States Questions—Novice Flashcards
What monster did both Theseus and Heracles have to face, one by order of Aegeus, and the other by order of Eurystheus although it had changed its name?
CRETAN/MARATHONIAN BULL
B1: The Cretan Bull was also the father of the Minotaur with what Cretan queen?
PASIPHAE
B2: What niece of Pasiphae prompted Aegeus to order Theseus to kill the Marathonian Bull?
MEDEA
What goddess was the original patron of Delphi before it was taken over by Apollo?
GE/THEMIS
B1: What creature did Apollo kill to gain possession of Delphi?
PYTHON
B2: What monster, which forced the gods to flee to Egypt, was reared by Python after Hera gave birth to it
TYPHOEUS
What Muse of history might a certamen player invoke as they begin a marathon reading of Cary & Scullard’s A History of Rome?
CLIO
B1: What Muse of epic poetry might be invoked by a certamen player as they begin to read Vergil’s Aeneid?
CALLIOPE
B2: What Muse of dance might one invoke at the FJCL State Forum “Farewell Dance” in order to enhance their dancing abilities?
TERPSICHORE
What animal was responsible for the death of Ancaeus, a scar on Odysseus’ leg, and the death of Adonis?
A BOAR
B1: What nurse of Odysseus recognized him by the scar left on his thigh by the boar?
EURYCLEIA
B2: What son of Oeneus and Althaea killed the boar that killed Ancaeus, and then was killed by his mother?
MELEAGER
Thersites, Penthesilea, Memnon, and Hector were all killed by what Greek warrior in the Trojan War?
ACHILLES
B1: Memnon was the son of Tithonus and what goddess of the dawn?
EOS
B2: Why was Eos forced to turn Tithonus into a grasshopper?
HE WAS IMMORTAL BUT KEPT AGING
Who was torn apart by Maenads because he rejected their company and the company of all other women after the death of his wife Eurydice?
ORPHEUS
B1: According to some versions of the story, what goddess caused Orpheus’ death in order to get back at his mother, Calliope?
APHRODITE
B2: In this version of the story, how had Calliope enraged Aphrodite?
CALLIOPE DECREED THAT ADONIS WOULD SPEND PART OF THE YEAR WITH PERSEPHONE
Who was told that he should fear a young man wearing one shoe?
PELIAS
B1: Pelias told the one shoed young man, Jason, to go fetch the golden fleece from Colchis. Name either one of the twin siblings who had ridden the golden fleece to Colchis to escape their stepmother, Ino?
PHRIXUS or HELLE
B2: Pelias was killed by Jason’s wife, Medea. How did she kill Pelias?
TRICKED PELIAS’ DAUGHTERS INTO CHOPPING HIM UP SO THAT MEDEA COULD “MAKE HIM YOUNG AGAIN””
What son of Ctesius was sold by Phoenician merchants to King Laertes of Ithaca, under whom he served as the chief swineherd?
EUMAEUS
B1: Who was the chief cowherd on Ithaca?
PHILOETIUS
B2: What man was the chief goatherd under Laertes’ son Odysseus?
MELANTHIUS
What goddess loved Astraeus, Cleitus, Cephalus, and Tithonus?
EOS/AURORA
B1: What god loved Perse, Clytie, Leucothoe, and Clymene?
HELIUS/SOL
B2: What goddess loved Zeus, Pan, and Endymion?
SELENE/LUNA
Who was married at various points to Dione, Eurynome, Themis, and Metis, before finally marrying his sister, Hera?
ZEUS
B1: Who were the collective children of Zeus and Themis, known individually as Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos?
THE FATES
B2: In some versions, Hephaestus is the child of Hera alone, rather than Zeus and Hera. What prompted Hera to produce Hephaestus?
ZEUS HAD PRODUCED ATHENA BY HIMSELF
What punishment befell Battus, Atlas, Niobe, and Polydectes?
THEY WERE TURNED TO STONE
B1: What god turned Battus into a stone after Battus saw the god stealing Apollo’s cattle?
HERMES/MERCURY
B2: Who turned Phineus, Atlas, and Polydectes to stone?
PERSEUS (accept MEDUSA)
What Titan was the father of Hestia, Demeter, and Hades?
CRONOS
B1: What Titan was the father of Doris, Styx, and Amphitrite?
OCEANUS
B2: What Titan was the father of Atlas, Epimetheus, and Prometheus?
IAPETUS
What woman panicked upon seeing her son Demophoön being roasted over a fire by the old woman Doso?
METANEIRA
B1: What was Doso’s real identity?
DEMETER
B2: What king of Eleusis was the husband of Metaneira?
CELEUS
During the reign of the Babylonian queen Semiramis, what mythological couple finally agreed to meet at the tomb of King Ninus after conversing through a crack in the wall between their houses?
