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gemsofgreece · 1 year

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I know we often talk about all the regions of Greece plus the Islands, but what about Thessaly region? It's so underrated even though it has Olympus, meteora, beautiful places, forests to go. Not only that but wasn't part of king Aiolou in the Odyssey?

This region in my opinion is not talked enough about it's culture and history i am sure even from ancient times it has given a lot to Greek history.

Yay let's give some love to Thessaly! I share your feelings. I like this region a lot. So let's make a post with cool facts about Thessaly.

But before that I would like to comment on why Thessaly appears to be overlooked. I think the reason is that Thessaly is in between two regions that have attracted so much the interest of historians. It is sandwiched between Argos, meaning all of south Greece with Athens and Sparta and all the load of city states, and Macedonia. It gets more or less the same treatment with Epirus. Furthermore, Thessaly's biggest power is also its weakness. Thessaly is what is considered the "breadbasket" of the nation. An essentially provincial agricultural area, vast as nowhere else in Greece, it did not intrigue as much as the other regions with their drama, polities, conquests or artistic and scientific achievements.

Cool facts about Thessaly:

Despite its later obscurity with historians, exactly because of its vast fertile land, Thessaly had some of the earliest advanced settlements in Europe during the Neolithic period, such as Sesklo (6800 BC) and Dimini (4800 BC).

In the Mycenaean Age, Thessaly was known as Aeolia. The dialect spoken was Aeolic Greek. The Homeric epics are written in a mix of Ionic and Aeolic Greek. Aeolic Greek was considered the ideal dialect for poetry and lyricism. Poets and Rhapsodoi would travel to Thessaly to find inspiration.

Thessaly has paramount significance for the Greek mythology. Mount Olympus is located where Thessaly and Macedonia meet, so this is where the Gods lived. Achilles was born and reigned in Thessaly (his kingdom encompassed Phthia and extended beyond the Thessalian borders into Hellas, the westernmost meeting point of Thessaly, Epirus and Central Greece). Centaur Chiron raised many heroes in Mount Pelion, which is the origin place of centaurs. Jason and the Argonauts embarked for their journey from the city of Iolcos (now Volos). And loads more myths are associated with Thessaly.

Thessaly was somewhere between the world of the southern city states and the Kingdom of Macedon. It was usually a kingdom too or dismantled in a few smaller kingdoms ruled by the tagoi, aristocratic warlords. During the early classical period, Thessaly started being influenced by democracy however after observing the rise of Macedon, the Thessalians essentially invited King Philip to incorporate the region into his sphere of influence and Thessaly returned into having one single powerful king.

It is kinda evident that the Thessalians just wanted to live their lives and were absorbed with their own matters, trying to stay away from most drama. That lack of drama earns them their obscurity. Of course there were microdramas between nobility and kingdoms and all that but honestly nothing in comparison to the southern mayhems or the excessive northern ambition. Despite their low profile, Thessalians were wanted in other Greek armies for their cavalry.

During Roman and Byzantine times, the region was constantly targeted by invaders including Slavs, Avars, Huns etc due to its fertile land. This made the Byzantine emperors often remove or transfer away foreign populations from the area and have Greeks from other regions to settle in, to reinforce the Greek element of the region.

Much like in all other eras of its history, Thessaly was somewhere in the middle during the stages of the Greek Independence from the Ottoman Empire. It was incorporated to Greece after Peloponnese and Roumeli (Sterea Hellas) but before Epirus, Macedonia and Thrace.

Thessaly is a diverse land. It has a core of extended farmland dotted with hills and mountains as well as rivers and lakes, surrounded by a ring of big mountain ranges. At its west it expands to the Pindus mountains and their woodlands, at its north lies Mount Olympus and its east finds the Aegean sea and boosts a remarkable coastline. It also has three major islands, generally considered some of the most densely forested in the country and with beaches often featured in Top lists across the world. Sightings of seals and dolphins are common near its coasts.

Due to its geomorphology, the Thessalian plain gets some of the hottest temperatures in the summer and some of the coldest in the winter.

Thessaly is home to the most significant natural wonder of Greece. The rocks of Meteora. Meteora is a group of massive rock formations dating to the Paleogene era when this area was still part of the seabed, before the sea was pushed upwards and away. Meteora have been inhabited by monks ever since the middle Byzantine period. It has 20 Byzantine and post-Byzantine monasteries, out of which six are still in service. Aside from a natural wonder, the region is also a UNESCO world heritage monument.

After the independence, the region prospered due to being the largest farmland in Greece as well as having the third largest port in the country. It is the third most populous region after Sterea Hellas (which has Athens) and the large Macedonia (which has Thessaloniki). As a result, Thessaly is the only region in Greece with two major cities of about the same population, Larissa and Volos, the 5th and 6th largest cities of the country respectively, in close proximity. Larissa boasts an ancient past associated to Achilles and is the metropolis of agricultural and industrial Greece, all while buzzing with nightlife and a lot of student life. The also mythologically rich Volos is the Thessalian port, ensured with prosperity even during the hardship of Ottoman times, and is very notable among Greeks and those few foreigners who know for being surrounded from all sides by beautiful scenery, including very forested mountains, hills, extended shorelines, peninsulas, islands and numerous beautiful villages which combine tradition with a cosmopolitan flair.

The rest of the region is decorated by the rare outstanding mountainous beauty of Trikala, which also encompasses Meteora, and is one of the towns in Greece more focused on improving the quality of life for its citizens, often becoming a point of reference for other places. Karditsa with its traditional feel completes the quartet, offering access to the beautiful Lake Plastira and Agrafa mountains, some of the most unexplored and undisturbed, both naturally and culturally, regions of Greece.

And now some photos from Thessaly under the cut. Enjoy!

Various regions of Larissa

Various regions of Magnesia (Volos)

Various regions in Trikala

Various regions in Karditsa

Various regions from Sporades islands

All photos chosen randomly in Google search just to give you an idea. I do not own any of these.

Hopefully you enjoyed this tribute Anon!

Also, to anyone wondering "wasn't this supposed to be a farmland?", well yeah, it is by Greek standards. The farmland is indeed very big, it's just that if I showed many photos from the plain I would be running short of mountains and coasts. And also, Greeks typically don't take photos of their plains as often so I'd had to make a more strenuous search.

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anemoidevotions · 2 years

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The Anemoi

Hesiod, Theogony 869 ff :

"Notos (the South Wind) and Boreas (the North Wind) and clear Zephyros (the West Wind). These Winds are a god-sent kind, and a great blessing to men."

The Anemoi are the gods of the winds, especially the main four, but there are up to 24 different winds. Eight of these winds appear on Wind Towers, like the one in Athens, and act as both a devotional object, as the winds were often worshiped together as the Anemoi, and as a directional tool.

The Anemoi are all ruled by Aeolus, son of Hippotes, who was appointed to this position by Zeus. The winds themselves are the children of Eos, goddess of the dawn, and her husband Astraeus, an astrological god also associated with dusk/twilight.

In mythology and poetry, they often appear as tools of the Olympians, especially Zeus and Poseidon, who can command the winds to help in their endeavors, though they do appear helping other gods as requested. However, the witch Medea also calls on the Anemoi to aid in her magic.

