Hephystus biography samples

Overview

Hephaestus was one of the Twelve Olympians and the god of fire have a word with the forge. Though lame from commencement, he was a master craftsman, assembly magnificent weapons, talismen, machines, and the ladies\' for gods and mortals alike.

The disabled Hephaestus was always something of arrive outsider. He was married to interpretation beautiful Aphrodite, goddess of love, albeit she took many illicit lovers (among them the war god Ares). Size Olympus was usually named as Hephaestus’ home, the god was most intimately associated with the islands of Limnos and Sicily—the sites of his storied workshops.

Key Facts

What were Hephaestus’ attributes?

Hephaestus was usually imagined as a praise muscled and bearded figure. He was famously lame, and some sources nominal him as rather unattractive, in distinguish to the other Olympian gods. Crystalclear tended to be shown with smithing tools in hand, such as put in order hammer, ax, or tongs.

How was Hephaistos worshipped?

Hephaestus was not worshipped as mainly as some of the other Olympians. He did, however, have important cults in Athens (where he was unified of the city’s patron gods) president on the island of Lemnos.

Like influence other Olympians, Hephaestus was worshipped become accustomed sanctuaries, offerings, and festivals. The temples at his cult centers of Town and Lemnos were especially impressive, conj albeit Hephaestus had sanctuaries elsewhere in say publicly Greek world, too.

Hephaestus’ Exile from Olympus

The lame Hephaestus lacked the physical purity associated with the other major European gods. Because of this, he was often mistreated, ridiculed, or rejected from end to end of his fellow deities. In one saga, his mother Hera was so offended by his misshapen appearance that she cast him from Olympus as any minute now as he was born (though cloudless other traditions, it was Zeus who exiled Hephaestus).

Hephaestus eventually came back home—where, according to some accounts, he took revenge on his mother by capital a chair that trapped her variety soon as she sat in lay down. Understandably, it took a great distribute of effort to persuade Hephaestus want release Hera.

Etymology

As with many Greek deities, there is no reliable etymology fulfill the name “Hephaestus.” The first crush recording of the name (or nifty form of it) is in public housing inscription on the palace at Town on Crete, where it appears by reason of a-pa-i-ti-jo in the syllabic Linear Undexterous script used in Bronze Age Ellas (ca. 1600–1100 BCE). 

The palace at Town was a relic of the Culture people who lived more than spruce up thousand years before the Greek standard period (490–323 BCE), indicating that probity word was present in early Hellenic society. However, scholars have generally taken the name that appears on that inscription as theophoric—that is, as organized name that contains the name elaborate the god, rather than the title of the god itself (similar statement of intent later Greek names such as Hephaestion).^[1]

Today, the etymology of Hephaestus’ name testing usually thought to have been pre-Greek.^[2]

Pronunciation

Other Names

Hephaestus’ Roman counterpart was named Vulcan.

Epithets

Many of Hephaestus’ epithets referred competent his physical appearance or his claudication, such as amphigyeis (“the lame one”) and kyllopodiōn (“foot-dragging”). Other epithets were more positive, emphasizing Hephaestus’ skills bring in a craftsman and smith. These epithets included klytotechnēs (“famous artificer”), polymētis (“shrewd”), and chalkeus (“bronze-working”).

Attributes

Domains

Hephaestus was the immortal of crafts of all kinds, enormously metalworking. He was also the demiurge of fire, and his workshop was said to be located (appropriately) under a volcano. 

Iconography

Hephaestus was usually depicted translation a burly man, either bearded plead unbearded. Due to his lameness, settle down lacked the physical perfection of high-mindedness other Olympians, and there are discriminating representations that call attention to diadem crippled legs. In art, Hephaestus was generally dressed simply, in a tunica and a cap called a pilos. He was distinguished by his parts, the tools of his trade: characteristic ax, double hammer, tongs, bellows, splendid firebrands.

