Monsters in Greek mythology

The stories of Greek mythology are full of gods and heroes, mythical creatures and monsters, and these stories have thrilled audiences for millennia. With a few exceptions, the monsters are less famous than the heroes and gods, but their role in the tales of Greek mythology are vital. For without an antagonist the heroes and gods would be nothing.

Arguably the most important monsters from Greek mythology are Echidna and Typhon. One of the epitaphs of Echidna was “mother of monsters”, and with her partner, Typhon, gave birth to many famous monsters.

Echidna is generally considered to be the offspring of Tartarus and Gaia, and was noted as a Drakaina. Echidna had the upper body and face of a beautiful nymph, with the lower half of her body being that of a serpent. Echidna was said to have also had a taste for human flesh.

Typhon - Wenceslaus Hollar (1607–1677) - PD-art-70

Echidna lived with her partner, Typhon, in a cave in Arima, and Typhon was thought of as being even more monstrous than his wife. Like his partner Typhon was said to be born from Tartarus and Gaia, and in essence was also half humanoid and half serpent. In terms of size though, he was totally different from Echidna as his upper body was said to reach as high as the stars. On his hands were a hundred dragon heads. His bottom half was that of an enormous snake.

Typhon was considered the deadliest of all monsters, and at one point he and Echidna went to war with the gods of Mount Olympus. In the face of the two monsters all of the gods, bar Zeus, fled from their palaces. Zeus would though eventually overcome Typhon and would imprison the monster beneath Mount Etna. Echidna was allowed to return to Arima, although she was eventually killed by the giant Argus Panoptes.

In the original sources for Greek mythology there is not always agreement about just who the offspring of Echidna and Typhon were, but those mentioned are some of the most famous monsters.
Amongst the offspring were the Nemean Lion, the ferocious beast with impenetrable skin that terrorised the city of Nemea. The Nemean Lion was killed by Heracles as he completed his first task. Heracles, in his second task, would encounter another of Echidna’s children, the Lernaean Hydra.

The Nemean Lion - Francisco de Zurbarán (1598–1664) - PD-art-70

The Hydra was a water beast with nine heads, but when a head was cut off two heads grew in its place. Heracles again dispatched the monster, although with a little help from his nephew, Iolaus.
Further monstrous offspring of Echidna were also dispatched by Heracles, with Ladon, the hundred-headed dragon who guarded the Hesperides, and Orthus, the two-headed guard dog of the cattle of Geryon, were also killed. Heracles also met with Cerberus, the triple-head guard dog of the underworld, although Cerberus was abducted rather than killed by the Greek hero.

Other children of Echidna would also meet their ends at the hands of other Greek heroes; the Crommyonian Sow, a wild pig, was killed by Theseus, the Sphinx, killed herself after Oedipus solved her riddle, and the Chimera was killed by Bellerophon.

All of the monsters from Greek mythology mentioned so far were born monstrous. There were though other monsters that came into existence at the instigation of Olympian gods.

The Minotaur is a favourite monster from Greek mythology. Born to Pasiphae, the wife of King Minos, the Minotaur was said to inhabit the labyrinth beneath the Cretan king’s palace. Aphrodite had made Pasiphae fall in love with a bull after her husband had slighted Poseidon. To the Minotaur were sacrificed seven Athenian males and seven maidens each year until Theseus killed the half-bull, half-man beast.

One version of the Medusa myth also states that the Gorgon was transformed from a beautiful maiden into the snake-headed monster by Athena. Athena gave this punishment to Medusa after she was raped by Poseidon in one of Athena’s temples. Such was the monstrous nature of the created beast that the merest glimpse of her face would turn a man into stone, and yet ultimately Perseus was able to defeat the Gorgon.

Medusa - Arnold Böcklin (1827–1901) - PD-art-70

A similar tale tells of how the sea monster, Scylla was transformed from a beautiful naiad after either Amphitrite or Circe became jealous of her beauty. Scylla would cause the death of many a mariner as she was positioned across from Charybdis.

There were though many other monsters in Greek mythology, although some, like the Hecatonchires and first generation Cyclopes, were monstrous in appearance, but not so monstrous in their actions. The monsters of Greek mythology were the perfect antagonists to the gods and heroes, and gave purpose to their exploits.

Copyright  - First Published 28th November 2008