Ovid, Metamorphoses 7. 192 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) :

"[The witch] Medea . . . in the deep stillness of the midnight hour . . . To the stars she stretched her arms, and thrice she turned about and thrice bedewed her locks with water, thrice a wailing cry she gave, then kneeling on the stony ground, ‘O Nox (Night) [Nyx], Mother of Mysteries, and all ye golden Astra (Stars) who with Luna (the Moon) [Selene] succeed the fires of day, and thou, divine triceps (three-formed) Hecate, who . . . dost fortify the arts of magic, and thou, kindly Tellus (the Earth) [Gaia], who dost for magic potent herbs provide; ye Venti (Winds) [Anemoi] and Aurae (Airs) . . . be with me now! By your enabling power, at my behest . . . my magic song rouses the quiet, calms the angry seas; I bring the clouds and make the clouds withdraw, I call the winds and quell them.’"

From this, other ancient magical practioners took inspiration.

Pausanias, Description of Greece 2. 12. 1 (trans. Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd A.D.) :

"In Titane there is . . . an Altar of the Anemoi (Winds), and on it the priest sacrifices to the Anemoi (Winds) one night in every year. He also performs other secret rites [of Hekate (Hecate)] at four pits, taming the fierceness of the blasts [of the winds], and he is said to chant as well the charms of Medea."

The Ruler of the Anemoi - Aeolus

Aeolus is the God of the Winds and the king of the island of Aeolia. He was appointed as Keeper of the Winds by Zeus. Aeolus supposedly kept the most brutal of winds trapped in a cave on Aeolia. He was sometimes petitioned to let them loose to aid in some cause, by both gods an mortals. He is sometimes portrayed as a face in the sky blowing on some object, a trait he shares with all of the Anemoi. His sacred animal is the kingfisher.

His most famous appearance by far is his role in Homer's Odyssey:

Homer, Odyssey 10. 1 ff (trans. Shewring) (Greek epic C8th B.C.) :

"[Odysseus tells the tale of his wanderings :] We came to the Aiolian (Aeolian) island (nesos Aiolios); here lived Aiolos (Aeolus) Hippotades (son of Hippotas); the deathless gods counted him their friend. His island is a floating one; all round it there is a wall of bronze, unbreakable, and rock rises sheer above it. Twelve children of his live in the palace with him; six are daughters, six are sons in the prime of youth; moreover the king has given his daughters as wives to his sons. These all hold a continual feast with their dear father and much-loved mother; countless dainties are there before them, and through the daytime the hall is rich with savoury smells and murmurous with the sound of music. At night they sleep, each with his own chaste wife, on inlaid bedsteads with coverlets over them.

To their city and noble palace we now came, and for a whole month Aiolos gave me hospitality and questioned me on all manner of things, Ilion [i.e. Troy] and the Argive ships and how the Akhaians (Achaeans) sailed for home. I duly told him all he desired; then in my turn I asked his leave to depart and begged him to help me on my way. Nor was he unwilling; he set about speeding my return. He gave me a bag made from the hide of a full-grown ox of his, and in the bag he had penned up every Wind (anemos) that blows whatever its course might be; because Kronion (Cronion) [Zeus] had made him warden of all the Winds (anemoi), to bid each of them rise or fall at his own pleasure. He placed the bag in my own ship's hold, tied with a glittering silver cord so that through that fastening not even a breath could stray; to Zephyros (the West Wind) only he gave commission to blow for me, to carry onwards my ships and men. Yet he was not after all to accomplish his design, because our own folly ruined us.

For nine days and through nine nights we sailed on steadily; on the tenth day our own country began to heave in sight; we were near enough to see men tending their fires on shore. It was then that beguiling sleep surprised me; I was tired out, because all this time I had kept my own hands on the steering-oar, never entrusting it to one of the crew, for I wished to speed our journey home. Meanwhile the crew began murmuring among themselves; they were sure I was taking home new presents of gold and silver from Aiolos.

One of them would say as he eyed his neighbour : ‘What injustice! In whatever city or land he comes to, this man wins everyone's friendship and regard. He is taking back a mass of fine things from the spoils of Troy, while we who have journeyed with him from the first to last are returning home all empty-handed. And now come these latest gifts that Aiolos in his hospitality had indulged him with. Come, let us look without wasting time. What are these gifts? How much gold and silver is there inside the bag?’

Thus the men talked among themselves, and the counsels of folly were what prevailed. They undid the bag, the Winds (anemoi) rushed out all together, and in a moment a tempest (thuella) had seized my crew and was driving them--now all in tears--back to the open sea and away from home.

I myself awoke, and wondered if now I should throw myself overboard and be drowned in ocean or if I should bear it all in silence and stay among the living. I did bear it and did remain, but covered my face as I lay on deck. My own ship and the others with it were carried back by raging storm (anemos thuella) to the island of Aiolos (nesos Aioloios), amid the groaning of all my company.

There we set foot ashore and drew water, and without delay my crews and I took our meal by the rapid ships. When we had had our portion of food and drink, I chose to come with me one man as my own attendant and one besides; then I sent up to the place of Aiolos, and found him feasting there with his wife and children. We went in and we sat down at the threshold by the doorposts, while the household asked in deep amazement : ‘Odysseus, how is it that you are here again? What malicious god has set upon you? Surely we did our best before to speed you upon your way, meaning to reach your own land and home or whatever place you might desire?’

So they spoke, and I said despondently : ‘Faithless comrades were my undoing, they and the slumber that betrayed me. But you are my friends; you have the remedy; grant it me.’

With these humble words I made my appeal to them. They remained in silence, except the father, who answered me : ‘Away from this island, away at once, most despicable of creatures! I am forbidden to welcome here or to help send elsewhere a man whom the blessed gods abhor. This return reveals you as god-forsaken; go!’

And with these words he drove me forth despite my pitiful lamentations. Then we sailed onwards sick at heart."

The Four Cardinal Winds

Boreas (Roman name: Aquilo/Septentrio)

Of all the Anemoi, Boreas is the one we have the most information about. He is the god of the north wind and is associated with cold temperatures and the mountains in the north of Greece, and therefore, the element of earth. From his name, we get the term aurora borealis. Boreas was famous for his strength and temper. He is often depicted with shaggy hair and beard, with a billowing cloak and a conch shell in his hands. His sacred animal is the horse.

He is represented on ancient compass roses in the north with the name Septentrio.

In mythology:

Boreas delivered Leto to Poseidon by order of Zeus, so Poseidon could take her to the island of Ogygia where she would be safe to give birth to Apollo and Artemis.

Boreas was said to have kidnapped an Athenian princess he had taken a shine to named Orithyia. Originally, he had attempted to convince her to come with him, but when she refused, he kidnapped her instead, showing the temper he was well known for. She did not consent, but their children include sons Zethes and Calais (of Argonaut fame), Chione, the goddess of snow, and another daughter named Cleopatra (unrelated to the Egyptian queen). It is through his relationship with Orithyia that he came to be a "son-in-law" of Athens and the Athenians.

