New underworld queen images on Photobucket

Queen of the Underworld Banner

SinGinSenSatiOn — Sun, 10 May 2009 17:04:51 MDT

Queen of the Underworld Banner - QueenoftheUnderworld.jpg

queen of underworld

ladypersephone_freyja33 — Sun, 10 May 2009 16:03:18 MDT

queen of underworld - persephone.jpg

Queen of the Underworld

drwende — Sun, 10 May 2009 19:17:55 MDT

Queen of the Underworld - catvisas001.jpg

underworld queen

reed_1991 — Mon, 11 May 2009 15:33:10 MDT

underworld queen - 2d2ce73f2681e6d1429977c9fe9ffb.gif

Queen Eliza

david254_photo — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:59:20 MDT

Queen Eliza - ElizaVamp.png

Underworld Queen

lezbostudtrista — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:27:51 MDT

Underworld Queen - UnderworldQueen.png

Queen of Underworld

gwenlhw — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:16:43 MDT

Queen of Underworld - QueenofUnderworld.jpg

Queen of the Underworld

ajr51594 — Mon, 11 May 2009 15:24:13 MDT

Queen of the Underworld - queenoftheunderworldII.jpg

Patricia underworld queen

wingedcourage — Sat, 9 May 2009 10:25:15 MDT

Patricia underworld queen - Patriciaunderworldqueen.png

Persephone

eighteighteast — Sat, 9 May 2009 21:21:08 MDT

Persephone - persephone.png

Queen of the Underworld

Necrolai Queen of the underworld

Louis_Lane — Sat, 9 May 2009 10:25:01 MDT

Necrolai Queen of the underworld - NECROLAI1.jpg

Zania Queen of the underworld

ChristianaKouzman — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:26:43 MDT

Zania Queen of the underworld - Zaniawithframeandsigjpeg.jpg

Holly Queen of the underworld

filmbuff625 — Sat, 9 May 2009 12:01:09 MDT

Holly Queen of the underworld - unhappyhollu.jpg

Mictecacihuatl the Aztec queen of the underworld

SkyEyesDark — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:28:16 MDT

Mictecacihuatl the Aztec queen of the underworld - MictecacihuatltheAztecqueenoftheund.png

Tomb Raider Underworld

ibanez7212 — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:39:29 MDT

Tomb Raider Underworld - screen153.jpg

Queen of the Underworld

thecharmed-thepowerofthree — Sun, 10 May 2009 22:36:05 MDT

Queen of the Underworld - Charmed419_833.jpg

Devon Queen of the Underworld

alienzippo — Sat, 9 May 2009 14:23:14 MDT

Devon Queen of the Underworld - PB030161.jpg

Queen of Underworld coloured

gwenlhw — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:03:35 MDT

Queen of Underworld coloured - QueenofUnderworldedited.jpg

Underworld queen Kiri

kiricollection — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:37:02 MDT

Underworld queen Kiri - 781d861c1317ed_flip99.png

alien queen

akspike138sk — Sat, 9 May 2009 19:25:38 MDT

alien queen - AlienQueen.jpg

Persephone olympian springtime goddess amp queen of underworld

cierlo — Sun, 10 May 2009 12:16:54 MDT

Persephone olympian springtime goddess amp queen of underworld - persephone.jpg

Mictecacihuatl queen of the underworld

fatalignorance — Sun, 10 May 2009 19:52:57 MDT

Mictecacihuatl queen of the underworld - mictecacihuatl.jpg

Dark King and Queen of the Egyptian Underworld

Ravencrazies — Sat, 9 May 2009 11:59:29 MDT

Dark King and Queen of the Egyptian Underworld - 3a771a6f.jpg

Dark King and Queen of the Egyptian Underworld

Ravencrazies — Sat, 9 May 2009 11:59:29 MDT

Dark King and Queen of the Egyptian Underworld - 1856706e.jpg

Queen of the Underworld

sekkei_avatarart — Fri, 8 May 2009 18:59:24 MDT

Queen of the Underworld - tek_070724919125.png

IMG_6936.jpg

vraby — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:00:56 MST

IMG_6936.jpg

The Queen of the Underworld and Mother Nature

queen of heaven and the underworld

gardeninsite — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:41:09 MDT

queen of heaven and the underworld - c7a1.jpg

UNDERWORLD QUEEN OF THE DAMNED AND INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE

tinkerbelle19871 — Sat, 9 May 2009 10:56:16 MDT

UNDERWORLD QUEEN OF THE DAMNED AND INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE - UNDERWORLDANDQUEENOFTHEDAMNED.jpg

King and Queen

Suzume27 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 07:15:37 MDT

King and Queen - HxP.jpg

Hades and Persephone King and Queen of the Underworld

Anime queen

Kiara_Kills — Sat, 9 May 2009 20:14:09 MDT

Anime queen - Darkqueen.jpg

Momma Beauty Queen of the underworld

hoomz — Sun, 10 May 2009 15:17:01 MDT

Momma Beauty Queen of the underworld - b2b3.jpg

PersephonexHades

xXiNsAnE_wHiSpErXx — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:07:12 MDT

PersephonexHades - aaabean.jpg

Persephone and her husband Hades King and Queen of the Underworld

be my little rock and roll queen

tearsandthesun7 — Sat, 9 May 2009 09:54:18 MDT

be my little rock and roll queen - bemylittlerockandrollqueen.jpg

Persephone titan springtime goddess amp queen of the underworld

cierlo — Sun, 10 May 2009 12:16:54 MDT

Persephone titan springtime goddess amp queen of the underworld - Persephone_2___GMO_Card_30_by_artof.jpg

Vampire Moon Goddess

rockerchick1975 — Mon, 11 May 2009 00:24:23 MDT

Vampire Moon Goddess - VampireMoon.jpg

The dark Queen Of The Underworld

Underworld

caliwolfman — Sun, 10 May 2009 23:23:53 MDT

Underworld - WilliamLycan.jpg

The Queen of the Underworld

lordpunisher_69 — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:20:28 MDT

The Queen of the Underworld - a74846374c7d5aaa187a261e721d8ce5.jpg

Persephone olympian springtime goddess amp queen of underworld

cierlo — Sun, 10 May 2009 12:16:54 MDT

Persephone olympian springtime goddess amp queen of underworld - persephone1.jpg

Lamia

kmd6126 — Mon, 3 Aug 2009 13:47:22 MDT

Lamia - Lamia.gif

Dark Queen of the underworld married to Lord Leon King of the Dark Side

Two royals of different places

yukikittychan — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:42:25 MDT

Two royals of different places - Copyofroyal.jpg

Scarlet Queen of the Underworld and NoirYuki Princess of Darkness

Tiffany Vampire Queen

selenas_bff_inu — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:37:21 MDT

Tiffany Vampire Queen - 18OurBattleHalloweenBashTiffanyscos.png

Hey when your best friend is Queen of Darkness and your other best friend is Queen of the Underworld being Queen of the Vampires has its props

Rise of the Lycans

Vesta_029 — Wed, 13 May 2009 15:12:41 MDT

Rise of the Lycans - Underworld-Rise-of-the-Lycans-1783.jpg

satan and phersephone

megas87 — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 16:13:55 MDT

satan and phersephone - Hades_and_Persephone.jpg

Hades and Persephone

AnnaMollyMadison — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:31:15 MDT

Hades and Persephone - hadesperspephone.jpg

grim reaper

Pixiedragoon — Sat, 9 May 2009 17:59:54 MDT

grim reaper - HHHHHHHHHHH.jpg

IMG_6304.jpg

vraby — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 06:50:39 MST

IMG_6304.jpg

Pandora returns to the party in her second costume as the Queen of the Underworld Appropriately Charon is visible in the background

Tammy as Queen of the Underworld

selenas_bff_inu — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:37:21 MDT

Tammy as Queen of the Underworld - 13OurBattleHalloweenBashTammyscostu.png

Second to Prom the Halloween Bash is the biggest dance at West Ridge High It takes the place of a Homecoming Dance And instead of the Homecoming Queen and King it's the Pumpkin Queen and King The ones with the best costume win

