Are You an Expert in Greek Mythology?

Zeus came out as the most powerful leader of his generation of gods, traditionally known as the Olympian gods. Two older generations ruled before their reign, but it wasn't very peaceful and orderly during their era.

Heracles is the Greek demigod whose father is Zeus, but his mother is the human named Alcmene. And since Zeus cavorted with many women and sired so many children, Heracles had a lot of half-siblings out there.

Three of the Olympian gods brothers decided to take hold of a domain for each of them. While Zeus is the recognized leader of all things in the heavens and on earth, Poseidon rules over all the bodies of water within the planet. Meanwhile, Hades was relegated to rule somewhere underneath it all.

Traditionally, Pandora is said to have opened up a box that released all the evil things that beset humanity. But historians say that this translation may not be accurate, and it could have been pertaining to a jar instead of a box.

When it comes to beauty, love, passion, desire and pleasure, Aphrodite supports and enhances these concepts in her reign. Even though she was married, she also took on lovers -- lots of them!

Pygmalion's story initially didn't identify a name for the ivory sculpture of a woman he made. It was centuries after these texts were discovered that historians assigned a name for the statue, taking the name of Galatea from a recorded sea nymph's name.

Athena is the recognized goddess of wisdom and intelligence in Greek mythology, and that may be connected to the fact that she supposedly came out directly from Zeus' head. The olive tree is also associated with her, as well as the city of Athens.

Narcissus is the Greek mythological character who was supposedly so good-looking that even he fell in love with his own beauty when he saw his own reflection in a body of water's surface. While the concept of self-love is not totally a bad thing altogether, he somewhat took it to a different level.

Apollo is the recognized god of light, therefore in charge of the sun. Meanwhile, his twin sister Artemis is the goddess of the moon, so they complement each other that way. It is said that Apollo drives the sun across the sky in his chariot by day, and Artemis does the same with the moon at night.

A horse with wings exists in Greek mythology, and he is named Pegasus. Records show that he is the son of Medusa the Gorgon with Poseidon, the god of the water. Pegasus is a stallion who had many encounters in major stories in Greek mythology.

Though Ares is considered one of the major Olympian gods, he is actually the son of major gods Zeus and Hera. So technically, Ares is also the brother of Athena, since their father is Zeus. He is attracted to the goddess Aphrodite, and they had several children together.

The 12 Titans were the generation of gods sandwiched between the primal gods before them, and the Olympians, which we are more familiar with. Many of them bore children who had significant stories within the mythology, too.

One of the most popularly recognized Gorgons in Greek mythology is Medusa, who could turn people into stone if they make the mistake of staring into her eyes. Her other Gorgon sisters are named Stheno and Euryale.

Hera is the official wife of Zeus, even though they are siblings, since they share the same Titan parents. Nonetheless, Hera is the recognized goddess of marriage and family, so imagine her wrath whenever she discovers that philandering Zeus had another child from another mistress.

The Muses serve as goddesses that inspire the creativity and thinking of people, that's why the term "muse" also bear that meaning up to now. In Greek mythology, there are nine identified muses: Calliope, Clio, Terpsichore, Thalia, Melpomene, Euterpe, Erato, Polyhymnia and Urania.

Mount Olympus is the home of the Greek gods and goddesses, that's why they're also called Olympians. But it's a real place in Greece, situated between the areas of Macedonia and Thessaly. Mount Olympus is also classified today as a national park due to the rich biodiversity of the area.

All things wine, festivities, even desire and orgies point to one god in Greek mythology: Dionysus. He's the god who encompasses all of these concepts, partly because he's the son of Zeus. Even with these wild bachelor type of characteristics, he's actually married, and his wife is named Ariadne.

Homer is the recognized author of the epic poetry works called "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey," the two major works said to have contained many of the Greek mythological stories and characters. Another ancient writer should share the credit, though, and his name is Hesiod who authored the "Theogony."