In another story, Boreas competed with Pan for the affections of a nymph named Pitys. Boreas tried to prove his might by uprooting all of the trees. Unfortunately, Pan only laughed at Boreas' show of strength and his joviality won Pitys' affection. Angered by her rejection, Boreas threw Pitys' off a cliff, where she died. Gaia took pity on the nymph and transformed her into a pine tree.

In an Aesop fable, Boreas competed with his uncle, Helios, to get a travelling passerby to remove his cloak, in an attempt to prove which god was strongest. Boreas tried to blow the cloak off the man, but the harder he blew, the tighter the man wrapped the cloak around himself. Helios instead, made the sun shine bright and heat the land. The man removed his cloak when it got too hot. The moral of the story is that persuasion is better than force.

According to Pausanias, Boreas blessed Musaeus of Athens with the gift of flight.

Pausanias, Description of Greece 1. 22. 7 (trans. Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd A.D.) :

"I have read verse in which Musaios (Musaeus) [the poet] receives from Boreas the gift of flight, but, in my opinion, Onomakritos (Onomacritus) wrote them."

[N.B. Musaios and Onomakritos were both Orphic poets.]

There are many claims that Boreas, in the form of a stallion, impregnated mares across the ancient world, and variations on these stories appear in Homer's Iliad and Virgil's Georgics 3.

In the Orphic Hymns, Boreas is also listed as a god of the season of winter.

Orphic Hymn 80 to Boreas (trans. Taylor) (Greek hymns C3rd B.C. to 2nd A.D.) :

"To Boreas (the North-Wind), Fumigation from Frankincense. Boreas, whose wintry blasts, terrific, tear the bosom of the deep surrounding air; cold icy power, approach, and favouring blow, and Thrake (Thrace) awhile desert, exposed to snow: the air's all-misty darkening state dissolve, with pregnant clouds whose frames in showers resolve. Serenely temper all within the sky, and wipe from moisture aither's splendid eye."

The cult of Boreas:

Boreas was worshiped as a protector of Athens and sacrificed to when the city needed protection, though it is unknown exactly what these sacrifices were.

There are a few different accounts, but the main plot is this:

The Athenians received a message from an oracle that to protect the city, they should call on their ally who was a "son-in-law" of Athens/the Athenians. Boreas was considered a son-in-law of Athens because of his marriage to Orithyia, who was an Athenian princess. The Athenians made sacrifices to both Boreas and Orithyia in the hopes that they would destroy a barbarian fleet threatening them. The fleet was destroyed and a special district dedicated to Boreas was created.

Notos (Roman name: Auster/Australis, Notus when the Greek name was retained with Latin spelling)

Notus is the god of the south wind and is associated with winds from the sea to the south of Greece. He is usually depicted pouring water from a vase, like rain on crops. The winds he brings are hot. He is also said to be responsible for the storms of late summer and early autumn in Ancient Greece and Rome, indicating that his winds are both hot and moist, carrying moisture from the Mediterranean sea to the south onto the continent to the north, corresponding to the element of water. He was also feared as a destroyer of crops. On ancient compass roses, he is represented by the name Australis, from which the name Australia is derived. Notus does not have any sacred animal mentioned for him alone, but the horse is sacred to the Anemoi as a group.

The Romans associated him with the clouds and harsh winds and storms that would blow in from the south.

In Mythology:

Notus does not appear prominently in mythology outside of helping the other gods when called upon, usually with his brothers.

In the Orphic Hymns, Notus is associated with the season of Summer.

Orphic Hymn 82 to Notus :

"To Notos (Notus, the South-Wind), Fumigation from Frankincense. Wide-coursing gales, whose lightly leaping feet with rapid wings the air's wet bosom beat, approach, benevolent, swift-whirling powers, with humid clouds the principles of showers; for showery clouds are portioned to your care, to send on earth from all-surrounding air. Hear, blessed power, these holy rites attend, and fruitful rains on earth all-parent send."

Euros (Roman name: Vulturus/Volturus, but Roman poets often retained the Greek name with the Latin spelling Eurus)

Euros is the god of the east wind and dwelt near the palace of Helios, his uncle. He is said to bring a hot wind, and with his close proximity to Helios, is associated with the element of fire. Little else is known about Euros, as he is the least mentioned of all the Anemoi. Euros is depicted as a bearded man holding a heavy cloak. No animal is known to be sacred specifically to Euros, but horses are sacred to all of the Anemoi as a single group.

In Mythology:

Most references to Euros in mythology are passing. Most of what is attributed to Euros comes from the poets of the time, including Homer, Virgil, and Ovid.

One source lists Euros as the "Savior of Sparta."

Greek Lyric V Folk Songs, Frag 858 (from Strasbourg papyrus) (trans. Campbell) (B.C.) :

"Send a breeze then, over the fields . . . soft wind . . . Euros (East Wind) : Euros, saviour of Sparta, may you come with victory at all times! Ie Paian, ieie Paian!"

Euros is unofficially the god of Autumn. He fills the fourth seasonal slot most modern people associate with autumn, however, the ancient Greeks only recognized three seasons. There are no mentions of him in the Orphic Hymns.

It is important to note that Euros sometimes appears as the god of the southeast wind and Apeliotis as the east wind. Apeliotes also has associations with autumn.

Zephyros (Roman name: Favonius, Zephyrus when the Greek name was retained with Latin spelling)

Zephyros is the god of the west wind and is depicted as a beardless youth scattering flowers from his mantle, often with wings, associating him with the element of air (though, arguably all of the Anemoi are related to air). He and his winds were said to be most gentle and provided ships with favorable winds for sailing. He was known as the fruictifying wind and the messenger of spring. He is sometimes depicted as carrying a basket of unripe fruit. His sacred animals are his offspring, the horse and the tiger.

In Mythology:

Zephyros most famously appears in the myth of Apollo and Hyacinthus. Both gods were in love with a Spartan man named Hyacinthus. Apollo and Hyacinthus often spent time together, and one day, started a game of discus. Zephyros spotted them, and in a jealous rage, blew the discus off course, which then struck Hyacinthus in the forehead and killed him. Apollo, in his grief, turned Hyacinthus into a flower (either an iris or larkspur, depending on the telling).

Zephyros vied with his brother, Boreas, for the love of the nymph, Chloris (Flora in Roman mythology). Boreas, however, stole Orithyia from her father's home instead, allowing Zephyros to pursue Chloris uncontested. He married Chloris and made her the goddess of flowers.

Zephyros also had a relationship (or marriage, depending on the source) with the messenger of the Olympians and goddess of rainbows, Iris. Sometimes, they are listed at the parents of the Erotes: Pothos, Eros, and Himeros, though other accounts list their mother as Aphrodite. In other accounts, Eros was the son of Iris and Zephyros (or Aphrodite), and Pothos and Himeros the children of Eros, making them the grandchildren of Iris and Zephyros (or Aphrodite).

In the story of Eros and Psyche, it is Zephyros who delivers Psyche to the home of Eros.

Through the harpy Podarge, Zephyros was the father of the horses of Achilles, Balius and Xanthus, mirroring his opposite brother Boreas's association with horses.