Hades and Persephone

Nereil — Mon, 18 May 2009 23:29:58 MDT

Hades and Persephone - HadesandPersephone.jpg

Evil Ariel

AlianGirlAriel — Mon, 11 May 2009 11:28:02 MDT

Evil Ariel - EvilAriel.jpg

My name is Ariel as in ARL

persephone

xstfuhox — Sun, 10 May 2009 10:16:34 MDT

persephone - Persephone.jpg

persephone

dirt_bike_beauty — Sat, 9 May 2009 23:50:53 MDT

persephone - Persephone.jpg

Queen Amidala Star Wars Guild Kate Beckensale in Van Helsing Kate Beckensale in Underworld Me My Brother We stood there for three minutes as people took photos so this would probably the most popular of all the photos on the day

TheBizzaroWorld — Sun, 10 May 2009 10:00:06 MDT

Queen Amidala Star Wars Guild Kate Beckensale in Van Helsing Kate Beckensale in Underworld Me My Brother We stood there for three minutes as people took photos so this would probably the most popular of all the photos on the day - Supanova28_10012.jpg

Bloody Tattoos

lonewolf1982 — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:23:48 MDT

Bloody Tattoos - 14azvbq.jpg

Dark Castle

jkell193 — Mon, 11 May 2009 11:49:31 MDT

Dark Castle - dark_castle.jpg

Dark Castle

Nichts_2007 — Sat, 9 May 2009 19:00:28 MDT

Dark Castle - Dark_Castle.jpg

Black Wolf

ICEQUEEN25_2007 — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:26:12 MDT

Black Wolf - WOLF-2.jpg

She Devil

Mordakhai — Mon, 11 May 2009 12:18:14 MDT

She Devil - SheDevil3v2.jpg

Nightshade Costume

rennie_bear — Sat, 9 May 2009 23:31:57 MDT

Nightshade Costume - Nightshade_costume.jpg

Carol Christmas

KimbaAladi — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:30:01 MDT

Carol Christmas - 0a7186.png

The spirit of Christmas carols and wife to DJ Jack She also appears to those she deems worthy of her blessings She and Jack thoroughly enjoy The Nightmare Before Christmas as it represents their relationship the union of Halloween and Christmas Just as Jack is Hades she is in actuality the dead mortal aspect of Persephone daughter of Demeter and queen of the Underworld Because of this she is also able to harness the icy winds of Hades She is also privy to the dimensional wallbreaking tendencies of her husband

Queen of Evil

zantaff — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:24:08 MDT

Queen of Evil - 1e9d87.png

This lady of the night is a great sorcerous She has endured countless battles and seen more than her share of deaths In her youth she worked for under lords that required her vast knowledge of the dark arts More and more she killed and destroyed until she caught the attention of the Dark Lord himself Soon she was working for him killing cities and nations Showing good people towards their inner wickedness As she grew in power a hatred toward all things in existence brewed greater and greater until she took on the Lord of the Underworld himself in a dimensionshaking battle Now she sits at the throne and controls all things wicked and holds the power of death in the palm of her hand

hathor.jpg

euphemia89 — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:27:05 MDT

hathor.jpg

Hathor is another manifestation of the Great Mother Goddess worshipped since prehistoric times As a great Egyptian Goddess she was the protectress of all women and female animals Seven or nine Hathors were said to appear at the time of child birthing to tell the baby's destiny Hathor symbolized the eternity of life the laws that never change through the process of birth and death She was the eternal lifesupporting principle queen of the underworld with dominion over the dead while she suckled the Earth and stretched into the skyIn Egyptian art she was often portrayed as the winged cow of creation who gave birth to the universe Sometimes she was a huge lioness with eyes of fire The sycamore at the edge of the desert was her tree

Merlina sonic in the black knight

luisa_stump — Mon, 11 May 2009 01:04:02 MDT

Merlina sonic in the black knight - merlina.jpg

sonic and the black knight

Reconstruction of the Queen of the Night relief

Mesopotamian_Collections — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:21:29 MDT

Reconstruction of the Queen of the Night relief - IMG_1642.jpg

Text taken from the British Museum website Old Babylonian 18001750 BC From southern Iraq This large plaque is made of baked strawtempered clay modelled in high relief The figure of the curvaceous naked woman was originally painted red She wears the horned headdress characteristic of a Mesopotamian deity and holds a rod and ring of justice symbols of her divinity Her long multicoloured wings hang downwards indicating that she is a goddess of the Underworld Her legs end in the talons of a bird of prey similar to those of the two owls that flank her The background was originally painted black suggesting that she was associated with the night She stands on the backs of two lions and a scale pattern indicates mountains The figure could be an aspect of the goddess Ishtar Mesopotamian goddess of sexual love and war or Ishtar's sister and rival the goddess Ereshkigal who ruled over the Underworld or the demoness Lilitu known in the Bible as Lilith The plaque probably stood in a shrine The same goddess appears on small crude mouldmade plaques from Babylonia from about 1850 to 1750 BC Thermoluminescence tests confirm that the 'Queen of the Night' relief was made between 1765 and 45 BC

Relief of the Queen of the Night

Mesopotamian_Collections — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:18:51 MDT

Relief of the Queen of the Night - IMG_1372.jpg

levels

TRLR_2008 — Mon, 11 May 2009 08:59:24 MDT

levels - underworld_logo-1.jpg

LevelChapter 1 IndiaLvl 1 Indian Forest of the CrocidileLvl 2 Outerskirts of the RiverLvl 3 Temple of Alcivarian SecretsLvl 4 Indian CisternChapter 2 SiberiaLvl 5 The MountainsLvl 6 Death HallLvl 7 Hall of the GreatChapter 3 BrazilLvl 8 Amazonian Jungle GangesLvl 9 The Temple of Queen AmazonLvl 10 Tomb of the SnakeLvl 11 Sanctuary of DeathLvl 12 The 8 rooms of TerrorChapter 4 EuropeLvl 13 London Train StationLvl 14 England SkyScrapersLvl 15 Parisian MobLvl 16 The Unknown Tomb of DianaChapter 5 AfricaLvl 17 African WaterfallsLvl 18 Tomb of the Holy GrailLvl 19 Madagascar spellingChapter 6 AvalonLvl 20 Ruins of PuanLvl 21 Forest of DreamsLvl 22 Lush Catacombs of UshLvl 23 Folly of AmeliaChapter 7 Asia MinorLvl 24 Palace Midas revistedLvl 25 The Grail Grounds

tr underworld 1

tommyhearnere — Sun, 10 May 2009 19:47:18 MDT

tr underworld 1 - Tomb_Raider_.jpg

tomb raider

Misos

salsa88 — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:37:56 MDT

Misos - Misos.jpg

The God of War and Death he is the son of Fegkia and Chaos His chief aids are Pali strife and Diafonia discord who are said to run about in battle and confuse and outrage soldiers and commanders to incite more bloodshed During times of peace they take on the form of humans in order to stir up mayhem and trouble between nations Misos's violence was such that Archon banished him to the lower regions and made him ruler of the underworld where he lives with his wife Thnita Mortality When a civilian dies their daughter Zena is sent to lead them to the underworld Soldiers are escorted by their son Stratiotis Children are given their own special guide Paidi who is the youngest of their offspring Paidi is said to take the form of a winged pony who rides the children to Telios paradise where they are given into the hands of adults who will love and nurture them until they can be reborn as mortals Their realm is guarded by the multiheaded dragon Prostateva who was cursed by Apollymi when the woman claimed to be more beautiful than the queen of the gods No living human can cross the path of Prostateva any who try are eaten alive by her

Hera supreme goddess of marriage amp childbirth

cierlo — Sun, 10 May 2009 12:16:54 MDT

Hera supreme goddess of marriage amp childbirth - Hera_by_redheaded_step_child.jpg

