Monsters and Creatures | greekmythology

25 Most Legendary Creatures From Greek Mythology

The Calydonian Boar was a monster in Greek mythology that existed during the Olympian Age. It was sent by goddess Artemis to destroy the region of Calydon, which was in the central-west part of Greece.

Every year, Oeneus, the king of the region, would make sacrifices to the gods, offering them a percentage of the harvest. It all started when one year, he forgot to make a sacrifice to the goddess of the hunt, Artemis, who was infuriated. To punish him and his people, Artemis sent a boar of monstrous size that caused devastation in the surrounding area. To save themselves from the beast, the people sought refuge inside the city walls, but soon hunger made its appearance.

Oeneus sent a message all over Greece asking for help to kill the boar, and giving its pelt and tusk in return. A few brave men answered Oeneus' call, including his son Meleager, as well as a fearless woman, Atalanta. In fact, it was her that caused the first blow to the beast, driving an arrow through its skin, and thus triggering its eventual death. Meleager, who had fallen in love with Atalanta, said that she should get the pelt of the boar, but his uncles, who also participated in the Hunt, protested. The prince, furious, slew them and offered it to Atalanta. When his mother learned what had happened, she burned the final brand that she had tucked away after the Fates had told her it would mean the death of her son, causing Meleager's demise. As a result, Artemis managed to get her revenge from King Oeneus.

Calydonian Boar Is also called Calydonian Boar Hunt, Aetolian Boar.

Campe was a chtonic female dragon (drakaina) in Greek mythology. She was also called Nymph of Tartarus, and was responsible for keeping the Hekatonkheires and the Cyclopes locked in Tartarus. She was the female counterpart of Typhon.

Campe had the head and upper body of a beautiful woman, the lower body of a dragon, and the venomous tail of a scorpion. She also had snakes coiled around her ankles and the heads of various beasts in her waist. After the Hecatonkheires and the Cyclopes were imprisoned by Uranus and he was overthrown by his son Cronus, the new king of the gods decided to keep them in Tartarus rather than free them. So, Cronus gave Campe the task of guarding them and making sure they do not escape from their prison. However, when the Olympiansstarted their fight against the Titans, Zeus slew the dragon in order to free the Cyclopes who helped him in his battle.

Campe by Ropen 7789

Cetus signified a large sea monster, fish or whale in Greek mythology. The sea monsters that the heroes Perseus and Heracleskilled during their adventures were also described with the word cetus. The cetus that is mentioned in the story of Perseus is probably the better known one. It all happened when Cassiopeia, queen of Aethiopia, boasted that her daughter Andromedasurpassed the Nereid nymphs in beauty. Poseidon was infuriated by the insolence of the mortal woman, and sent a sea monster named Cetus to destroy the shores of the region. Cassiopeia and her husband Cepheus asked the advice of an oracle that told them they should sacrifice their daughter to the monster, in order to appease the god. The royal couple agreed and had their daughter chained to a rock next to the sea. Just before Cetus attacked her, Perseus appeared and learned of what was about to happen. He freed Andromeda and either slew the monster with his sword, or used Medusa's head to turn it to stone.

Charybdis was a sea monster in Greek mythology, which dwelt in the Strait of Messina. It was later rationalised as a whirlpool.

It was believed that Charybdis lived under a rock on one side of the strait. Opposite Charybdis, Ancient Greeks believed there was another sea monster, Scylla, which lived inside a rock. Since the passage between the two monsters was very narrow, sailors who tried to avoid one sea monster would unavoidable get into reach of the other. Charybdis swallowed large amounts of water and then belched them out, creating large whirlpools that resulted in the destruction of passing ships. Charybdis was considered the offspring of Poseidon and Gaea, serving her father and helping him in his quarrel against Zeus. Zeus became angry that Charybdis had flooded large areas of land with water, so he turned her into a monster that would eternally swallow sea water, creating whirlpools. Charybdis was mentioned in two myths, Homer's Odyssey and Jason and the Argonauts.

Geryon was a giant (not to be confused with the Gigantes) in Greek mythology, who lived on the island Erytheia of the Hesperides. He was the son of Chrysaor and Callirrhoe. He was often considered a monster with three heads and one body, while other sources describe him as having three bodies as well. He had a dog with two heads, Orthrus, which was the brother of Cerberus, guardian of the Underworld.

