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Nereus

(Encyclopedia)Nereus nērˈo͞os, –ēəs [key], in Greek mythology, seagod. He was the son of Pontus and Gaea and the father of the nereids (see nymph). A kindly, wise old man of the sea, Nereus could change into...

Niobe

(Encyclopedia)Niobe nīˈōbē [key], in Greek mythology, queen of Thebes, wife of Amphion and daughter of Tantalus. The mother of six sons and six daughters, she boasted of her fruitfulness, saying that Leto had o...

Tartarus

(Encyclopedia)Tartarus, in Greek mythology, lowest region of the underworld. The wicked (e.g., Sisyphus, Tantalus, and Ixion) were sent to Tartarus as punishment for their sins. ...

Hephaestus

(Encyclopedia)Hephaestus hĕfĕsˈtəs [key], in Greek religion and mythology, Olympian god. According to Homer he was the son of Hera and Zeus, but Hesiod states that he was conceived and borne by Hera alone. Orig...

Athamas

(Encyclopedia)Athamas ăthˈəmăs [key], in Greek mythology, king of Boeotia. He married Nephele, who bore him Phrixus and Helle, but he later fell in love with Ino, who bore him Learchus and Melicertes. According...

Argo

(Encyclopedia)Argo ärˈgō [key], in Greek mythology, ship in which Jason and the Argonauts sailed in quest of the Golden Fleece. Most legends say that Argus, son of Phrixus, was the builder, with the help of Athe...

Tenerani, Pietro

(Encyclopedia)Tenerani, Pietro pyĕˈtrō tānāräˈnē [key], c.1789–1869, Italian sculptor. He studied with both Canova and Thorvaldsen. Of his many works on classical and Christian subjects, the best known in...

Deucalion

(Encyclopedia)Deucalion dyo͞okāˈlēən [key], in Greek mythology, son of Prometheus and father of Hellen. When Zeus, angered by humanity's irreverence, flooded the earth, Deucalion, warned by Prometheus, survive...

Merope

(Encyclopedia)Merope mĕrˈəpē [key], in Greek mythology. 1 One of the Pleiades. She was the wife of Sisyphus, king of Corinth, and the mother of Glaucus. According to one legend she became the lost Pleiad becaus...

Sisyphus

(Encyclopedia)Sisyphus sĭsˈĭfəs [key], in Greek mythology, son of Aeolus and founder and king of Corinth. Renowned for his cunning, he was said to have outwitted even Death. For his disrespect to Zeus, he was c...