Vampire Wallpaper

Falcor74 — Mon, 11 May 2009 18:19:13 MDT

Vampire Wallpaper - VampireBackground.jpg

Orpheus and Eurydice

boconcord — Mon, 11 May 2009 02:32:47 MDT

Orpheus and Eurydice - Ducis_Louis_Orphee_Et_Euridice.jpg

Untitled

odhran1 — Sat, 9 May 2009 14:39:50 MDT

Untitled - art009.jpg

117 x 93 cmThis piece is a set of the 16 royal playing cards Kings Queens Jacks and Aces all as interacting characters from Greek mythology I have used the myths to visually link all the characters together so the piece is full of interating stories So we have medusa Queen of Clubs roaring at Perseus who protects himself from her glare with the sheild Athena who stands behind him gave her Hera is reaching down to the card below her where her husband Zeus is disguised as a swan who rapes Leda Aphrodite rises out of her shell while Adonis her lover is killed by a wild boar set apon him by the jealous Persephone who eats the forbidden pomegranite than binds her to Pluto God of Hades the underworld for half the year Each set of royal are connected ie hearts are Aphrodite Queen Adonis King her lover and Eros Jack her child Clubs are all wicked characters etc All the aces are places where the Gods go ie the idyllic Elysian Fields for hearts Hades for clubs Mount Olympus for Diamonds and Greece for Spades They are all A5 size mounted in BlackClementine KeithRoach

Hades

salsa88 — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:37:59 MDT

Hades - Hades.jpg

Hades also known as Aides is Zeus' brother and ruler of the Underworld and the dead He was also called Pluto God of Wealth because the precious metals buried deep in the earth were in his kingdom Another reason that the people called him Pluto is because they did not like to pronounce the dreaded name of Hades or AidesThe name Pluto was used by both the Greeks and the Romans and it translates into Latin as Dis Rich The Romans also substituted Orcus and Tartarus as synonymous to Pluto Although he was an Olympian he spent most of the time in his dark castle in the Underworld This Lord of Hell who was formidable in battle proved his ferociousness in the famous battle of the Olympians versus the Titans which established the rule of ZeusBecause of his dark and morbid personality he was not especially liked by neither the gods nor the mortals His character is described as fierce and inexorable and by far of all the gods he was most hated by mortals He was not however an evil god for although he was stern cruel and unpitying still he was just Hades ruled the Underworld and therefore most often associated with death and was feared by men but he was not Death itself The actual embodiment of Death was another god ThanatosThanatos was the Greek personification of death who dwells in the lower world In Homer's Iliad he appears as the brother of Hypnos sleep The Greek writer Hesiod makes these two spirits the sons of Nyx but they had no father In the theater Thanatos was sometimes introduced as a character His attributes are an inversed torch wreath or butterflyHypnos is the personification of sleep in Greek mythology He is the son of Nyx and Erebus and the twin of Thanatos death Both he and his brother live in the underworld He gave Endymion the power of sleeping with open eyes so he could see his beloved the moon goddess Selene Hypnos is portrayed as a naked young man with wings attached to his temples or as a bearded man with wings attached to his shouldersHades is always represented as a stern dark bearded man with tightly closed lips a crown on his head a sceptre and a key in hand to show how carefully he guards those who enter his domains and how vain are their hopes to escape No temples were dedicated to him and his statues are very rareBlack animals such as sheep were sacrificed to him and it is believed that at one time even human sacrifices were offered The person who offered the sacrifice had to turn away his face Every hundred years festivals were held in his honor called the Secular GamesHades ruled the dead assisted by demons over whom he had complete authority He strictly forbade his subjects to leave his domain and would become quite enraged when anyone tried to leave or if someone tried to steal his prey from him Very few people ever visited the Underworld and were permitted to leave In Homer's Iliad we are told that Heracles Hercules was forbidden by Hades to enter his kingdom but the great Greek hero wounded Hades with an arrow and attained victoryBesides Heracles few other living persons ventured to the Underworld Er Achilles Odysseus Aeneas and Theseus are among those heroes who descended to Hades while they were still living None of them was especially pleased with what they witnessed in the realm of the dead In particular the Trojan War hero Achilles whom Odysseus met in Hades although some believe that Achilles dwells in the Isles of the Blest saidDo not speak soothingly to me of death glorious Odysseus I should choose to serve as the hireling of another rather than to be lord over the dead that have perishedAchilles' soul to Odysseus Homer Odyssey 11488Hades Abducts PersephoneThe wife of Hades and queen of the Underworld was Persephone daughter of Zeus and Demeter She was also called Kore Greek for 'daughter' Persephone did not marry Hades willingly but was abducted by him one day while picking flowers with her friends Even Zeus was powerless to get her out of the Underworld when her mother Demeter asked him to act on her behalfEventually a deal was made with the messenger god Hermes acting as the mediator Persephone would spend half the year with her mother the goddess of the harvest The Greeks believed that while Persephone was with Hades her mother missed her so much that she withdrew her gifts from the world and winter came In the spring when Persephone rejoined her mother Demeter would make things grow againAccording to some Persephone eventually became as cruel as her husbandHades' weapon was a twopronged fork which he used to shatter anything that was in his way or not to his liking much like Poseidon did with his trident This ensign of his power was a staff with which he drove the shades of the dead into the lower worldHis identifying possessions were the famed helmet given to him by the Cyclopes which made anyone who wore it invisible Hades was known to sometimes loan his helmet of invisibility to both gods and men His dark chariot drawn by four coalblack horses always made for a fearsome and impressive sight His other ordinary attributes are the Key of Hades and Cerberus the threeheaded dogLike his brother Zeus and other ancient gods Hades wasn't the most faithful of husbands He pursued and loved the nymph Mintho and to punish her for this his jealous wife Persephone turned Mintho into the plant called mint Likewise the nymph Leuce who was also ravished by him was metamorphosed byHades into a white poplar tree after her deathIn works of art Hades resembles his brothers Zeus and Poseidon except that his hair falls over his forehead and his appearance is portrayed as dark and gloomy The god of the Underworld was one scary dudeHere's a cool myth about Hades involving Sisyphus the poor mortal who was sentenced to roll a large rock up a hill only to have it roll back over him just as he reached the topKing Sisyphus is best known for being punished in the Underworld by rolling a stone with his hands and head in an effort to heave it over the top of a hill but no matter how hard he pushes just as he gets near the top the stone rebounds backward again and again How did this horrid fate come aboutWell Sisyphus had a big mouth One day the river god Asopus came by looking for his daughter Aegina who had gone missing When Asopus asked Sisyphus if he knew where his daughter was the tattletale King replied that he knew that Zeus had fallen in love with her and had carried her away Zeus and Aegina were to be found in the wooded valley down below walking arm in arm he saidNeedless to say this made Asopus very angry Zeus had carelessly left his feared thunderbolts hanging from a tree while he romanced Aegina so when Asopus came rushing at him with a club the unarmed king of the Olympians ran away startled Escaping Zeus turned himself into a rock and Asopus ran by himAfter changing back into his real form and retrieving his hanging weapons Zeus then hurled a thunderbolt at the charging Asopus who walked with a limp ever since from his wounded legEnraged at the way in which Sisyphus betrayed the divine secret to Asopus Zeus ordered his brother Hades feared king of the Underworld to arrest the king and to severely punish him Hades appeared before Sisyphus and commanded him to come with him King Sisyphus refused saying that it was Hermes who guided the souls to the Underworld not Hades and besides it wasn't his time to die yet So thereTalk about nerve He then asked the astonished Hades what he carried in his bag Hades told him that they were handcuffs Seeing that Sisyphus was puzzled he explained that handcuffs were steel bracelets chained together which had been invented by the skilled god of the forge HephaestusShow me how they work asked sly Sisyphus But as Hades was modeling the handcuffs Sisyphus snapped them shut He fastened his dog's collar around the neck of the god and made fun of him in his helplessnessHey these handcuffs really work Hades he tormented his captiveHades was not amused He pleaded threatened and stormed at Sisyphus but for an entire month he was kept prisoner Finally Ares the cruel god of war seeing that his battles had become farces because nobody died came to Sisyphus and threatened to strangle him unless he released Hadesand if that didn't work then he would cut off his head and hide itGrudgingly Sisyphus unchained Hades and off they went to Tartarus and the Underworld On arrival Sisyphus pleaded his case with Persephone Queen of the Underworld claiming that he didn't belong there because he wasn't dead and besides he hadn't been properly ferried to the Underworld by Charon theboatman Persephone told him to leave but to come back the next day properly buried with a coin under his tongueYeah right Sisyphus laughed as he left the Underworld with no intent on returning for a long time An infuriated Hades the next day sent Hermes to fetch the rascal Hermes informed King Sisyphus that he had seen the Three Fates cutting his thread of life and that his existence on earth was overOnce they reached the Underworld the Judges of the Dead devised a unique and torturous ordeal to punish him they ordered Sisyphus to push a real heavy rock practically immovable over the top of the hill in Tartarus To make surethat he got the point the rock was shaped exactly like the one into which Zeus had changed when he hid from AsopusThe bad news was the rock would roll back over the poor man just as he would get to the top and he would have to start all over again Sisyphus was doomed to endure this forever What a drag