Geryon played a major role in the Labours of Heracles. The tenth labour of the hero was to take the cattle of Geryon and return them to Eurystheus. To reach Erytheia, Heracles had to cross the Libyan desert; at some point, he got so angry at the heat and the sun that he shot an arrow towards the sun. Helios, the Sun God, admired Heracles' courage, so he decided to offer him a golden cup with which he was able to sail across the sea and reach his destination.

As soon as he stepped foot on Erytheia, Orthrus tried to stop Heracles. A single blow with his club was enough to kill the dog. The same thing happened when Geryon's herdsman, Eurytion, tried to stop him. When Geryon heard what happened, he swiftly took his three shields, three spears and three helmets and went after Heracles. However, Heracles, having smeared the blood of the Lernaean Hydra on the tips of his arrows, shot an arrow against the giant and killed him by piercing through his skull. Thus died Geryon.

The Harpies were mythical monsters in Greek mythology, having the form of a bird and a human face. They carried evildoers to be punished by the Erinyes.

Zeus had given the gift of prophecy to King Phineus of Thrace, who used it to uncover the secret plan of the god. Angry, Zeus blinded him and put him on an island, where there was a lot of food; however, Phineus could not eat anything, because the Harpieswould steal his food before he could eat it. Years later, Jason and the Argonauts arrived at the island, managing to drive the Harpiesaway. The Harpies escaped to their cave in Crete, while Phineus helped the Argonauts by telling them how to pass the Symplegades rocks.

The Harpies were also seen as the personifications of the destructive winds. Initially, two harpies were mentioned; Aello (storm swift), and Ocypete (swift wing). Later, a third was added, named Celaeno (dark).

The Khalkotauroi were mythical creatures in Greek mythology, which were mentioned in the myth of Jason and the Argonauts.

They were two fearsome bulls which breathed fire; they were created by the god Hephaestus and were gifted to King Aeetes of Colchis. When Jason reached Colchis, Aeetes promised him the Golden Fleece if he could pass some trials. One of them was to yoke the Khalkotauroi and plough a field with them. He should then sow it with dragon's teeth. Medea, Aeetes' daughter, had fallen in love with Jason, and offered her assistance; she gave him a potion which protected him from the fires of the Khalkotauroi. He then yoked them and passed the task he was given.

Ladon was the name of a monster in Greek dragon, the guardian of the Golden Apples in the Garden of the Hesperides. Different characters have been named as his parents; these are Ceto and Phorcys; Typhon and Echidna; Gaea on her own; or Hera on her own. One source also mentions him as being the brother of the Nemean Lion.

During the Labours of Heracles, one of the tasks the demigod was given was to steal the golden apples from the Garden of the Hesperides, which was located somewhere in the western corner of the world. After traveling through the Libyan desert and getting assistance by the sun god Helios, Heracles eventually reached the Garden of the Hesperides. There, he killed Ladon, managed to retrieve the golden apples, and returned to Tiryns successfully completing his task. According to a different version of the story, Heracles never went to the Garden, and therefore, never killed the dragon. Instead, he met the father of the Hesperides, the Titan god Atlas, tricked him into retrieving the apples for him and completed the task.

The Lernaean hydrawas a monster in Greek mythology. It had many heads and every time someone would cut off one of them, two more heads would grow out of the stump. It was one of the offspring of Typhon and Echidna, the father and mother of all monsters respectively. It lived in the lake Lerna in the region of Argolid in the Peloponnese.

Eurystheus, king of Tiryns, sent the demigod Heracles to slay the Lernaean Hydra as the second of the set of labours that the hero had to complete, in order to redeem himself for killing his wife Megara and his children in a fit of madness. When Heracles reached the lake Lerna, he had to cover his nose and mouth with a cloth, in order to protect himself from poisonous gases that were emitted. After he managed to lure the monster out of its lair, Heracles quickly cut one of its heads off, only to realise in despair that two new heads had grown.

So, he decided to ask for the help of his nephew Iolaus, who thought of using fire to cauterise the stump as soon as the head is cut off. So, they made a plan; Heracles would cut off the heads and Iolaus would burn the wound with a firebrand. As a result, they both quickly started winning the battle. Hera, who had raised the monster specifically to kill Heracles, sent a giant crab in aid of the hydra. The hero, though, crushed it under his giant foot. The final head of the Hydra was immortal, and Heracles managed to destroy it by using a golden sword that the goddess Athena had offered him. Then, he dipped all of his arrows into the venomous blood of the hydra. This would later be the hero's demise, as the Shirt of Nessus which Heracles unknowingly wore was covered in the tainted blood, causing him unbearable pain.

