|
New
Apollwn
|
|
The specific font used on these pages
is SPIonic, and may be downloaded here
|
Apollon
is the son of Zeus, King of the Olympian Gods, and Leto, a titaness, known
as the gentlest of the immortals. His twin sister is the Goddess Artemis.
Apollon
was one of the busiest of the Gods of Olympus, with more titles, attributes,
and responsibilities than any of the other Gods.. He was (and is) the god
of:
- Light (not to be confused with
Helios, the god of the sun, who is seen as being subservient to Apollon)
- The Sun (a later development,
when Apollon and Helios came to be seen as one and the same)
- Music (as god of music, song,
and dance, he is the leader of the Muses)
- Prophecy (as seen by his control
over the great Oracle at Delphi)
- Divination
- Law / Civic Responsibility
/ Human Affairs
- The Arts in general
- Travel
- Colonization
- Medicine (a power he shared
with his son Asklepius)
- Archery (not for war or hunting,
as with his sister Artemis, but for sport)
- Poetry (again, shared with
the Muses)
- Dance (as above)
- Logic
- Philosophy
- Truth
- Communication (which in the
modern era makes him the god of telephones, television, radio, computers,
the internet, etc, (a function he shares with Hermes))
- Knowledge (not in the sense
in which his sister Athena is the Goddess of Wisdom. In his case, it is the
thirst for, and hunger to acquire knowledge)
- Shepherds and their flocks
- Plague (he was said to be able
to control rats, a prime vector for carrying disease. His arrows were said
to being plague)
- Nature (Apollon had more sacred
woodland groves in Greece than any other god, including Artemis, Demeter,
and Pan)
- Travel (Protector of ways,
path opener, protector of streets, passengers)
- Embarkations and Happy Landings
- Saver of Ships
A number of animals and
plants are considered sacred to him. These include:
| Crane |
Crow |
Dolphin |
Eagle |
| Falcon |
Grasshopper
|
Gryphon |
Lizard |
| Lion |
Mouse |
Ram |
Raven |
Poisonless Snake
|
Stag |
Swan |
Tortoise |
| Wolf |
|
|
|
|
| Apple |
Bluebell |
Cypress |
Laurel |
| Hyacinth |
Mistletoe |
Narcissus |
Oak |
| Palm |
Pine |
Plane |
White Poplar |
|
His attributes, those symbols
by which he can be identified, are:
- Bow and Arrows
- Crown of Laurel Leaves
- Lyre and Plectrum
- Tripod (the sacred stool upon
which sat the Prophetess of Delphi
- Globe (also the symbol of the
Muse Urania)
- Sun Halo (more properly the
symbol of Helios, the Sun)
- Shepherd's Crook
- Flute or Pan-pipes
- Golden Headband
- Palm Branch
- Sword
- Boy riding a Swan (this could
be Apollon or Hyakinthos)
- The Nine Muses
- Sun Chariot with four Winged
Horses
- The Three Graces
- The Poisonless Snake
His sacred numbers (also his days
after each new moon)
- One
- Seven (the most important)
- Twenty
How does he appear
- Lovely child, glorious
youth, always fair always young, desirable, loveable
- Resplendent, brilliant,
glittering, gloriously-formed, golden, golden complexioned,
rose complexioned, with the rich bloom of glorious youth, never do traces
of down touch his blooming cheeks
- God of the caressing
look, eyes that flash with fire, a radiance of shining haze about him
- Gold tressed, golden
haired, violet tressed, long haired, unshorn (i.e. he has not yet
reached maturity), his hair drips with fragrant oil (panacaea)
- Swift-footed
- Golden mantled with
gold clasp, sandals and mitra (headband)
- Head girdled with a
bay wreath
- Golden seven-stringed
lyra, tortoiseshell lyra (gift from Hermes)
- Golden Lyctian bow (i.e.
small double-curved), and broad covered quiver, silver bow, golden arrows
(the bow is said to be the rainbow, the arrows, sunbeams)
- Drives rosy chariot
drawn by swans
- His arrival is greeted
with winds, then the voices of the forest awakens with birdsong as he
approaches
- Apollo is normally
portrayed naked (= purity), but wears fine-spun perfumed chiton when
he plays he lyra
- The Pythogorians claimed
that he had a gilded ivory thigh, a replacement following his resurrection
after
being killed
in
his first fight with
Python
- He can appear as a
shepherd, a hawk, a dolphin, or as someone you know
How is his character described
- Solitary
- Joyous, laughing, happy,
blest, sorrowless
- Sweet-hearted, mild,
pleasant, kindly, gentle, gentle-handed, gentle-tempered, taking thought
for all, unwilling to quarrel
- Sweet of speech, sweet-spoken,
soft-speaking, swift-voiced, hates coarseness
- Hates constriction or
heaviness
- Sober, unadulterated
seriousness, orderly, prudent
- Loves happy play and
cadenced singing
Thanks to John Hodgson
for some of the above information