the egyptian

ScreaminStang06 — Sun, 10 May 2009 17:22:07 MDT

the egyptian - The_Egyptian_Goddess__Nut.jpg

Devil May Cry

Yara_555 — Sun, 10 May 2009 20:40:50 MDT

Devil May Cry - DanteTrishSparda.jpg

akasha

XxechoxofxsilencexX — Sun, 10 May 2009 10:19:44 MDT

akasha - akasha.jpg

Ancient Egyptians

bfnmusic — Sun, 10 May 2009 10:01:45 MDT

Ancient Egyptians - AncientEgyptianFamily.jpg

Demeter

MercuriusTJ — Wed, 13 May 2009 05:55:44 MDT

Demeter - DemeterII.jpg

Demeter is the great Olympian Goddess of Agriculture Grain and Bread the prime sustenance of mankind She also presided over the foremost of the Mystery Cults which promised its intiates the path to a blessed afterlife Demeter is depicted as a mature woman often crowned and holding sheafs of wheat and and a torchIn Greek mythology Demeter was the most generous of the great Olympian goddesses The Greek goddess Demeter was an ancient goddess beloved for her service to mankind in giving them the gift of the harvest the reward for cultivation of the soil Also known as the Roman goddess Ceres Demeter was the goddess of the harvest and was credited with teaching humans how to grow preserve and prepare grain Demeter was thought to be responsible for the fertility of the land She was the only one of the Greek goddesses who was involved on a daytoday basis in the lives of the common folk While others occasionally dabbled in human affairs when it suited their personal interests or came to the aid of special mortals they favored the goddess Demeter was truly the nurturer of mankind Demeter also was the only one of the Greek goddesses who could truly empathize with the human experience of suffering and grief having experienced it fully herself The goddess Demeter is best known for her fierce defense of her daughter Persephone who was also known as the child Kore or Cora Persephone's father was Zeus the mighty ruler of the Olympians The goddess Demeter had been one of his early consorts long before his marriage to Hera Persephone was an obedient cheerful girl who had a happy childhood playing with her cousins Artemis and Athena Reaching adolescence she was carefree and spirited often dancing playfully and picking wildflowers in the meadow near her home Persephone's youthful beauty drew the attention of Hades the god of the underworld and he could not help falling in love with her One day as Persephone reached over to pick a flower the earth opened and the arm of Hades reached up from the underworld And so Hades abducted her dragging her back to his kingdom Hearing Persephone's screams the goddess Demeter rushes to the meadow but cannot find Persephone Carrying a torch Demeter traveled the world day and night never eating or resting searching futilely for her daughterPoseidon god of the sea noticed the goddess Demeter as she traveled and pursued her with amorous intent Then Demeter tried to fool him by changing herself into a mare and hiding herself in the middle of a herd of horses but he was not fooled Poseidon saw through Demeter's disguise turned himself into a stallion and took her at his willWhen Demeter continued her journey in search of her daughter she met an old and poor man who was gathering firewood who invited her to return to his home to eat supper with his family and to rest on her journey When she told him that she was searching for her daughter he wished her success and told her that he understood her suffering since his son lay dying at home Demeter goddess of compasion changed her mind and went with the kindly man stopping only once to gather some poppies by the path Entering his humble home Demeter went straight away to the boy's bedside and kissed the boy lovingly on the cheek Immediately the pallor left his face and his breathing eased as Demeter's love had restored the son to full healthAlthough it was the custom of the Greek goddesses and gods to become very vindictive toward anyone who failed to honor them in a dignified fashion Demeter was such a kind goddess that she seldom utilized this privilege One of the few times was when she stopped on her travels to quench her thirst by drinking from a spring and heard a man named Ascaelabus laughing at the sound of her gulping the fresh water Embarrassed and angry at the man for being so rude Demeter turned him into a lizard Resuming her search she soon encountered Hecate goddess of the crossroads who advised her to speak with Helio goddess of the sun reasoning that since she had been riding her chariot the sun through the sky that day she had surely seen what had happened to Persephone Helio told the goddess Demeter what she had seen and that Persephone was now ensconced as Hades' wife and Queen of the Underworld She also gave her the shocking news that Zeus himself had sanctioned the marriage giving Hades permission to abduct PersephoneUnderstandably the goddess Demeter felt betrayed Renouncing her divine duties that included bringing fertility to the land Demeter left Mount Olympus swearing that the earth would remain barren until her daughter was returned to her She took refuge in the city of Eleusis Disguised as an old woman the goddess Demeter was met the city rulers two young daughters at the well and they liking her immensely invited her to return to their home to meet their mother There she met their mother who was cuddling her infant son This must have stirred Demeter's longing for her abducted daughter horribly Demeter became profoundly depressed almost catatonic eyes gazing off into the distance and unwilling or unable to even speak Everyone tried to all that they knew to cheer their guest but it was to no avail Eventually one of the household servants a middleaged maid named Baubo came and sat in front of Demeter and started talking mostly making humorous comments most likely of the malebashing sort some of them quite risque Encouraged when she saw the beginnings of a smile forming on Demeter's grief stricken face Baubo hiked up her skirt and mooned the goddess Demeter responded with a deep belly laugh that brought her out of the deep depression Her good nature now restored Demeter was soon hired to work as a nursemaid to the infant son of the city's ruler Caring for him lovingly feeding him on the nectar and ambrosia of the gods Demeter grew very attached to the young Demophoon and decided to make him immortal But just as Demeter was holding his feet over the fire the ritual which would transform him into an Olympian god Demophoon's mother entered the room Mistakenly believing that Demeter was about to burn her son she began to scream The goddess Demeter then dropped her disguise revealing the beautiful goddess that she truly was and berated the mother for her stupidity in stopping the ritual that would have given her son immortality In addition Demeter demanded that a temple be built in her honor This was done and the goddess Demeter remained there sitting alone in the darkness once again depressed and grieving for her lost daughter All this time with the goddess Demeter refusing to function the land grew barren and the harvests ceased the earth saw a winter that did not end Zeus finally opens his eyes to what was happening and sent messengers to apologize and coax the goddess Demeter to return Demeter however remained adamant that she would not return until Persephone was rescued Finally Zeus gave in and sent Hermes to command Hades to release PersephonePersephone upon hearing the news rejoiced for she had missed her mother sorely As she was leaving Hades offered her a pomegranate to eat Persephone had refused all food while she had been in the underworld and was surely hungry Although she undoubtedly knew that those who ate anything in the underworld were not allowed to return to the earth Persephone accepted Hades' gift eating only the seeds Hermes borrowed Hades chariot and stallions and flew Persephone home to her mother as Zeus had orderedDemeter was not pleased that Persephone had eaten the pomegranate seeds and would have to return to the underworld for four months during each year but was otherwise overjoyed to be reunited with her daughter Happily Demeter resumed her divine duties and restored the fertility of the earth Each year the goddess Demeter longs for her absent daughter and withdraws her favors from the earth for a period we know as winter but Persephone returns each spring to end her desolationOnce Persephone was safely returned albeit for only a third of a year the Greek goddess Demeter decided to reside in her temple in Eleusis where she had enjoyed the welcome and support of her friends during her long search for Persephone There she developed the Eleusian mysteries a series of profound religious ceremonies that taught her initiates how to live joyfully and how to die without fearThe story of Greek goddess Demeter illustrates the tremendous capacity of a woman to love and nurture within her own family and the world at large It also reminds us to stand firm for what is good and right even in the face of adversity when powerful forces are aligned against us The goddess Demeter's message also reminds us of the seasons of a woman's life that even though there are times of great sorrow there is also great joy to be found