Hera turned both of her dead monsters into constellations; Hydra became the constellation of the same name, while the crab turned into the constellation Cancer.

The Mares of Diomedes were four horses in Greek mythology that ate humans. They belonged to the giant Diomedes, king of Thrace, whose parents were Ares and Cyrene. The names of the mares were Podargos (swift), Lampon (shining), Xanthos (yellow) and Deinos (terrible).

Stealing the Mares of Diomedes was one of the tasks that were given to the demigod hero Heracles by King Eurystheus during the myth of the Labours of Heracles. Heracles did not know that the horses were wild and maddened because of their diet which consisted of human flesh. They were all kept harnessed to a bronze manger, while on some versions of the story, they breathed fire. According to one version, Heracles fought Diomedes while leaving his friend Abderus to take care of the horses. After killing their master, Heracles realised that his friend was eaten by the horses, so he fed them with Diomedes' body, in order to calm them. Another version has it that the hero managed to corner the horses on a peninsula; he then dug a trench and filled it with water, turning the peninsula into an island. When Diomedes arrived, Heracles killed him and fed him to the horses.

By feeding the horses with human flesh, they became calm, and Heracles managed to bring them to Eurystheus. One version has it that the horses had become permanently calm at that point, and were left to roam the countryside. Another version has it that Eurystheus sent them to Olympus as a sacrifice to Zeus, who refused them and sent wolves and lions to kill them.

The Minotaur was a monster in Greek mythology, half-bull and half-human. He lived in the Labyrinth, which expanded underneath the court of King Minos in Crete, and he was born from the union of Minos' wife Pasiphae with the Cretan Bull. This bull was sent as a gift from Poseidon to Minos, in order to support him in his struggle to become the ruler of Crete. However, Minos did not sacrifice the bull as he was meant to, but kept it. Poseidon was enraged and made Pasiphae fall in love with the bull. When the Minotaur was born, he would only eat humans as he was an unnatural creature. Minos asked for advice from the oracle of Delphi, and was told to create a labyrinth underneath his palace and put the Minotaur there. So, Minos asked his architect, the famous Daedalus, to construct this maze.

One day, the son of Minos, Androgeus, decided to participate in some games that were organised in Athens. In these games, he was killed by mistake. Minos, infuriated, attacked Athens and then demanded that fourteen young people from the city be sent annually to Crete as a sacrifice to the Minotaur. In a following year, Theseus, son of the king of Athens Aegeus, volunteered to go and kill the monster. When he arrived in Crete, Ariadne, daughter of Minos, fell in love with him, and offered him a sword, as well as a ball of thread. She told him to tie the thread near the entrance of the labyrinth and unroll it as he goes deeper, so that he could find the way out later. Theseus went in the labyrinth, managed to kill the Minotaur, and then found the way out.

The Nemean Lion was a legendary creature in Greek mythology that ravaged the area of Nemea. Its fur was impenetrable by the weapons of humans and hence, was unstoppable. It was considered to be the child of Typhon and Echidna, father and mother of all monsters. Other accounts mention Zeus and Seleneas its parents.

Slaying the Nemean Lion was the first task that King Eurystheusasked of the demigod Heracles during the myth of the Labours of Heracles. One version has it that the lion kidnapped women from Nemea and kept them in its lair, in order to lure warriors. When the brave warrior would see the woman, she would turn into a lion and kill him. Heracles reached a nearby city, where he met a young boy; the boy told him that if he killed the lion within thirty days, then a lion would be sacrificed to Zeus. Otherwise, the boy would sacrifice himself.

Heracles tracked down the lion and tried to kill it by shooting arrows. He realised though that it was no use because of its impenetrable fur. He then waited until the lion entered its lair from one of the two entrances. He then blocked off the second entrance, and entered the cave as well. There, he managed to kill the lion by strangling it with his bare hands. He then tried to remove the skin from the lion but his knife was unable to cut it. After a lot of effort, the goddess Athena decided to help him, and told him to use one of the lion's claws to skin the creature. Heracles emerged victorious on the thirtieth day after he had met the boy.

A sphinx was a mythical monster, which had the head of a human and the body of a lion. Sphinxes also appeared in Egyptian mythology; the two cultures had tight links and had considerably influenced each other.