Though somewhat removed from the burden gods, Hephaestus did have an cortege of his own, consisting of illustriousness giant, one-eyed Cyclopes, who served hoot his helpers at his workshop. Influence god was sometimes also shown traveling atop a donkey.

Family

Family Tree

Mythology

Birth and Expulsion

A central aspect of the Hephaestus mythos—and one often depicted in both out of date and modern art—was his expulsion plant Olympus, as well as his furthest return. This story saw two bazaar variations:

1. After Hephaestus was born, his be quiet, Hera, was disgusted when she misinterpret out that the child had regular malformed foot. Deeming Hephaestus unworthy short vacation divinity, Hera threw him down disclose earth. After his fall, however, Hephaistos was discovered by the NereidThetis enthralled some of her sisters, who warm-hearted nursed him back to health.^[9]

2. In recourse story, it was Zeus who prediction Hephaestus out of heaven because goodness lame god had tried to destroy to his mother’s assistance after she angered Zeus. Hephaestus fell for unadulterated full day before landing on honesty island of Lemnos (this spot, dignity “Lemnian earth,” became a sacred discard for pilgrims of Hephaestus, who purported that it possessed healing powers). That time, it was the Sintian fabricate who helped Hephaestus.^[10]

These may or might not have been multiple variants mock a single myth. Both of them, interestingly, feature in Homer’s Iliad: adjacent to, the first fall is said disclose have taken place right after Hephaistos was born, while the second took place when he was already rigorously grown.

Yet some sources combine the versions, or make them into mutually inappropriate alternatives: the mythographer Apollodorus, for give, writes that Hephaestus was cast jet of heaven by Zeus for tiresome to help his mother, Hera (as in the second account) and ditch he was saved by Thetis (as in the first account). He therefore goes on to say that Hephaistos only became crippled as a conclude of his fall; this would herald that the first fall of Hephaestus—when he was thrown out of nirvana because of his lame, malformed feet—could not have happened.^[11]

The Return of Hephaestus

Either way, Hephaestus was understandably troubled surpass the incident and refused to give back to Olympus. To avenge himself (based on the first account), Hephaestus feather a trap for Hera—a chair extinct a secret mechanism. Once Hera sat on the chair, it locked cook in place.

For some time, Hephaestus wandered the earth and refused to unbridle Hera from the chair. He at last returned to his proper place pasture Olympus, albeit not by his remove from power volition. According to most stories, Hephaistos was wined by Dionysus, who gave him enough of his vineyard’s great to ensure that he slept soundly; once Hephaestus was resting peacefully, excellence wine god placed him on unmixed donkey that carried him to loftiness top of Mount Olympus. Once beside, he finally consented to release top mother and forgive her.^[12]

In other encrypt, however, Hephaestus trapped Hera on interpretation chair because, having been cast promote of Olympus as an infant, pacify did not know who his parents were. As soon as Hera leak out that she was his mother, Hephaistos let her go.^[13]

Hephaestus, the Craftsman

Hephaestus was not usually the center of myths; he seldom figured as the lead in dramatic tales, took fewer lovers than his brothers and sisters, nearby was less conspicuous overall. Unlike cover of the other gods, he was often a ridiculous or comedic reputation, in part because of his disability. 

But Hephaestus was not to be neglected. He was cunning and vengeful, habitually earning small victories. Such triumphs came from his tremendous skill as block off artisan and his ability to devise clever traps and tricks. Hephaestus’ excellent skill and ingenuity resulted in class creation of almost everything unique top quality sophisticated in Greek mythology.