Roman mythology gives him the additional domain of plants and flowers

In the Orphic Hymns, Zephyros is associated with Spring.

Orphic Hymn 81 to Zephyrus :

"To Zephyros (Zephyrus, the West-Wind), Fumigation from Frankincense. Sea-born, aerial, blowing from the west, sweet Breezes (Aurai, Aurae), who give to wearied labour rest. Vernal and grassy, and of murmuring sound, to ships delightful through the sea profound; for these, impelled by you with gentle force, pursue with prosperous fate their destined course. With blameless gales regard my suppliant prayer, Zephyros unseen, light-winged, and formed from air."

The Cult of Zephyros:

There were two known temples to Zephyros, one on the Isle of Rhodes, and the other in the town of Laciadae. It is also said that the Argonauts made an altar to Zephyros, among others, while preparing to depart on a voyage.

The Lesser (Tertiary) Winds

These wind gods cover the tertiary directions and are featured on wind towers and early compass roses, but little is known about them.

Lips (Roman name: Africus)

Lips is the god of the southwest wind and is depicted on the Tower of the Winds in Athens as a winged man holding the stern of a ship. He was a favorite of sailors.

KAIKIAS (Roman name unverified)

Kaikias is the god of the northeast wins and is portrayed as a bearded man with a shield full of hail-stones. These hail stones may reference severe, destructive storms.

APELIOTES (Roman name unverified)

Apeliotes is the god of the southeast wind and is depicted as a clean-shaven man, holding a cloak full of fruit and grain. He is associated with autumn and sometimes switches places with Euros.

SKIRON (Roman name unverified)

Skiron is the god of the northwest wind and depicted as a bearded man tilting a cauldron, potentially signifying the onset of winter. He is also associated with violent storms and winds.

#hellenic polytheism #helpol #anemoi #venti #religio romana

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fourteenth-seat · 2 years

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more meta on aeolia (and other parts of the world unsundered, as it exists outside of amaurot.)

Aeolians isolating themselves from most of the rest of Etheirys stems partly from their innate ability to percieve aetherophysics through sound and their sound-sensitivity. They have severe misophonia regarding certain sounds and certain textures as a result of this (which. is very much inspired by my own experiences as a sound-sensitive autistic person), so the sound of your average Ancient's voice would probably harsh, grating, and unpleasant to their hears -- especially moreso to younger Aeolians, who generally have less exposure to outsiders.

On 𝐀𝐄𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐒 (the largest isle of the 𝐀𝐄𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐍 𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐏𝐄𝐋𝐀𝐆𝐎) lies the capital city of 𝐂𝐘𝐌𝐄 (which is closer to a town or a village, as it’s not very big), in which there is an Aetheryte or propylon-esqe device of some sort allowing for teleportation (although access and attunement privileges are jealously guarded from outsiders.) The landmass of the archipelago is larger than that of Hawaii but a bit smaller than that of the Phillipines, although the climate is a bit different from both.) Hades recounts his visit 𝐂𝐘𝐌𝐄 briefly in Tales from the Shadows: Ere our Curtain falls. I will post more about The Great Ifrita Incident/The Volcano Fiasco/Hades-and-Paion-in Aeolia debacle soon, because I have a truckload of headcanons on that too!)

Aeolian culture reveres the sun, as the sun is strongly associated with their hero and founder, 𝐀𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐎𝐍 or "The Music", who is borderline deified in their culture (although they don't worship any actual gods, or have much in the way of an organized religion.) They do not take for granted that the sun will rise again each day, and so they sing to it each time it rises and sets.

The 𝐀𝐄𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐍 economy is generally barter-based, wherein goods and services are exchanged for other goods and services and the merit of these exchanges are based solely on the satisfaction of the involved parties. Disputes are overheard and weighed by the 𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐒 𝐌𝐄𝐆𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎 (the title of the leader of the people of 𝐀𝐄𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐀, who is selected through strength of voice and character.)

Despite their general mistrust of outsiders, unlike 𝐀𝐌𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐓, 𝐂𝐘𝐌𝐄 does not begrudge the offering of assistance to outsiders , but they aren't typically called upon by others for their assistance due to their reclusive nature and small population. They are innate allies with several seafaring civilizations with whom they engage in maritime trade, and they are known to occasionally intermarry with the Sea People (name for them and more info is in the works, I will be developing these people next! They're going to be an Atlantis-inspired group of people to whom Paion is distantly related.)

The Aeolians also originally hailed from the southern desert continent of 𝐌𝐀𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐀 (which is about the size of Australia give or take, but its culture was more akin to a mix of ancient Greek, North African, and West Asian cultures) prior to their relocation to the Aeolian Archipelago at some point prior to the founding of Amaurot. The Macarians and the Sea People have an ancient bitter rivalry and have been feuding for milennia (because let's face it, the Ancients were not perfect, they were fundamentally an ancient human progenitor race of humans with magic superpowers; and the world Unsundered was obviously not perfect and without conflict, and this essay, I will....) Despite the Aeolians' provenance, the Sea People still regard them as allies (likely due to the fact the Aeolians long ago severed all significant ties with their Macarian ancestry aside from cultural similarities.)

Additionally, Aeolians do NOT refer to themselves as 'Aeolians'; this is what outsiders call them, or is a way of refrencing the area they are geographically tied to/located in. They refer to themselves almost exclusively as tuners, listeners, composers, or conductors.

#☉:ﾟ* ℍ𝔼𝔸𝔻ℂ𝔸ℕ𝕆ℕ𝕊 .

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applsauss · 5 years

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Mors Ab Alto [8/8] - Act 3

Description: The shuttle dips below a large asteroid, a shadow rolling over the control panel, and when it pulls up, Krung Thep rises over the field like the sun, like you’re stepping out of cool water and into the sun - The city of angels.

Fandom:  Gundam 00

Pairing:  Tieria Erde/Reader

Word Count: 3.8k+

 Warning(s):  None.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

One year before the armed interventions. Union Zone, Rural Washington State.

The moon is a violent red; It simmers high in the chalky, night air; a sliver of a crescent. Everything else is dark, cast in a blue-black shadow.

The drive down the winding driveway is long, and the car bobs along with all the dips in the road. You don’t breathe easily until the house is out of sight, still shaking with emotion. Tieria is silent all the while - he never speaks unless he has something to say and you’re stuck between wanting to sink into the security you feel with him, and the fear that maybe, all this time you misjudged him and secretly, he’s misjudged you. When the air grows smokey the more the altitude drops, you say, “the west coast is always burning this time of year.”

Tieria hums, watching the road with attentive eyes, and drives through the smoke. You stare at him for a couple seconds more until your chest grows too warm, and then you direct your eyes to the dark cliff on your side of the car.

It’s a long three hours to the airport. The roads are winding, but empty and so the drive is smooth and it’s rhythmic; the way trees turn to houses, then stores, then a town, then houses and trees again, all the way until you hit the four-lane highway and Vancouver. Then you cross the water to Portland.

You feel the press of the G-forces as Tieria peels off the highway onto the diamond interchange, and then you watch as the number of big, blue signs directing you towards the airport steadily increase. When you reach the airport, Tieria pulls off into the rental car parking lot.

