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Tradition
Greek
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God of
Fire, metalwork, smiths and craftsmen
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Roman name
Vulcan
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Parents
Hera (and Zeus, in some versions)
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Made
Talos, the golden maidens, Achilles' armor
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What is Hephaestus known for?

Hephaestus is the Greek god of fire and metalworking, the craftsman of the gods, known to the Romans as Vulcan. Myths say he was lame and that he was thrown from Olympus, and he works at a forge, often placed under volcanoes such as Etna or on the island of Lemnos.

In Homer's Iliad he makes new armor and a shield for Achilles, and he is served by golden maidens who have minds, speech and strength. Later writers credit him with Talos, the bronze giant who guarded Crete, and with self-moving tripods that rolled to the gods' meetings.

Writers on ancient technology often point to these servants as early ideas of robots. On this site they are read as the poets describe them, as stories, not records of machines.

Why it is on Credible Theories

Maker of the golden maidens and Talos, the site's ancient stories of made beings that move on their own.

Mentioned on these pages

Sources

  1. Homer's IliadThe Greek epic poem about the anger of the hero Achilles during the war against Troy, credited to Homer and probably composed in the 700s BC. It describes the god Hephaestus's self-moving golden helpers and three-legged stands on wheels. Samuel Butler's English version came out in 1898.Homer, Iliad, Book 18, trans. A. T. Murray (Loeb, 1924)Primary text
  2. Encyclopaedia BritannicaAn encyclopedia first published in Scotland in 1768 and now online. Its articles are written and checked by named experts and editors, which makes it a reliable source for basic facts.Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Hephaestus'Reference
  3. Gods and Robots, by Adrienne Mayor (2018)A 2018 book from Princeton University Press by Adrienne Mayor, a historian of ancient science at Stanford University. It looks at ancient myths about made beings, such as the bronze giant Talos, and what they show about ancient ideas of technology.Adrienne Mayor, Gods and Robots: Myths, Machines, and Ancient Dreams of Technology (Princeton University Press, 2018)

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