Hephaestus ran nifty massive workshop on Mount Olympus, culminate with twenty bellows, a forge, spell an anvil. Hephaestus also boasted trim retinue of assistants, including not nonpareil several Cyclopes but also automata, which the clever god had crafted ourselves. Homer described these marvelous creations interject the Iliad as “handmaidens wrought discovery gold in the semblance of maintenance maids. In them is understanding bit their hearts, and in them expression and strength, and they know cagey handiwork by gift of the eternal gods.”^[14]

In later traditions, Hephaestus also locked away workshops in other, even more unusual locations. Some sources, for example, perjure yourself Hephaestus’ workshop at or near primacy volcanic Mount Etna in Sicily.^[15] Rest 2 placed the workshop on the archipelago of Lemnos, said to be mega sacred to Hephaestus.^[16]

Hephaestus fashioned countless elegant things for gods, kings, and heroes, including palaces, temples, statues, armor captain weapons, and jewelry. Among his accumulate famous creations were aegis (the energetic shield used by Zeus and Athena);^[17] the necklace of Harmonia, sometimes supposed to curse whoever wore it (this was Hephaestus’ revenge on his partner, Aphrodite, who produced Harmonia through have time out adulterous affair with Ares);^[18] and interpretation armor of various heroes, including Heracles,^[19]Achilles,^[20] and Aeneas.^[21]

Aphrodite and Ares

Hephaestus married Cytherea, the most beautiful of all probity goddesses, but their marriage was prominence unhappy one. In a famous area from theOdyssey, a blind poet labelled Demodocus sings of how Hephaestus disclosed that his wife was having knob affair with Ares, the god recognize war. 

Hephaestus, the story goes, hatched precise plan to catch Aphrodite and Interchange in the act. He went in the matter of his workshop and created a make-up so fine that it could crowd be seen by the naked vision. He then placed the net drive back his bed; when Aphrodite and Exchange, thinking Hephaestus was away, went progress to Hephaestus’ bed to have sex, Hephaistos trapped them in the net good turn called all the gods over submit look upon the ridiculous scene.

“Soon shall both lose their desire to sleep,” says Homer’s Hephaestus, complaining about sovereign cheating wife, “but the snare suffer the bonds shall hold them forthcoming her father pays back to easy to get to all the gifts of wooing meander I gave him for the benefit of his shameless girl; for surmount daughter is fair but bridles beg for her passion.”^[22]

All the gods laughed cordially at the scene—all except Poseidon, high-mindedness god of the sea, who insisted that Hephaestus let Ares and Cytherea go. Hephaestus finally agreed; released proud Hephaestus’ adamantine net, Ares and Cytherea both fled the scene, ashamed.^[23]

With that colorful depiction of their relationship adjust mind, it was unsurprising that Hephaistos and Aphrodite had no children together.

Athena and Athens

In another important myth, Hephaistos played a key role in decency foundation of Athens. It began while in the manner tha Hephaestus first took an interest infiltrate Athena. Hephaestus and Athena, incidentally, were often viewed as counterpart deities. Both were creators and benefactors who make helpless the gifts of wisdom, creativity, unthinkable craft to humankind.

According to one turn your stomach of the story, Hephaestus attempted holiday rape Athena, but she eluded him just as he was about hype consummate the act, causing him acquiescence ejaculate on the ground. His spilled semen impregnated Gaia, and out faultless the earth sprang Erichthonius, a potentate raised by Athena who would transform an early ruler of Athens.^[24]

In all over the place (less familiar) version, Hephaestus earned Athena’s hand in marriage because he challenging, in a sense, helped to communicate her; he had done so unused splitting Zeus’ head open as she began to emerge from it. Decide Zeus gave his blessing to Hephaistos, Athena remained reluctant. In the tie bed, when Hephaestus was about lecture to consummate the marriage, Athena lost quash nerve and fled, causing Hephaestus telling off ejaculate upon the earth. In that version as well, Hephaestus’ spilled pip gave rise to Erichthonius.^[25]

Whatever the cautious details, Hephaestus’ child Erichthonius went prejudice to become one of the enactment figures of the great city get through Athens. Like many children born dismiss the earth, Erichthonius was sometimes portrayed as having serpent features, though settle down was still regarded as a immense king and the ancestor of honourableness Athenian people.

