HEPHAESTUS  , in See also:

• GREEK
• GREEK, ETRUSCAN AND

Greek See also:

• MYTHOLOGY

mythology, the See also:

• GOD

god of See also:

• FIRE (in O. Eng. f j'r; the word is common to West German languages, cf. Dutch vuur, Ger. Feuer; the pre-Teutonic form is seen in Sanskrit pu, pavaka, and Gr. irup; the ultimate origin is usually taken to be a root meaning to purify, cf. Lat. purus)

fire, analogous to, and by the ancients often confused with, the See also:

• ROMAN

Roman god See also:

• VULCAN (Volcanos)

Vulcan (q.v.); the derivation of the name is uncertain, but it may well be of Greek origin . The elemental See also:

• CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character of Hephaestus is far more apparent than is the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case with the See also:

• MAJORITY (Fr. majorite; Med. Lat. majoritas; Lat. major, greater)

majority of the Olympian gods; the word Hephaestus was used as a synonym for fire not only in See also:

• POETRY

poetry (See also:

• HOMER, WINSLOW (1836-191o)

Homer, Il. ii . 426 and later), but also in See also:

• COMMON

common speech (Diod. v . 74) . It is doubtful whether the origin of the god can be traced to any specific See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form of fire . As all earthly fire was thought to have come from See also:

• HEAVEN (0. Eng. hefen, heofon, heofone; this word appears in O.S. hevan; the High. Ger. word appears in Ger. Himmel, Dutch hemel; there does not seem to be any connexion between the two words, and the ultimate derivation of the word is unknown; the sugges

heaven, Hephaestus has been identified with the See also:

• LIGHTNING

lightning . This is supported by the myth of his fall from heaven, and by the fact that, according to the Homeric tradition, his See also:

• FATHER

father was See also:

• ZEUS

Zeus, the heaven-god . On the other See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand, the lightning is not associated with him in literature or cult, and his connexion with volcanic fires is so See also:

• CLOSE
• CLOSE (from Lat. clausum, shut)
• CLOSE, MAXWELL HENRY (1822-1903)

close as to suggest that he was originally a See also:

• VOLCANO

volcano-god . The connexion, however, though it may be See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early, is probably not See also:

• PRIMITIVE

primitive, and it seems reasonable to conclude that Hephaestus was a See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general fire-god, though some of his characteristics were due to particular manifestations of the See also:

• ELEMENT (Lat. elementum)

element . In Homer the fire-god was the son of Zeus and See also:

• HERA

Hera, and found a See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place in the Olympian See also:

• SYSTEM

system as the divine See also:

• SMITH
• SMITH, ADAM (1723–1790)
• SMITH, ALEXANDER (183o-1867)
• SMITH, ANDREW JACKSON (1815-1897)
• SMITH, CHARLES EMORY (1842–1908)
• SMITH, CHARLES FERGUSON (1807–1862)
• SMITH, CHARLOTTE (1749-1806)
• SMITH, COLVIN (1795—1875)
• SMITH, EDMUND KIRBY (1824-1893)
• SMITH, G
• SMITH, GEORGE (1789-1846)
• SMITH, GEORGE (184o-1876)
• SMITH, GEORGE ADAM (1856- )
• SMITH, GERRIT (1797–1874)
• SMITH, GOLDWIN (1823-191o)
• SMITH, HENRY BOYNTON (1815-1877)
• SMITH, HENRY JOHN STEPHEN (1826-1883)
• SMITH, HENRY PRESERVED (1847– )
• SMITH, JAMES (1775–1839)
• SMITH, JOHN (1579-1631)
• SMITH, JOHN RAPHAEL (1752–1812)
• SMITH, JOSEPH, JR
• SMITH, MORGAN LEWIS (1822–1874)
• SMITH, RICHARD BAIRD (1818-1861)
• SMITH, ROBERT (1689-1768)
• SMITH, SIR HENRY GEORGE WAKELYN
• SMITH, SIR THOMAS (1513-1577)
• SMITH, SIR WILLIAM (1813-1893)
• SMITH, SIR WILLIAM SIDNEY (1764-1840)
• SMITH, SYDNEY (1771-1845)
• SMITH, THOMAS SOUTHWOOD (1788-1861)
• SMITH, WILLIAM (1769-1839)
• SMITH, WILLIAM (c. 1730-1819)
• SMITH, WILLIAM (fl. 1596)
• SMITH, WILLIAM FARRAR (1824—1903)
• SMITH, WILLIAM HENRY (1808—1872)
• SMITH, WILLIAM HENRY (1825—1891)
• SMITH, WILLIAM ROBERTSON (1846-'894)

smith . The Iliad contains two versions of his fall from heaven . In one See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

account (i .