In Greek mythology, the sphinx was considered to be a woman. One sphinx was only considered to exist in Greek mythology; she was the daughter of Orthus, and either Echidna or Chimera. Apart from the human head and the body of the lion, she also had the wings of an eagle and the tail of a serpent. According to the myth, she dwelt outside the city of Thebes, and asked a riddle to all travellers, in order to let them pass. The riddle she asked is a famous one; which is the creature that has one voice, but has four feet in the morning, two feet in the afternoon, and three feet at night? Anyone who struggled to answer was eaten by the monster. However, Oedipus managed to answer correctly; he replied "the man", who crawls on all fours as a baby, walks on two as an adult, and needs a walking cane when old.

It seems that there was a second riddle following the first; "there are two sisters; one gives birth the the other, who in turn gives birth to the first. Who are they?" The correct answer is "day and night", two words that are both feminine in the Greek language. After Oedipus correctly answered both questions, the Sphinx killed herself, either by throwing herself off the rock on which she rested, or by devouring herself. This seems to be the literary way in which the ancient Greeks transitioned from the old religious practices, represented by the Sphinx, to the new ones and the establishment of the Olympian deities, represented by Oedipus.

The Stymphalian birds were a group of monstrous birds in Greek mythology. They devoured humans, and had beaks made of bronze. Their feathers were sharp and metallic and could be thrown against their prey, while their dung was poisonous. They were created by the god of war, Ares, and were hunted down by wolves; to escape, the birds reached the lake Stymphalia in the Greek region of Arcadia, where they reproduced quickly and destroyed farmlands and the countryside.

Killing the Stymphalian birds was the sixth task that was appointed to the demigod hero Heracles during the myth of the Labours of Heracles. King Eurystheus asked him to kill the birds, hoping that the hero would fail. The land around the lake was a marsh and Heracles could not step safely there in order to reach the nests. So, the goddess Athena, wanting to help him, gave him a rattle that the blacksmith god Hephaestus had specifically made for this occasion. Heracles used the rattle and scared the birds which abandoned their nests and started flying. He then shot most of them down using arrows which he had previously dipped into the poisonous blood of the monster Hydra. The remaining birds flew away, abandoning Arcadia and reaching an island in the Euxine Sea. They were encountered later by the Argonauts.

Argus Panoptes or Argos was a hundred-eyed giant in Greek mythology. He was a giant, the son of Arestor, whose name "Panoptes" meant "the all-seeing one". He was a servant of Hera; one of the tasks that were given to him was to slay the fearsome monster Echidna, wife of Typhon, which he successfully completed. However, his main task, at Hera's request, was to guard Io, a nymph that Zeus was involved with. Zeus, in his efforts to approach Io, told Hermes to disguise himself as a shepherd and make Argus go to sleep. As soon as he fell asleep, Hermes killed him with a stone.

Centaurs are half-human, half-horse creatures in Greek mythology. They have the body of a horse and the torso, head and arms of a man. They were considered to be the children of Ixion, king of the Lapiths, and Nephele, a cloud made in the image of Hera. According to a different myth, however, they were all born from the union of a single Centaurus with the Magnesian mares.

One of the best known centaurs is Chiron or Cheiron, a wise centaur. Although most centaurs were depicted as lustful and wild, Chiron was a notable exception; modest and civilised, he was known for his medicinal skills and teaching abilities. He lived on Mount Pelion in Thessaly and was the tutor of a number of Greek mythical characters such as Achilles and Aesculapius. He was immortal; however, he was accidentally wounded by Heracles with an arrow treated with the blood of the monster Hydra, causing him insufferable pains. So, when Heracles asked his father to free Prometheus and Zeus demanded that someone must be sacrificed, Chiron volunteered and died, both to free Prometheus and himself from the pain.

The Ash Tree Nymphs or Meliae were created by the blood that fell on the earth when the Titan Cronus castrated his father Uranus, in his effort to overthrow him. Along with the Meliae, came out the Erinyes (the Furies) and the Giants. The mankind of the Age of Bronze originated from the Meliae. The honey-nymphs that nurtured and raised Zeus in Crete, Ida and Adrasteia, were called Meliai and probably belonged to this group of nymphs.

The Meliae were always invoked as a group, although in a few myths, some of them are given individual names. One of them was called Melia and was the mother of Io, Philodice, Inachus, and Aegialeus.