He parks the car, then you both step out. You sling a backpack over your shoulder, Tieria pulls a small carry-on suitcase out of the trunk, and then he locks the car.

You stand for a moment, stretch and yawn into your palm before you hear the wheels of his suitcase start across the concrete parking lot. His suitcase is sleek and white, and it reflects the light from the streetlamps as you trail behind him. You watch the way it bounces when it hits a crack and he jerks it loose, or how it mows over little weeds growing from between the concrete slabs.

He passes a fluffy, white dandelion.

You kick it as you pass and watch the seeds float away. When Tieria looks back to check that you’re with him, he doesn’t look like he wants to scold you. He’s matter-of-fact. It’s why you’ve always liked him.

The airport grows less abandoned as you approach the first terminal drop-off. What little stars are left melt away under the floodlights, but the dirty orange moon remains a crescent in the sky. You quicken your step to match Tieria’s as you pass the terminal. He keeps glancing at you, out of the corner of his eye, and when you catch him, he looks away so quickly all you see is the slight downturn of the corner of his mouth.

You look down at your feet to watch the ground move past, and then he sighs and you jerk your head up again, only he says nothing. You roll your eyes and decide to take your focus off him for good when he opens his mouth again.

“I thought…” he starts suddenly. There’s a break in his speech before he continues, “that it was supposed to always be raining here.” He’s staring up at the sky, past the floodlights that tie you to the airport. Briefly, you wonder if he knows exactly where Lagrange Three is, and if he can see it from here.

“Not where we are. There’s too much wind in the gorge for weather to stick,” you say, “storms are in and out within minutes. but it does snow. A lot.” you smile a bit at memories of days spent up the mountain. “I never understood why Washington always had that reputation.”

“Do you miss it here?”

“Yes,” you say without missing a beat. You don’t mention that sometimes, it’s all you can think about, just returning to the way things were, like a redo, only this time, he and Ian would be there and life would last longer and be better than it was.

Tieria thinks for a moment, then says, “I prefer space.”

“I know you do,” You laugh, and he looks taken aback, so you amend with, “It’s okay, though. It grows on you. Well, everything but the exercise routine. Sometimes I just miss walking.”

The conversation lapses, and you take a couple more steps before he speaks again.

“I was raised… In Warsaw,” he tells you quietly.

You look at him, wide-eyed at his sudden admission. “Poland?”

“I was in the foster care system.”

You’re momentarily blinded by a car pulling up to your left. Tieria scrutinizes it’s passengers and driver, even though they only seem interested in the exuberant conversation they’re tied up in. He always seems so intent, so suspicious. It’s necessary as a member of Celestial Being, but he’s always been on another level of taking-things-seriously.

“... Do you miss it?”

He makes a face, then looks away from the people surrounding the car. “No. I’m here now. That’s all that matters.”

***

Present Day. Lagrange Three, CB Shuttle craft.

You sigh heavily through your nose when you finally spoon the rehydrated spinach into your mouth. It’s lightly salted, positively limp, and it’s the best goddamn thing you’ve tasted in your entire life. Your eyes slide shut as you chew, and test the consistency with your tongue. When you’re done chewing, your tongue sneaks out to wet your cracked lips, and you taste copper, and then you take another bite. It adds to the flavour, you suppose.

“Ptolemy is down for the count. We just stripped all its terminals bare,” Ian explains, both hands on the controls, both eyes forward and true. He’s in the pilot’s chair, Selar is to his left, watching the radar, and you’re hanging back in the doorway leading to the cockpit, tired beyond repair, too gone to help.

Your eyes and limbs feel unnaturally heavy, and the more Ian talks, the more your high fades into a background hum. Loosely, halfheartedly, as you shovel the ration pack of freeze-dried spinach into your mouth, you keep yourself tethered to the conversation by looping your arm through the railing framing the entrance to the cockpit.

“We’ve been holed up in Krung Thep,” Ian continues, “Dynames and Nadlee were the only Gundams recovered, and we’re working with just four GN drives, but other than that, well, and…” He pauses, exhales quickly and shakes his head, “We’re in not too bad a shape.”

The wrapper you’re cradling crinkles, and Selar wrinkles her nose as you take another bite. You’re warm in the space suit you’d yanked on after the hospital gown wore out its charm, and you’re eating and it feels so good you could cry, but your chest is too heavy, and it’s so warm except for the chill on your face, creeping down your neck. Your grip on the spoon is clumsy through the gloves, and it’s so, so warm, like you’re standing in front of a fire with the only person you can seem to need close to you anymore, under the dark trees.

The railing begins to slip free from the crook of your elbow, your eyes slide shut, and then you jolt awake, tightening your hold, sucking in a breath through your nose and resuming chewing, eyes wide.

“How’s…” You pause to swallow, “How is everyone?” Something is telling you not to let the silence settle, and so you find yourself pushing to keep Ian talking even though he’s done nothing but talk for you since he’d popped you out of that fucking coffin.

Ian pauses, and from the angle you’re at, you see his jaw clench, before he continues carefully. “As well as you’d expect. Sumeragi hasn’t left her room in days, Lasse is shacked up in medbay, and Tieria and Feldt -“

“How’s Mileina?” you ask, turning away, and then after a moment of thought, you look around for the water bottle you’d pulled out of the pantry after the spinach. You kick off the floor and snatch your water bottle out of the air, before sinking back down to your original position.

“Brilliant.” Ian smiles. “Perfect.” You lick your teeth, then take a quick drink.

“And Linda?”

“We’re all busy working on the plans for the next Gundams.”

You pull the bottle away from your face, barely managing to not squeeze the liquid out, while you stare, shocked, at the back of Ian’s head. Your gut twists, your teeth clench, and then you look away. Of course they’d already be working on the next Gundams, Aeolia Schenberg’s plan isn’t done just yet. You swallow thickly and suck your cheek between your teeth. The news catches you off guard anyways, and the wary thought that you might not want to return nudges its way into your head. “The Double O?” You ask when you find your voice again, trying to keep it level and uninterested, but it comes out quieter than you’d like.

You think of Washington, and of your childhood home, and of your mother and you think of returning to all of that with Tieria. Then you shake your head.

Neither Ian nor Selar pick up on your struggle. “Mhmm,” he hums, and you find yourself staring blankly out of the windshield as the shuttle weaves through Lagrange Three rather than focusing on him anymore.

Around the shuttle, the void of space is black and the stars are bright and you recognize but don’t recognize the scenery because an asteroid field is an asteroid field, there’s not really anything unique about them. You’ve been in this exact spot millions of times before, though, either approaching or leaving Krung Thep for one of the orbital elevators, on leave, on Celestial Being’s dime.

The shuttle dips below a large asteroid, a shadow rolling over the control panel, and when it pulls up, Krung Thep rises over the field like the sun, like you’re stepping out of cool water and into the sun - The city of angels. The solar panels, its golden wings, are blinding. The asteroid it’s seated in is beaten and where the metal cuts through, unnaturally smooth.

