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How rich was Croesus?
My grandparents, who were fortunate to come from the generation when the classics were still at the core of education, often used the phrase "rich as Croesus".
But how rich was Croesus?
DukeZhou
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Do we know what stories Boios collected in Ornithogonia?
The story of Polyphonte and her cannibal sons survives in only one source, the Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis. Antoninus cites Boios' lost collection of metamorphosis myths Ornithogonia as the source of the story.
Do we know of other myths…
yannis
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Why is the virgin goddess Artemis associated with childbirth?
Orphic Hymn I to Prothyrea ("Προθυραία"), identifies Artemis as the goddess of childbirth, and relegates Eileithyia to the role of "assisting goddess":
O venerable goddess, hear my pray'r,
For labour pains are thy peculiar care;
in thee, when…
yannis
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Why was Baal Hammon identified with Cronus/Saturn?
Greeks identified the Carthaginian Baal Hammon with Cronus, and Romans, in turn, with Saturn.
Why was that? Did Baal Hammon share any attributes with Cronus/Saturn?
Girsan Virlee
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The Origin of Werewolf: Deities Cursing People into Animals?
I read some years back, about some ancient mythology where people believed the gods would rather commonly curse mortals into animal forms. There may've even been terms specific to this process. I think it was even related that the werewolf legend…
J. Doe
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What are the main differences of the Orphic theogonies?
Wikipedia records four distinct Orphic theogonies:
The "Protogonos Theogony", lost, composed c. 500 BC which is known through the commentary in the Derveni papyrus and references in classical authors (Empedocles and Pindar).
The "Eudemian…
yannis
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Revenants in mythology of the British Isles?
In his series, "Song of Ice and Fire", George R.R. Martin re-imagines a War of the Roses era-Britain where the British Isle is greatly enlarged and the continent compressed. He creates a history that mirrors the waves of historical migration…
DukeZhou
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Why do we call the pentagram a "star"?
First, I apologize if this is asked in the wrong place, but I'm finding it hard placing this question, which is this:
The symbol above is called a "star", but why?
I have read that the symbol predates the telescope, but stars do not look…
Zorawar
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Are there any similarities between the Deucalion/Pyrrha myth and Cadmus?
Specifically, both parties "grow" people by sowing "bones":
Deucalion and Pyrrha sow "the bones of [their] mother" which is interpreted as being "mother earth" and thus rocks. Thus they repopulated the earth after the flood.
Cadmus sows dragon's…
DukeZhou
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Is there any reference to this story about Inari?
The Japanese rice Goddess liked to wrap herself in a fox’s body. Sometimes, too, She took the shape of a human woman in order to sleep with men, who had excellent crops as a result. One of these men, it was said, realized he was sleeping with the…
user1385
5
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3 answers
How and why are Idunn and Tyr gods?
In the eddic poem Hrafnagaldur Óðins, stanza 6, Idunn is identified as an "elf" (alfar) and the "youngest of the elder children of Ivaldi." This implies that Ivaldi had two sets of children, probably by different mothers. Thus Idunn is a sister of…
user1385
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Griffin, Griffon, or Gryphon?
According to Wikipedia, three spellings can be found for the Griffin, and the source of the word is uncertain. Is it simply a case of different sources choosing their favorite spelling that led to three different spellings?
Captain Phoenix
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Do Muses govern the arts?
I thought Muses were patrons of all arts. I knew modern arts like photography or cinema would be attributed by extension to a "visual arts" muse. I thought there were "classical arts" painting and writing Muses.
I just re-read about them and found…
Reed -SE is a Fish on Dry Land
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Myths of the Bermuda Triangle and its validity
The enigma of the Bermuda triangle is a time old tale and it is often even called the Devil's triangle. There are tales of a sea monster living in that area, extraterrestrial actions, etc., happening in that region that cause ships and planes to…
user2973
5
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Fate of Norns and their web
I am wondering about one thing: What is the fate of Norns and their web during the Ragnarök?
Jakub
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