Dionysus

salsa88 — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:37:59 MDT

Dionysus - Dionysus.jpg

Dionysus was the god of the vine He invented wine on Mount Nyssa and spread the art of tending grapes around the world He had a dual nature On one hand he brought joy and divine ecstasy and on the other he brought brutality thoughtlessness and rage This reflected both sides of wine's nature forif used in moderation it can be good but if abused it can be deadly If he chooses the god of wine can drive a man mad and no normal fetters can hold him or his followersThere are various accounts of his parentage but the most widely accepted one holds that Dionysus was the son of Zeus and the mortal Semele Zeus fell in love with Semele and came to her in the night invisible felt only as a divine presence Semele was pleased to be a lover of a god even though she did not know which one Word soon got around and Hera quickly realized who was responsible for the seduction of this mortal woman Hera went to Semele disguised as her trusted nurse Beroe or some say as her old neighbor and convinced her she should see her lover as he really was just to prove that he wasn't a monster but truly a godWhen Zeus next came to visit her Semele made him promise to grant her one wish She was clever and thus made him swear on the River Styx that he would grant her request an oath that could not be broken without severe penalty Zeus was madly in love and agreed to grant anything she wished forShe then asked him to show her his true form Zeus was very displeased with this request for he knew what would happen but Semele was very insistent and told Zeus that he could not see her anymore unless he granted her wish Zeus was furious but since he had sworn by the River Styx he had no choice but tocomply He appeared in his true form flashing lightning and thunder and Semele was instantly burnt to death by the sight of his divine gloryAs Semele was dying Hermes the messenger god and Zeus' able assistant did manage to rescue Dionysus and stitched the premature baby into the thigh of Zeus to hold him until he was ready to be born His birth from Zeus alone conferred immortality upon him Later Dionysus brought Semele up from the Underworld gave her the name Thyone and ascended with his mother to Mount Olympus where she was made immortal by ZeusDionysus' problems with Hera were not yet over She was still jealous and arranged for the Titans to kill him The Titans seized the newborn son of Zeus and despite the fact that he transformed himself repeatedly to evade them they captured Dionysus and tore him into shreds A pomegranate tree sprouted from the soil where his blood had fallenThe Titans boiled the pieces in a cauldron and Hera thought that Dionysus had perished but Rhea mother of Zeus reconstituted the pieces and brought him back to life After this Zeus arranged for his protection and turned him over to Persephone to care for who in turn entrusted the baby to King Athamas of Orchomenus and his wife Ino who reared the child hidden in the women's quarters disguised as a girlYou guessed it Hera still unhappy with Zeus' affair with Semele was not deceived and proceeded to drive Athamas and Ino insane The royal couple then mistook their son Learches for a stag and in their madness Athamas killed himHermes next intervened on behalf of Zeus and temporarily transformed the baby into a kid baby goat or ram and presented him to the mountain nymphs of Heliconian Mount Nysa to be raised These nymphs were called Bacche Nysa Macris Erato and Bromie and they took good care of Dionysus in a hiddencave fed him on honey and protected him from danger To reward them for this service Zeus placed their images among the stars naming them the Hyades It was during this time on Mount Nysa that Dionysus invented wineOnce he grew up Hera realized that he was a son of Zeus and drove him crazy Dionysus wandered the world actively encouraging his cult accompanied by the Maenads wild women flush with wine shoulders draped with a fawn skin carrying ivytwined staff tipped with pine cones called the 'thyrsus'In his company were also found the Satyrs wild men with goat feet carrying swords and serpents and fearsome bullroarers Always at his side was the extremely fat Silenus his wise mentor and tutor who had a fondness for wineSailing to Egypt the army of Dionysus was hospitably received by King Proteus of Pharos and the god of wine gave him the vine Next Dionysus encouraged the Amazon Queens of the Nile Delta to join with him and do battle against the Titans restoring King Ammon to his rightful kingdom That was the first of hismilitary triumphsIndia was next The King of Damascus opposed Dionysus and was thus flayed alive as punishment Building a bridge made of ivy and vine across the river Euphrates he moved on and a tiger sent by Zeus helped him cross the river Tigris After encountering much resistance he reached India and soon conquered the entire country introducing the art of viniculture and founding great citiesThe army of Dionysus returned to Europe where Rhea purified him of the many murders he had committed and initiated him into her mysteries Lycurgus King of the Edonians attacked them savagely and captured everyone except Dionysus himself who plunged into the sea and took refuge in an underwater grotto of ThetisRhea intervened freed the prisoners and drove Lycurgus mad The crazy King of the Edonians then killed his own son thinking that he was cutting a vine By the time he came to his senses he had begun to prune the nose ears fingers and toes of his son's corpse and the whole land of Thrace grew barren in total horror of his crime Dionysus returned from the sea and announced that this decay would continue until Lycurgus were put to death Hearing this the Edonians bound their King brought him to Mount Pangaeum and tied him to wild horses who pulled his body apartNext to oppose Dionysus was Pentheus King of Thebes He arrested the god of wine and his Maenads but at once he went mad and shackled a bull rather than Dionysus The Maenads escaped and wreaked havoc on the mountains in their frenzy tearing calves into pieces When Pentheus attempted to stop them the Maenads inflamed by religious ecstasy and wine tore the King limb from limb led by his mother Agave who herself wrenched off his headDionysus then toured the Aegean Islands spreading joy and terror wherever he went Hiring a ship that was bound for Naxos however he fell into a pirate trap The ship's sailors unaware that Dionysus was a god steered a course for Asia planning to sell him there as a slave Dionysus made ivy grow and twine around the rigging and vines to sprout from the deck and engulf the mast The oars turned into serpents and Dionysus himself transformed into a lion as the sound of flutes filled the ship along with phantom beasts The terrified pirates leaped overboard and became dolphinsAt Naxos Dionysus met the beautiful Ariadne who had been abandoned by the hero Theseus Falling in love with her they married and she bore him Oenopion Thoas Staphylus Latromis Euanthes and Tauropolus From Naxos he sailed to Argos and caused the women to go insane until their king the hero Perseus acknowledged his divinity and built a temple in honor of DionysusHis worship eventually firmly established throughout the world Dionysus was then free to ascend to Mount Olympus where he took his seat at the right hand of his father Zeus Even Hera his tormentor finally accepted him Some claim that the wise Hestia goddess of the hearth gave up her place at Olympus to make room for him and indeed she was happy to be rid of the petty jealousies that were rampant in the heavensDionysus was also one of the very few that was able to bring a dead person out of the underworld Even though he had never seen Semele he was concerned for her Eventually he journeyed into the Underworld to find her He bribed Persephone Queen of the Underworld with a gift of myrtle to release his mother faced down Thanatos Death and brought Semele back to MountOlympus Still just so other ghosts did not become jealous Dionysus changed his mother's name to Thyone 'raging queen' and that's how he introduced her to the other Olympians Zeus provided an apartment for her and Hera wasn't at all happy with this arrangement but she kept a resigned silenceDionysus became one of the most important gods in everyday life He became associated with several key concepts One was rebirth after death Here his dismemberment by the Titans and return to life is symbolically echoed in tending vines where the vines must be pruned back sharply and then become dormantin winter for them to bear fruit The other is the idea that under the influence of wine one could feel possessed by a greater power Unlike the other gods Dionysus was not only outside his believers but also within them At these times a man might be greater then himself and do works he otherwise could notThe festival for Dionysus is in the spring when the leaves begin to reappear on the vine It became one of the most important events of the year Its focus became the theater Most of the great Greek plays were initially written to be performed at the feast of Dionysus Those who took part including writers actors and spectators were regarded as sacred servants of Dionysus during the festival