Arion was an immortal horse in Greek mythology, which was very fast and bred by the gods. According to a source, it also had the ability to speak. The various sources differ on how the horse was bred. Some say that it was foaled by the goddess Demeter after sleeping with Poseidon, while others that it was the goddess of Earth, Gaea, that gave birth to it. Its most notable owner was Adrastus, king of Argos. Arion is also mentioned in the myth of Heracles against the Eleans, in which the demigod took the stallion from Oncus. He then rode on Arion during the war, and gifted it to Adrastus afterwards. During the battle of the Seven Against Thebes, in which the brothers Eteocles and Polynices killed each other while vying for the Theban throne, Adrastus was the only attacker to survive thanks to Arion's intervention.

Cerberus was a three-headed dog that guarded the entrance of the Underworld, allowing the dead to enter but letting none out. He was the son of Typhon and Echidna. Apart from his three heads, he also had a serpent's tail, a mane of snakes and the claws of a lion.

Cerberus was the twelfth and final labour that was given to Heracles by King Eurystheus. Heracles had to capture the three-headed dog without using any weapons. After learning how the enter the Underworld, and assisted by some of the gods, he managed to go to the Underworld and find Hades to ask for his permission to take Cerberus to the surface. Hades agreed under the condition that Heraclesmust not use any weapons. Heracles eventually managed to overpower Cerberus and brought him to Eurystheus, successfully completing his twelve labours.

Ceryneain Hind by BreeAnn Veenstra

The Ceryneian Hind in Greek mythology was a huge female deer which lived in the region of Keryneia. It was a sacred animal to the goddess of the hunt Artemis. Although female, it had male-like antlers, which were made of gold, while its hooves were made of bronze. It had the ability to outrun a flying arrow.

Capturing the Ceryneian Hind was the third task that King Eurystheus asked the demigod hero Heracles to complete in the story of the Labours of Heracles. As the hind was unnaturally fast, he believed it would be impossible for the hero to catch. At the same time, he thought that catching the sacred animal would trigger the wrath of Artemis against Heracles and would kill him.

Heracles chased the hind for a whole year in various lands in and out of Greece. There are many versions of how he finally managed to capture it; one has it that he captured it while it slept after lightly hurting it using a trap net. Another version says that Artemis appeared in front of the hero and told him to leave the hind alone; he should then go back and tell Eurystheus what had happened and the task would be considered fulfilled. A different account says that Heracles captured the animal using an arrow between its legs.

After catching the animal and on his way to Eurystheus, Heracles came across Artemis and her twin brother Apollo. He begged Artemis for forgiveness and told her why he was forced to capture the animal. Artemis indeed accepted his apology and forgave him, as long as he would set the animal free. Heracles accepted. When he went to the court of Eurystheus, he found out that the king's plan was to add the animal to his personal menagerie. So, Heracles devised a plan. He said that Eurystheus himself should come to take the animal from him. The king started walking towards Heracles and the hind, but Heracles purposefully left the hind loose a moment too early; the deer escaped with its unnatural speed and went back to its goddess. Heracles then said that Eurystheus simply had not been fast enough.

Angry, Eurystheus told Heracles that the next task he should perform would be to catch the Erymanthian Boar.

The Chimaera was a hybrid monster in Greek mythology, child of Typhoeus and Echidna and sibling of Cerberus and the Lernaean Hydra. It had the head and body of a lion, as well as the head of a goat that was attached to its back, and a tail that ended on a head of a snake.

It resided in Lycia, a place in Asia Minor, where it ravaged the lands with its fire breath. It was killed by Bellerophon, assisted by Pegasus, when the former was asked by King Iobates of Lycia. Bellerophon rode on Pegasus' back, who could fly, and shot arrows at the Chimera from above.

The Cretan Bull was a bull that appeared in the myth of the Labours of Heracles, as well as the myth of the Minotaur, in Greek mythology. It was the creature that Pasiphae fell in love with, and became impregnated by, eventually giving birth to the Minotaur.

During the Labours of Heracles, King Eurystheus sent Heracles to capture the Cretan Bull and bring it back. The hero went to Creteand acquired permission by King Minos, who was happy to get rid of the animal that had destroyed the crops of the region. Heraclesmanaged to capture the animal with his bare hands, and sent it back to Eurystheus. The king was so afraid of the animal that he hid inside a large jar upon seeing it. He later said to sacrifice it to Hera, but the goddess refused, thinking it would give further glory to Heracles. Instead, Eurystheus let it loose, which reached Marathon and acquired the name Marathonian Bull.

