The Muses
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediadaughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, presided over the liberal arts particularly, were nine in number, and dwelt along with Apollo near Parnassus, Pieria, and Helicon; Clio presided over history, Euterpe over music, Thalia over comedy, Melpomene over tragedy, Terpsichore over choral dance and song, Erato over erotic poetry and elegy, Polyhymnia over lyric poetry, Urania over astronomy, and Calliopë over eloquence and epic poetry.
Clio
Clio or Kleio is the muse of heroic poetry and history. Like all the muses, she is a daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne. She had one son, Hyacinth, with the King of Macedonia, Pierus. Some sources say she was also the mother of Hymenaios.
She is often represented with a parchment scroll or a set of tablets and is also known as the Proclaimer.
Euterpe
or Eutere ("rejoicing well" or "delight"). Called the "Giver of Pleasure", when later poets assigned roles to each of the Muses, she was the muse of music. In late Classical times she was named muse of lyric poetry and depicted holding a flute.
A few say she invented the aulos or double-flute, though most mythographers credit Marsyas with its invention. The river Strymon impregnated Euterpe; her son Rhesus led a band of Thracians and was killed by Diomedes at Troy, according to Homer's Iliad.
Thalia
or Thaleia ("good cheer") was the muse of comedy and pastoral poetry. She was a rural goddess with the attributes of a comic mask and a shepherd's crook. Her names came from meaning "to bloom".
Thalia was also the name of one of the Charites, and the name of a nymph who was the mother of the Palici with Zeus or Hephaestus. The nymph Thalia may have been the same as the Muse or Charite.
Melpomene
Melpomene ("to sing") was the muse of tragedy, despite her joyous singing. She is often represented with a tragic mask and wearing the cothurnus, boots traditionally worn by tragic actors. Often, she also holds a knife or club in one hand and the tragic mask in the other. On her head she is shown wearing a crown of cypress.
Melpomene is mentioned in the first line of George Peele's poem: Œnone's Complaint.
Terpsichore
Terpsichore ("delight of dancing") was the Muses of dance and the dramatic chorus. She is usually depicted sitting down, holding a lyre. She is sometimes said to be the mother of the Sirens by Achelous. Her name comes from the Greek words delight and dance.
Erato
("lovely") was the Muse of erotic poetry, elegy lyric poetry and hymns. She is usually represented with a lyre in her left hand. With Arcas, she had one son: Azan.
Polyhymnia
("many songs") was the Muse of sacred hymn and eloquence.
A very serious woman, pensive and meditative often depicted holding a finger to her mouth, dressed in a long cloak and veil and resting her elbow on a pillar. She brings fame to writers whose works have won them immortal fame. Polyhymnia is also sometimes accredited as being the muse of geometry, mime, meditation, and agriculture.
Urania
("heavenly") was the muse of astronomy and astrology. She is usually depicted as having a globe in her left hand and a peg in the right. She is able to fortell the future by the position of the stars. She is often associated with Universal Love and the Holy Spirit. She is dressed in a cloak embroidered with stars and keeps her eyes and attention focused on the Heavens. Those who are most concerned with philosophy and the heavens are dearest to her.
"Urania, o'er her star-bespangled lyre, With touch of majesty diffused her soul; A thousand tones, that in the breast inspire, Exalted feelings, o er the wires'gan roll-- How at the call of Jove the mist unfurled, And o'er the swelling vault-- the glowing sky, The new-born stars hung out their lamps on high,And rolled their mighty orbs to music's sweetest sound." From An Ode To Music, by James G.Percival
Her name has been used to name astronomical observatories such as the Urania in Berlin, Vienna, Zurich and Antwerp and Uraniborg on the island of Hven.
Calliope
("beautiful-voiced") was the muse of epic poetry, and is now best known as Homer's muse, and therefore, the inspiration for The Iliad and The Odyssey.
She had two sons, Orpheus and Linus with Apollo. She was the oldest and wisest of the Muses. She was the judge in the argument over Adonis between Aphrodite and Persephone, giving each equal time with him. She was represented by a stylus and wax tablets.
She is always seen with a writing tablet in her hand, and sometimes carries a roll of paper or a book or wears a gold crown.
Calliope in Pop Culture
Calliope is a character in the graphic novel Sandman, by Neil Gaiman. Her story is in the collection Dream Country. Primarily, it involves the author Richard Madoc, who has written one successful book and has since suffered from incurable writer's block. Madoc purchases Calliope from another writer, who had captured her by using molly flowers and burning her scroll. She is eventually rescued by the assistance of Morpheus, who, according to the comic's canon, was actually Calliope's lover and the father of Orpheus. In another deviation from the traditional myths, Calliope is stated as being the youngest of the nine muses, rather than the eldest.
The author Nick Sagan, Son of famous author Carl Sagan, also makes reference to Calliope in his debut novel, Idlewild. In his book the main character, Halloween, suffers amnesia after a power surge, referred to as the Calliope Surge. The author also makes reference to Calliope being the daughter of Mnemosyne, the personification of memory.