PYRAMUS AND THISBE
B1: When Thisbe first arrived, what type of animal scared her away?
LION(ESS)
B2: The blood of Pyramus stained the fruits of what kind of tree?
MULBERRY
What son of Thoosa lived as a shepherd on Sicily and was blinded by a man named “Nobody”?
POLYPHEMUS
B1: What daughter of Helios tried to turn “Nobody” into a pig with the rest of his men?”
CIRCE
B2: What daughter of Atlas kept “Nobody” on her island of Ogygia for seven years?
CALYPSO
Who was disguised as a girl in the court of King Lycomedes by his mother in order to prevent him from fighting at Troy?
ACHILLES
B1: Who was Achilles’ mother who hid him away?
THETIS
B2: What child did Achilles father while he was hidden at the court?
PYRRHUS / NEOPTOLEMUS
As you are aware Zeus had a lot of children. Who were the collective daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne?
THE MUSES
B1: Who were the collective daughters of Zeus and Eurynome?
THE GRACES
B2: Who were the collective daughters of Zeus and Themis?
THE SEASONS / HORAE
This is a visual tossup. Do not open the visuals until instructed to do so and keep in mind that this is still a tossup. [HAND OUT THE VISUALS]. You may now open your visuals. You have 10
seconds to examine your visuals.
Your question: you are looking at a series of mythological tragedies. Who, illustrated by image C, was told that he would live a long life as long as he never discovered himself?
NARCISSUS
B1: I trust that you all recognize the man and monster in image A, but who is this man’s father who met his end at a crossroads near Thebes?
LAIUS
B2: In image B, who might be screaming “I told you so” as the city of Troy burns behind her?
CASSANDRA
Who was punished in the Underworld for trying to seduce Hera after Zeus had purified him of murder?
IXION
B1: What race of creatures was either the children or grandchildren of Ixion and the cloud version of Hera?
CENTAURS
B2: What king of the Lapiths was Ixion’s son with his mortal wife, Dia?
PEIRITHOUS
What sea-goddess rescued Zeus when he had been bound by a group of rebellious gods?
THETIS
B1: Thetis rescued Zeus by summoning which of the Hecatoncheires from the Underworld?
BRIAREIUS
B2: What three deities had rebelled against Zeus and bound him?
ATHENA, HERA, and POSEIDON
After he killed the dragon which guarded the spring of Dirce at Thebes, what man was forced to serve Ares for eight years?
CADMUS
B1: After those years of service, what daughter of Ares did Cadmus marry?
HARMONIA
B2: Into what creatures did Ares transform Cadmus and Harmonia at their deaths?
SNAKES
What son of Aristaeus and Autonoe was changed into a deer and torn apart by his own dogs?
ACTAEON
B1: What goddess changed him into a deer and why?
ARTEMIS, BECAUSE ACTAEON SAW HER BATHING
B2: What cousin of Actaeon was similarly torn apart when his mother and aunts (including Autonoe) thought he was a lion?
PENTHEUS
Who was abandoned by the Argonauts while he searched for his squire, who had been kidnapped by nymphs?
HERACLES / HERCULES
B1: What was the name of that squire?
HYLAS
B2: What twin sons of Boreas convinced the Argonauts to leave Heracles?
ZETES and CALAIS
What giant was killed when Ge sent a giant scorpion to sting him to death?
ORION
B1: In the version of Orion’s birth in which his mother is Euryale, what god is Orion’s father?
POSEIDON/NEPTUNE
B2: What king of Chios blinded Orion when he forced his intentions on his daughter,
Merope?
OENOPION
What daughters of Thaumas and Electra, known as the “hounds of Zeus”, were encountered by both Jason and Aeneas?
HARPIES
B1: What king was punished by the harpies for revealing too much of the future?
PHINEUS
B2: The Argonauts helped Phineus because he was the brother-in-law to what winged twins?
ZETES and CALAIAS
What was the collective name Gyes, Cottus, and Briareus?
HECATONCHEIRES
B1: What god did Briareus rescue when he had been tied up by Poseidon, Hera, and
Athena?
ZEUS
B2: Between what two gods did Briareus serve as mediator when they vied for patronage of Corinth?
HELIOS and POSEIDON
Who believed he was the son of King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth, and exiled himself from that city when an oracle told him he would kill his father and marry his mother?
OEDIPUS
B1: Oedipus ended up marrying his actual mother Jocasta. Who were their two sons, who were cursed by Oedipus to kill each other?
POLYNEICES and ETEOCLES
B2: Name either of Jocasta and Oedipus’ daughters, who accompanied him in his exile from Thebes.
ANTIGONE or ISMENE
What son of Thestor was so famous for his skill as a seer that Agamemnon personally visited him in Megara to ask him to accompany the expedition of the Greeks to Troy?
