The Mark of Athena (The Heroes of Olympus, Book Three) (48 page)

Glossary

AΘE
alpha, theta, epsilon. In Greek it stands for
of the Athenians
, or
the children of Athena.

Achelous
a
potamus
, or river god

Alcyoneus
the eldest of the giants born to Gaea, destined to fight Pluto

Amazons
a nation of all-female
warriors

Aphrodite
the Greek goddess of love and beauty. She was married to Hephaestus, but she loved Ares, the god of war. Roman form: Venus

Arachne
a weaver who claimed to have skills superior to Athena’s. This angered the goddess, who destroyed Arachne’s
tapestry and loom. Arachne hung herself, and Athena brought her back to life as a spider.

Archimedes
a
Greek mathematician
,
physicist
,
engineer
,
inventor
, and
astronomer
who lived between 287 and 212
BCE
and is regarded as one of the leading
scientists
in
classical antiquity

Ares
the Greek god of war; the son of Zeus and Hera, and half brother to Athena. Roman form: Mars

argentum
silver

Argo II
the fantastical ship built by Leo, which can both sail and fly and has Festus’s
bronze dragon head as its figurehead.
The ship was named after the
Argo,
the vessel used by a band of Greek heroes who accompanied Jason on his quest to find the Golden Fleece.

Athena
the Greek goddess of wisdom. Roman form: Minerva

Athena Parthenos
a giant statue of Athena: the most famous Greek statue of all time

augury
a sign of something coming, an omen; the practice of divining the future

aurum
gold

Bacchus
the Roman god of wine and revelry. Greek form: Dionysus

ballista
(
ballistae
, pl.)
a Roman missile siege weapon that launched a large projectile at a distant target (
see also
Scorpion ballista
)

Bellona
a Roman goddess of war

Camp
Half
-
Blood
the training ground for Greek demigods, located on Long Island, New York

Camp Jupiter
the training ground for Roman demigods, located between the Oakland Hills and the Berkeley Hills, in California

Celestial bronze
a rare metal deadly to monsters

centaur
a race of creatures that is half human, half horse

centurion
an officer of the Roman army

Ceres
the Roman goddess of agriculture. Greek form: Demeter

charmspeak
a blessing bestowed by Aphrodite on her children that enables them to persuade others with their voice

chiton
a Greek garment; a sleeveless piece of linen or wool secured at the shoulders by brooches and at the waist by a belt

Chrysaor
the brother of Pegasus, the son of Poseidon and Medusa; known as “the Gold Sword”

Circe
a Greek sorceress. In ancient times, she turned Odysseus’s
crew into swine.

Colosseum
an elliptical amphitheater in the center of Rome, Italy. Capable of seating 50,000 spectators,
the Colosseum was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments
of famous battles, and dramas.

cornucopia
a large horn-shaped
container overflowing with edibles or wealth in some form.
The cornucopia was created when
Heracles
(Roman: Hercules
) wrestled with the river god
Achelous
and wrenched off one of his horns.

Cyclops
a member of a primordial race of
giants
(
Cyclopes
, pl.), each with a single eye in the middle of his or her forehead

Daedalus
in Greek mythology, a skilled craftsman who created the Labyrinth on Crete in which the Minotaur (part man, part bull) was kept

Deianira
Heracles’s second wife. She was of such striking beauty that both Heracles and Achelous wanted to marry her and there was a contest to win her hand. The centaur Nessus tricked her into killing Heracles by dipping his tunic in what she thought was a love potion but was actually Nessus’s
poisonous blood.

Demeter
the Greek goddess of agriculture, a daughter of the Titans Rhea and Kronos. Roman form: Ceres

denarius
(
denarii
, pl.) the most common coin in the
Roman currency
system

Dionysus
the Greek god of wine and revelry, a son of Zeus. Roman form: Bacchus

Doors o
f
Death
a well-hidden
passageway that when open allows souls to travel from the Underworld to the world of mortals

drachma
the silver coin of Ancient Greece

drakon
gigantic serpent

eidolon
possessing spirit

Ephialtes and Otis
twin giants, sons of Gaea

Epirus
a region presently in northwestern
Greece
and southern
Albania

Eurystheus
a grandson of Perseus, who, through the favor of Hera, inherited the kingship of Mycenae, which Zeus had intended for Heracles

faun
a Roman forest god, part goat and part man. Greek form: satyr

Fortuna
the Roman goddess of fortune and good luck. Greek form: Tyche

Forum
The Roman Forum was the center of ancient
Rome
, a plaza where Romans conducted business, trials, and religious activities.

Gaea
the Greek earth goddess; mother of Titans, giants, Cyclopes, and other monsters. Roman form: Terra

gladius
a short sword

Gorgons
three monstrous sisters who have hair of living, venomous snakes.
The most famous, Medusa, had eyes that turned the beholder to stone.

greaves
shin armor

Greek fire
an incendiary weapon used in naval battles because it can continue burning in water

Hades
the Greek god of death and riches. Roman form: Pluto

Hadrian
a Roman Emperor who ruled from 117 to 138
CE
. He is best known for building Hadrian’s
Wall
, which marked the northern limit of
Roman Britain
. In Rome, he rebuilt the
Pantheon
and constructed the
Temple of Venus and Roma
.

