Modern Artwork on The Nine Muses.
The Nine Muses are the daughters of Zeus, King of the Gods and Mnemosyne, Titan goddess of Memory. They are Goddesses of literature, science, the arts, memory and creative inspiration in Greek Mythology.
Members[]
Calliope, the eldest and leader of The Nine Muses.
Calliope- Muse of Epic Poetry
The 2nd born Muse, Clio.
Clio- Muse of History
The third muse, Erato.
Erato- Muse of Love Poetry
Euterpe, the fourth.
Euterpe- Muse of Music, Song and Lyric Poetry
Melpomene, the fifth.
Melpomene- Muse of Tragedy
Polyhymnia the sixth Muse.
Polyhymnia- Muse of Hymns
.jpg){kind=link}
Terpischore, the seventh-born of the sisters
Terpsichore- Muse of Dance
.jpg){kind=link}
Thalia, the second youngest of The Nine Muses.
Thalia- Muse of Comedy and Idyllic Poetry
Urania, youngest of The Nine Muses.
Urania- Muse of Astronomy
Genealogy and Family[]
The Nine Muses are the daughters of the Olympian god, Zeus and Mnemosyne, a first generation Titaness. They have many half siblings, including Apollo, their leader who taught them on Mount Olympus.
Several of the Muses married or kept lovers and also bore children, such as :
Calliope, who became the mother of Linus and Orpheus by either King Oeagrus of Thrace or Apollo, depending on the account. Although Urania with Apollo or Terpsichore with Apollo have also been considered their parents in different accounts.
Clio who fell in love with Pierus, the son of the Thessalian Magnes and had a son, Hyacinthus, a demi-god.
Erato who was married to a mortal, Malus and had a daughter, Cleophema who was wed to King Phlegyas of the Lapiths, and had Ixion, one of the mortals most hated by the gods and Coronis, an unfaithful lover of Apollo, by whom Erato is the great-grandmother of Asclepius.
Euterpe, who had Rhesus, a mythical King of Thrace with her lover Strymon, a river god.
Polyhymnia who in some traditions was described as the mother of Triptolemus by Cheimarrhoos, son of Ares.
The Corybantes were also described to be the children of Zeus and Calliope or Apollo and Thalia.
Role and Significance[]
In Ancient Greece, The Nine Muses were believed to be a collection of goddesses of literature, science, memory and the arts, including poetry, theatre, song, dance and architecture. The Muses were also considered responsible for the invention of some instruments, for example, the Muse, Clio was credited as the inventor of the guitar and Euterpe was said to have made the double-flute. Each Muse had her own field of speciality too and were seen as inspirational figures.
The Ancient Greeks believed that the Muses could bless mortals with artistic gifts, beautify their songs, add grace to their dances, and provide healing and comfort to the sick and heartbroken, but could also be resentful toward any mortal who did not believe in their artistic powers. Overall, the Ancient Greeks believed that with the muses, they could achieve great things
The nine goddesses had a number of temples and shrines in ancient Greece with their two main cult centres being Mount Helikon in Boiotia and Pieria in Makedonia. The Castalian Spring near Delphi was considered sacred to them.
Stories[]
The Nine Muses were conceived in nine days and would be birthed nine months later by Mnemosyne, however another account proclaimed that they emerged from the four sacred springs that flowed on Helicon after Pegasus, the winged horse, stamped his hooves on the ground, also making them water nymphs and that Athena would later hand the Pegasus to them.
The Muses lived on the summits of Mounts Helicon, Parnassus, Pindus, or Olympus. They haunted the wells, springs and fountains of these rocky summits, which were sacred to them and to poetic inspiration.
The sisters were lead and taught by their elder half brother, Apollo, an Olympian god of the sun, healing, music, poetry and much more, who helped them develop their talents.
In one myth, the Muses judged a contest between Apollo and Marsyas. They also gathered the pieces of the dead body of Orpheus, son of Calliope, and buried them in Leivithra. In a later myth, Thamyris challenged them to a singing contest. They won and punished Thamyris by blinding him and robbing him of his singing ability.
According to a myth from Ovid's Metamorphoses—alluding to the connection of Pieria with the Muses—Pierus, king of Macedon, had nine daughters he named after the nine Muses, believing that their skills were a great match to the Muses. He thus challenged the Muses to a match, resulting in his daughters, the Pierides, being turned into chattering jays (with κίσσα often erroneously translated as 'magpies') for their presumption.
Powers and Abilities[]
The Nine Muses, each have eternal youth, immortality and perfect health. They are immune to tiredness, old age, illnesses and disorders.
They are highly knowledgeable including in science and have unrivalled talent in the arts, including architecture ,music, poetry and theatre and can bless mortals with artistic gifts, help and assist them in their creative endeavours and even bring healing and comfort to sick and heartbroken people.
Titles and Epithets[]
The Nine Muses were given many different epithets, which were often based on where they settled, such as: Aganippides, Aonides, Camenae, Castaliae, Libethrides, Mnemonides, Pimpleae or Pimpleides, Ilisides, Meones, Pegasides, Pierides, Ardalides, Cytherides, Ianthiae, Partheniai and also Olympians, Parnassians, Thespians, Heliconians, Winged, Lydians.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
In Greek they are known as Mousai.
Sources[]
https://greekgodsandgoddesses.net/goddesses/melpomene/ October 21, 2019
http://www.bo.astro.it/~biblio/Vultus-Uraniae/attributes.html