The Mythology Book

56

ATHENA PRESENTS

THE OLIVE TREE,

POSEIDON THE WAVE

THE FOUNDING OF ATHENS

T

he Homeric Hymn to

Athena begins with

the words, “Of Athena,

guardian of the city, I sing.” No

other Greek deity was so closely

identified with a particular location,

nor does any other location loom so

large in our modern-day perceptions

of Greek culture. When we think

of ancient Greece—its literature,

its art, its democracy—we are

thinking largely of ancient Athens.

The mythological associations of

Athens with the goddess of wisdom

are reflected in its reputation as

a cultural and intellectual haven

full of philosophers, artists, and

playwrights. This dazzling legacy

arose from the solid foundations

The Parthenon (“Temple of the

Virgin Goddess”) was built at the

top of the Acropolis of Athens in the

mid-5th century bce. It replaced an

earlier temple dedicated to Athena.

IN BRIEF

THEME

Origins of the state

SOURCES

Homeric Hymns, Anonymous,

ca. 600 bce; Library, Pseudo-

Apollodorus, ca. 10 0 ce;

Description of Greece,

Pausanias, ca. 150 ce.

SETTING

Athens, Greece.

KEY FIGURES

Athena Goddess of wisdom

and patron deity of Athens.

Hephaestus The god of

blacksmiths and craftworkers;

father of Erichthonius.

Erichthonius Founder of the

city of Athens.

Poseidon God of the seas and

contender for patron of Athens.

Cecrops First king of Athens.

of trade and industry, as the

prosperity, confidence, and

technical expertise of its people

came together to make the city

grow and prosper.

Work and pleasure

One foundation myth makes

this connection between beauty

and technology explicit, linking

the beginnings of Athens with

the craftsman-god Hephaestus.

Lame and ugly though he was,

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ANCIENT GREECE 57

Athena and Poseidon’s contest

is depicted on an amphora created

by the Amasis Painter, ca.540 bce. The

signature between the two gods reads

Amasis mepoiesen (“Amasis made me”).

See also: The Olympian gods 24–31 ■ The many affairs of Zeus 42–47 ■ Cupid and Psyche 112–13 ■

Arachne and the spider 115

Poseidon produces a spring.

His spring water is salty

and undrinkable.

King Cecrops rules that the god who presents the

best gift to the city will become its patron deity.

King Cecrops names the city Athens.

Athena plants an olive tree.

Her tree provides the people

with food, oil, and wood.

Athena wins.

Hephaestus was married to the

lovely Aphrodite. This union was

symbolically suggestive of the

marriage of utility and beauty,

of work and pleasure, that was

prevalent in Greek culture.

However, in common with other

Olympian marriages, their union

also featured frequent infidelities.

A son is born

At one point, Aphrodite deserted

her husband entirely for the

war god, Ares. After she left,

Hephaestus fell passionately in

love with Athena, then pursued

her and attempted to rape her.

Athena put up a furious

resistance and pushed Hephaestus

away just as he ejaculated. His

semen struck Athena’s thigh,

and she brushed it off disdainfully.

It landed in the Greek soil, and

there produced a new life; in

some retellings, this offspring

was Erichthonius (“born of the

very soil”), who would go on

to found the city of Athens.

By land and sea

Athena played a central role in

another of the city’s foundation

myths. When Erichthonius was

establishing his community on

the coast of Attica, he called on the

gods for a divine patron to come

forward. With Athena and Poseidon

both eagerly desiring the role, a

contest was arranged to see what

each deity could offer the future

city and its people. Its victor would

be decided—fittingly, for the

birthplace of democracy—by vote.

In the contest, Poseidon shook

the earth, smiting it with his

trident and making a vast wave

come rolling forth. This was a

bounteous spring—but its waters

were salty. In response, Athena

poked the ground, which produced

an olive tree, laden with abundant

and valuable fruit. The goddess of

wisdom was confirmed by Cecrops,

king of the city, as the people’s

choice for patron. However,

Poseidon’s gift ensured that the

seaport status of Athens became as

important to its prosperity as its

fertile fields and groves. “Look

kindly on those who make their

way in ships,” says the Homeric

Hymn to Poseidon. The sea god

remained in the city’s prayers. ■

The Athenians

are far more

devoted to religion

than other men.

Description of Greece

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