POSEIDON

Poseidon, the god of the sea, held an important position among the twelve Olympian deities and his cult is already attested in Mycenaean times. When he and his brothers Zeus and Hades (Pluto), all sons of Kronos and Rhea, drew lots to divide the universe between them, Zeus won the rule of the heavens, Poseidon the sea, and Hades the underworld. Married to the sea nymph Amphitrite, Poseidon had his palace at the bottom of the sea and his symbol was the trident. However, he also had power over the earth, due to his ability to cause earthquakes, as indicated by one of his epithets enosichthon (the earthshaker). Other epithets indicate a close association with horses (Poseidon Hippios) and bulls (Poseidon Tavreios). Important temples to Poseidon were erected on the Isthmus of Corinth and at Cape Tainaron, while one of Attica’s most iconic monuments is the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion.