Greek Mythology
Follow the myths from the creation of the cosmos, through the Titans and Olympians, into the Heroic Age, the Trojan War and its aftermath.
66 stories
Creation & Primordial Age
Creation from Chaos
Greek cosmogony begins not with a creator god, but with Chaos. From this first state emerge the primordial powers that form the foundations of the cosmos.
Gaia and Uranus
Gaia brings forth Uranus, the starry Sky, who becomes her consort. Their descendants include the Titans and other powerful primordial beings.
The Overthrow of Uranus
Gaia turns against Uranus and persuades Cronus to strike his father, ending the first divine kingship and beginning the age of the Titans.
Age of the Titans
Cronus and Rhea
Cronus becomes ruler after overthrowing Uranus, but a prophecy that one of his own children will overthrow him drives him to swallow each child born to Rhea.
The Birth and Concealment of Zeus
Rhea hides her youngest child Zeus from Cronus and tricks the Titan ruler into swallowing a stone instead of the newborn god.
Zeus Overthrows Cronus
The grown Zeus confronts Cronus and frees his swallowed brothers and sisters, creating the generation that will become the Olympian gods.
The Titanomachy
Zeus and the younger gods wage a vast war against Cronus and the Titans. Their victory ends Titan rule and establishes the Olympian generation.
Olympian Order
The Division of the Cosmos
After the defeat of the Titans, Zeus, Poseidon and Hades divide the great realms of the cosmos between them.
Typhon's Challenge to Zeus
The monstrous Typhon challenges Zeus for mastery of the cosmos in one of the greatest threats to the newly established Olympian order.
Prometheus and the Theft of Fire
Prometheus defies Zeus on behalf of humanity and steals divine fire, bringing a fundamental technology to mortals at terrible personal cost.
Pandora
Zeus responds to Prometheus' theft of fire by sending Pandora among humanity, linking her famous jar with the hardships of mortal life.
The Birth of Athena
Athena is born from Zeus after he swallows Metis, emerging fully armed from his head.
The Birth of Apollo and Artemis
Leto gives birth to the divine twins Artemis and Apollo after wandering in search of a place where Hera's anger cannot reach her.
The Abduction of Persephone
Hades takes Persephone into the Underworld, and Demeter's grief threatens the survival of humanity until a compromise restores part of the year.
Dionysus and Semele
Semele dies after seeing Zeus in his full divine form, but the unborn Dionysus is saved and later born from Zeus himself.
Early Heroic Age
Perseus and Medusa
Perseus is sent to obtain the head of Medusa and succeeds with divine assistance.
Bellerophon and the Chimera
Bellerophon, riding Pegasus, defeats the fire-breathing Chimera after being sent against it by the Lycian king Iobates.
Theseus and the Minotaur
Theseus travels to Crete, enters the Labyrinth and kills the Minotaur with the help of Ariadne.
Daedalus and Icarus
Daedalus and Icarus escape Crete using artificial wings, but Icarus flies too high and falls into the sea.
Phaedra and Hippolytus
Phaedra's destructive love for Hippolytus leads Theseus to curse his own son and brings tragedy to the Athenian royal house.
Heracles Cycle
The Twelve Labours of Heracles
Heracles is driven into the service of King Eurystheus and performs a series of extraordinary labours against monsters, rulers and impossible tasks.
The Erymanthian Boar
Heracles is ordered to capture the enormous Erymanthian Boar alive and bring it back to Eurystheus.
The Ceryneian Hind
Heracles must capture the sacred Ceryneian Hind of Artemis without killing or seriously harming it.
The Stymphalian Birds
Heracles drives away the dangerous birds haunting Lake Stymphalus, using divine assistance to force them into the air.
The Augean Stables
Heracles cleans the enormous stables of King Augeas in a single day by redirecting rivers through them.
The Mares of Diomedes
Heracles travels to Thrace to capture the violent man-eating mares of King Diomedes.
The Belt of Hippolyta
Heracles travels to the land of the Amazons to obtain the war belt of Queen Hippolyta.
The Cattle of Geryon
Heracles travels to the far west and defeats the three-bodied Geryon in order to seize his famous cattle.
Great Heroic Age
Castor and Polydeuces
Castor and Polydeuces become the famous Dioscuri, twin heroes associated with horsemanship, combat and protection of sailors.
Phrixus and the Golden Ram
Phrixus and Helle escape on a miraculous golden ram, creating the Golden Fleece that will later become the object of Jason's quest.
The Quest for the Golden Fleece
Jason gathers the Argonauts and sails aboard the Argo to Colchis in search of the Golden Fleece.