You squint as Ian radios in. You don’t catch the conversation, but distantly, you recognize Linda’s voice. Krung Thep is huge up close, towering, and the hangar doors are terrifying, like gates to the underworld. Selar quips something, her voice lilting, and Linda’s laugh is static when it comes through the speakers, and you can’t think, can only feel the apprehension rising in you because - because they’re already working on the next generation of Gundams.

“Yea, and we got a little more than we expected, too,” Ian looks back at you, and you catch his gaze and try to smile. You suddenly regret eating - and you don’t want to step foot off this shuttle, even though hours before, the thought of Krung Thep was all that kept you going.

For a stretched minute, the shuttle is stalled near the entrance as the airlock is cleared, then depressurized. Your mind is buzzing with anticipation, fear, at being tossed head first back into Celestial Being, the knowledge of who and what was lost still heavy on your shoulders, the idea of being thrust back into another Gundam project making you hesitate, but Tieria is here. Tieria survived, and he’s here, and the thought makes you clench your fists and will yourself forward.

Krung Thep looms, like a tall house in front of you, and you’re standing in its shadow, but the porch light is on and this is all you’ve got. This is all you are, and maybe… Taking a stand for beliefs held is preferable to having all the decisions made for you. If you didn’t fight, then you’d be no better than every stale person left on Earth, taking a side through inaction, letting people who don’t deserve to die, die.

The hum of the engine surges quietly as the shuttle begins to putter forward, and you can’t do anything but watch as you’re swallowed into the familiar hangar, where just a year ago, The Ptolemaios had been docked, and Tieria’d forced you away from the broadcast of a protest that did nothing but stir up doubt, old hatred.

Celestial Being is all you are, you burned the rest, and your hand is being forced.

“Alright, kiddo,” Ian pushes himself out of the seat and pushes past you. He turns to address you as he floats past, “you ready?”

“Yea,” you say quietly, quickly shoving your food items in the waste disposal unit behind you before trailing after Ian and Selar. They’re holding the ceiling as the door to the shuttle slides open, revealing the cavernous belly of Krung Thep, and you follow your rescuers out into the familiar territory, wary and weary.

Your whole world expands as you leave the confines of the shuttle, the ceiling and floor drop off, the walls are pushed back, and the only mass taking up space are the handful of shuttle craft Celestial Being operates out of. The whole place smells like space, sharp, burnt and metallic, and somewhere far above, a gaggle of haros are working on what looks like the remains of the GN arms, which are blasted beyond repair, the metal burnt and curled and your thoughts return to Lasse and Setsuna, wounded in battle, missing in action.

Linda is waiting across the gap on the catwalk, and she gasps, both hands covering her mouth when you approach. You can’t help the smile that lights up your face when you see her, and the syllables of her name are pulled kindly from you. “Linda,” you say, the smile working its way up to your eyes, and as soon as you reach the railing, she pulls you in for a hug. You can’t feel the warmth of her body through the suit, but her hair smells like strawberries and you feel yourself begin to tear up again when she sniffs loudly.

“Is this the surprise?” she chokes out, even though the answer is obvious. Quickly, she pulls herself back and puts both hands on your cheeks, swiping her thumb across the apple of your cheek and wiping a tear with it.

If you say anything out loud, you’ll break, so you hold your breath and nod your head, smile watery, and then she starts crying, her glasses fogging slightly as she tugs you back into another hug.

“Welcome home,” she murmurs and you nod and hug her back, pulling at her shirt while you try to calm your breathing.

Your heart rate slows. You shudder, then after a few moments, you pull away. Ian grips your shoulder and gives it a wiggle, a bright smile overtaking his features, and you return it lightly, with tired eyes. The relief is clear on their faces, because you’re one less person to mourn for.

Ian and Linda leave you on the catwalk, then, loitering next to Selar, who also wanders off after a few beats, offering to take you the mess, and then excusing herself when you decline. She promises to get you some real food next time, return a favor long forgotten, and you both laugh - and then you’re left, sitting loosely on the railing, with your feet hooked between the slats and your arms crossed in front of you as you let the familiar setting talk over your murmur.

You think briefly of searching out your old quarters, but the idea makes your stomach flip. You’d rather be frozen here, with Ian and Linda in sight, and in the quiet. There are too many thoughts in your head and you need time to sift through them all - and there’s always Tieria. You’re always thinking about Tieria.

You hold a muted admiration for him in your heart, and when you were sure you were going to die on The Ptolemaios, he was the last thing you thought about, your last hope, your last dream, all you had was the memory of him, in the briefing room - of him, on the steps of your childhood home, of him outside an airport, telling you secrets not meant to be uttered aloud.

Ian and Linda are both by the shuttle, exchanging various technical terms you drown out with the rattle of your own breathing, and you let the popping of soldering irons and the chatter of haros lull you as you wait for them to finish up. You don’t have much to do but wait, and so you don’t do anything but wait, and think.

The doors at the end of the catwalk open, and you turn your head, expecting to find Selar returning, maybe with some food, but your heart stops when you watch as Tieria drifts in, catching himself on the railing opposite to the door, clumsy with one arm, the other resting near his sternum in a loose sling. The air is punched out of your stomach.

He’s got his sweater on, his favourite one, with the loose sleeves and the cinched waist, the soft, pink fabric pulling taught and folding as he twists his body, eyes wandering the hangar until they land on Ian and Linda, and then he pushes off towards them and you can’t move, jaw set, eyes dropped open and breathing shallow. You’re helpless, trapped behind glass as you watch him push off the railing towards you, his eyes following Ian and Linda as they head into the shuttle.

He grows closer, and the details grow more numerous. His movements are stiff and controlled in a shaky sort of way. The left side of his face is red with shallow scratches. He’s wearing a crown of bandages and there are dark pockets under his eyes, and when he stretches his neck, you see more bandages peeking out from under his collar.

The harsh lights sink through the open air in the hanger, bouncing off glass and giving metal a sheen, but when it reaches Tieria, he looks unaffected, surrounded by this soft glow, like he’s untouchable.

Does he look at you in the same light? And does it even matter if he does?

His head is turning before you can react, and when you make eye contact, whatever words you could have come up with die on your tongue.

He looks at you, momentum still kept, and his eyes widen, mouth dropping open, and he looks afraid. You realize you’ve never seen him look afraid. Your teeth clink with the force of you shutting your mouth. He stops himself roughly with a hand on the rail, but it’s awkward because he has to reach across his body because one of his arms is indisposed and though his expression doesn’t change, you see the way his shoulders flinch at the strain.

He doesn’t say anything, just presses his lips into a thin line and glances fearfully to the shuttle Ian and Linda had disappeared into, then back at you, swallows, and squeezes his eyes shut, the shadow of his brow melting into the dark circles under his eyes until you can barely see his face anymore. His grip on the railing tightens until he’s shaking and you’ve never seen him so distraught except for when he punched Setsuna, and you hope he doesn’t punch you, too, because you’re beat up enough.

You open your mouth to say something, but can’t breath and then, “Tieria,” you hear your voice, but don’t remember being able to speak.

He jumps, then says, lowly, “Don’t.”

You can’t think of anything to say, and begin to panic, clamming up before he speaks again, more quietly this time. “You’re not real.”

