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p r o j e c t
A G O N Y
D I G I T A L A R T
l o w p o l y g o n / m i t h o l o g y / s c i - f i / s e r i e s
Even gods suffer.
A T L A S
Atlas and his brother Menoetius sided with the Titans in their war against the Olympians, the Titanomachy. When the Titans were defeated, many of them (including Menoetius) were confined to Tartarus, but Zeus condemned Atlas to stand at the western edge of Gaia (the Earth) and hold up the sky on his shoulders. Thus, he was Atlas Telamon, "enduring Atlas," and became a doublet of Coeus, the embodiment of the celestial axis around which the heavens revolve.
C A L Y P S O
Calypso would rescue the shipwrecked hero, and Odysseus was nursed within the home of the goddess.
As she nursed Odysseus, so Calypso fell in love with the Greek hero, and was soon offering to make the King of Ithaca her immortal husband. Such an offer, of eternity spent with an un-aging beauty might sound unmissable, but Odysseus refused the goddess’ offer; for Odysseus was still longing to return home to his wife Penelope.
S A T U R N
Saturn learned from Gaia and Uranus that he was destined to be overcome by his own children, just as he had overthrown his father. As a result, although he sired the gods Demeter, Hestia, Hera, Hades and Poseidon by Rhea, he devoured them all as soon as they were born to prevent the prophecy. When the sixth child, Zeus, was born, Rhea sought Gaia to devise a plan to save them and to eventually get retribution on Cronus for his acts against his father and children.
H A D E S
Hades and his two brothers, Poseidon and Zeus, drew lots for realms to rule. Zeus received the sky, Poseidon received the seas, and Hades received the underworld, the unseen realm to which the souls of the dead go upon leaving the world as well as any and all things beneath the earth. Some myths suggest that Hades was dissatisfied with his turnout, but had no choice and moved to his new realm.
G A I A
According to Hesiod, Gaia conceived further offspring with her son, Uranus, first the giant one-eyed Cyclopes: Brontes ("Thunder"), Steropes ("Lightning"), and Arges ("Bright"); then the Hecatonchires: Cottus, Briareos, and Gyges, each with a hundred arms and fifty heads. As each of the Cyclopes and Hecatonchires were born, Uranus hid them in a secret place within Gaia, causing her great pain. So Gaia devised a plan. She created a grey flint (or adamantine) sickle. And Cronus used the sickle to castrate his father Uranus as he approached his mother, Gaia, to have sex with her. From Uranus' spilled blood, Gaia produced the Erinyes, the Giants, and the Meliae (ash-tree nymphs). From the testicles of Uranus in the sea came forth Aphrodite.
N Y X
Nyx would reside in the depths of Tartarus, the dark recesses of the Underworld, and the dark misty air which swirled around Tartarus was said to be Erebus. Each night Nyx would emerge from her cave within Tartarus, and hand in hand with Erebus, would block out the light emitted from Aether, bringing night and darkness to the world. The next morning Hemera would then emerge from Tartarus, and sweep away the darkness of night, and Nyx would return to her abode. Thus mother and daughter were never in the same place at the same time.
M O R E S O O N
Text references
1. Atlas (2022.August 21). In Wikipedia - link
2. Calypso (2016.October 23). In greeklegendsandmyths.com / Colin Quartermain - link
3. Saturn (2022.August 7). In Wikipedia - link
4. Hades (2021.October 29). In Wikipedia - link
5. Gaia (2022.August 5). In Wikipedia - link
6. Nyx - In greeklegendsandmyths.com / paraphrased text - link