Marsyas, of course, could do neither with a flute. Once Apollo and Pan had a music contest. Infoplease is part of the FEN Learning family of educational and reference sites for parents, teachers and students. History >> Ancient Greece >> Greek Mythology.
Classical Mythology: Night of the Hunters: Artemis and Apollo, Mythology : Gods, Goddesses, Muses, Monsters, Three's a Crowd: The Olympian Love Triangle, What the Hell? The central fountain in the terrace garden of Versailles depicts this scene. They were called Olympians because, according to tradition, they resided on Mount Olympus.. The origin of her name is not known. You can also purchase this book at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. Buphagus, son of the Titan Iapetus, once tried to rape her, but she shot and killed him. His own hounds then ripped Actaeon to pieces.
The delivery of Artemis was painless but the birth of Apollo lasted for nine whole days and nights because Hera had kidnapped Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth, preventing Leto from having an easy and painless labor. The god Hermes created the lyre, a stringed musical instrument, for Apollo. Everything started when Hera found out that Leto was pregnant by her husband, Zeus. But Hera—not fooled at all—tricked Artemis into shooting and killing the bear.
Furious and ashamed of this betrayal from Zeus, she cursed Leto not to find a solid ground or island on Earth to give birth to her children. (Athena had made this flute, but had angrily thrown it away when the laughter of the other immortals made her realize how ridiculous she looked when she puffed out her cheeks to play it.) Artemis sent a monstrous boar to ravage and terrorize his kingdom. According to another story, while Leto was passing through Lycia, she felt thirsty and tried to drink from a well. Homer mentions that all gods and goddess, except for Hera, were present at the delivery of Apollo to establish from the first moment the authenticity of a child who was later to become an Olympian god.
The bottom line however is that Leto was a very decent and respectful figure in Greek mythology and she was actually representing motherhood. Pan also lost a musical contest to Apollo. We use cookies to offer you a better browsing experience and to analyze site traffic. Others refused Apollo, too. Tityus, an earth-born giant, tried to abduct Leto but his advances were repelled by Apollo, who slew him with his arrows. When Leucippus was exposed—literally and figuratively—the nymphs tore him to shreds. When Niobe discovered what had happened, she burst in great grief. After the births of Artemis and Apollo, the island's name changed to Delos, which can mean “famous.” It was renowned as one of the holiest places in ancient Greece. Artemis required the nymphs who attended her to remain virgins, just as she did. She had some supernatural powers herself but only a few, compared to the Olympian Gods. Leto is mostly famous because of her relationship with Zeus, which resulted in giving birth to two divine children, who would later be considered amongst the twelve Olympian gods, Artemis and Apollo. Previous myth: Eros and Psyche | Next myth: Pandora, the first woman on Earth. Apollo never married, but he was by no means a celibate. Otus's spear pierced Ephialtes and Ephialtes' hit Otus—and both giants died instantly. The name Heracles means "Glory of Hera". But he later turned this duty over to Hermes in exchange for some musical instruments the younger god had devised. She finally found refuge on Ortygia, the island of her sister Asteria, where she gave birth to Artemis. The two killed most (or all) of Niobe's children, leaving Niobe to weep eternally.
Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Classical Mythology © 2004 by Kevin Osborn and Dana L. Burgess, Ph.D.. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Like most of the Olympians, Artemis reacted strongly whenever she did not receive the honors due her as a goddess. The peasants however, stirred up mud and made the water undrinkable for her and her children. These were the children of Leto, the beautiful daughter of the original Titans Coeus and Phoebe. Leto was the daughter of Titans Croesus and Phoebe. But her father once raped Callisto, a favorite of Artemis's. Orion, a giant hunter, joined both Artemis and her mother on many of their hunts. She is known for being the Goddess of Marriage & Birth.