Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks

204 Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks
Zeus. From Thomas Hope, Costumes of the Greeks
and Romans (New York: Dover, 1962). Reprinted
by permission of Dover Publications.
though he was far from consistent in his pursuit of that aim. Moreover,
his own behavior fell lamentably short of setting a standard of
morality for humans. His sexual appetite was insatiable, and later
tradition credits him with having adulterous relations with at least
115 women, both mortal and immortal. In many cases, Zeus adopted
a disguise, perhaps to evade, unsuccessfully for the most part, the
watchful eyes of Hera. Among other incarnations, he turned into a
bull to pursue Europa (Greek, Europê), a shower of rain to seduce
Danaë, and a swan to entice Leda.
There were more aspects to Zeus than to any other deity. He
was the god of rain, hospitality, justice, and persuasion. There
was even a Zeus who was the averter of flies. Although in theory
above Fate, Zeus tended to follow its dictates. A notable demonstration
of this takes place in The Iliad, when, on the advice of
Hera, he reluctantly decides not to save his son Sarpedon from his
predestined death. Zeus’s weapon was the thunderbolt, which he
wielded with deadly effect against perjurers. The greatest temple
built in his honor was located at Olympia, where the Olympic
Games were celebrated every four years. The statue of the seated
god in the temple, which was made by the Athenian sculptor Phe-