Apollo

Apollo is the God of music, poetry, plague, oracles, sun, medicine, light and knowledge. His symbols are the Lyre, Laurel wreath, python, raven and a bow and arrow. His children were Asclepius, Troilus, Aristaeus and Orpheus. He had a famous oracle Delphi.

Apollo had a twin sister called Artemis. She was the goddess of hunting, the moon and forests and hills. Their mother was Leto and their father was Zeus. Hera, wife of Zeus, was very jealous of Leto and said that Leto could not give birth on land. However one island, Delos, disobeyed Hera and let Leto give birth there to Artemis and Apollo.

Hera sent a python snake to hunt down Leto and her children. However Apollo, although only 4 days old, hunted down and killed the Python. He then started playing music bringing joy to all the people of the village. It was then that Apollo became God of music.

Apollo and Cassandra

Apollo fell in love with Cassandra, a daughter of Priam, the King of Troy. He promised her the gift of prophecy (the ability to see into the future) to make her like him, but she rejected him. As a revenge, Apollo gave her the gift of prophesy but with a curse that no one would ever believe her.

Asclepius and stealing from Hades

Apollo taught his son Asclepius how to heal. However Zeus killed Asclepius with his lightning bolts when he tried to bring the dead back to life as they were the property of Hades and the underworld. Apollo then killed the Cyclopes because they created the lightning bolts which killed his son.