Later, Theseus, son of the king of Athens Aegeus, set forth to capture the bull. He went to Marathon and indeed successfully caught it. He then returned to Athens where he sacrificed it to Athena or Apollo.

The Cyclopes (singular: Cyclops) were gigantic, one-eyed monsters. Probably the most famous of them is Polyphemus, the Cyclops that was blinded by Odysseus. The Cyclopes were generally considered the sons of Titans Uranus and Gaea, but according to Homer, Polyphemus was the son of Poseidon, and the other Cyclopes were his brothers. Based on their description, they were a wild race of gigantic growth, similar in nature to the earth-born Giants, and had a single eye in the middle of their foreheads. They led a lawless life, possessing neither social manners nor fear for the gods, and were the workmen of Hephaestus, whose workshop was supposed to be in the heart of the volcanic mountain Etna.

In this case, one may identify another striking instance of the manner in which the Greeks personified the powers of nature, which they saw in active operation around them. They observed the fire, rocks, and ash pouring from Etna and other volcanic mountains with awe and astonishment, and, with their vivacious imagination, found an explanation to the mystery; the god of Fire must be busy at work with his men in the depths of the earth, and the mighty flames coming from the depths of the earth must be a result of this.

The chief representative of the Cyclops was the man-eating monster Polyphemus, described by Homer as having been blinded and outwitted by Odysseus. This monster fell in love with a beautiful nymph called Galatea; but, as may be supposed, his actions were not graceful nor acceptable to the fair maiden, who rejected them in favour of a youth named Acis; Polyphemus, enraged and with his usual barbarity, killed his rival by throwing upon him a gigantic rock. The blood of the murdered Acis, gushing out of the rock, formed a stream which still bears his name.

Hesiod mentioned only three Cyclopes (not considering them a race or tribe): Arges (thunderbolt), Steropes (lightning), and Brontes (thunder), obviously storm gods. They were also the first smiths. When Cronus came to power, he imprisoned them in Tartarus. They were later released by Zeus and fought for him against the Titans. As a reward for their release, the Cyclopes gave Zeus his weapons of lighting and thunder. They continued as his workers at Mount Olympus forging his thunderbolts. Arges was killed by Hermes while he guarded Io for Hera; Apollo killed at least one of them as vengeance for the death of his son Aesculapius by Zeus.

Delphyne is a female dragon in Greek mythology. Her mother was Gaea who gave her the task of guarding the oracle of Delphi. She was often accompanied by a male dragon, either Python or Typhon. Due to the different accounts and sources, she was sometimes mixed with Echidna, the mother of all monsters, who was half woman and half snake. In another source, Delphyne was appointed with guarding the sinews of Zeus, who were stolen by Typhon, and she was eventually slain by Apollo.

Echidna was a half-woman, half-snake creature in Greek mythology, also known as the "mother of all monsters", as she gave birth to most of the Greek mythical creatures. She was the wife of Typhon, who was the "father of all monsters" and the most fearsome and dangerous monster in said mythology. Both she and her husband were the children of Gaia and Tartarus. The couple attacked the Olympians, but Zeus managed to repel them, burying Typhon under Mount Etna; Echidna and her children were spared to continue challenging future heroes. Echidna was killed by Argus Panopteswhile sleeping.

Some of the most famous children of Echidna and Typhon were Cerberus, the three-headed hound who guarded the gates of the Underworld; the Lernaean Hydra, the multi-headed serpent that grew two heads if one was cut off; the Gorgon sisters, the best known being Medusa; and the Chimera, a creature that had the heads of a lion, a goat and snake.

The Erymanthian Boar was a fearsome animal in Greek mythology. Capturing it alive was one of the tasks that King Eurystheus asked the demigod hero Heracles to complete during the story of the Labours of Heracles.

The boar was a giant creature living on Mount Erymanthos, a region sacred to the goddess of hunt Artemis. When the boar would reach the farmlands, it would lay waste and destroy everything in its passing. The capturing of such a fearsome animal was not an easy task, and this is why Eurystheus chose it as the fourth labour of Heracles.