Motivational Poster

zerogravity13 — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:41:26 MDT

Motivational Poster - 300spartans.jpg

300 spartans

night fairy

hauzic — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:59:14 MDT

night fairy - fairy-1.jpg

interviewwithavampire

charlotteofraiz — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:33:49 MDT

interviewwithavampire - interview-vampire.jpg

Zeus

salsa88 — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:38:03 MDT

Zeus - Zeus.jpg

Zeus the youngest son of Cronus and Rhea he was the supreme ruler of Mount Olympus and of the Pantheon of gods who resided there Being the supreme ruler he upheld law justice and morals and this made him the spiritual leader of both gods and men Zeus was a celestial god and originally worshiped as a weather god by the Greek tribes These people came southward from the Balkans circa 2100 BCE He has always been associated as being a weather god as his main attribute is the thunderbolt he controlled thunder lightning and rain Theocritus wrote circa 265 BCE sometimes Zeus is clear sometimes he rains He is also known to have caused thunderstorms In Homer's epic poem the Iliad he sent thunderstorms against his enemies The name Zeus is related to the Greek word dios meaning bright His other attributes as well as lightning were the scepter the eagle and his aegis this was the goatskin of Amaltheia Before the abolition of monarchies Zeus was protector of the king and his family Once the age of Greek kings faded into democracy he became chief judge and peacemaker but most importantly civic god He brought peace in place of violence Hesiod circa 700 BCE describes Zeus as the lord of justice Zeus was also known as Kosmetas orderer Soter savior Polieos overseer of the polis city and also Eleutherios guarantor of political freedoms His duties in this role were to maintain the laws protect suppliants to summon festivals and to give prophecies his oldest and most famous oracle was at Dodona in Epirus northwestern Greece As the supreme deity Zeus oversaw the conduct of civilized life But the father of gods and men as Homer calls him has many mythological tales His most famous was told by Hesiod in his Theogony of how Zeus usurped the kingdom of the immortals from his father This mythological tale of Zeus' struggle against the Titans Titanomachy had been caused by Cronus after he had been warned that one of his children would depose him Cronus knowing the consequences as he had overthrown his father Uranus To prevent this from happening Cronus swallowed his newborn children Hestia Demeter Hera Hades and Poseidon but his wife Rhea who was also his sister and Gaia her mother wrapped a stone in swaddling clothes in place of the infant Zeus Cronus thinking it was the newborn baby swallowed the stone Meanwhile Rhea had her baby taken to Crete and there in a cave on Mount Dicte the divine goat Amaltheia suckled and raised the infant Zeus When Zeus had grown into a young man he returned to his fathers domain and with the help of Gaia compelled Cronus to regurgitate the five children he had previously swallowed in some versions Zeus received help from Metis who gave Cronus an emetic potion which made him vomit up Zeus' brothers and sisters However Zeus led the revolt against his father and the dynasty of the Titans defeated and then banished them Once Zeus had control he and his brothers divided the universe between them Zeus gaining the heavens Poseidon the sea and Hades the underworld Zeus had to defend his heavenly kingdom The three separate assaults were from the offspring of Gaia they were the Gigantes Typhon Zeus fought them with his thunderbolt and aegis and the twin brothers who were called the Aloadae The latter tried to gain access to the heavens by stacking Mount Ossa on top of Mount Olympus and Mount Pelion on top of Mount Ossa but the twins still failed in their attempt to overthrow Zeus As he did with the Titans Zeus banished them all to Tartarus which is the lowest region on earth lower than the underworld According to legend Metis the goddess of prudence was the first love of Zeus At first she tried in vain to escape his advances but in the end succumbed to his endeavor and from their union Athena was conceived Gaia warned Zeus that Metis would bear a daughter whose son would overthrow him On hearing this Zeus swallowed Metis the reason for this was to continue to carry the child through to the birth himself Hera his wife and sister was outraged and very jealous of her husband's affair also of his ability to give birth without female participation To spite Zeus she gave birth to Hephaestus parthenogenetically without being fertilized and it was Hephaestus who when the time came split open the head of Zeus from which Athena emerged fully armed Zeus had many offspring his wife Hera bore him Ares Hephaestus Hebe and Eileithyia but Zeus had numerous liaisons with both goddesses and mortals He either raped them or used devious means to seduce the unsuspecting maidens His union with Leto meaning the hidden one brought forth the twins Apollo and Artemis Once again Hera showed her jealousy by forcing Leto to roam the earth in search of a place to give birth as Hera had stopped her from gaining shelter on terrafirma or at sea The only place she could go was to the isle of Delos in the middle of the Aegean the reason being that Delos was as legend states a floating island One legend says that Aphrodite was the daughter of Zeus and Dione Besides deities he also fathered many mortals In some of his human liaisons Zeus used devious disguises When he seduced the Spartan queen Leda he transformed himself into a beautiful swan and from the egg which Leda produced two sets of twins were born Castor and Polydeuces and Clytemnestra and Helen of Troy He visited princess Danae as a shower of gold and from this union the hero Perseus was born He abducted the Phoenician princess Europa disguised as a bull then carried her on his back to the island of Crete where she bore three sons Minos Rhadamanthys and Sarpedon Zeus also took as a lover the Trojan prince Ganymede He was abducted by an eagle sent by Zeus some legends believe it was Zeus disguised as an eagle The prince was taken to Mount Olympus where he became Zeus' cupbearer Zeus also used his charm and unprecedented power to seduce those he wanted so when Zeus promised Semele that he would reveal himself in all his splendor in order to seduce her the union produced Dionysus but she was destroyed when Zeus appeared as thunder and lightening Themis the goddess of justice bore the three Horae goddesses of the seasons to Zeus and also the three Moirae known as the Fates When Zeus had an affair with Mnemosyne he coupled with her for nine consecutive nights which produced nine daughters who became known as the Muses They entertained their father and the other gods as a celestial choir on Mount Olympus They became deities of intellectual pursuits Also the three Charites or Graces were born from Zeus and Eurynome From all his children Zeus gave man all he needed to live life in an ordered and moral way Zeus had many Temples and festivals in his honor the most famous of his sanctuaries being Olympia the magnificent Temple of Zeus which held the gold and ivory statue of the enthroned Zeus sculpted by Phidias and hailed as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World Also the Olympic Games were held in his honor The Nemean Games which were held every two years were to honor Zeus There were numerous festivals throughout Greece in Athens they celebrated the marriage of Zeus and Hera with the Theogamia or Gamelia The celebrations were many in all Zeus had more than 150 epithets each one being celebrated in his honor