CALCHAS
B1: With what fellow seer did Calchas have a competition at the end of his life?
MOPSUS
B2: What seer was the grandfather of Mopsus?
TEIRESIAS
During the Trojan War, what brave Greek warrior was able to wound Ares with the aid of Athena?
DIOMEDES
B1: What other deity did Diomedes wound?
APHRODITE
B2: What semi-divine prince of the Dardanians was also wounded by Diomedes?
AENEAS
What son of Apollo was killed by Zeus for reviving Theseus’ son Hippolytus?
ASCLEPIUS
B1: Who was Asclepius’ mother?
CORONIS
B2: What bird told Apollo that Coronis betrayed the god, prompting Apollo to change the bird’s color in anger?
CROW
What king of Athens was forced to sit in the Chair of Forgetfulness in the Underworld until he was rescued?
THESEUS
B1: Who rescued Theseus?
HERACLES/HERCULES
B2: Theseus and Peirithous had gone to the Underworld because Peirithous wanted to marry what daughter of Zeus?
PERSEPHONE
What daughter of Tantalus was changed into a stone after all of her children were killed by Diana and Apollo?
NIOBE
B1: What brother of Niobe had bones that were said to be needed for the Greeks to take Troy?
PELOPS
B2: Niobe’s daughter Chloris became the mother of what hero of the Trojan War, an old man famous for giving advice to the other Greek chieftains?
NESTOR
Who was told to abandon the search for his sister, and instead follow a cow until it lay down, and then build a city on that spot?
CADMUS
B1: Who was that sister he was searching for?
EUROPA
B2: What was the collective name given to the five men who sprung up when Cadmus
scattered some dragon’s teeth?
SPARTOI
What was the Roman name for the son of Venus and Mars who made people fall in love with his arrows?
CUPID
B1: What god did Cupid shoot with a golden love arrow when the god mocked Cupid’s skills as an archer?
APOLLO
B2: In the same moment what nymph did Cupid shoot with a lead hate arrow, causing her to reject Apollo?
DAPHNE
What Trojan refugee did King Latinus of Latium accept as his son in law, since a prophecy said he should marry his daughter to a foreigner?
AENEAS
B1: What goddess tried to stop the wedding by stirring up the king’s wife, Amata, against Aeneas?
JUNO
B2: What wind god had Juno earlier bribed into trying to kill the Trojans with a storm?
AEOLUS
What god was forced to serve a mortal for a year because he killed the Cyclopes?
APOLLO
B1: Who was the mortal Apollo served, a king known for his piety?
ADMETUS
B2: Why had Apollo killed the Cyclopes?
THEY HAD FORGED THE THUNDERBOLTS THAT KILLED
ASCELPIUS
To what mythological group do Iapetus, Hyperion, Oceanus, and Atlas all belong?
TITANS
B1: Which Titan was called “the savior of mankind?”
PROMETHUS
B2: Which of the Titans presided over justice?
THEMIS
What hero returned from the town of Nemea with the pelt of a ferocious lion as his first labor?
HERACLES / HERCULES
B1: Who ordered Heracles to kill the Nemean Lion?
EURYSTHEUS
B2: What many-headed monster did Heracles kill for his second labor?
(LEARNEAN) HYDRA
Which Olympian god, born on the island of Delos, killed the Python and took Delphi as his oracle?
APOLLO
B1: Who was the mother of both Apollo and his twin sister Artemis?
LETO
B2: Which Olympian was the father of these twins?
ZEUS
What Trojan prince, while living on Mt. Ida, was visited by three goddesses who forced him to choose amongst them?
PARIS / ALEXANDER
B1: Which goddess did Paris ultimately choose?
APHRODITE / VENUS
B2: What nymph did Paris abandon in order to abscond with Helen, the queen of Sparta?
OENONE
Who returned to his home of Ithaca after a painful, twenty-year absence?
ODYSSEUS
B1: Who, the queen of Ithaca, waited for her husband to return?
PENELOPE
B2: What son of Odysseus and Penelope went to both Pylos and Sparta to search for his father?
TELEMACHUS
Who journeyed to Thrace, Delos, Crete, Carthage, and Sicily before ultimately settling his Trojan survivors in Italy?
AENEAS
B1: With what Tyrian queen did Aeneas fall in love while at Carthage?
DIDO
B2: What Rutulian chieftain opposed Aeneas in Italy?
TURNUS
What mythological monster, the child of Pasiphaë and a bull, terrorized victims in Minos’ labyrinth on Crete?
MINOTAUR
B1: What Athenian hero killed the Minotaur?
THESEUS
B2: What Cretan princesses helped Theseus escape from the labyrinth?
ARIADNE
What monster in mythology was sent by Artemis to punish king Oeneus’ impiety?
