The Titan Atlas in Greek Mythology

Atlas' s Ancestors

Atlas was a mythical giant, the son of Titan Iapetus and Oceanid Clymene. His brothers were Prometheus, Epimetheus and Menoetius according to Hesiod' Theogony. But Hesiod says that maybe Iapetus and Asia, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, gave birth to Atlas. We also learn from Hesiod that Atlas lived during the golden period that was the first of the five human generations (golden, silver, bronze, heroic and iron). Hesiod lived during the last one.

But many ancient writers say different things about the parents of Atlas. Apollodorus says that Atlas's mother was Oceanida Asia and his father was Poseidon. Eginus says his mother is Gaia and his father some god. On the other hand Plinius says (Nat. Hist. VIII, 203) that his mother was Libie and his father Ether. Plato says that Atlas, who became the central king of Atlantis, was the son of Poseidon and Cleitus.

 Atlas' s Descendants

If we look at the myths about Atlas's daughters, Pleiades, there is also confusion about them. The dominated point of view is that Pleiades were the seven daughters of Poseidon to whom he gave birth with Pleione. These were Maia, Electra, Taygete, Alcyone, Sterope, Celaeno and Merope. Because of them Poseidon named a constellation after them and its stars after the names of each one of them. Many writers refer to Pleiades as Atlantides or Hesperides or Oceanides, all daughters of Poseidon. But Apollodorus says that Hesperides were: Aigle, Erythia, Arethousa, Hestia and Hespera, the daughters of Atlas. Hesiod says that they were daughters of Atlas but he gave birth to them with Night or Themis or Ceto.

Also Calypso, who wanted Odysseus with her, forever, is referred to as the daughter of Atlas. Both Hyas and his sisters Hyades are said to be Atlas's children.

About his seven daughters, Pleiades, it is said they had mated with great "gods" (read: Chiefs) and they had given birth to gods and leaders. "After joining the greatest heroes and gods they made them kings of humans" Diodorus Siceliotis says about them (III, 60).

Maia gave birth to Zeus and Hermes, who was later deified, Electra and Zeus gave birth to Dardanus, who was the leaders of the Trojans. Pleiada Taygete dreamed Zeus (!) and in nine months she gave birth to Lacedaemon. Their names were given to the mountain Taygetus and the land of Lacedaemon, where was a den, according to a tradition, of Atlas. Celaeno, although she was the mistress of Prometheus, gave birth to Lycus, who was the leader of the Arcadians, with Poseidon. The written documents say that Poseidon send her to give birth to their child secretly in the island of Makaron (or Elysian fields), which were at the other side of the earth, west, near the ocean.

Electra was associated with the history of the island of Samothrace, which was called "the island of Atlantida Electra" by the ancients, as Apollonius Rhodios and others tell us. There, Electra with Jupiter gave birth to Dardanus, Iasion, and Harmonia. These, the tradition says, lived in the days of the cataclysm, like Electra. And indeed they said that the Dardanus, after the flood, had gone by raft from Samothrace to Troad, and had established his kingdom there. Electra later gave birth to Imathion, who became king of Samothrace and followed him, as it is said, soldiers like giants.

Historical analysis - Sorting out the historic facts from the myths of Atlas

All this confusion about Atlas's origins that is found in the ancient Greek mythology is due to the fact that there were many heroes, kings and leaders named Atlas. If we study carefully the different events, traditions, legends or stories of these leaders who are considered to be parents of Atlas, we will find that they belong to different centuries. Moreover if we study individually the activities of the same child, we will find they belong to different periods as well. From all these Greek mythical stories (stories according to Stravon) about the personality of Titan Atlas and his daughters the outcome is that these years there were many officers of Atlantis in many places of the earth named Atlas. This is why Atlas is referred to as the son of many parents of different periods and as the father of many daughters of different periods as well.

We can make the conclusion that the central leaders of the generation of Atlanteans were three:

• The first was Titan Atlas son of Iapetus and Clymene, who took part and stood out in Titanomachies and Gigantomachies and was punished by Zeus after the defeat of Titans, as Herodotus says. Atlas A' became leader of Titans and founder of many offspring names Atlanteans after him. According to Herodotus he was a wise astronomer as well. Atlas A' with his only wife Oceanis gave birth to seven beautiful daughters, known as Pleiades or Atlantides as mentioned above. These Atlanteans are confused with the daughters of the third Atlas C', Hesperides.
  
