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Monsters from Classical Mythology

© Linda Casselman

At this time of the year especially, when the veil between this world and the other is thin, we fear monsters just as the ancients did. Though our ghouls and goblins come in the form of cheery trick-or-treaters dressed in their finest spooky attire, the monsters of the ancients were very real to them indeed. Let's have a look at some of the monsters from Classical mythology that the ancients feared...

Sea monsters:

Scylla

This six-headed sea monster lived in a cavern in the Straight of Messina. Originally, she was a beautiful woman loved by both Zeus and Poseidon until Circe, in a fit of jealousy, changed her into a fearsome monster, snapping at sailors as they pass.

The Sirens

These are lovely sea-nymphs with beautiful voices. Though they are lovely, they are still deadly, as their charming songs lure sailors to their deaths. It is said that Odysseus had himself tied to the mast of his ship while his men blocked their ears up with wax so that he could safely hear the Sirens' magic song as they passed.

Fabulous beasts:

Satyrs

These half-man, half-goat creatures were wild spirits of the woods and forests. Their preferred pastimes were to wantonly chase after the wood nymphs and to play nasty tricks on men. They were closely associated with Dionysus, the god of wine and ecstasy.

Centaurs

These savage creatures lived in Thessaly and had the torso of a man with the body of a horse. The offspring of Ixion and a cloud, these beasts were wild and riotous, symbolizing the dark and unruly forces in both Nature and human nature. Wise Chiron, teacher of the heroes, stood out among them.

The Minotaur

This creature with the head of a bull and the body of a man was the son of Pasiphe (wife of King Minos) and a white bull. He lived in a labyrinth on Knossos and every year seven boys and seven girls were sacrificed to him by the Athenians. One year, Theseus was one of those boys and with the help of Ariadne, who gave him a ball of string to untwine to find his way out of the maze, he slew the Minotaur.

Female monsters:

Harpies

These evil storm goddesses were half-birds and half-maidens. The people feared them for it was said that they stole small children and carried away the weak and the wounded. They were originally goddesses with beautiful hair and wings until they were reduced to such fearsome monsters.

The Gorgons

These three sisters, Stheno, Medusa, and Euryale, were ugly witches with snakes for hair, and one look from them could turn any living thing into stone. Most popular of them was Medusa, once a beautiful woman turned into a hideous monster by a jealous goddess. She was killed by Perseus, and her image was carved all over as a protective amulet.