—Homer.
Hercules went down as one of his Twelve Labors,—some of which have constellations named after them,—while Orpheus descended to find his Eurydice, playing so beautifully on his harp that this little instrument was afterwards placed among the stars and called the constellation Lyra.
Pluto rarely appeared above the ground but when he did he made himself invisible by wearing his Hat of Darkness or was drawn in a sooty chariot by fierce black horses whose reins were covered with rust. One day when Typhon was causing trouble around Mount Etna by his incessant grumbling and turning about, Pluto came up to ascertain just how much his roof under the Sicilian land was endangered. This proved a sorry day for the earth, for while the gloomy-faced god was looking about for cracks, Venus saw him from a distant hilltop, and calling Cupid, told him to shoot the dour fellow with a gold-tipped arrow, for this was the only kingdom over which she had no control. The first person whom Pluto saw was Proserpine, the beautiful daughter of Ceres, the tutelary Goddess of Sicily, and falling immediately in love with her, he carried her off to his kingdom under the ground. Although for many days Proserpine wept bitterly, she gradually became reconciled, and once ate six pomegranate seeds from a tree in Pluto's sunless garden. This proved her undoing, for when Ceres discovered that Proserpine was Queen of the Kingdom of Shades, she inquired of the Fates if there was any chance of her daughter's release and they informed her that since Proserpine had tasted of the seeds, the food of death, she must spend six months of every year with Pluto. Thus, through six long months Ceres, the Goddess of the Harvests, sits and weeps and no fresh crops are planted and no fruits appear on trees or vines; in the meantime poor mortals do the best they can throughout the winter and wait eagerly for the springtime when Proserpine again appears above the land and Ceres, in happiness, sows the grain and covers the orchards with masses of blossoms.
Apollo, a son of Jupiter, was dazzling and life-giving—a direct contrast to Pluto, dark-visaged King of the Dead. Apollo's sun-palace, which had been built by Vulcan in the country beyond the east, was crusted thick with gold and embedded with large and wonderful jewels. His sun-chariot was also of gold, but of so great a radiance that it blinded the eyes of any one but the gods. Every morning Apollo put the sun in this chariot and drove to the eastern gates where Aurora, Goddess of the Dawn, flung down the bars for her Sun-god, who penned up the stars, collected his Hours about him and drove out along the pathway of the Heaven with the brilliant light of the sun.
Phæthon, an ambitious son of Apollo, watched his father day after day, and wished that he, too, might ride in such radiant splendor above the clouds. At last he made his way to the sun-palace and begged his father that he might show his comrades in Greece that he was truly the child of so glorious a god by being privileged to drive the sun. Apollo was horrified, but Phæthon persisted and at last he gave his reluctant consent. The headstrong youth then jumped into the chariot, grasped the reins of the celestial steeds and started along the zodiac. Ancient poets assert that the Earth looked up and trembled as she watched the snow-white horses of the Sun-god tear wildly up the steep slope in the east. The constellations shook with terror as they swerved from the beaten pathway, the Serpent twined about the icy Pole grew warm and began to writhe, and the Bear's stars fluttered and "wished to dip in the forbidden sea." Half dead with fear, Phæthon saw the shadowy star-decked forms of wild beasts scattered about the heavens and shuddered as the fierce Scorpion moved his claws and brandished his sting. Now beyond all control, the horses veered aside from the "heat vex't creatures" and rushed straight toward the earth, but, just in time, Jupiter hurled a tremendous thunderbolt and knocked Phæthon out of his chariot into a nearby river. The horses now turned toward the horizon which rested beyond the waters in the west, but the burning sun-ball had been drawn so close to the earth that the Nile had fled in fright and hid its head, which still remains hidden, and over a great area now known as the African desert, the moisture had risen like a cloud of steam leaving a drear, unfertile waste of land good for naught. The poor African people fared even worse, for while gazing bewildered at the wild antics of the sun, their faces were scorched and their bodies were scorched and they transmitted forever after to all succeeding generations the scourge of being hopelessly black! As a memorial of this famous adventure, the name of the river Eridanus, into which Phæthon had fallen, was given to one of the star groups in the sky. This was also supposed to be a consolation to Apollo, who grieved so deeply at the death of his son and all the unfortunate consequences of his adventure that he offered to allow any other god on Olympus the privilege of driving the sun on its daily course from east to west, but no other god could do this, nor were any willing to try.
Apollo had a twin sister named Diana who owned a chariot as wonderful as his own, only it was wrought of pure silver and made to carry the earth's night light, called the moon. But Diana did not spend all of her time in the sky, for she loved to hunt and would often leave her chariot at home, take out her bow and arrow and spend whole nights upon the mountains with her nymphs. She was wondrously fair and full of grace but not as faithful as her brother, and at such times as she chooses to enjoy herself, earth-beings must do without a moon.
Besides the gods and the goddesses who dwelt in ancient Greece, there were many heroes who were semi-divine. One recalls Perseus, Hercules, the twins Castor and Pollux and others. Perseus was a son of Jupiter and a very noted hero. One of his adventures was so thrilling that the early people of this little country impressed its story on six constellations!
Hercules, the hero famed for his wonderful strength, patience and endurance, was a grandson of Perseus. He was also rewarded with a constellation. So was Orion, the giant, who has the most conspicuous figure of stars in all the sky. The twins, Castor and Pollux, were given twin stars and were much beloved by seamen for it was thought that if both stars were visible, fine weather was sure to follow.
Not only were gods and heroes placed in the sky, but also objects and creatures connected with their adventures.
"monstrous shadows of prodigious size,
That deck'd with stars, lie scatter'd o'er the skies."