Poseidon

salsa88 — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:38:02 MDT

Poseidon - Poseidon.jpg

Poseidon was the ruler of the sea a powerful god in Greek mythology who was often called the Earthshaker His father was the Titan Cronus who at the time was ruler of the Universe and his mother was Rhea Cronus was a paranoid ruler because it had been prophesized that one of his own sons would dethrone him just as Cronus had done to his father UranusThus Cronus would swallow the children whom Rhea bore him He figured that it was the safest way to ensure that none of his offspring overthrew himOne by one the children were swallowed by Cronus first Hestia then Demeter Hera Hades and Poseidon Some mythographers claim that Rhea tricked Cronus by presenting a foal instead of the baby Poseidon for consumption but most agree that Poseidon had been swallowed like the rest of his siblingsNeedless to say this constant swallowing of her children enraged Rhea She bore her third son Zeus in the middle of the night and gave him for safekeeping to Gaea Mother Earth She fooled Cronus into believing he had swallowed his new son by substituting a rock wrapped in baby blanketsWhen Zeus grew up and with the help of Gaea and his mother Rhea he slipped Cronus a potion that made the Titan disgorge the swallowed children Being gods they were unharmed albeit a tad dazed and confused With Zeus serving as their leader Poseidon Hades Hestia Demeter and Hera waged war against the Titans for supremacy of the UniverseAssisted by the Cyclops they gave Zeus his thunderbolts Poseidon his trident and Hades his helmet of invisibility and the Hecatoncheires the Hundredhandedones the siblings fought a terrible war that lasted ten years In the end they were victorious banishing their vanquished foes to the deepest depths of the Underworld called Tartarus This dark and woeful place is as far beneath the earth as heaven is above the earth Around Tartarus runs a fence of bronze with gates of bronze which Poseidon fixed in such as way as to offer no escape and there the Titans were forever confinedAfter Zeus with his brothers and sisters defeated the Titans anddethroned Cronus the three brothers drew lots out of a helmet todetermine which one of the three realms each would rule Zeus won the heavens and thus became the supreme ruler Hades got the Underworld and Poseidon got the sea The Earth remained common to all threePoseidon was very powerful second only to Zeus himself Equal to Zeus in dignity though not in power he was reputed to be a surly and quarrelsome figurePoseidon at once got busy constructing a magnificent palace beneath the sea off Aegae in Euboea Splendid white chariot horses with brazen hooves and golden manes lived in the palace's spacious stables and an awesome golden chariot was always ready to transport the sea god about At the approach of Poseidon's chariot storms and foul weather would cease and sea monsters would rise from the depths playfully frisking around it like friendly dolphinsAs wonderful as his underwater palace was Poseidon still spent much of his time participating in the festivities in Olympus with the other godsPoseidons wife was Amphitrite granddaughter of the titan Oceanus At first Poseidon courted Thetis the Nereid because she was beautiful and was already accustomed to the seadepths But when the respected Titan Themis prophesized that any son born to Thetis would be greater than his father wisely he backed off and looked elsewhere for a wifeNext he approached Amphitrite another Nereid who wanted nothing to do with Poseidon For whatever reason she was turnedoff by the god of the sea and fled to the Atlas Mountains in order to escape his advancesNot to be denied Poseidon sent messengers all over the earth to look for her Eventually after much wandering a man named Delphinus located Amphitrite and was so convincing in pleading Poseidon's case and his love for her that at last she yielded and agreed to the marriage Delphinus himself organized the entire wedding and a splendid party it wasThe union of Poseidon and Amphitrite produced three children Triton Rhode and Benthesicyme But like his brother Zeus Poseidon wasn't a very faithful husband and engaged in numerous affairs with goddesses nymphs and even mortalsUnderstandably jealous Amphitrite punished many of her husband's lovers just like Hera did to her husband Zeus' women She was particularly upset with Poseidon's infatuation with Scylla gorgeous daughter of Phorcys and was determined to punish her indiscretion Amphitrite threw magical herbs into Scylla's bathing pool and when the woman took her bath at once she transformed into a barking monster with six heads and twelve feetPoseidon was never fully satisfied with his share of the world and once even conspired with other Olympians to dethrone Zeus But his plot was discovered and in punishment Zeus exiled him to earth There he was to build the walls of Troy for king Laomedon He was helped by Apollo who was also banished from Olympus at that timeThe two Olympian gods assumed the likeness of men and undertook to fortify Troy for wages Apollo was able to move the heaviest of stones with just the sound of his lyre But when they had fortified it and the task was completed the foolish king Laomedon would not pay their wages Therefore Apollo sent a pestilence and Poseidon sent a Seamonster which snatched away the people of the plainThe oracles foretold deliverance from these calamities if Laomedon would expose the maiden Hesione to be devoured by Poseidon's Seamonster Not knowing what else to do the king followed the oracles' advice and fastened her to the rocks near the sea but at the last moment the greatest Greek hero Heracles Hercules saved her and she married TelamonGetting stiffed for his wages was also the chief reason why Poseidon was on the Greek side during the Trojan WarMany more Seamonsters were unleashed by Poseidon to exactvengeance Poseidon sent a Seamonster against the Teucriansbecause Hierax a righteous man was devoted to Demeter and would not honor Poseidon When Queen Cassiopeia boasted of being better than the Nereids the water nymphs became angry and asked Poseidon to intervene The wrathful god sent a flood and yet another Seamonster to invade the land Andromeda was exposed as a prey to this monster only to be rescued by the hero Perseus Poseidon also sent a bull from the sea and the horses of Hippolytus were startled entangling their master in the reins dragging him to a horrible deathAnother time Poseidon competed with the great Athena goddess of wisdom war and the crafts over who would gain patronage of the famous city state called Athens Poseidon struck the side of the Acropolis and a fountain spurted forth its water much to the amazement of the people However the water was salty which proved no use to the populace Athena presented the people with the first olive tree which was used for food oil and provided wood to burn in the winter The gods and goddesses had assembled to pass judgment with the males voting for the god of the sea and the females choosing Athena's olive tree Since the women outnumbered the men by one Athena's gift was judged to be the most useful and Athena was awarded the city which forever after carried her name Athens Known for his anger and not being the best of sports Poseidonproceeded to sent huge waves to flood the area in a meanspiritedparting gesture To appease Poseidon's wrath the women of Athens were deprived of their vote and the men forbidden to bear their mothers names In the shrine of Erechtheus there remained preserved a long time an olive tree and a pool of salt water which had been set there by Poseidon and Athena as tokens when they contended for the city Another dispute arose between Poseidon and Athena over the city of Troezen but Zeus nipped it in the bud by declaring that it was to be shared equally between the two an arrangement loathed by both parties Quarrelsome Poseidon thus engaged in disputes with Zeus over the island of Aegina Dionysus over the island of Naxos Helios the sun god over the area of Corinth Poseidon was upset because he received the Isthmus of Corinth only while Helios got the prestigious Acropolis of Corinth Hera wife of Zeus got into it with Poseidon over Argolis and that one got real ugly with accusations flying all over the place and Poseidon claiming that the Olympians were biased against him Poseidon's argument with Hera was referred for arbitration to a panel of three Rivergods who made a decision in favor of Hera Outraged Poseidon vowed revenge on them Zeus had forbidden him to bring on floods as he had done in Athens so the sea god did the exact opposite He dried up the streams of his three judges Inachus Cephissus and Asterion and they never again flowed in the summer But Poseidon could be compassionate Anymone was a Danaid nymph of nature who was greatly distressed by these droughts and taking pity on her Poseidon caused the Argive river of Lerna to perpetually flow bringing Anymone muchneeded relief Poseidon liked to boast that he created the first horse and it wasaccepted that he instituted horseracing He even claimed to haveconstructed the first horse bridle although Athena begs to differ on thatthe two rarely got along at first even though eventually they reconciled and worked on some common causes Like Zeus it took many years for Poseidon to mature and not always act belligerently Although Poseidon is adored for giving men the first horse his primary importance was as Lord of the Sea At his command winds rose and the most violent of storms began but when he drove in his golden chariot over the water the storms subsided and tranquil peace followed his wheels Ancient sailors and warriors would pray and offer tributes to the great Poseidon prior to undertaking a sea journey In turn Poseidon could be cruel and hostile to those who displeased him such as the hero of the Trojan War Odysseus who suffered great tribulations at the hands of Poseidon while embarked on his Odyssey back home Both the bull and the horse are associated with Poseidon but the bull is associated with many other gods as well so the horse can be considered his animalHe was always depicted carrying or using his distinguishing weapon the trident a threepronged spear which he used to shatter and shake anything he pleased much like his brother Zeus used his thunderbolts That's why he was commonly referred to as the Earth Shaker The trident his symbol was the gift of the Cyclopes who had fought with the Olympians versus the TitansHe was always accompanied by his son Triton who was half man half fish Triton would blow on his seashell to announce Poseidon's arrival

