Period 2 -- The Nine Muses

The nine muses were Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Terpsichore, Erato, Polyhymnia, Thalia, and Urania.^[1] They were supposed to be the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory. Zeus wanted someone to remember his exploits, so he slept with Mnemosyne and got his wish. The muses were born over nine days by Mnemosyne and were priceless at banquets, as they sat near their father's throne and entertained the guests with songs about Zeus and other exploits of the Greek heroes.^[2] They were prized by the Greeks as they also presided over memory; they also, according to Hesiod, made men whom they loved happy and could make a man who had "sorrow and grief in his soul" to forget his "dark thoughts" and his troubles.^[3] Each muse, while presiding over memory, had separate ruling over separate departments, they also promoted the arts and sciences, and they inspired poets and musicians.^[4] They also had their own lives, and some even had children. Each one also had a different symbol and some were depicted as having certain emotions.

 ^[5]   Calliope -- The cardinal muse, Calliope presided over epic poetry. Her symbol was a writing or wax tablet. Being the cardinal muse, she was also most likely the most mythically involved of the Muses, one example being the myth of Adonis, which involved a quarrel between the goddesses Persephone and Aphrodite. Calliope is, furthermore, the mother of many children, including the Sirens, Orpheus, Hymen, and Ialemus.^[6]

 ^[7]   Clio -- Clio is the muse of history, and perhaps the most well known of the nine muses. Clio also invented historical and heroic poetry, as well as bringing the Phoenician alphabet to Greece. She was also a mother; she had a son named Hyacinthus from a relationship with King Pierus. Unfortunately, Hyacinthus was killed by another god, Apollo, in an accident. Clio's symbol is a scroll.^[8]

  ^[9]   Euterpe -- Euterpe was the muse of lyric poetry and music. Besides those, however, she also presided over the elements of joy and pleasure; moreover, she also was the administrator of flute playing. She was also described as the 'cheerful muse'. Her symbol was the double flute.^[10]

^[11]      Melpomene -- The muse of tragedy. Melpomene was often shown wearing boots worn by tragic actors back in ancient Greece called cothurnus. She was sometimes shown as holding a knife or club. ^[12] Her symbols were the tragic mask and the ivy wreath like her counterpart, Thalia.^[13]

  ^[14]     Terpsichore -- Terpsichore was the muse of dancing and choral singing. Her symbol was the lyre, and she was often shown dancing. Terpsichore was also a mother like some of her sisters, but most of her supposed children are contested with other muses; for example, some texts say that Terpsichore was the mother of Hymen, but others say that Hymen was Calliope's child. Further, some texts also say that she was the mother of the Sirens by the river god Achelous, but this union is also contested with Calliope.^[15]

  ^[16]       Erato -- The muse of love poetry, Erato also presided over erotic poetry as well as being the muse of mimicry. As the muse of mimicry, Erato was also the patron muse of parrots and crows. ^[17] Her symbol was the maller lyre, which was a variation on the standard lyre as carried by Terpsichore.^[18]

  ^[19]    Polyhymnia -- Polyhymnia is the muse of sacred hymns, as well as eloquence. She was also described as the 'somber' one, as she was shown as a woman often in a thoughtful mood, shown with a finger to her mouth in thought. Likewise, she was also described as the 'beautiful one', even though all the muses were beautiful.^[20] Polyhymnia didn't have a specific symbol, but as said before, she was often depicted "veiled and pensive."^[21]

Urania -- Urania is also very famous as the muse of astronomy and astrology. Mother to Linus, although this bond is also given to Terpsichore in some texts. Urania was said to inspire 'chaste love'; her symbols were a 'celestial' globe and a pair of compasses. Also, in keeping with tradition, Urania rests her foot on the symbol for silence and retreat, a turtle. ^[22]

^[23]     Thalia -- The muse of comedy and pastoral poetry, Thalia is described as the "country girl" of her nine sisters. It is said that she loved "to traipse about meadows...forests...and rural places." Her symbols are the comic mask (the opposite of her sister Melpomene) and the shepherd's crook.^[24] Another of her symbols was the ivy wreath.^[25]

The muses, while very important to the Greeks, were not mentioned very much, if at all, in their myths. Some myths that revolve around weddings have a very brief mention of the muses, as they often sang at big gatherings. Furthermore, they were often called upon when a play was being preformed or poetry was being recited to bestow their blessings upon the performer(s) head(s).