The hero set forth and initially visited a centaur who was a friend of his; his name was Pholus. The two friends had lunch and then decided to open a jar of wine; after opening it, the smell attracted all the centaurs of the mountain. They all started drinking, not realising that the wine should be mixed with water first, as was customary in ancient Greece. So, they became drunk and started attacking. Heracles shot poisonous arrows against them and the drunken centaurs retreated. Pholus was curious as to why the arrows were fatal, and while examining one, he also got poisoned. According to one account, an arrow also mistakenly hit the centaur Chiron, who, although immortal, was still able to feel the pain. So, he asked the gods to lose his immortality, and replace the Titan Prometheus who was chained on a mountain top where an eagle ate his liver daily. So it happened, and the eagle continued to eat Chiron's liver until it was shot down by Heracles.

Heracles then asked Chiron how to catch the boar; Chiron said that he should lure it into thick snow, thus making it difficult for the animal to move. Heracles followed the centaur's advice and managed to capture the animal. He then took it back to the court of Eurystheus, who upon seeing it, was so scared that he hid inside a huge jar and asked Heracles to get rid of it.

The Giants or Gigantes were a race of great strength, but not necessarily of great size, that were born out of the blood that fell onto the earth (the Titan goddess Gaea) when the Titan Uranus was castrated by his son, Cronus.

The Giants were often confused with the Titans, who were a previous set of offspring by Uranus and Gaea. Just like the Titanswho fought the Olympians during the Titanomachy, the Giants also fought Zeus and the other gods during the Gigantomachy. The Gigantomachy was probably considered the most important war among gods in Greek mythology, as it was depicted in a vast number of vases that have been found. The most detailed description that has survived belongs to Apollodorus, a mythographer of the first or second century AD. In this description, it is not mentioned why the war took place; however, it ended with the defeat of the Giants. The rule of the Olympians over the Giants probably symbolised the rule of order over chaos in Ancient Greece.

Indicatively, some of the Giants were:

Enceladus: he was killed by Athena by being crushed under the island of Sicily.
Eurymedon: he was a king of the Giants, and maybe the one who raped Hera, giving birth to Prometheus.
Porphyrion: he was the greatest of the Giants, but he died when Zeus threw a thunderbolt against him and Hercules or Apollo shot him with an arrow.

The Gorgons were three monsters in Greek mythology, daughters of Echidna and Typhon, the mother and father of all monsters respectively. Their names were Stheno, Euryale, and the most famous of them, Medusa. Although the first two were immortal, Medusa was not. Weirdly, Medusa was also not considered the child of Echidna and Typhon, but of Phorkys and Keto. Their faces were ugly and their hair was replaced by snakes; anyone who would gaze into their eyes would be turned to stone instantly.

The Hecatoncheires were giant creatures in Greek mythology. Their name means "hundred - handed ones", and apart from a hundred hands of unfathomable strength, they also had fifty heads. They were children of the Titans Uranus and Gaea; they were three, Briareus or Aegaeon (the vigorous or the sea goat), Cottus (the striker or the furious) and Gyges (the big-limbed). The natural forces that were represented by the Hecatoncheires were the earthquakes and the huge sea waves.

Uranus, their father, threw them into Gaea's womb, which infuriated her; thus, this started her plotting towards the overthrow of her husband. She helped her son Cronus defeat his father, but when he came into power, he also imprisoned them in Tartarus. During the Titanomachy, the War between the Titans and the Olympians, Gaea sided with Zeus and told him to free the Cyclopes as they would be worthy allies; thanks to their help, the Titans were overthrown and Zeus made them the guards of Tartarus.

The Teumessian fox was an animal in Greek mythology that always evaded its hunter. According to a myth, it was sent by a god, possibly Dionysus, to punish the city of Thebes for a crime the people had committed. Eventually, Creon, the regent of the city, told Amphitryon to catch and kill the fox, who had the idea of bringing the dog Laelaps in his aid;Laelaps was a dog in Greek mythology that always caught what he hunted. According to one source, Laelaps was the gift Zeus gave to Europa. The dog was later given to King Minos; Cephalus, who was Procris' husband, decided to use Laelaps in order to catch the Teumessian fox, which could never be caught. So, a paradox formed; a dog that always caught what it hunted, was after a fox that could never be caught. When Zeus realised what was going on and that the two animals would run for eternity, he decided to turn them both to stone, and then into constellations; Laelaps became the constellation Canis Major and the Teumessian fox became Canis Minor.

Nessus was a centaur in Greek mythology, who was killed by Heracles and this eventually led to the hero's demise. He was the son of Centaurus, who was the father of all creatures known as the centaurs.