Linda laughing loudly in the distance is the only warning you get before you remember why you’re waiting where you are. “Hey, (Y/N)!” Ian shouts your name poking his head out of the open shuttle door, and both you and Tieria jump and turn to him like you’ve been caught doing something you’re not supposed to. Ian immediately shuts up, looking between you and Tieria and - You turn back to look at Tieria, but before you can say anything a rough hand bounces off your shoulder, shoving you back into the railing and a body collides with yours.

The air’s knocked out of you on impact, and you’re suddenly sandwiched between the railing and Tieria as he squeezes you closer to him, one of his arms trapped between you, the other wrapped firmly around your shoulders, his head bowed, shoulders bowed, legs between yours. You let out a shuddering breath, shock coursing through you, before you hug him back, arms looping under his, a leg squeezing his waist and another wrapped around his.

“Tieria-”

“Don’t,” he begs, his chin pressing the metal collar of your suit into your collar bone, his breath warm down your neck. You shut up, staring wide eyed over his shoulder, and then a full bodied shudder wracks through him and it could just be the heat of his breath, but it feels like your neck is wet. You cling to him loosely, still unsure how to handle this sort of reception, mildly uncomfortable with the emotional response you would normally be spared from with him - confused at the sudden display of emotion, unsure how to take it.

He inhales audibly, his voice catching and turns his head, pressing his nose under your ear, a hand inching up into your hair and he’s crying - you realize distantly. The thought then hits you and you glide your hands up his back and grip his sweater above his shoulder blades, pulling him closer. “Are you okay?” you whisper just loud enough for him to hear.

He doesn’t answer, doesn’t do anything to let you know he heard you except to minimally increase the strength of his hold, and you don’t say anything else. It’s not a desperate clash of emotions, it’s not all consuming, it just is. And so you just let it be, accept what is given and give what is accepted.

You don’t have a dog or a house in the woods and Krung Thep’s hangar is nothing like speckled sunlight pushing through a bedroom window, but Tieria’s here, in whatever way he wants to be, can be, at the moment, and you suppose that even though nothing has changed that much, truly, between the two of you, this is a step in the direction you want to be headed in. It’s something you can accept, with open arms, and so you do.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Masterlist in desc.

#gundam 00 #tieria erde #tieria erde x reader #gundam 00 x reader #gundam 00 imagine #tieria erde imagine #mors ab alto

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inthepantheon · 5 years

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Titans Rising - Fight Fire With Fire, Part II

Titans Rising - Fight Fire With Fire, Part II: “Well, no one works for free, and Charon won’t pick up your souls without payment.” I reached behind my back for my spear. @feraldruidftw @HymnToHestia #TitansRising #thePantheon

I knew where she would be waiting for me – right back where the conflict had started.

I made my way to the broad plains of Thessaly, known by Homer and Hesiod as Aeolia, land of horses and grains, and stood once more where we had waited beside each other – Zeus, Hera, Demeter, Hades, Posiedon, and myself – and accepted the surrender of the Titans. The foot of Mount Othrys hadn’t changed too…

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#Anchiale #Hestia #Mount Othrys #Titans Rising #greekmyth #greek mythology #amwriting #writers of tumblr #writblr #writing #writers #mythologyedit #myth

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eisiramdeus-a · 6 years

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→ closed starter for JESSE MCCREE by cowbci

✯ ONE COULD IMAGINE CHRIST WITH THORNS FOR CROWNS——&

But St. Aeolia had died twice now. No, no, this name died too. Even back then, there were but few who would still recognize this name, Saint Aeolia. Perhaps in this dystopian present of man and machine, he had finally died. Oh, but the man suffers even now. They should have known it never ends. He would be back in the saddle again. It never ends, it never ends, it never ends.

Anyone left who believed in fairy tales of extraordinary men and superheroes would have known him as ALEXANDER CALVIN-EISENHOWER KAISERIDE—whatever was left in the files, the unburnt papers, and untraceable e-mails in vague, illegible code. And there was the matter of the super soldiers; the illegal inspired project he gave rise to in this future became a matter of state. To think Jack Morrison and Gabriel Reyes would receive torturous chemical treatments in futile attempts to mimic what one man was cursed with all his life.

The tall grass was overgrown and obscured much of the view at his estate in Rockwall, Texas—away from the prying Dallas eyes, fenced off with crime-scene tape and then replaced with barbed wire. A quiet suburban community of commuters. They heard a single gunshot back in 2009 followed by a hurried closed-casket funeral spoken in hushed whispers only, and there was nothing more to the Sailor. He was to have a burial at sea, his supposed resting place somewhere in the Aegean sea.

Sitting atop his porch, deep inside the vast estate and far from witnesses, the man had his fingers amputated, each one of the ten, then dug into his skull radially like A THORNY CROWN to do justice to the martyr he had been. ——& That he may never come to pluck the flowers or their touch the silky blond petals of the dandelions.

The flesh of his fingers had long rotted, grimed, and melted off the stony bones that firmly held themselves, dug into the cortex by the distal phalanges as if Death struggled to grip the man and drag him someplace far from home, someplace better. His eyes shut for too long, perhaps forever, like this cruel world was not worth seeing anymore. And beneath him, blood had pooled for almost a century and bleeds still. Farthest from him, the blood was dry, black, and permanently encrusted on the wooden boards that comprised the porch, but directly beneath him? It dripped fresh, dark, and attracted all sorts of bugs that fed on it, and then died on the spot. Oh, how the corpse wished to be buried in the sea, and wishes still.

#✯ ❝ to them; the wrath of god ❞ [ ic ]#✯ ❝ no halo in her brow ❞ [ mature ]#v; ow #cowbci

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thatswhywelovegermany · 7 years

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youtube

Documentary about Mountain Park Wilhelmshöhe, Kassel, Hesse

A park like this, designed over centuries by the Landgraves of Hesse-Kassel, does exist nowhere else. Its combination of garden architecture and water technology is unique. Grandiose architectural features combine with secluded romantic spots to shape a paradise on earth. The collection of trees from all continents is one of the largest worldwide.

The Hercules statue on top of the octagon is the first statue ever to use a lightweight internal frame on which thin metal sheets forming the outer skin are mounted, which only made a statue of this size sitting on top of a building possible. Until that time, all statues were either solid or had a thick, heavy self-supporting outer shell. Gustave Eiffel sent engineers to Kassel to investigate the Hercules statue before he designed the Statue of Liberty in New York.

The water features consume 750,000 liters of fresh water for each run, supplied exclusively by natural sources up the mountain and requiring no pumps and machines apart from its own potential energy and a couple of valves, pipes, trenches, and ponds.

The pressurized air for the sounding horns at the top of the cascades is produced by a camera aeolia, the only surviving example of its time.

The Aqueduct, a waterfall depicting an ancient Roman town destroyed by an earthquake with the water relentlessly crashing down more than 30 meters into the ruins, is the highest artificial waterfall worldwide.

The Grand Fountain is the most voluminous fountain worldwide, rising more than 50 m up into the air using nothing but the potential energy of the water. Its geyser-like appearance is achieved by an inverted showerhead design of the nozzle.

