Lamia: The Queen Who Lost Her Children and Became a Monster Who Takes Everyone Else’s
Lamia was a queen of Libya, beautiful and beloved by Zeus, who bore him children. Hera, as was her practice […]
Ancient Mythology
Ancient Mythology
Ancient Mythology: The Stories That Shaped the World
Before history was written down, it was told. The great mythological traditions of the ancient world were not simply entertainment or primitive attempts to explain natural phenomena. They were the frameworks through which entire civilisations understood their place in the universe, the nature of their gods, the obligations of the living to the dead, and the rules that governed everything from the weather to the proper conduct of war. They were serious business, and they deserve to be treated as such.
This section covers the major mythological traditions of the ancient world. At present the coverage is deepest in Greek mythology, which has the largest body of content on the site, but the section will expand over time to include Norse, Chinese, Native American, and other traditions as that content develops. Each tradition is covered on its own terms rather than filtered through the lens of the popular culture versions that have accumulated around them, because the original material is almost always stranger, richer, and more interesting than any adaptation has managed to convey.
The articles here are written for people who want to understand what the myths actually said, who the figures in them actually were, and why the civilisations that produced them considered these stories worth preserving across centuries. Browse by subcategory below, or explore the articles directly.
Gello: The Child-Stealing Demon of Byzantine Greece and the Woman Who Never Had Children of Her Own
Gello is one of the oldest named demons in the Greek tradition, a supernatural being whose specific function is the
Nereid: The Sea Nymphs of Greek Folk Tradition Who Are Nothing Like Their Ancient Counterparts
The Nereids of ancient Greek mythology were fifty daughters of the sea god Nereus, benevolent sea nymphs who accompanied Poseidon
Strigla: The Greek Witch of Folk Tradition and the Fear That Never Left the Villages
The Strigla is the witch figure of Greek folk tradition, a woman who possesses the evil eye, who can curse
Kallikantzaroi: The Greek Christmas Goblins Who Spend All Year Sawing the World Tree and Emerge at the Worst Possible Moment
The Kallikantzaroi are the goblins of Greek folklore, supernatural beings who spend the entire year underground sawing at the World
Lycaon: The Greek King Who Served Human Flesh to Zeus and Became the World’s First Werewolf
The werewolf has a specific origin point in Western mythology, and it is not medieval Europe. It is ancient Greece,
Was Odysseus a Real Person? What the Archaeology Actually Says
The question of whether Odysseus actually existed is one of the most genuinely interesting in classical scholarship, and the honest
King Antiphates: The Cannibal King of the Laestrygonians Who Destroyed Odysseus’s Fleet in Minutes
Odysseus arrived at the land of the Laestrygonians with twelve ships. He left with one. The destruction took minutes. King
Sinon: The Greek Spy Who Talked Troy Into Accepting the Wooden Horse and Why He Is the Most Underrated Figure in the Trojan War
The Trojan Horse is the most famous weapon in ancient history, and almost everyone who knows the story knows the
Charybdis: The Whirlpool That Swallowed the Sea Three Times a Day and the Worst Choice Odysseus Ever Had to Make
Charybdis is the opposite of Scylla in almost every respect, and the two monsters together constitute one of the most