Nessus is well known for his part in the story of the Shirt of Nessus. He was a ferryman, and one day, he had to carry Deianeira, wife of Heracles, across the river. After they crossed the river, Nessus tried to have sex with her, but Heracles watching from the other riverbank, shot an arrow straight into Nessus' chest. Before he drew his final breath, Nessus told Deianeira that his blood would ensure that her husband would be faithful to her in eternity. Deianeira believed him and collected some of the centaur's blood.

Years later, Heracles fell in love with Iole, and Deianeira, afraid that he might abandon her, dipped a shirt or tunic into the centaur's blood and gave it to him as he was leaving for a gathering. After he left, she accidentally spilled some of the blood on the floor, where it started fuming. She then realised that it was in fact poison and tried to stop Heracles from wearing the shirt. However, the hero had already worn it and his flesh had started burning; in deep pain, he threw himself in a funeral pyre and died.

Python was the earth-dragon of Delphi in Greek mythology, and presided at the oracle of the area. At that time, the oracle honoured the Titan goddess Gaea.

According to a source, when Zeus slept with the goddess Leto, impregnating her with the twin gods Artemis and Apollo. However, Hera was so angry at her husband's infidelity that she told Pythonto hunt Leto, so that she doesn't give birth anywhere that the sun shone. Leto was eventually accepted at the newly formed island of Delos, where she bore her twins. When Apollo grew up, he wanted to take revenge and thus pursued the dragon. Python, chased by Apollo, left Mount Parnassus where he lived and went to the Oracle of Gaea at Delphi. There, Apollo killed the dragon; however, Zeus told him he needed to redeem himself as he had committed such a sacrilegious act. So, Apollobecame the founder of the Pythian Games, in order to purify himself.

Silenus was a companion of the god of wine Dionysus in Greek mythology. He was much older than the satyrs, followers of the god, and had the characteristics of a horse rather than a goat. A group of Dionysus' followers was also named Sileni (plural), their most notable characteristic being that they were drunk. Eventually, the word was used as a name of the teacher and close companion of the god.

Silenus was always drunk and was either supported by satyrs or on a donkey. While drunk, it was believed that he acquired arcane knowledge and was able to predict the future. According to a myth, King Midas of Phrygia managed to catch Silenus when he was drunk by a fountain in order to learn his secrets. A different version has it that Silenus was lost in the region of Phrygia, and was eventually found by peasants who took him to the king. Midas welcomed him and treated him kindly, and Dionysus, wanting to repay for the kindness he showed towards Silenus, told him he would give him a reward; Midas asked for the ability to turn everything he touched into gold.

The Sirens were beautiful but dangerous creatures that lured the sailors with their beautiful voices to their doom, causing the ships to crash on the reefs near their island. They were the daughters of the river god Achelous, while their mother may have been Terpsichore, Melpomene, Sterope or Chthon. Although closely linked to marine environments, they were not considered sea deities. The texts mentioning the Sirens provide different opinions as to their number and their names; some mention two or three; others mention more.

The Sirens were probably considered the companions of Persephone, daughter of goddess Demeter. The latter had given them wings in order to protect her daughter; however, after Persephone's abduction from Hades, Demeter cursed them. The Sirens' song was a beautiful, yet sad melody, eternally calling for Persephone's return.

The Argonauts encountered the Sirens but successfully evaded them; Orpheus, who was on board, started playing his lyre so beautifully that the music completely drowned the Sirens' song. Another well-known encounter is that described in the Odyssey; Odysseus, advised by Circe, plugged the crew's ears with wax and ordered them to bind him on the mast of the ship. He also told them that no matter how much he begged, they should not untie him. When they passed near the Sirens' island, Odysseus started begging his shipmates to let him go, but none heard him; instead, they tied him even more. After they passed, Odysseus let them know that they were now in safe waters.

Talos by NathanRosario

Talos was a giant bronze man in Greek mythology, who protected Europa in Crete from pirates. According to one version, Talos was forged by the blacksmith god, Hephaestus, who gifted him to King Minos of Crete. Talos had a single vein, through which ichor, the divine blood of the Olympians, flowed. This vein was plugged by just one bronze nail. When Jason and the Argonauts reached Crete after having retrieved the Golden Fleece, they came across Talos, who started hurling giant rocks against the ship, being the guardian of the island. Medea, who was on board, managed to trick Talos and removed the nail that plugged Talos' vein; the ichor ran out, and Talos died.