Muses
Also known as: Muses · Nine Muses
- 1The Muses were the goddesses of inspiration for literature, science, and the arts.
- 2They were considered the source of knowledge for oral traditions in ancient Greece.
- 3Their influence extended to the creation of myths and lyric songs.
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses were the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts.
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Divine inspiration for Hesiod's poetry
Hesiod famously claims in the Theogony that the Muses appeared to him on Mount Helicon and granted him the gift of song.
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses were revered as the inspirational goddesses of the arts, literature, and science. They were believed to be the divine source of knowledge for poets and storytellers.
Muse, perhaps Clio, reading a scroll (Attic red-figure lekythos, Boeotia, c. 430 BC )Wikimedia Commons: File:Muse_reading_Louvre_CA2220.jpgPrint of Clio, made in the 16th–17th century. Preserved in the Ghent University Library. [ 2 ]Wikimedia Commons: File:Afbeelding_van_Clio.jpgGustave Moreau: Hesiod and the Muse (1891), Musée d'Orsay, ParisWikimedia Commons: File:Hesiod_and_the_Muse.jpgApollo and the Muses on Mount Parnassus, c. 1650, by Johann Christoph Storer. Held at National Gallery of ArtWikimedia CommonsMosaic with symbols of each Muse and Mnemosyne, 1st century BC, Archaeological Museum of Ancient Elis.Wikimedia CommonsThe nine Muses on a Roman sarcophagus (second century AD), Louvre, ParisWikimedia CommonsThalia, Muse of comedy, holding a comic mask (detail from the "Muses Sarcophagus")Wikimedia CommonsApollo and the Muses on Mount Helicon (1680) by Claude LorrainWikimedia Commons Their influence was central to the oral tradition of ancient Greece. For centuries, they were credited with guiding the creation of lyric songs, myths, and poetry that defined the cultural heritage of the civilization.