Greek Mythology

The Romans were strongly influenced by Greek gods, so I have combined the mythologies from the two cultures. The table below shows the 12 main Greek Gods (Olympians) with their Roman counterparts. Most of the names are familiar to us - in some cases the Greek name is most familiar, in other cases the Roman name. There were many lesser Gods and Goddesses

Greek	Roman	Description
Zeus	Jupiter	God of thunder, sky and king of the Gods.
Hera	Juno	Goddess of women, marriage, motherhood. Wife of Zeus.
Poseidon	Neptune	God of sea and earthquakes.
Demeter	Ceres	Goddess of harvest, fertility, nature and seasons.
Ares	Mars	God of war.
Hermes	Mercury	God of commerce, thieves and trade. Messenger of the Gods.
Hephaestus	Vulcan	God of metalcraft, volcanoes and fire.
Aphrodite	Venus	Goddess of sex, love, beauty and fertility. Mother of Eros (God of love).
Athena	Minerva	Goddess of wisdom, crafts and battle.
Artemis	Diana	Goddess of hunt, maidens and the moon.
Hestia	Vesta	Goddess of the hearth and home.
Apollo	Apollo	God of the Sun, truth, music.

It is probable that Apollo is the figure that appears on the Led Zeppelin Swan Song logo.

Bacchus or Dionysus

An important lesser diety was Bacchus or Dionysus, the God of wine, revelry and religious ecstasy. The origins of this God and the mysteries of the religious rites are uncertain, but appear to have originated from outside Greece, and may have influenced Gnosticism.

The Greek island of Delos had many temples for worshipping the gods and was an important pilgrimage site and a cult centre for Dionysus.

Caduceus

Caduceus This symbol with a double helix of snakes and the wings was found in ancient Greece. The origins are unclear and may have originated earlier (eg in ancient Egypt). It is sometimes called the wand of Hermes, and through the ages has been associated with medicine (healing), astrology and secret societies such as the Freemasons.

The intertwined snakes are often used to represent the ida and pingala psychic nerve channels around the sushumna (central column), the intersections representing the chakras. The wings at the top representing connection with the divine.