Hagno
a nymph who is said to have brought up Zeus. On Mount Lycaeus in Arcadia there was a well sacred to and named after her.

harpy
a winged female creature that snatches things

Hebe
the goddess of youth; the daughter of Zeus and Hera, and married to Heracles. Roman form: Juventas

Hephaestus
the Greek god of fire and crafts and of blacksmiths; the son of Zeus and Hera, and married to Aphrodite. Roman form: Vulcan

Hera
the Greek goddess of marriage; Zeus’s
wife and sister. Roman form: Juno

Heracles
the Greek equivalent of Hercules;
the son of Zeus and Alcmene; the strongest of all mortals

Hercules
the Roman equivalent of Heracles; the son of Jupiter and
Alcmene, who was born with great strength

hippocampi
creatures that from the waist up have the body of a horse and from the waist down have silvery fish bodies, with glistening scales and rainbow tail fins. They were used to draw Poseidon’s
chariot, and sea foam was created by their movement.

hippodrome
a Greek stadium for horse racing and chariot racing

House of Hades
an underground temple in Epirus, Greece, dedicated to the Hades and Persephone, sometimes called a necromanteion, or “oracle of death.” Ancient Greeks believed it marked one entrance to the Underworld, and pilgrims would go there to commune with the dead.

hypogeum
the area under a coliseum that housed set pieces and machinery used for special effects

ichthyocentaur
a fish-centaur described as having the forefeet of a horse, a human torso and head, and a fish tail. It is sometimes shown with a pair of lobster-claw
horns.

Imperial gold
a rare metal deadly to monsters, consecrated at the Pantheon; its existence was a closely guarded secret of the emperors

Invidia
the Roman goddess of revenge. Greek form: Nemesis

Iris
the Greek rainbow goddess and a messenger of the gods; the daughter of Thaumas and Electra. Roman form: Iris

Juno
the Roman goddess of women, marriage, and fertility; sister and wife of Jupiter; mother of Mars. Greek form: Hera

Jupiter
the Roman king of the gods; also called Jupiter Optimus Maximus (the best and the greatest). Greek form: Zeus

Juventas
the Roman goddess of youth. Greek form: Hebe

Kalends of July
the first day of July, which was sacred to Juno

karpoi
grain spirits

Katoptris
Piper’s
dagger, once owned by Helen of Troy. The word means “looking glass.”

Keto
the Greek goddess of sea monsters and large sea creatures, such as whales and sharks. She is the daughter of Gaea and the sister-wife
of Phorcys, god of the dangers of the sea.

Khione
the Greek goddess of snow; daughter of Boreas

Kronos
the Greek god of agriculture, the son of Uranus and Gaea and the father of Zeus. Roman form: Saturn

Lar
a house god, ancestral spirit of Rome (Lares, pl.).

Lupa
the sacred Roman she-wolf
that nursed the foundling twins Romulus and Remus

Marcus Agrippa
a Roman statesman and general; defense minister to Octavian, and responsible for most of his military victories. He commissioned the Pantheon as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome.

Mare Nostrum
Latin for
Our Sea
, was a Roman name for the Mediterranean Sea

Mars
the Roman god of war; also called Mars Ultor. Patron of the empire; divine father of Romulus and Remus. Greek form: Ares

Minerva
the Roman goddess of wisdom. Greek form: Athena

Minotaur
a monster with the head of a bull on the body of a man

Mist
a magic force that disguises things from mortals

Mithras
Originally a Persian god of the sun, Mithras was worshipped by Roman warriors as a guardian of arms and a patron of soldiers.

muskeg
bog

Narcissus
a Greek hunter who was renowned for his beauty. He was exceptionally proud and disdained those who loved him.
Nemesis
saw this and attracted Narcissus to a pool where he saw his reflection in the water and fell in love with it. Unable to leave the beauty of his reflection, Narcissus died.

Nemesis
the Greek goddess of revenge. Roman form: Invidia

Neptune
the Roman god of the sea. Greek form: Poseidon

Nereids
fifty female sea spirits; patrons of sailors and fishermen and caretakers of the sea’s
bounty

Nessus
a crafty centaur who tricked Deianira into killing Heracles

New Rome
a community near Camp Jupiter where demigods can live together in peace, without interference from mortals or monsters

Nike
the Greek goddess of strength, speed, and victory. Roman form: Victoria

nymph
a female nature deity who animates nature

nymphaeum
a shrine to nymphs

Pantheon
a building in
Rome
,
Italy
, commissioned by
Marcus Agrippa
as a
temple
to all the gods of
Ancient Rome
, and rebuilt by
Emperor Hadrian
in about 126 
CE