The twelve Olympian gods represent the major deities in the ancient Greek pantheon, residing atop Mount Olympus. These powerful figures shaped the myths and beliefs of the ancient Greeks, each possessing unique domains and personalities.
Their stories and interactions formed the core of Greek mythology.
Zeus
King of the gods and ruler of Mount Olympus; god of the sky, and thunder.
Youngest child of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. Symbols include the thunderbolt,eagle, oak tree, scepter, and scales.
Brother and husband of Hera, although he had many mistresses.
Brother of Poseidon, Pluto, Demeter, and Hestia.
Hera
Queen of the gods and the goddess of marriage and family.
Symbols include the peacock, pomegranate, crown, cuckoo, lion, and cow. Youngest daughter of Cronus and Rhea.
Wife and sister of Zeus. Being the goddess of marriage, she frequently tried to get revenge on Zeus’ mistresses and their children.
Athena
Goddess of wisdom, handicrafts, defense, and strategic warfare.
Symbols include the owl and the olive tree. Daughter of Zeus and the Oceanid Metis, she rose from her father’s head fully grown and in full battle armor after he swallowed her mother.
Poseidon
God of the seas, earthquakes, and tidal wave.
Symbols the horse, bull, dolphin, and trident.
Middle son of Cronus and Rhea. Brother of Zeus and Pluto.
Married to the Nereid Amphitrite, although, like most male Greek Gods, he had many mistresses.
Hermes
Messenger of the gods; god of commerce, thieves, and games.
Symbols include the caduceus (staff entwined with two snakes), winged
sandals and cap, stork, and tortoise (whose shell he used to invent the lyre).
Son of Zeus and the nymph Maia.
The second-youngest Olympian.
Ares
God of war, violence, and bloodshed.
Symbols include the boar, serpent, dog, vulture, spear, and shield.
Son of Zeus and Hera, all the other gods (except Aphrodite) despised him.
Artemis
Goddess of the hunt, virginity, childbirth, archery, the moon, and all animals.
Symbols include the moon, deer, hound, she-bear, snake, cypress tree, and bow and arrow.
Daughter of Zeus and Leto and twin sister of Apollo.
Hephaestus
Master blacksmith and craftsman of the gods; god of fire and the forge.
Symbols include fire, anvil, axe, donkey, hammer, tongs, and quail.
Son of Hera, either by Zeus or alone.
Married to Aphrodite, though unlike most divine husbands, he was rarely ever licentious.
Aphrodite
Goddess of love, beauty, and desire.
Symbols include the dove, apple, swan, myrtle, and rose.
Daughter of Zeus and the Oceanid Dione, or perhaps born from the sea foam (after Uranus’ semen dripped into the sea after being castrated by his youngest son, Cronus, who then threw his father’s genitals into the sea).
Married to Hephaestus, although she had many adulterous affairs, most notably with Ares.
Apollo
God of light, knowledge, healing, plague and darkness, the arts, music, poetry, prophecy, archery, the sun, manly youth, and beauty.
Son of Zeus and Leto. Symbols include the sun, lyre, bow and arrow, raven, dolphin, wolf, swan, and mouse.
Twin brother of Artemis.
Demeter
The goddess of fertility, agriculture, nature, and the seasons. Symbols include the poppy, wheat, torch, and pig.
Middle daughter of Cronus and Rhea.
Hestia
Goddess of the hearth and of the right ordering of domesticity and the family; she was one of the original twelve Olympians. Some lists of the Twelve Olympians omit her in favor of Dionysus.
She was the first child of Cronus and Rhea, eldest sister of Pluto, Demeter, Poseidon, Hera and Zeus.