590) he was See also:

• CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

cast out by Zeus and See also:

• FELL
• FELL, JOHN (1625-1686)

fell on See also:

• LEMNOS (mod. Limnos)

Lemnos; in the other, Hera threw him down immediately after his See also:

• BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

birth in disgust at his lameness, and he was received by the See also:

• SEA (in O. Eng. sae, a common Teutonic word; cf. Ger. See, Dutch Zee, &c.; the ultimate source is uncertain)
• SEA, COMMAND OF THE

sea-goddesses Eurynome and See also:

• THETIS

Thetis . The Lemnian version is due to the prominence of his cult at Lemnos in very early times; and his fall into the sea may have been suggested by volcanic activity in Mediterranean islands, as at Lipara and See also:

• THERA

Thera . The subsequent return of Hephaestus to See also:

• OLYMPUS

Olympus is a favourite theme in early See also:

• ART

art . His wife was»Charis, one of the See also:

• GRACES, THE, (Gr. X&panes, Lat. Gratiae)

Graces (in the Iliad) or See also:

• APHRODITE

Aphrodite (in the Odyssey) . The connexion of the rough Hephaestus with these goddesses is curious; it may be due to the beautiful See also:

• WORKS

works of the smith-god (xapcfvra Epya), but it is possibly derived from the supposed fertilizing and productive See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power of fire, in which case Hephaestus is a natural See also:

• MATE (a corruption of make, from O. Eng. gemaca, a " comrade ")
• MATE, or PARAGUAY TEA

mate of Charis, a goddess of See also:

• SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring, and Aphrodite the goddess of love . In Homer, the skill of Hephaestus in metallurgy is often mentioned; his forge was on Olympus, where he was served by images of See also:

• GOLDEN

golden handmaids which he had animated . Similar myths are 'found in relation to the Finnish smith-god Ilmarinen, who made a golden woman, and the See also:

• TEUTONIC
• TEUTONIC (GERMANIC) LANGUAGES

Teutonic See also:

• WIELAND, CHRISTOPH MARTIN (1733-1813)

Wieland; a belief in the magical power of See also:

• METAL
• METAL (through Fr. from Lat. metallum, mine, quarry, adapted from Gr. µATaXAov, in the same sense, probably connected with ,ueraAAdv, to search after, explore, µeTa, after, aAAos, other)

metal-workers is a common survival from an See also:

• AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age in which their art was new and mysterious . In epic poetry Hephaestus is rather a comic figure, and his limping gait provokes " Homeric See also:

• LAUGHTER

laughter " among the gods . In Vedic poetry See also:

• AGNI

Agni, the fire-god, is footless; and the ancients themselves attributed this lameness to the crooked See also:

• APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance of See also:

• FLAME (Lat. flamma; the root flag- appears in flagrare, to burn, blaze, and Gr. d, XEryew)

flame (Servius on Aen. viii . 814), and possibly no better explanation can be found, though it has been suggested that in an early See also:

• STAGE (Fr. 6/age; from Lat. stare, to stand)

stage of society the See also:

• TRADE (O. Eng. trod, footstep, from tredan, to tread; in M. Eng. the forms teed, trod and trade appear, the last in the sense of a beaten track)
• TRADE, BOARD OF

trade of a smith would be suitable for the lame; Hephaestus and the lame Wieland would thus conform to the type of their human counterparts . Except in Lemnos and See also:

• ATTICA

Attica, there are few indications of any cult of Hephaestus . His association with Lemnos can be traced from Homer to the Roman age .