  
• The second Atlas B' was the son of Titan Iapetus and Asia. He did not have the glory or activity of Atlas A', but he was identified with him.
  
  
• Atlas C' was the son of Poseidon and Cleito. His father after taking the kingdom of the Atlantic Ocean made him the central king of the kings of Atlantis, as he was his first-born. He was a powerful leader and wise astronomer like Atlas A' and overshadowed the other two with his action and fame. In the most important ancient cities there were statues of Atlas holding the globe. This symbolizes the power of Atlas as a leader of the world and king as well as his astronomic knowledge. His sentence by Zeus to hold the global does not sound like a punishment at all. This symbolism obviously refers to his son Poseidon. There was probably confusion with Atlas A' in Theogony. It also means something else:
  That people knew from the prehistoric years that the earth was round and the sky a "canopy".
  His daughters were probably Hesperides who guarded the golden apples of Hesperides with the dragon. I say probably because there is confusion with Pleiades, daughters of the other Atlas. In the ancient documents they are referred to as Hesperides, who guarded the "garden of Hesperides" the following: Aigle (or Aegle), Hesperethousa or Arethousa (a mermaid), Erythia (there was an island outside Hercules' columns named after her), Hestia and Hesperia (see Apollodorus Library II, 114).
  
  
• But mythology mentions others, the Atlas of Libya, of Arcadia and of Aztec-Mayas. These seem to have been local leaders, deputies of Atlantis or later heroes, offspring of Titans-Atlanteans.
  
  

There are many myths about the daughters of Atlas as well saying they mated with "gods" and gave birth to many heroes, leaders, founders and even more "gods". For example Celaeno mated with Poseidon in Arcadia and the time she was going to have Lycus (who is thought to be the leader of the Arcadians) she was sent secretly to the island of the Makaron. The ancients believed in that island which was in the west in the ocean. But which was that island in which the ancients believed and was placed in the west in the ocean? It was Atlantis, which was in the west of Greece in the Atlantic Ocean! In these myths about Atlas that existed among the ancient Greeks we clearly see that the leaders and founders of some ancient Greek cities came from Atlantis.

Atlas: The first king of Arcadia

The mythical figure Atlas is presented closely related to Arcadia (in Peloponnese). In Arcadia, Atlas was worshiped like a "god". The Greek tradition identified this Atlas from about 2000 to 600 according to the old calendar with the previous Atlantes and recognized him as father of the Pleiades. It was accepted that the Pleiades were born on a mountain of Killini in the north of Arcadia. It is said that in a cave of this mountain Maea gave birth to Hermes (Zeus was the father).

The ancient Arcadians called themselves "offspring of the daughters of Atlas" (see F.H.G. Didot). Mountain Killini was previously named "mount Atlas" to honor the "god" (read king) Atlas. Arcadia was previously named Gigantis, land of the giants. But when in the 6th century BC the epics of Homer and poems of Hesiod were recorded in the then language and analyzed, and when later Solon brought information from Egypt about Atlantis and Plato published it, and when the Greeks while traveling broadened the geographical horizon, the mystic stories about Atlas of Arcadia changed… The origin of the old local god Atlas was transferred from Arcadia to the Far West. So now everyone accepted that Atlas of Arcadia was the first king of the region. Historian Dionysius Halicarnassus (1st century BC) studying the ancient history writes the amazing following:

"Atlas was the first king of the country that is presently called Arcadia". Zeus married his daughter Elektra and their children "who inherited Atlas's throne, reigned for a long time in Arcadia. After that there was a great flood in all Arcadia, and water covered the valleys for a long time making them unsuitable for growing".

This is where the flood of Arcadia is described by the flood of Deucalion, because in Greek mythology there is reference of only one great cataclysm, the one of Deucalion.

Historic interpretation of the myth

So everyone accepted that Atlas of Arcadia was the first king of the region and he came from the west. He seems to be a relative or offspring of Atlas III (the central king of Atlantis) and when the Atlanteans conquered Peloponnese they made him king and deputy. The fact that Arcadia was previously called Gigantis (land of the giants) allows us to assume that Atlas was also the chief of the group of the Titans or Giants who settled there. A mountain of Arcadia was named Atlas after him (the mountain that was later called Killini). Another mountain was named Azan after his Atlantian consul or brother Azan or Azais. Atlas IV and the power of the Atlanteans that followed him and settled in Arcadia had offspring. This is why the ancient Arcadians said they came from the Atlanteans. After the cataclysm of Deucalion the destruction of Arcadia human civilization started from the beginning. The survivors of the cataclysm kept in their memory and orally transmitted to the new generation the power of Titans, Giants and Atlanteans. The new generations and the next heard of things they had never thought before. So they slowly deified Atlas. Atlas of Arcadia was the last of the eminent offspring of the Titans of the generation of Iapetus and Poseidon.

Copyright © 2000 by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Greece

Atlas with Heracles and Perseus

When Heracles acting in one of his labors had to bring to Evristheus, king of Mycenae, the gold apples of Hesperides, he met in the far east Atlas and accepted to hold the dome for a while until the giant gets him the apples. Getting back Atlas refused to take the dome back and proposed to take the apples to Eurystheus himself. Heracles pretended he agreed but asked him to take the dome back for a while to make a "cushion" for his head. Atlas fell into the trap and Heracles took the apples and left. So Atlas kept on his duty.

Having the apples the hero returned to Mycenae and gave them to Eurystheus. But he gave them to him as a present. After that Heracles gave them to "goddess" Athena who returned them to the garden of Hesperides "because it was not allowed to be anywhere else".

Hesiod talks about all of the above. He also says in Theogony that Heracles traveled to Hesperides inside a sailing bronze earthenware jar. Nireus was his guide, son of Pontus or Poseidon who took Heracles from the Mediterranean passed through Cronus's Columns (this was the name of Gibraltar, later called Heracles's columns), sailed the Atlantic and got to the Hesperides islands.

Others said that Heracles managed to kill the thieves who had grabbed Atlas's daughters, Hesperides, and bring them safe and sound back to their father, who out of gratitude taught Heracles the secrets of the sky and astronomy.

In the far west he went to find Atlas and another great hero, Perseus son of Danae (daughter of Acrisius and Eurydice) and Zeus. But Atlas did not welcome him and tried to kill him. Then Perseus showed him the head of Medusa (or Gorgo) and froze him. So Atlas became a big mountain in Africa or somewhere further named Atlas.

Historical analysis - comments

Another "demigod" related to the Atlanteans was Heracles (or Hercules). Plutarchus from the information he got concluded that he was a historic person although there were many myths about him.

So Heracles traveled to Atlantis with "a sailing bronze earthen jar". Nireus, who was the son of Pontus and was closely related to Poseidon, led him. Homer says about Nireus that :"he ruled the Mediterranean under the orders of Poseidon" (Iliad l.141). Nireus and Oceanid Doris gave birth to the 77 Niriades (daughters (nymphs) of the sea that is they were thought as sea "goddesses"). Here myth reveals in our opinion Nireus's identity, that he was the captain who under the orders of Poseidon ruled a whole fleet of 77 ships. So Nireus, the captain of the Atlanteans, led Heracles to Atlas by boat.

From the narration of the meeting between Atlas and Heracles it is clear that Atlas made Heracles an ally, who helped him for a while to rule Atlantis ("he hold for a while the dome, Atlas's burden"). An agreement is possible to have happened or sharing of the power between The Greeks and Atlanteans with the Hercules's Columns as border that is the two rocks in the Gibraltar passage. Maybe we can explain this way the change of its name from "Cronus's Columns" to "Heracles' s Columns".

The fact that Heracles had traveled in the Atlantic Ocean is proved by the later history of the Phoenician who when they traveled to Erythia island in the Atlantic Ocean found a temple devoted to Heracles. So how could Heracles get with an army to the Erythia Island in the Atlantic Ocean where later (in another era) the Phoenicians found his temple?

 Copyright © This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Greece, 2000