In Greek mythology, the Muses are the nine goddesses of the arts, sciences, and inspiration. Daughters of Zeus and the Titaness Mnemosyne (Memory), they preside over poetry, music, dance, and knowledge.
Muse
Muse
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Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (goddess of Memory), conceived over nine successive nights
- Nine in number, a count notably set by Hesiod in the Theogony (around 700 BC)
- Each presides over an art or domain: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (lyric poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (rhetoric/sacred song), Terpsichore (dance), Thalia (comedy), Urania (astronomy)
- Associated with the god Apollo (Apollo Musagetes, leader of the Muses) and dwelling on Mount Helicon and Mount Parnassus
- The origin of the words “music,” “museum,” and “mosaic”
Works & Achievements
The Muse is invoked to sing of the wrath of Achilles and the travels of Odysseus: the Muses are presented as the source of the two great epics.
The Muses teach their song to Hesiod on Mount Helicon, inspiring him to recount the birth of the gods.
Victory of the Muses over the daughters of Pierus, who are turned into magpies: an illustration of their supremacy in the arts.
Each Muse presides over a domain (epic poetry, history, dance, astronomy…), shaping the ancient conception of the arts and forms of knowledge.
The Muses delight the gods with their songs during divine feasts, accompanied by Apollo Musagetes.
Virgil and the Roman poets take up the invocation to the Muse, passing the Greek tradition on to Western culture.
Anecdotes
The Muses number nine, and each one presides over a specific art: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (lyric and love poetry), Euterpe (music and the flute), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (sacred song and rhetoric), Terpsichore (dance), Thalia (comedy), and Urania (astronomy). This distribution became firmly established especially in the Roman period, since ancient authors did not always agree on each Muse's domain.
The poet Hesiod recounts in the *Theogony* that the Muses appeared to him while he was tending his sheep at the foot of Mount Helicon. They are said to have breathed their song into him and given him a branch of laurel, making him a poet: this is one of the earliest accounts in which an author claims divine inspiration.
Their mother is Mnemosyne, the goddess of Memory, and their father is Zeus: according to the myth, they joined together for nine nights in a row. This connection with memory is no accident, for in a world where poetry was passed on mainly by word of mouth, memorizing verses by heart was the very work of the artist.
The word “music” comes directly from the Muses (*mousikê* in Greek, “the art of the Muses”), just like the word “museum,” which originally referred to a sanctuary dedicated to these goddesses. The most famous was the *Mouseîon* of Alexandria, an immense center of learning that housed the celebrated library.
According to a legend reported by Pausanias, nine young women called the Pierides dared to challenge the Muses in a singing contest. Defeated and punished for their pride, they were turned into magpies, condemned to endlessly repeat a shrill, chattering babble.
Primary Sources
Let us begin our song with the Muses of Helicon, who dwell on the great and sacred mountain of Helicon. [...] It was they who once taught Hesiod a beautiful song, while he was tending his sheep at the foot of divine Helicon.
Sing, goddess, the wrath of Achilles, son of Peleus.
Tell me, Muse, of the man of many turns, who wandered so many years after he had destroyed the sacred citadel of Troy.
The first to sacrifice on Helicon to the Muses and to consecrate the mountain to them were, it is said, the Aloadae, who reckoned their number as three.
The Pierides, defeated, heap abuse upon the goddesses; then feathers sprout from their fingers, their mouths harden into beaks: turned into magpies, they keep in the woods their love of chatter.
Key Places
Sacred mountain of the Muses, where Hesiod says he encountered them; their sacred grove and sanctuaries were found there.
Peak consecrated to Apollo and the Muses, towering over the sanctuary of Delphi; the Castalian Spring was associated with inspiration.
Home of the gods where the Muses, daughters of Zeus, sing at the divine banquets to delight the assembly of the Olympians.
Region at the foot of Olympus from which the Muses derive the epithet “Pierides,” regarded as their place of origin.
Sanctuary of the Muses founded under the Ptolemies, a center of learning that housed the great Library of Alexandria.
Typical Objects
Plucked string instrument, attribute of Erato and Terpsichore, symbol of musical harmony and sung poetry.
Wind instrument with two pipes, attribute of Euterpe, goddess of music and the flute.
Tragic or comic mask, attribute of Melpomene and Thalia, symbol of the two faces of ancient theatre.
Scroll of text held by Calliope and Clio, symbol of written epic poetry and the writing of history.
Attributes of Urania, Muse of astronomy, who measures the stars and represents scientific knowledge.
Laurel branch or wreath bestowed upon inspired poets, a sign of the consecration granted by the Muses.
School Curriculum
Vocabulary & Tags
Key Vocabulary
Daily Life
Morning
As goddesses, the Muses have no human daily routine, but the myths show them in the morning on the slopes of Helicon or Parnassus, dancing in chorus around the sacred springs such as Aganippe and Hippocrene. The water of these fountains was believed to give inspiration to whoever drank it.
Afternoon
The Muses accompany Apollo, their leader called Musagetes, in the divine concerts. They are imagined guiding mortal poets, whispering verses to those who invoke them, and presiding over the contests of music and song held in their honour.
Evening
In the evening, tradition places them on Olympus, where they sing at the banquets of the gods, celebrating the glories of the Immortals and soothing cares with the beauty of their voices blended with the lyre.
Food
Like all the Greek gods, the Muses feed on ambrosia and nectar, foods of immortality reserved for the Olympians. They know neither the hunger nor the death of mortals.
Clothing
Ancient art depicts them clad in long draped tunics (*chiton* and *himation*), often crowned with laurel or flowers, and each holding the attribute of her art: lyre, flute, mask, scroll, or globe.
Housing
They have no human home but sacred dwellings: the woods and springs of Helicon and Parnassus, and the palace of the gods on Olympus. People built them sanctuaries called *mouseia*.
Historical Timeline
Period Vocabulary
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
Inspiration de l'Iliade et de l'Odyssée
VIIIe s. av. J.-C.
Révélation à Hésiode (Théogonie)
vers 700 av. J.-C.
Concours contre les Piérides
mythe rapporté vers 8 apr. J.-C.
Patronage des neuf arts
tradition antique
Chants des banquets de l'Olympe
tradition mythologique
Inspiration de la poésie latine
Ier s. av. J.-C.