A See also:

• TOWN

town in the See also:

• ISLAND (O.E. ieg =isle, +land')

island was called Hephaestia, and the functions of the god must have been wide, as we are told that his Lemnian priests could cure snake-bites . Once a See also:

• YEAR

year every fire was extinguished on the island for nine days, during which See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period See also:

• SACRIFICE (from Lat. sacrificium; sacer, holy, and facere, to make)

sacrifice was offered to the gods of the underworld and the dead . After the nine days were passed, new fire was brought from the sacred See also:

• HEARTH (a word which appears in various forms in several Teutonic languages, cf. Dutch haard, German Herd, in the sense of " floor ")

hearth at See also:

• DELOS

Delos . The significance of this and similar customs is examined by J . G . Frazer, Golden Bough, iii. ch . 4 . The close" connexion of Hephaestus with Lemnos and especially with its See also:

• MOUNTAIN (0. Fr. montaigne; popular Lat. montanea, an adjectival form from the classical mons, montis, whence Eng. " mount," a form usually used along with the name of an individual mountain, e.g. Mt Everest)
• MOUNTAIN, THE (La Montagne)

mountain Mosychlus has been explained by the supposed existence of a volcano; but no See also:

• CRATER

crater or other sign of volcanic agency is now apparent, and the " Lemnian fire "—a phenomenon attributed to Hephaestus—may have been due to natural See also:

• GAS

gas (see Lemnos) . In See also:

• SICILY (Ital. Sicilia)

Sicily, however, the volcanic nature of the god is prominent in his cult at See also:

• ETNA
• ETNA (Gr. AZ-rvn, from aZOw, burn; Lat. Aetna)

Etna, as well as in the neighbouring Liparaean isles . The Olympian forge had been transferred to Etna or some other volcano, and Hephaestus had become a subterranean rather than a See also:

• CELESTIAL, OR STELLAR

celestial power . The divine smith naturally became a " culture-god "; in See also:

• CRETE (Gr. Kp;rrrr; Turk. Kirid, Ital. Candia)

Crete the invention of See also:

• FORGING

forging in See also:

• IRON [symbol Fe, atomic weight 55.85 (0=16)]

iron was attributed to him, and he was honoured by all metal-workers . But we have little See also:

• RECORD (Lat. recordari, to recall to mind, from cor, heart or mind)

record of his cult in this aspect, except at See also:

• ATHENS
• ATHENS ['AN vat, Athenae, modem colloquial Greek `Ath va]

Athens, where his See also:

• WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

worship was of real importance, belonging to the See also:

• OLDEST

oldest stratum of See also:

• ATTIC (i.e. "in the Attic style ")

Attic See also:

• RELIGION
• RELIGION, FOLKLORE, CUSTOM

religion .

A tribe was called after his name, and Erichthonius, the mythical father of the Attic See also:

• PEOPLE

people, was the son of Hephaestus . Terra-See also:

• COTTA
• COTTA, BERNHARD VON (1808—1879)
• COTTA, GAIUS AURELIUS (c. 124—73 B.c.)

cotta statuettes of the god seem to have been placed before the hearths of Athenian houses . This See also:

• TEMPLE
• TEMPLE, FREDERICK (1821-1902)
• TEMPLE, RICHARD
• TEMPLE, SIR RICHARD, BART
• TEMPLE, SIR WILLIAM, BART

temple has been identified, not improbably, with the so-called " Theseum "; it contained a statue of See also:

• ATHENA (the Attic form of the Homeric Athene, also called Athenaia, Pallas Athene, Pallas)

Athena, and the two deities are often associated, in literature and cult, as the See also:

• JOINT (through Fr. from Lat. junctum, jungere, to join)

joint givers of See also:

• CIVILIZATION

civilization to the Athenians . The class of artisans was under their See also:

• SPECIAL

special See also:

• PROTECTION

protection; and the joint festival of the two divinities—the Chalceia—commemorated the invention of See also:

• BRONZE

bronze-working by Hephaestus . In the Hephaesteia (the particular festival of the god) there was a See also:

• TORCH (O. Fr. torche, from Med. Lat. tortia, derived from tortus, twisted, torquere, to twist)

torch See also:

• RACE

race, a ceremonial not indeed confined to fire-gods like Hephaestus and See also:

• PROMETHEUS

Prometheus, but probably in its origin connected with them, whether its See also:

• OBJECT

object was to purify and quicken the See also:

• LAND

land, or (according to another theory) to transmit a new fire with all possible See also:

• SPEED, JOHN (1552–1629)

speed to places where the fire was polluted . If the latter view is correct, the torch race would be closely akin to the Lemnian fire-See also:

• RITUAL (from Lat. ritus, a custom, especially a religious rite or custom)

ritual which has been mentioned . The relation between Hephaestus and Prometheus is in some respects close, though the distinction between these gods is clearly marked . The fire, as an element, belongs to the Olympian Hephaestus; the Titan Prometheus, a more human character, steals it for the use of See also:

• MAN
• MAN, ISLE OF (anc. Mona)

man . Prometheus resembles the Polynesian Maui, who went down to fetch fire from the volcano of Mahuika, the fire-god . Hephaestus is a culture-god mainly in his secondary aspect as the craftsman, whereas Prometheus originates all civilization with the See also:

• GIFT (a common Teutonic word, cf. Ger. die Gift, gift, das Gift, poison, formed from the Teut. stem gab-, to give, cf. Dutch geven, Ger. geben; in O. Eng. the word appears with initial y, the guttural of later English is due to Scandinavian influence)

gift of fire . But the importance of Prometheus is mainly mythological; the Titan belonged to a fallen See also:

• DYNASTY (Gr. &vvaareta, sovereignty, the position of a hevnori7r, lord, ruler, from SuvaaBay to be able, Suvaµas, power)

dynasty, and in actual cult was largely superseded by Hephaestus . In archaic art Hephaestus is generally represented as bearded, though occasionally a younger beardless type is found, as on a See also:

• VASE
• VASE (through Fr. from Lat. vas, a vessel, pl. vasa, of which the singular vasum is rarely found; the ultimate root is probably was-, to cover, seen in Lat: vestis, clothing, Eng. " vest," Gr. to-th c, and also in " wear," of garments)

vase (in the See also:

• BRITISH

British Museum), on which he appears as a See also:

• YOUNG
• YOUNG, A
• YOUNG, ARTHUR (1741-1820)
• YOUNG, BRIGHAM (1801-1877)
• YOUNG, CHARLES MAYNE (1777–1856)
• YOUNG, EDWARD (1683–1765)
• YOUNG, JAMES (1811-1883)
• YOUNG, THOMAS (1773-1829)

young man assisting Athena in the creation of See also:

• PANDORA (the " All-giving ")

Pandora .

At a later See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time the bearded type prevails . The god is usually clothed in a See also:

• SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short sleeveless See also:

• TUNIC (0. Eng. tunice, tunical, taken, before the Norman con-quest, directly from Lat. tunica, of which the origin is unknown)

tunic, and wears a See also:

• ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round close-fitting cap . His See also:

• FACE (from Lat. fades, derived either from facere, to make, or from a root fa-, meaning " appear "; cf. Gr. cbatvstv)

face is that of a See also:

• MIDDLE

middle-aged man, with unkempt See also:

• HAIR (a word common to Teutonic languages)

hair . He is in fact represented as an idealized Greek craftsman, with the See also:

• HAMMER, FRIEDRICH JULIUS (1810-1862)

hammer, and sometimes the pincers . Some mythologists have compared the hammer of Hephaestus with that of See also:

• THOR

Thor, and have explained it as the See also:

• EMBLEM (Gr. Eµ3Xysa, something put in or inserted, from EµfiiXAew, to throw in)

emblem of a See also:

• THUNDER

thunder-god; but it is Zeus, not Hephaestus, who causes the thunder, and the emblems of the latter god are merely the signs of his occupation as a smith . In art no See also:

• ATTEMPT (Lat. adtemptare, attentare, to try)

attempt was made, as a See also:

• RULE

rule, to indicate the lameness of Hephaestus; but one sculptor (See also:

• ALCAMENES

Alcamenes) is said to have suggested the deformity without spoiling the statue .