Poseidon
and the Sea Gods

Poseidon and Amphitrite, riding in a chariot


POSEIDON:
  • -son of KRONOS (Saturn) and RHE(I)A
  • -brother of ZEUS, HADES, HESTIA, DEMETER and HERA
  • -husband of AMPHITRITE (daughter of DORIS, an Oceanid, and NEREUS); she is a `Nereid' and thus sister of Thetis (Achilles' mother).


FAVORITE RESIDENCES:
  • -AEGAE (Aigai) a town on the northern shore of the Peloponnesus, on the Corinthian Gulf (aigos means 'goat'; cf. Aegean Sea and Aegeus, father of Theseus.)

  • -CORINTH, not on the acropolis of Corinth, but on the Isthmus, where an international festival in honor of Poseidon was founded in 573 B.C. in competition with Olympia (776 B.C.) and Delphi (582 B.C.). The people of Nemea in the territory of Argos had the same idea in the same year, the Nemean Games in honor of Zeus; and the Athenians followed suit with the Great Panathenaic Festival (566 B.C.). The Greek Government Archaeological Service has WWW pages for the Museums of Corinth, The Isthmus, and Nemea, as well as for the archaeological sites: click Museums of Corinth, The Isthmus, and Nemea to begin a visit.

  • -ATHENS, a large temple survives at the southern tip of Athenian territory at SOUNION. In the sea off Sounion was found the famous full-size nude statue of Zeus-hurling-a-thunderbolt, or maybe Poseidon-hurling-a-trident


Remains of the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion

The Temple of Poseidon at Sounion (Attica)


COMPETITION FOR PRESTIGE:
  • -with ATHENA for ATHENS (olive/salt spring)
  • -with HERA for ARGOS
  • -with HELIOS for CORINTH (Helios got the Acropolis)
  • -with ATHENA for TROEZEN (Theseus' home town)


Acrocorinth, the acropolis of Corinth

The Acrocorinth



Couplings:
Poseidon's friend: Form of coupling: The Offspring thereof:
DEMETERhorseDespoina ('mistress'), Arion
MEDUSAbirdPEGASUS & Chrysaor
TheophaneramRam of the Golden Fleece
Canacebull
Melanthodolphin
TritonisATHENA (!)
LibyaLelex, Belus, Agenor
Thoosa (Nereid)POLYPHEMUS
AITHRATHESEUS



The Erechtheum, Acropolis, Athens
View of the west front, the North Porch at the left

Erechtheum, west front

Erechtheum, east front


Back to the Handouts List .

Back to Prof. Adams' Home Page.

 

 

December 12, 2006 10:39 AM

John Paul Adams, CSUN
john.p.adams@csun.edu

Valid HTML 4.01 Transitional
Valid CSS!