The Gods of Mount Olympus

  1. Look at a Map of Mount Olympus to place its location in context
  2. Mount Olympus as home of Gods - mystery - legend
  3. First Gods: Uranus (Father Heaven) Ge (Mother Earth)
  4. Their children: Monsters/Giants - Briareus, Cyclopes etc. Titans - Cronus, Rhea etc.
  5. Olympians - Children of Titans
  6. The fourteen most important Olympian Gods
    ZeusKing, storms
    HeraQueen, marriage
    PoseidonSea
    HadesUnderworld
    HestiaHearth
    DemeterCrops
    ApolloLight (sun), hunting, music, medicine, prophecy
    ArtemisLight (moon), hunting
    AphroditeLove (Eros, Roman Cupid, is her son)
    Athene (Athena)War, wisdom, crafts
    HermesMessenger God
    DiontsusTheatre, festival, wine
    HephaestusBlacksmith (makes Shield of Aeneas under Mount Etna), God of fire
    AresWar

  7. Symbols of gods - necessart for identification in works of art
    ZeusCrown, thunderbolt
    HeraCrown, apple tree, cuckoo on a sceptre, pomegranate (left hand)
    PoseidonTrident, fish, golden chariot and white horses
    HadesCrown, skulls, tombstones
    HestiaHearth
    DemeterCorn, poppies
    ApolloSun, bow & arrow, deer, mouse, lyre
    ArtemisKnee-length tunic of saffron with red hem, moon, bow & arrow, deer, quail
    AphroditeHeart, scallop shell, girdle
    AtheneHelmet, spear, Aegis with Medusa
    HermesWinged sandals, round hat, staff with ribbons
    DionysusHorns and crown of serpents, vines, wine cup, theatre
    HephaestusForge, hammer, anvil etc.
    AresHelmet, shield, weapons

  8. Nature of Gods: immortal, can intermarry, change appearance, intervene in human life
  9. Stories of Gods - e.g. Birth of Athene from head of Zeus; Birth of Aphrodite from sea on a shell; Hephaestus lives under Mount Etna and is lame (see Graves)
  10. Greek names of Gods with their Roman equivalents
    ZeusJupiter
    HeraJuno
    PoseidonNeptune
    HadesPluto
    HestiaVesta
    DemeterCeres
    ApolloApollo
    ArtemisDiana
    AphroditeVenus
    AtheneMinerva
    HermesMercury
    DionysusBacchus
    HephaestusVulcan
    AresMars

  11. Names of Roman Gods that occur in Modern English Vocabulary - some examples -
    DramaO'Casey, "Juno and the Paycock"
    ConstellationsPluto, Neptune etc.
    Calendar(Month of) March - Mars
    FoodCereal - Ceres
    Geography/GeologyVolcano - Vulcan

  12. Some aspects of Greek civilisation with which the Gods were specifically associated
    OraclesApollo (Delphi)
    FestivalsTheatre - Dionysus (Athens)
    Games - Zeus (Olympus)
    Procession - Athene (Athens)
    Mysteries - Demeter (Eleusis)
    BuildingsTemples, altars, theatres, etc.
    ArtPainting, mosaic, sculpture, vases

  13. Some examples of the influence of Greek Gods on European Culture
    ArtBotticelli: "Birth of Venus"
    SculptureBerini: "Apollo & Daphne"
    MusicRespighi: "Birth of Venus" from Botticelli's picture
    LiteratureMilton, Shakespeare, Yeats, O'Casey
    PorcelainPompeii Vase, Portland Vase, Wedgwood

  14. Primary Sources for the study of the Greek Gods
    LiteratureHomer, Virgil, Playwrights e.g. Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes
    MonumentsSculpture of Parthenon etc.
    ArtifactsVase painting
    Coins

  15. Additional reading material for Teachers
    Cambridge School Classics Project
    "Aspects of Greek Life" - Longnan
  16. Suggested Activities for Student
    • Find and color Mount Olympus on a map
    • Draw a family tree of the Gods
    • Draw or colour a picture of each of the 14 Gods of Mount Olympus
    • Draw symbols for each God
    • Tell a story of a God e.g. Birth of Athene; how Hephaestus became lame
    • Find a work of art, piece of music or literary work which features a God or Goddess
    • Games:
      • Hold a class quiz based on Greek and Latin names and functions of Gods
      • Mime a God and get the class to guess the particular God
    • Word recognition e.g. Deity
 
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