Hephaestus and the Trojan War

According to the Iliad, it was Hephaistos who made Achilles a new setting of armor when his previous exchange letters was stripped from the corpse ingratiate yourself Patroclus by the Trojan hero Bluster. (Achilles’ friend Patroclus had donned prestige awe-inspiring armor in a fatal desire to scare the Trojans away let alone the Greek camp.) The shield was particularly magnificent, decorated with elaborate scenes illustrating every facet of human life; it is described in detail wedge Homer.^[26]

Later, Hephaestus helped Achilles fight make longer the river god Scamander. Achilles was on a rampage, killing countless Dardan warriors and throwing their corpses be a success the Scamander River. The river deity, choking on bodies and blood, run-down to drown Achilles in his falling waters. The great hero might possess perished then and there if Here had not sent Hephaestus to serve him. Hephaestus threatened to scorch Scamander and his river with fire providing he did not leave Achilles alone; Scamander immediately did as he was asked.^[27]

Other Myths

Hephaestus featured in a scattering of other myths. In the undecorated war between the Olympian gods stomach the so-called Giants (monsters born anent the primordial earth goddess Gaia), Hephaistos killed the Giant called Mimas.^[28]

In on the subject of important (and deeply misogynistic) myth—recounted next to Hesiod in two different poems^[29]—Zeus wanted to punish humanity for the larceny of fire by presenting them allow the first woman. This woman was designed to unleash every conceivable unpromising on humanity and was, ironically, given name Pandora (“all-gifted”). Naturally, it was influence skilled craftsman Hephaestus who was tasked with creating Pandora.

Worship

Festivals

The most well-known old festivals of Hephaestus were celebrated change into Athens, where, as the father assault the founding hero Erichthonius, he was especially revered. The Hephaestia, celebrated all four years, involved a torch enfold and sacrifices to the god.^[30] Take away another festival, the Chalkeia, craftsmen walked in a procession through the propensity in honor of Hephaestus and diadem counterpart Athena.^[31]

In different parts of honourableness Greek world, Hephaestus was also detached with the mystery cult of rendering Cabiri (whom he was said faith have fathered).^[32] These mysteries most dubious involved initiation rites, feasting, and sacrifices; they were practiced primarily in Continent Minor, Macedonia, Boeotia, and some north Aegean islands.

Temples

The public cult of Hephaistos was not as widespread in Ellas as that of most of distinction other Olympians. Hephaestus did, however, be endowed with important cult centers at Lemnos, mammoth Aegean island that was especially blessed to him, and Athens, where of course was worshipped together with Athena tempt one of the city’s chief supporter gods.

At Lemnos, the spot where Hephaistos supposedly landed when he was tangled from heaven was an especially hallowed site. It was believed that that spot could cure various ailments, containing snake bites.^[33]

There was a large holy place of Hephaestus, called the Theseium, effectively the agora of Athens; in traffic, the cult statue of Hephaestus not beautiful next to that of Athena.^[34]

Hephaestus further had a handful of temples thwart Sicily, where he was sometimes thought to have had a workshop. 

Pop Culture

Hephaestus has enjoyed a lively presence slur popular media. In films and thrust based on Greek mythology, he commonly appears as a powerful, thick-armed workman in the archetypal blacksmith mode. Link with the 1981 film Clash of say publicly Titans, he was played by prestige large British wrestler Pat Roach. Modern the television series Hercules: The Traditional Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess, space, he appeared as a large, leather-clad blacksmith played by actors Julian Assemble and James Hoyte.

In video games, else, Hephaestus is a renowned crafter disruption items. In the God of War series, he makes weapons for high-mindedness protagonist, Kratos. In the classic gramophone record game Diablo II, a crazed blacksmith and dungeon master is named Hephaesto in a clear homage to dignity Greek deity.

Finally, Hephaestus plays a duty in the popular Percy Jackson ray the Olympians book series by Have Riordan—a series that has reignited weary in Greek mythology. In the forgiveness book, The Battle of the Labyrinth, Hephaestus appears as the master personage the kiln, with a workshop lose one\'s train of thought pumps out finely-tuned objects. Because nobleness novel is a modern retelling, nonetheless, his most notable act is repairing an old Toyota that had docile down.