Myths and Legends: Deucalion and Pyrrha

Deucalion and Pyrrha. To find out more about the great Flood, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

Today's image depicts the creation of humankind by Deucalion and Pyrrha, his wife. After surviving the great Flood, they found themselves alone in the world. An oracle told them to cover their heads and throw the bones of their mother behind their shoulders. They concluded that their mother was Gaia, the earth, and her bones must be stones, so they hefted up stones and threw them over their shoulders. The stones thrown by Pyrrha gave rise to women, and those thrown by Deucalion gave rise to men.

You can also find more myths and legends for the week of August 5 - August 11 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.

Myths and Legends: Orpheus and the Animals

Orpheus and the Animals. To find out more about Orpheus, the legendary poet and musician, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

Orpheus was the great singer and musician of the ancient Greek and Roman worlds; his playing was able to captivate not only humans, but also animals, as you can see in this second-century Roman mosaic from Edessa in what is now southeastern Turkey.

You can also find more myths and legends for the week of August 5 - August 11 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.

Myths and Legends: Aeneas and Turnus

Aeneas and Turnus. To find out more about Aeneas and his rival Turnus, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

Many people focus on the wandering adventures of Aeneas in Books 1-6 of the Aeneid, but the scene in today's image is from the second half of the Aeneid, when Aeneas goes to war in Italy, with Turnus, the king of the Rutuli, as his greatest foe. Turnus had been courting Lavinia, the daughter of King Latinus, but when Lavinia is betrothed to the newly-arrived Aeneas instead, Turnus declares war. Aeneas finally kills Turnus in the climactic fight which you can read about in Book 12 of the Aeneid.

You can also find more myths and legends for the week of August 5 - August 11 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.

Myths & Legends: August 5-11

July 29 - Aug. 4 - Aug. 5-11 - Aug. 12-18

---

For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Reference Page.

---

Agamemnon Leads Away Briseis. To find out more about Briseis, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

---

Aeneas and Turnus. To find out more about Aeneas and his rival Turnus, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source. There's also a post here.

---

Constellation of Gemini. To find out more about the twin gods Castor and Pollux, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

---

Orpheus and the Animals. To find out more about Orpheus, the legendary poet and musician, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source. There's also a post here.

---

Palinurus. To find out more about Palinurus, the companion of Aeneas, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

---

Deucalion and Pyrrha. To find out more about the great Flood, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source. There's also a post here.

---

Odysseus and the Shades. To find out more about Odysseus and his journey among the dead, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source. There's also a post here.

---

Myths and Legends: Solon and Croesus

Solon and Croesus. To find out more about the Athenian wise man and his meeting with King Croesus, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

Croesus was the king of Lydia in the middle of the sixth century B.C.E., and he was immensely wealthy. In today's image, you see him confronting one of the seven sages of ancient Greece, Solon of Athens, a story that is told by the Greek historian Herodotus, and centuries later it became the subject of a story by Leo Tolstoy, "Croesus and Fate." Although Croesus was confident that his wealth and power secured him certain happiness, Solon warned him that this was not necessarily the case at all. Later, when Croesus witness the death of his son and also the death of his wife, he realized that wealth and power could not protect him from the blows of Fortune.

You can also find more myths and legends for the week of July 29 - August 4 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.

Myths and Legends: Psyche and Cupid

Psyche Awakens Cupid. To find out more about the story of Cupid and Psyche, see this Wikipedia article: link; for information about the image: image source.

This painting is by Orazio Gentileschi, the father of Artemisia Gentileschi. It shows the dramatic moment in the story of Cupid and Psyche when Psyche, living happily as the wife of Cupid but never having seen her husband (he comes to her in the darkness of night), is prompted by her sisters to discover his identity, even though he has forbidden her to do so. Attempting to look at him while he sleeps, she accidentally awakens him. Cupid immediately flies away, leaving Psyche bereft, stricken with sadness for her lost husband. She will have to go through many trials and adventures before she can be reunited with him.

You can also find more myths and legends for the week of July 29 - August 4 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.