Minerva

Introduction

Goddess who weaves robes for the goddesses; associated with wisdom.

Prometheus and Pandora

Goddess who aided Prometheus in stealing fire from the sun.

Baucis and Philemon

Mentioned as the source of the olives served by Baucis.

XIII: Nisus and Scylla—Echo and Narcissus—Clytie—Hero and Leander

Mentioned indirectly as Minos, king of Crete, who rejects Scylla's betrayal and sails away.

XIV: Minerva—Niobe

Goddess of wisdom, daughter of Jupiter, patron of arts and defensive war; competes with Neptune for Athens and punishes Arachne.

Minerva

Goddess of wisdom, daughter of Jupiter, who competes with Arachne in weaving and punishes her hubris by transforming her into a spider.

XV: The Graeae or Gray-Maids—Perseus—Medusa—Atlas—Andromeda

Goddess who lends Perseus her shield and later receives Medusa's head for her Aegis.

Perseus and Medusa

Goddess who lends her shield and later receives Medusa's head for her Aegis.

Monsters

Captures and tames Pegasus, presents him to the Muses, and gives Bellerophon a golden bridle to capture the horse.

Giants, Sphinx, Pegasus and Chimaera, Centaurs, Griffin, and Pygmies

Invented the thunderbolt and taught Vulcan and the Cyclopes to make it for Jupiter.

Pegasus and the Chimaera

Tames Pegasus and presents him to the Muses; gives Bellerophon a golden bridle in his sleep.

Theseus

Appears to Theseus in a dream commanding him to abandon Ariadne; patron deity of Athens honored at the Panathenaea.

Daedalus

Goddess who saves Perdix by transforming him into a partridge.

Antigone

Goddess who, angered by Tiresias seeing her bathing, deprives him of sight but later grants him knowledge of future events.

Orpheus and Eurydice—Aristaeus—Amphion—Linus—Thamyris—Marsyas—Melampus—Musaeus

Inventor of the flute who discards it after Cupid laughs at her playing; the flute is later found by Marsyas.

Marsyas

Invented the flute and played it for the celestial auditors, but threw it away after Cupid's mockery.

Agamemnon, Orestes, and Electra

She protects Orestes at Athens and casts the deciding vote for his acquittal in the Areopagus.

Calypso

In the guise of Mentor, accompanies Telemachus and guides him to resist Calypso's allurements.

The Phaeacians—Fate of the Suitors

Appears as a young maiden to guide Ulysses, later as a shepherd to inform him of Ithaca, and helps him disguise himself as a beggar.

The Phaeacians

Goddess who aids Ulysses by guiding Nausicaa, shielding him with a cloud, and directing him to the palace.

Fate of the Suitors

Appears to Ulysses as a young shepherd, informs him of the situation at his palace, and metamorphoses him into a beggar; later directs him to reveal himself to Telemachus.

Evander

Son of Evander; greets Aeneas and invites him to join the celebration.

Infant Rome

Son of Evander, who is sent to accompany Aeneas and learn the art of war.

Pallas, Camilla, Turnus

Young warrior who fights bravely but is slain by Turnus; his belt later incites Aeneas's vengeance.

Origin of Mythology—Statues of Gods and Goddesses—Poets of Mythology

Mentioned as the subject of Phidias's statue of the Minerva of the Parthenon, standing with a spear and a statue of Victory.

The Minerva of the Parthenon

The goddess represented in the statue by Phidias, standing with a spear and a statue of Victory.

The Mythical History of England

Mentioned as the goddess to whom Bladud dedicated the medicinal waters of Bath.

Bladud

Bladud dedicated the medicinal waters of Bath to Minerva.