Jason and Medea
Medea uses her knowledge of magic to help Jason survive Aeetes' trials and obtain the Golden Fleece.
Orpheus and Eurydice
Orpheus descends alive into the Underworld in an attempt to recover his dead wife Eurydice.
The Calydonian Boar Hunt
Artemis sends a monstrous boar against Calydon, drawing heroes from across Greece into one of mythology's great hunts.
Atalanta and the Golden Apples
Atalanta challenges her suitors to a footrace until Hippomenes defeats her with the help of Aphrodite and three golden apples.
Theban Cycle
Oedipus and the Sphinx
Oedipus reaches Thebes, solves the riddle of the Sphinx and frees the city from the monster's terror.
The Tragedy of Oedipus
Oedipus investigates the cause of a plague at Thebes and discovers that he himself has fulfilled the prophecy he spent his life trying to escape.
Seven Against Thebes
The sons of Oedipus, Eteocles and Polynices, fight for control of Thebes, bringing an army of seven champions against the city's gates.
Antigone
Antigone defies King Creon's command and buries her brother Polynices, placing family duty and divine custom above royal law.
Famous Myths
The Golden Touch of Midas
King Midas is granted the power to turn whatever he touches into gold, only to discover that his miraculous gift is really a curse.
Pygmalion and the Living Statue
The sculptor Pygmalion falls in love with an image he has created, and Aphrodite brings the statue to life.
Aphrodite and Adonis
Aphrodite loves the beautiful mortal Adonis, whose death while hunting becomes associated with grief, beauty and seasonal renewal.
Narcissus and Echo
Narcissus rejects the nymph Echo and eventually becomes trapped by love for his own reflection.
Phaethon and the Sun Chariot
Phaethon attempts to drive the chariot of the Sun to prove his divine parentage but loses control and threatens the earth with destruction.
The Punishment of Niobe
Niobe boasts that her many children make her superior to Leto, provoking Apollo and Artemis to destroy her family.
Actaeon and Artemis
The hunter Actaeon sees Artemis in circumstances forbidden to mortals and is transformed into a stag before being killed by his own hounds.
Apollo and Hyacinthus
Apollo's beloved companion Hyacinthus is killed during a discus game and memorialised through the flower bearing his name.
Cyparissus and the Cypress
Cyparissus is overwhelmed by grief after accidentally killing a beloved stag and is transformed into the cypress tree.
House of Atreus
Road to Troy
The Judgment of Paris
Paris is asked to judge which of Hera, Athena and Aphrodite is the fairest, setting in motion the events that lead to the Trojan War.
The Sacrifice of Iphigenia
The Greek fleet is unable to sail for Troy until Agamemnon confronts the demand that his daughter Iphigenia be sacrificed to Artemis.
Trojan War
The Trojan War
The Greek coalition sails against Troy to recover Helen, beginning the great war that defines the final generation of the Heroic Age.
The Death of Patroclus
Patroclus enters battle wearing Achilles' armour and is killed by Hector, forcing Achilles to confront the consequences of his withdrawal from the war.
Hector and Achilles
Achilles returns to battle after Patroclus' death and confronts Hector outside the walls of Troy.
The Fall of Troy
After years of siege, the Greeks use the Wooden Horse to enter Troy, bringing the city and the Trojan royal house to destruction.
After Troy
Odyssey
The Odyssey
After Troy, Odysseus spends years struggling to return home to Ithaca, facing monsters, gods, temptations and the consequences of his own decisions.
Odysseus and Polyphemus
Odysseus escapes the Cyclops Polyphemus through cunning, but his pride reveals his identity and brings Poseidon's anger upon the voyage.
Circe and Odysseus
The enchantress Circe transforms Odysseus' companions into animals, but Odysseus resists her magic and eventually gains her help.
Scylla and Charybdis
Odysseus must steer between the sea monsters Scylla and Charybdis, knowing that no route through the danger is completely safe.
The Return to Ithaca
Odysseus returns to Ithaca in disguise, reunites with Telemachus and finally confronts the suitors occupying his palace.
Underworld Traditions
The Punishment of Sisyphus
The cunning king Sisyphus is condemned in the Underworld to push a great stone uphill forever, only for it to roll back down each time.
The Punishment of Ixion
Ixion abuses the mercy shown to him by Zeus and is condemned to an endlessly turning fiery wheel.
The Punishment of Tityos
The giant Tityos is punished after attacking Leto, with birds eternally consuming his liver in the Underworld.
The Punishment of the Danaids
The daughters of Danaus are condemned in later tradition to carry water into vessels that can never remain full.