1.9: Socio-Political Value of Myths

The selection of the powerful goddess Athene as their patron, and the subsequent naming of their city (Athens) after her was not so much an acknowledgement of her feminine power, but more likely an awareness of her proximity to Zeus and her masculine aspects. Being born from a man, rather than a woman, instilled a male-centric intelligence and allegiance within the goddess who regularly favored heroes and mortal men who aligned with her traits, specifically Odysseus. In no small irony, the election for her patronage was secured by a small margin of one vote, that of a woman (reportedly confirmed by Christian Theologian Augustine in the 5th century). However, this loyalty of the female citizens did them no favors, as the city persisted in denying all voting rights to women when it became the first democracy. The male leaders of the city, in an attempt to assuage the volatile anger of Poesidon, blamed the female voters and promised to stifle their agency. The myth of the contest, captured by Pheidias on the Parthenon’s west pediment, and the resulting tidal wave create a foundational myth for the people of Athens, securing the male rule of the city by inculpating the women for the ensuing wrath of a tempestuous god.

A secondary foundational myth further roots Athene as mythical mother patron to Athens. As a virginal goddess, she isn’t linked with any male partner, save for an awkward incident with Hephaestus. On this occasion, the goddess visits the god in his forge within Mount Olympus to inquire about new weapons. Taken by her aloof, untouchable beauty, he makes a clumsy attempt at seduction. The “attempt” misses its mark and lands, unpleasantly, on her thigh. The goddess, seemingly unaffected by the act, wipes the semen from her leg with a wool cloth, tossing it aside where it falls to the earth. In a universal truism, the gods’ seed always bearing fruit, the cloth grows into a child, Erichthonius. Perhaps unprepared for single-parenthood, Athene gives the infant to the daughters of Cecrops (the mythical first king of Athens), Pandrosos, Auglauros, and Herse. Versions of the myth describe the baby in the basket as either being blanketed by two serpents, or as having the lower half of a serpent. Regardless, the goddess’s admonition to the daughters not to look into the basket is ignored and the sight of the serpent-baby drives them to fling themselves off the Acropolis. The references to snakes are consistent with children of the earth. As chthonic [THON-ik] beings, snakes have the ability to travel between the Underworld—Hades—and the terrestrial world; thus a child born of the earth might display kinship qualities. Even his name connects with this particular quality “EriCHTHONIus.”

Athene, who also identifies with the serpent symbol (see photo of her statue), takes the child into her protective care within her temple high above the city where, under her guidance, he is credited for inventing the first quad-horse chariot, founding the Panathenaea, and later becoming a king of Athens. Other sources ascribe these accomplishments to Erechtheus (Harris and Platzner 9-10), who is said to be grandson of Erichthonius. The conflation of the two individuals is understandable, as both names are forms of Poesidon. Perhaps in a conciliatory offering to her uncle, Athene prophesies a cult of worship for Erechtheus following his death, and predicts a temple “ringed around with stones,” where “Poesidon-Erechtheus . . . will be offered sacrifices of bulls” (Morford and Lenardon 593). Regardless of the version, each establishes the paramount mythic foundation that substantiates the power of Athens, signifying its greatness to competing kingdoms.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Temple of Erechtheum, Acropolis, Athens. CC BY, Wikimedia.

Erechtheus was significant in the mythic history of the polis, though his achievements were marked by gruesome sacrifices. In successfully defending Athens from the attack of the Eleusinians led by the Thracian Eumolpus, a son of Poseidon and ancestor of the hereditary priests of Eleusis, he secured the victory by first sacrificing his three daughters. This terrible price allowed him to kill Eumpolpus in the battle, but his victory was brief, for he was subsequently killed by Poseidon, who, with his trident, drove him into the earth, from which his grandfather had sprung (595).

Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): Plan and layout of the Erechtheum. Ohio State, CC BY NC 4.0.