Hephaestus

art-imagens — Mon, 11 May 2009 07:29:35 MDT

Hephaestus - Hephaestus.jpg

Hermes

salsa88 — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:38:00 MDT

Hermes - Hermes.jpg

Hermes is the son of Zeus and Maia daughter of the Titan Atlas and was born in a cave on mount Cyllene in Arcadia That's why he is often called Atlantiades or Cyllenius He is the fastest of the gods and his position was as messenger to Zeus and all the other godsHe was also the Divine Herald the solemn guide who knew the road to hell and would lead the souls of the dead down to the Underworld after Thanatos Death did his job That's why he was also called Psychopompus a name given to him for being the guide of souls to the UnderworldHermes is also the Greek god of Commerce and the Market and thus the patron of traders merchants and thieves His distinguishing qualities were cunning ingenuity knowledge and creativityHis realm included Gymnastics he was the patron of all gymnastic games in Greece and gymnasia were under his protection The Greek artists derived their ideal of the god from the gymnasium and thus they represented Hermes as a handsome youth with beautiful limbs harmoniously developed by athletic exercises and gymnastic excellenceHermes Baby DionysusBelieved to be the inventor of sacrifices Hermes was the protector of sacrificial animals He is often mentioned in connection with Pan and the Nymphs who were spirits of nature and the shepherds worshipped him This versatile god had a hand even in administering Good Luck presiding over games of chance such as diceHe was also the shrewdest and most cunning of all the gods the master thief who began his career before he was one day old by stealing Apollos herds A few hours after his birth the mischievous infant escaped from his cradle and traveled to Pieria where he saw the splendid herds of Apollo and decided to take them Carrying off some of the finest of his halfbrother's renowned cattle the infant Hermes returned to his native Arcadia The cunning child made the cattle walk backwards to obscuretheir tracksHe bribed a man named Battus who had seen him to be silentSacrificing two of the stolen animals he divided them into twelve parts for the twelve great gods of Mount Olympus hiding the rest of the herd It was this theft that won Hermes recognition as a god himselfFinding a tortoise outside his cave Hermes further displayed his godly talent by placing strings across its shell thus inventing the lyre He sat there sweetly playing this marvelous new instrument happy as a baby god could beMeanwhile Apollo using his prophetic powers not to mention the fact that Battus did not keep his word but had revealed the secret had discovered the identity of the cattle thief and promptly arrived at Cyllene confronting baby Hermes and charging him with the crime He saidChild lying in the cradle make haste and tell me of my cattle orwe two will soon fall out angrily For I will take and cast you intodusky Tartarus and awful hopeless darkness and neither yourmother nor your father shall free youApollo to Hermes Homeric Hymn to HermesThe child's mother Maia was perplexed at Apollo's accusation of her son and pointed out the infant snug in his cradle innocently sleeping like a baby There's no way such a sweet child could perpetrate the crime he was accused of Maia saidApollo would have none of that and he carried the baby to Zeus who judged the infant guilty as charged and ruled that Hermes would have to return the stolen cattle to their rightful owner But just then Hermes began to play on the lyre he had crafted and Apollo was so charmed by the exquisite sound that the god of music allowed the child to keep the animals Hermes in turn gifted the lyre to Apollo and in no time the two were good friendsHermes in his role as Messenger God took part in many myths and was employed by all the gods particularly Zeus on a number of occasions He was the one whoBrought the goddesses Aphrodite Hera and Athena to the shepherd Paris who judged that Aphrodite was the most beautiful causing the Trojan WarTied Ixion's hands and feet to the wheel which is said to rollperpetually in the air Led the Trojan King Priam to the tent of Achilles to fetch the body of his dead son Hector Gave Odysseus moly the magic plant which offered protectionagainst enchantment by a witch Gave the GoldenFleeced ram to Nephele in order to save her childrenGave Hades' helmet of invisibility to the hero Perseus in order tohelp him slay Medusa Rescued from the flames baby Dionysus god of wine following his birthBrought back Zeus' sinews which the monster Typhon had stolen rendering Zeus helpless Freed the war god Ares from the bronze jar in which he had been imprisoned during the Olympians' battle versus the Giants During this same Giants revolt Hermes wearing Hades' helmet of invisibility killed the giant HippolytusSold the hero Heracles Hercules to Queen Omphale Rescued Io one of Zeus' lovers who had been transformed into a cow and was guarded by Argus the 100eyed giant Hermes slew Argus and set Io free Hermes is sometimes called Argiphontes for having killed the Allseeing ArgusHis principal attributes and symbols were1The Petassos a widebrimmed traveling hat which in later times was adorned with two small wings 2The heralds' staff called kerykeion in Greek or Caduceus inLatin given to Hermes by Apollo The white ribbons surrounding the staff were later changed into two serpents by later artists 3The sandals that carried him across land and water faster than the wind They had wings attached to the ankles

Babylonian World Map 600500 BCE

derekuz — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:01:35 MDT

Babylonian World Map 600500 BCE - Babylonian-World-Map.jpg

1 The Babylonian map of the worldBM 92687 Babylonian map of the world in the British Museum London It is the earliest extant map The clay tablet is 122 cms tall The map was composed in Babylonia and is the only Babylonian map drawn on an international scale It is a NeoBabylonian Persian Period circa 500 BCE copy of an original dating to the Sargonid Period circa late eighth or seventh century BCE The clay tablet is a drawing and textual description of the Babylonian cosmos It is oriented to the northwest It is uncertain whether the accompanying cuneiform text was composed together with the map It is the only known map of the world dating from the NeoBabylonian Period All other maps have a purely local focusIt depicts a bird'seye view of the world and shows a flat round world with the city of Babylon in the centre Circa 500 BCE Babylon was still a flourishing city and regarded as the centre ie the hub of the world In the third millennium BCE Nippur was considered to be the city at the centre of the world It is likely that the Sumerians made the city of Nippur the centre of the universe a Sumerian Rome from about 2300 BCE just prior to the Ur III Period Political supremacy was regarded as conditional on the possession of Nippur With the rise to political supremacy of the Babylonian kings from the early 2ndmillennium onwards it was possible for Babylon to claim the central position and replace Nippur as the centre of the universeThe map depicts the world as two concentric circles with triangular areas radiating from the outer circle The area within the inner circle represents the central continent where Babylon and Assyria are located The area between the two circles is the earthly cosmic ocean The area beyond the outer circle consists of the triangular areas which are the uncharted regions The continent on the map contains various geometric shapes representing places and topographic features The place names include the countries of Assyria indicated northeast of Babylon Urartu Armenia indicated north of Assyria the land of Habban South Yemen indicated southwest of Babylon and the city of Babylon The topographic features include a mountain a swamp and a channel The mountains are located at the top in the north Babylon is represented by a large rectangle encompassing almost half the width of the central continent Assyria is represented as a small oval Various nameless places are also indicated by ovals The Euphrates River which originates in the mountains at the top of the map runs through Babylon and flows into the marshes at the bottom of the map The continent is surrounded by the circle of salty ocean The map schematically portrays the entire kingdom of Babylonia The text contains the names of countries and cities but on the reverse side the text is largely concerned with a description of the seven unnamed outer regions islands which are depicted in the form of equal triangles rising beyond the encircling earthly cosmic oceanThe text on both sides of the tablet shows that the map attempts to depict the entire world The emphasis on distant places in the text accompanying the map indicates that the likely purpose of the map was to locate and describe distant regions The text of the reverse of the tablet describe the seven islands in detail From the paucity of the information given it is evident that the Babylonians knew little about these islands Mostly the description given is mostly about their various degrees of brightness From the text on the reverse of the tablet and the inscriptions on the map itself it can be determined that the first island lay in the southeast the second island lay in the southwest and so on so that the sequence of the islands is somewhat analogous with the hands of a modern clock The descriptions of the first and second outer regions are not preservedOther textual sources describe he earthly ocean as being enclosed by a double range of mountains those to the east and those to the west the sunrise and sunset range respectivelyThe map has a definite orientation it is inclined The orientation is such that that the northwest is at the top Thus the Babylonian system of orientation did not follow the perpendicular plane north west south and east of our Western cardinal points The Babylonian system of orientation was based upon the prevalent winds The northwest wind was sent from the goddess Ishtar and was a favourable wind For a detailed early discussion of the Babylonian world map see From Cosmos Picture to the World Map by Eckhard Unger Imago Mundi Volume 2 1937 Pages 17 2 The levels of the Babylonian universeThe vertical levels of the generalised Mesopotamian universe are indicated asRegion Above the Heaven of Anu See The Etana Epic Section B 3043 Open space implied by The Etana EpicUpper Heaven High Heaven of Anu Highest Region of the UniverseMiddle Heaven Intermediate High Heaven of IgigiLower Heaven of the Visible Sky Stars Planets Sun and MoonThe Atmosphere Either not specifically listed not considered a separate level of the universe or identified as Part of Visible Sky Lower Heaven or Separate Geographical Level Upper Earth Humankind The Level of the Earth's Surface Dry Land and SeaMiddle Earth Apsu of Ea EnkiEa Cosmic Subterranean WaterLower Earth Underworld of Nergal King and Erekigal Queen Realm of the Dead Lowest Region of the UniverseThe existing accounts of Mesopotamian cosmology are rather limited Unfortunately they are also conflicting For a detailed discussion of Mesopotamian cosmology including the Babylonian world map see Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography by Wayne Horowitz 1998

Babylonian_World_Mapm.jpg

derekuz — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:01:35 MDT

Babylonian_World_Mapm.jpg

Bahamas Vanessa Minnillo Nick Lachey

hotmommagossip — Sun, 10 May 2009 15:38:03 MDT

Bahamas Vanessa Minnillo Nick Lachey - vanessanickt2.jpg

hentai

gangstababymr6 — Sun, 10 May 2009 23:27:31 MDT

hentai - hentai.jpg

papyrus of ani

aldymachine — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:09:47 MDT

papyrus of ani - weighing_of_the_heart.jpg

weighing of the heart

Megan Fox

Greeny01234 — Mon, 11 May 2009 11:23:51 MDT

Megan Fox - megan_fox_big.jpg

wallpaper

serina_18 — Tue, 12 May 2009 14:28:15 MDT

wallpaper - wallpaper.jpg

61 ChThonian Soldiers

Night_Watch4995 — Mon, 11 May 2009 08:56:44 MDT

61 ChThonian Soldiers - 100_3223.jpg