Written by For years, the people of Nemea had lamented their plight. Their cattle could not graze in the meadows near the forest, travelers dared not pass through the woods, and even in their homes, none could sleep in peace. A monstrous lion dwelled in the heart of the Nemean Forest, and each day brought fresh terror—a […]
Near Argos lay the vast swampland of Lerna. A pure spring bubbled from the earth there, but its feeble stream could not carve a path to river or sea, instead spilling across the lowland. The stagnant waters grew thick with moss and marsh weeds, transforming the great valley into a festering bog. Though its vibrant […]
Woodcutters gathering kindling in the forests of Arcadia’s mountain slopes once beheld a magnificent hind with golden antlers. She stood atop a steep cliff, but at the sight of humans, she vanished like a whirlwind—only swaying branches and the chime of silver hooves on stone marked her passing. Word of this wondrous creature spread through […]
Summer and autumn, when fields ripened with grain and vegetables, brought dread to the peasants living near Mount Erymanthus. Each morning revealed fresh devastation—earth upturned, crops trampled, and precious fruit crushed under some brutish force. The villagers whispered of a monstrous boar dwelling in the oak groves on the mountain slopes. By night, it descended […]
The war god Ares kept a flock of monstrous birds with iron talons and beaks. Their bronze feathers could detach and rain down with deadly force like arrows. These creatures dwelled deep in the mountain gorge near Lake Stymphalia – a desolate place where waters vanished into an underground chasm leading to Hades’ realm. Barren […]
King Augeas of Elis was immeasurably wealthy. His countless herds of cattle and sheep, along with vast troops of horses, grazed in the fertile valley of the Alpheus River. He owned three hundred snow-white steeds, two hundred red as copper, and twelve as radiant as swans—one of which bore a star gleaming upon its brow. […]
Six times already had Heracles appeared in Mycenae, each time setting forth at King Eurystheus’ command on a perilous and arduous journey. Six glorious deeds had he accomplished: he slew the Nemean Lion, destroyed the Lernaean Hydra, captured the Ceryneian Hind, brought the Erymanthian Boar to Mycenae, drove the Stymphalian Birds from Greece, and in […]
Once again, Eurystheus commanded Heracles to embark on a distant quest—this time to seize the horses of Diomedes, king of Thrace. For the first time in his service to the king, Heracles hesitated. He had feared neither the Nemean Lion nor the Hydra, neither endless wanderings nor arduous labor, neither bloody battles nor human treachery. […]
King Eurystheus had a young daughter, Admete. One day she came to her father and said: “They say far to the east lies a kingdom ruled by women. There, women are the heads of households, masters of their homes. They govern cities, trade, administer justice, offer sacrifices in temples, and decide matters of state. Armed, […]
Eurystheus sent Heracles ever farther. When the hero returned from his Amazonian campaign, the king commanded him to journey to the world’s edge—where the sun sets—to Erytheia, the Crimson Isle amid Oceanus’ waters, where three-headed giant Geryon kept his herd of red cattle. Heracles was to bring these bulls to Mycenae. The hero traveled westward […]
Long ago, when the gods of radiant Olympus celebrated the wedding of Zeus and Hera, Gaia the Earth gifted the bride a magical tree bearing golden apples. These apples held the power to restore youth—any mortal who tasted them would never grow old. Yet no man knew where the garden of this wondrous tree lay. […]
Heracles descended into the realm of the dead and conquered Cerberus. From the rising to the setting sun, Heracles had traversed the earth—battling, laboring, slaying monsters and wicked men. He carved paths up mountain peaks, sailed the ocean with the Sun itself, journeyed to the edge of the world… and returned victorious. Now, in desperation, […]