Hermes is the recognized god of communication and commerce since he is the designated messenger of the Greek gods. He wears a pair of winged sandals and a winged cap and holds a staff that has two snakes twisted together on its upper part.

All things agriculture, harvests, nature's various bounty and the like are connected to the goddess Demeter, who oversees the fertility of all the lands on earth. Her spare time, though, is divided by being the lover of Zeus, and also Poseidon, as well as being the mother of Persephone.

The Three Fates are recognized as minor goddesses in Greek mythology, but their jobs are very significant, as they are the ones who "dictate" how long each entity will survive. There is a thread of life that one of them spins, another determines the length of it, and the third cuts it off.

Hephaestus is the recognized blacksmith of the gods who made many of their famous weapons. So industries connected to smithing and similar crafts such as metalwork, carpentry and sculpting, for instance, honor him as their guiding god.

While the human called Helen is said to have caused the Trojan War, it goes back further to the bickering of goddesses Aphrodite, Athena and Hera, and the goddess of discord named Eris started it for them when she left an apple to be given to the fairest of the goddesses, producing a competition.

When it comes to death and matters of the underworld, Hades is the god who oversees such things. But it's not easy to reach him there, for one has to cross the River Styx with some payment, and his three-headed dog named Cerberus guards the principal entrance.

Oedipus is the Greek mythological hero who was "destined" to wreak havoc in his family and, in effect, his city as well because he is a king. He was prophesied to kill his own father, which he accidentally did, not knowing the man was his father. The same thing happened when he married his mother.

The image of the cute baby with wings, a bow and arrow, shooting up people who end up loving each other, is often called Cupid. But that name is the Roman counterpart of Eros, the Greek god who embodies these traits and possesses this equipment, too. However, he is depicted as a full-grown figure.

Orpheus is recognized as one of the greatest musicians and poets in Greek mythology, who composed songs and played the lyre expertly. He was madly in love with Eurydice, his wife, who met an untimely death due to a snake bite. So he went all the way to the underworld to ask Hades to let her go back.

Prometheus is a Titan god who believed in the capacity of the human race to develop and evolve. That's why he took fire with him and brought it down to earth, to the ire of the other gods. They punished him by having an eagle eat his liver for eternity, which grows back again since he's immortal.

Before the existence of the Olympian gods and the Titans, there were primordial deities who ruled the world in Greek mythology. Uranus is the identified god who ruled the heavens, and Gaia is the one who ruled the earth. As husband and wife, they are treated as Father Sky and Mother Earth.

Karmic destiny is an overwhelming theme found within many tales in Greek mythology. A huge example is the story of Cronus who led the Titans in overthrowing their dad Uranus. Sadly, Cronus was also overthrown by his own children, led by the Olympian gods Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades.

In Greek mythology, Delphi is a place where a temple of Apollo is erected, and there is a high priestess who receives prophecies from gods (or just the god worshipped in a particular temple) and distributes them to the people seeking them. A priestess who acts in this manner is called an oracle.

The half-bull half-human Minotaur was indeed the product of a human and a bull mating together, birthed by a king's wife and sired by a white Cretan Bull. Poseidon sent the bull so the king can sacrifice it as an offering to him, but he kept it instead, making the god mad.

The famed golden fleece became one of the prerequisites of the Greek mythological hero Jason to become the king of Iolcus. In his quest, the collective crew of heroes called Argonauts helped him out, as well as his sorceress wife named Medea.

Historians speculate that the Greek mythological tales we now know today were fashioned, pieced together, and passed on from generation to generation via oral traditions. For instance, epic poems like Homer's "Odyssey" are speculated to have originated as oral performances later recorded in text.

Plato was a philosopher more concerned with science, mathematics, and of course, philosophy. This is why he regarded most of the tales in Greek mythology as mostly fictional in nature, even though the majority of his countrymen at that time viewed them as real historical accounts.