#been there #favorite place on earth

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phynxrizng · 7 years

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A COMPLETE LIST OF GREEK SKY GODS & GODDESSES

AEOLUS (Aiolos) The king of the winds. He was appointed by Zeus to guard the storm winds which he kept locked away inside the floating island of Aeolia, releasing them at the request of the gods to wreak their havoc.

AETHER (Aither) The primeval god of the shining light of the blue sky. He was conceived of as the substance of light, a layer of bright mist which lay between the dome of heaven and the lower air which surrounded the earth.

ANEMI (1) (Anemoi) The gods of the four directional winds and the heralds of the four seasons. Boreas the north wind was the lord of winter, Zephyros the west was the bringer of spring, Euros the east was the god of autumn, and Notos the south of summer.

ANEMOI (2) The Daemones of the violent storm-winds. They were sons of the monster Typhoeus kept locked away inside Tartarus or the floating island of Aeolus to be released only at the command of the gods.

ARCE (Arke) The messenger of the Titans. She was the sister of Iris and the goddess of the lost second rainbow. At the end of the Titan-war she was stripped of her wings and locked away inside the pit of Tartarus.

ASTRAEUS (Astraios) The Titan god of the stars. He was father of the planets and the four seasonal winds by Eos the dawn.

ASTRA PLANETI (Astra Planetoi) The gods of the five wandering-stars or planets. The leader of these was bright Eosphoros, the god of the dawn-star Venus. The other four were Pyroeis (star Mars), Phaenon (star Saturn), Phaethon (star Jupiter) and Stilbon (star Mercury).

ASTROTHESIAE (Astrothesiai) The spirits or living forms of the heavenly constellations. They were mostly heroes and creatures who were placed amongst the stars by the gods as reward for some service or, in a handful of cases, as a memorial of their crimes.

ATLAS A Titan condemned by Zeus to hold the sky aloft upon his shoulders and turn it upon its axis. Homer in the Odyssey seems to suggest that he was released from this labour and appointed keeper of the pillars of heaven, presumably the ones erected by Heracles at the ends of the earth.

AURA The Titan goddess of the breeze.

AURAE (Aurai) The nymphs of the breezes.

BOREAS The god of the north wind whose wintry breath brought the cold of winter. He dwelt in a cave in the mountains of the far northern land of Thrace.

CHAOS (Khaos) The primeval goddess of the gap between heaven and earth. She was the air which men breathed. Below Chaos her lay the flat body of the earth, and above the shining mists of the protogenos Aether. Chaos was the mother of Darkness and Night and of the birds.

CHIONE (Khione) The goddess of snow. She was daughter a daughter of Boreas, god of the wintry north wind.

CHRONOS The old god of time who turned the wheel of the heavenly constellations. He was sometimes equated with Cronus, the father of Zeus.

CYCLOPES (Kyklopes) Three giant sons of Uranus (Heaven) who forged the lightning and thunder of Zeus. Their three brothers, the Hecatoncheires, were the gods of violent storms.

EOS The winged goddess of the dawn. She heralded the rising of the sun with her rosy brilliance.

EOSPHORUS (Eosphoros) The god of the dawn-star (the star Venus) seen in the morning skies. He was originally regarded as being distinct from Hesperus, the god of the evening star.

EURUS (Euros) The god of the east wind and herald of the autumn season.

HARPYIAE (Harpyiai) Daemones of whirlwinds and storm gusts. They were known as the hounds of Zeus and blamed for the dissappearance of people without a trace.

HECATONCHEIRES (Hekatonkheires) Three hundred-armed, fifty-headed giants. They were the gods of violent storms which they released from the gates of Tartarus.

HELIUS (Helios) The god of the sun whose orb was he wore upon his head as a bright aureole crown. Helios drove a fiery chariot drawn by four winged steeds.

HEMERA The primeval goddess of the day. In the early morn she scattered the mists of her mother Nyx (Lady Night), to reveal the shining light of Aether, the blue sky.

HERA The Queen of Heaven and goddess of the air and starry constellations. The Milky Way was spilt from her breast and most of the other constellations placed in the heavens at her command.

HERSE The goddess of the morning dew.

HESPERIDES The goddesses of sunsets. The three Hesperides tended the tree of the golden apples on Erythea, the Red Isle, in the western stream of the river Oceanus. The apples were a wedding present from Gaea to the sky-gods Zeus and Hera. They were the source of the golden light of sunset, created to celebrate the nuptials of the sky-gods.

ASTRAPE (LIGHTNING)

HESPERUS (Hesperos) The god of the evening star (the planet Venus). He was originally distinct from his stellar counterpart Eosphorus, the dawn-star.

HORAE (1) (Horai) Three goddesses of the seasons and the ordering of time named Eirene, Eunomia and Dike. They directed the constellations and guiding the Sun in his heavenly course.

HORAE (2) (Horai) The goddesses of the twelve hours of the day. They were originally the same as the first three mentioned above.

HYADES Nymphs of the five stars of the constellation Hyades. They were daughters of the Titan Atlas. Their rising marked the start of the rainy month of spring.

IRIS The goddess of the rainbow. She was the divine messenger of the Olympian gods.

MENAE The nymphs of the fifty new moons of the Olympiad (a period of four years). Fifty moons were significant because this number marked the conjunction of solar and lunar calendars. The goddesses themselves were daughters of the moon-goddess Selene.

NEPHELAE (Nephelai) The nymphs of the clouds. They were daughters of the earth-encircling, river Oceanus from whose waters they drew the rain.

NOTUS (Notos) The god of the wet and stormy south wind who heralded the month of summer.

NYX The primeval goddess of night. In the evening Nyx drew her curtain of dark mists across the sky, cloaking the light of her son Aether, the shining blue sky. In the morn, her daughter Hemera (the goddess Day) lifted the dark mantle.

OCEANIDES (Okeanides)The daughters of the earth-encircling river Oceanus. Some of these were nymphs of clouds (Nephelae) and moistening breezes (Aurae).

OREITHYIA The goddess of cold, gusty mountain winds. She was the wife of Boreas, the wintry north wind, and the mother of Chione, snow.

PLEIADES The nymphs of the seven stars of the constellation Pleiades. They were daughters of the Titan Atlas whose rising and setting were of key importance in the agricultural calendar.

SELENE The goddess of the moon. She rode across the sky on the back of a bull, an ass, or in chariot drawn by winged horses. The moon itself was her crown or billowing veil.

URANUS (Ouranos) The primeval god whose body formed the solid dome of heaven. The Greeks imagined him as a bronze-bodied, star-spangled god whose hands rested upon the earth in the farthest east and feet in the farthest west. He was similar in form to the Egyptian goddess Nut whose starry arching form is common in art. Uranus was a eunuch god, having been castrated by Cronus at the beginning of time.

ZEPHRYUS (Zephyros) The god of the gentle west wind and the herald of spring. He was the husband of Chloris, the goddess of flowers, and the father of Carpus, fruits.

ZEUS The King of the Gods and the ruler of the heavens. He was the god of clouds, rain, thunder and lightning.

ZODIAC (Zodiakos) The spirits of the twelve constellations of the zodiac circled heaven measuring the seasons of the year.

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