rome vs. Carthage(led by Hannibal)(Romans led by Scipio Africanus)
Periods of History: 1) Monarchy(753-510BC); 2) Republic(509-27BC); 3) Empire(27BC-AD476)
Julius Caesar: consul 5 times, dictator, conquerer of Gallia/Britannia, murdered 15 March 44BC
Augustus: grand-nephew and adopted heir of Caesar, became the first emperor of the empire
Authors: Homer( a Greek, wrote Iliad and Odyssey), Cicero(politician, rival of Caesar), Caesar(wrote about his
conquest of Gallia), Vergil(wrote Aeneid about Aeneas)
First Triumvirate: Caesar, Pompey, Crassus(a political alliance they formed in 60BC)
Second Triumvirate: Anthony, Octavian, Lepidus
Romance Languages(derived from latin): French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, ect.
Early Emporers: Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula(insane), Claudius, Nero(‘fiddled’ during fire)
Horatius Cocles – defended the wooden pons sublicius bridge during an Etruscan attack
Lucius Scaevola – burned off his right hand to demonstrate his bravery against Etruscans
Cincinnatus-- a farmer plowing his fields in his underwear was asked to become a temporary dictator and save
Rome from an attack.
Pyrrhus – a Greek King who was the first person to use elephants against Rome
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