Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Palamedes

(Encyclopedia)Palamedes păləmēˈdēz [key], in Greek mythology, crafty Greek hero of the Trojan War. Because he had exposed Odysseus when he tried to evade going to war, Odysseus falsely accused him of treachery...

Amphitrite

(Encyclopedia)Amphitrite ămfĭtrīˈtē [key], in Greek mythology, queen of the sea; daughter of Nereus. She was the wife of Poseidon and mother of Triton. ...

Ogyges

(Encyclopedia)Ogyges ŏjˈĭjēz [key], in Greek mythology, ancient king of Boeotia or Attica. During his reign the Ogygian flood, a vast and destructive deluge, occurred. ...

Cerynean hind

(Encyclopedia)Cerynean hind sĕrĭnēˈən [key], in Greek mythology, golden-horned hind sacred to Artemis. The fourth labor of Hercules was to capture the hind. ...

trident

(Encyclopedia)trident trīˈdənt [key], in Greek mythology, three-pronged fork borne by Poseidon. It was variously represented as a fishing spear, a goad, or forked lightning. ...

Gorgon

(Encyclopedia)Gorgon gôrˈgən [key], in Greek mythology, one of three monstrous sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa; daughters of Ceto and Phorcus. Their hair was a cluster of writhing snakes, and their faces we...

Dardanus

(Encyclopedia)Dardanus därˈdənəs [key], in Greek mythology, founder of Troy; son of Zeus and the Pleiad Electra. His descendants, the Trojans, were sometimes called the Dardani. ...

Cretan bull

(Encyclopedia)Cretan bull, in Greek mythology, giant bull that Hercules captured as his seventh labor. Some versions of the legend state that this bull was the same one that carried Europa to Crete; others claim th...

Melampus

(Encyclopedia)Melampus mĭlămˈpəs [key], in Greek mythology, seer who understood the speech of all creatures. It was said that he introduced the worship of Dionysus into Greece. ...

Mnemosyne

(Encyclopedia)Mnemosyne nēmŏsˈĭnē, nēmŏzˈ– [key], in Greek mythology, the personification of memory. She was a Titan, daughter of Uranus and Gaea. The Muses were her daughters by Zeus. ...