Medusa

The Snake-Haired Gorgan

Meet Medusa, the most famous of the three Gorgon sisters! Medusa had snakes for hair and a gaze so powerful that anyone who looked directly at her turned to stone. Unlike her immortal sisters Stheno and Euryale, Medusa could be killed. The hero Perseus was sent to bring back her head and survived by looking at her reflection in Athena’s polished shield instead of staring at her. Ancient stories about Medusa changed over time. Early versions mainly present her as a monster, while the Roman poet Ovid later gave her a much sadder beginning. I think that is why Medusa remains so interesting: she can be frightening, tragic and even protective all at once.

The Minotaur

Monster of the Labyrinth

Meet the Minotaur, the terrifying bull-headed creature hidden at the centre of the Labyrinth on Crete! The Minotaur had the body of a man and the head of a bull and was the strange child of Queen Pasiphaë. King Minos ordered the inventor Daedalus to build an enormous maze to contain him. Athens was later forced to send young people into the Labyrinth until the hero Theseus volunteered to stop the monster. Minos’s daughter Ariadne gave Theseus a thread so he could find his way back out after the fight. I think the Minotaur is scary, but also quite sad. He spends his whole life trapped because of decisions made by powerful adults around him.

The Hydra

The Many-Headed Serpent

Meet the Hydra, the enormous many-headed serpent that made one of Heracles’ Labours especially difficult! The Hydra lived in the marshes near Lerna and had poisonous breath and several snake-like heads. The really annoying part was that cutting off a head did not solve the problem. More heads could grow back in its place! Heracles eventually needed help from his nephew Iolaus, who burned each neck after a head was removed so it could not regrow. One head was immortal, so Heracles buried it beneath a huge rock. I love this monster because it teaches a very useful heroic lesson: if hitting the problem makes it bigger, stop hitting it and make a better plan!

Cerberus

Hound of the Underworld

Meet Cerberus, the enormous guard dog of the Greek Underworld! Today he is usually shown with three heads, although some ancient writers gave him many more. Cerberus belonged to Hades and guarded the entrance to the world of the dead. His job was to stop the dead escaping and make sure living visitors did not wander in without permission. He was a child of the monsters Typhon and Echidna and brother of creatures including the Hydra and Orthus. Heracles had to bring Cerberus to the surface for his final Labour. I like Cerberus because he looks terrifying, but really he is just an extremely enthusiastic watchdog doing his job.

Pegasus

The Winged Horse

Meet Pegasus, the most famous flying horse in Greek mythology! Pegasus had huge wings and was born in an extremely unusual way when Perseus cut off Medusa’s head. His father was Poseidon, a god who was strongly connected with horses. Pegasus later became the companion of the hero Bellerophon and helped him defeat the fire-breathing Chimera by attacking from the sky. After Bellerophon became too proud and tried to fly all the way to Mount Olympus, he fell back to Earth while Pegasus continued upwards and joined the gods. I have always loved Pegasus because he looks magical and peaceful, but his story also warns that even an amazing gift does not make its rider a god.

Cyclopes

The One-Eyed Giant

Meet the Cyclopes, the famous one-eyed giants of Greek mythology! The slightly confusing thing is that there was more than one kind. Hesiod described three ancient Cyclopes called Brontes, Steropes and Arges. They were brilliant craftsmen who made Zeus’s thunderbolt, Poseidon’s trident and Hades’s invisibility helmet. Homer’s Odyssey gives us a completely different group of wild Cyclopes, including the terrifying Polyphemus, who traps Odysseus inside his cave. I used to think all Cyclopes were basically the same monster, but they really are not. Some helped the gods win a war, while others were enormous shepherds you definitely would not want inviting you in for dinner!

Sirens

Singers No Sailor Could Ignore

Meet the Sirens, the mysterious singers who could lure sailors towards disaster! In Homer’s Odyssey, their voices were so irresistible that anyone who stopped to listen would never return home. Odysseus wanted to hear their song, so he filled his crew’s ears with wax and ordered them to tie him tightly to the ship’s mast. Ancient Sirens were usually shown with women’s heads and birds’ bodies, not fish tails like modern mermaids. Their song did not just sound beautiful. They promised secret knowledge about the world. I think that makes them much scarier. They do not chase you. They simply offer exactly the thing you are most desperate to hear.

Chimera

The Terrifying Three-Part Fire-Breather

Meet the Chimera, one of the strangest monsters in Greek mythology! It was a terrifying mixture of different animals, usually with a lion at the front, a goat rising from its back and a snake for a tail. As if that was not enough, it could breathe fire too! The Chimera was a child of Typhon and Echidna and terrorised the land of Lycia until the hero Bellerophon was ordered to defeat it. Luckily, Bellerophon had the winged horse Pegasus, so he could attack from the air. I think whoever invented the Chimera clearly looked at three dangerous animals and decided they needed combining into one much worse problem.

Echidna

Mother of Greek Monsters

Meet Echidna, the mysterious mother of some of Greek mythology’s most famous monsters! Echidna was usually described as half beautiful woman and half enormous snake. She lived hidden away in a cave and became the partner of Typhon, the gigantic enemy of Zeus. Together they produced a terrifying family that included Cerberus, the Hydra and Orthus, with other monster family connections changing between different stories. Echidna does not have one huge adventure of her own. Instead, her children turn up everywhere causing trouble for heroes. I think of her as the hidden root of a monster family tree. Find Echidna and suddenly half the scary creatures in Greek mythology seem to be related!

Orthus

The Two-Headed Guard Dog

Meet Orthus, the two-headed guard dog of Greek mythology! Orthus, sometimes called Orthrus, guarded the magnificent red cattle belonging to the giant Geryon on the distant island of Erytheia. He was a child of Typhon and Echidna and the brother of Cerberus, so giant multi-headed guard dogs clearly ran in the family. Heracles met Orthus during his tenth Labour when he was ordered to bring Geryon’s cattle back to King Eurystheus. Orthus attacked the hero and was killed. He only has a small part in the surviving stories, but I think a two-headed monster dog deserves some attention. One head can bark while the other keeps watch!

Typhon

The Monstrous Storm Giant

Meet Typhon, possibly the most terrifying monster Zeus ever faced! Typhon was an enormous creature born from Gaia and Tartarus in Hesiod’s story. He had incredible strength, serpent-like heads, flashing eyes, fire and a collection of terrifying voices. Unlike monsters that threaten one hero or one town, Typhon challenged Zeus for control of the entire universe. Their battle shook the Earth, sea and sky before Zeus finally defeated him with thunder and lightning. Later stories said Typhon was trapped beneath volcanic mountains such as Mount Etna. I think he is the ultimate boss battle of Greek mythology. Zeus does not truly secure his rule until he has survived Typhon.