Alkestis was a Greek princess of Iolcus who married King Admetos of Pherae. Apollo, who had been treated kindly while herding for Admetos, got the Fates drunk and had them promise that someone could die in the king’s place; when the time came, Alkestis was the only one who volunteered. Herakles later returned her from the underworld.
Name origin: Trojan prophet in Greek myth. Apollo tried to seduce Kassandra with the gift of prophecy; when he failed (or in some versions she accepted and then changed her mind), unable to rescind her ability, he added the curse that she would never be believed.
Name origin: Helen, Greek daughter of Zeus and Leda, wife of Menelaos and queen of Sparta, famed for her beauty, who was kidnapped by Paris of Troy following a certain incident involving a golden apple and a divine beauty competition, which act caused the Trojan War. After the Greek victory she returns to Sparta.
Name origin: Greek goddess of magic, witchcraft, the night, moon, ghosts and necromancy.
Sappho (c.630-570 BCE) was an ancient Greek lyric poet and musician from the island of Lesbos. Widely regarded as an outstanding writer, she was called the Tenth Muse; sadly, much of her work, in total estimated at around 10,000 lines, has been lost. Her poetry is still influential today.
Roman lunar goddess. Initially revered as a huntress and patron of hunters, Diana later became associated with farms and the cultivated countryside, or where civilisation meets the wilderness. Like Hekate, she had dominion over roadways, particularly three-way crossroads, thereby giving her an underworld aspect. She also oversaw fertility, childbirth, the moon and celestial realms.
Freyja is a Norse goddess associated with love, sex, beauty, fertility, gold, seiðr, war, and death. Freyja is the owner of the necklace Brísingamen, rides a chariot pulled by two cats, is accompanied by the boar Hildisvíni, and possesses a cloak of falcon feathers. She is a member of the Vanir.
Name origin: Greek daughter of Apollo and wife of Orpheus. The main myth concerning Eurydike involves her death by snake bite, and Orpheus’ subsequent attempt to bring her back from the underworld, which failed at the last moment.
Name origin: Greek – either a Nereid, or a mortal formed from a statue. Galateia was one of the fifty Nereides and the goddess of calm seas, wooed by Polyphemos with music, milk and cheese.