CALYDONIAN BOAR / PHAEA
B1: Which son of Oeneus killed the boar?
MELEAGER
B2: Who, Meleager’s mother, ended his life by throwing a log into the fire?
ALTHEA
What Greek captain at Troy, after the death of his squire Patroclus, reentered the war and killed Hector?
ACHILLES
B1: What group of soldiers who were transformed into men from ants did Achilles lead?
MYRMIDONS
B2: Of what Greek city state was Achilles the king?
PHTHIA
What man exhibited great hubris when he attempted to fly Pegasus to Mt. Olympus and take his place among the immortal gods?
BELLEROPHON
B1: What fire-breathing monster did Bellerophon slay while riding Pegasus?
CHIMERA
B2: What Lycian king sent Bellerophon to kill the Chimera?
IOBATES
What precocious god, on the first day he was alive, stole his brother Apollo’s cattle?
HERMES
B1: What daughter of Atlas was Hermes’ mother?
MAIA
B2: Hermes was born in a cave on what mountain?
MT. CYLLENE
Who plunged into the Eridanus river after driving his father Apollo’s chariot too close to the sun?
PHAETHON
B1: How many horses were yoked to Apollo’s chariot?
FOUR
B2: Into what type of trees were Phaethon’s sister’s, the Heliades, transformed?
POPLARS
Who was forced to marry a man named Hippomenes after she was defeated in a footrace?
ATALANTA
B1: According to Ovid, what goddess helped Hippomenes win the race?
VENUS
B2: Give the name of one of the three men whom ancient authors identify as the father of Atalanta?
IASUS / SCHOENEUS / MAENALUS
Which god appeared at Thebes and threw the city into a frenzy with his gift of wine?
DIONYSUS / BACCHUS
B1: What king of Thebes refused to accept the worship of Dionysus, even though the god was his cousin?
PENTHEUS
B2: In response to Pentheus’ rejection of him, Dionysus departed to the Theban countryside and transformed many of the women into Maenads, including what mother of Pentheus?
AGAVE
What group in mythology consisted of Arges, Brontes, and Steropes?
CYCLOPES
B1: Who were the parents of these Cyclopes?
URANUS & GE / GAIA
B2: How did the Cyclopes aid Zeus in his war with the Titans?
FORGED HIS THUNDERBOLTS
Who received the following items: a sword from Hermes, a pair of winged sandals, and a cap of darkness which made him invisible?
PERSEUS
B1: From what nymphs did Perseus receive the sandals and cap?
NYMPHS OF THE NORTH / HYPERBOREANS
B2: What other useful trinket did the Hyperboreans give to Perseus?
MAGIC WALLET / BAG / KIBISIS
What king of Mycenae, in response to the abduction of his brother’s wife, led a fleet of ships across the Aegean Sea in order to conquer Troy?
AGAMEMNON
B1: Who was Agamemnon’s brother?
MENELAUS
B2: Who killed Agamemnon upon his return from Troy?
CLYTEMNESTRA (PROMPT ON WIFE)
What son of the god Apollo was the god of healing who had a cult of worship in Greece at Epidaurus and a temple on the Tiber island in Rome?
ASCLEPIUS / AESCULAPIUS
B1: Who was the mother of Asclepiuis?
CORONIS
B2: Asclepius was killed by Zeus for raising Hippolytus from the dead. In response, how did Apollo exact vengeance upon his father?
KILLED THE CYCLOPES
According to Ovid, what goddess answered the prayers of the sculptor Pygmalion that he find a maiden like the statue that he created?
VENUS
B1: On what island, sacred to Venus, did Pygmalion live?
CYPRUS
B2: What name is given to the statue which Pygmalion created and Venus brought to life?
GALATEA
According to Homer’s Odyssey, what goddess disguised herself as Mentor in order to escort Telemachus on a journey in search of tidings of his father?
ATHENA
B1: To what sandy kingdom did Telemachus travel first?
PYLOS
B2: Who, said to be the wisest of the Greeks at Troy, was the king of Pylos?
NESTOR
What brothers were sometimes called “Tyndaridae” and sometimes “Dioscouri” because of their different fathers?
CASTOR & POLLUX
B1: From what Greek hero did Castor and Pollux rescue their sister, Hellen?
THESEUS
B2: Castor was killed when he and his brother engaged in a dual with what two brothers?
IDAS & LYNCEUS
What group of 49 maidens all killed their husbands on their wedding night, and were thus forced to carry leaky jars in the underworld?
DANAÏDS
B1: Which of the Danaïds refused to kill her husband, Lynceus?
HYPERMNESTRA
B2: The daughters of Danaüs were to marry their cousins, who were the sons of what man, the brother of Danaüs?
AEGYPTUS
What man, having travelled to the city of his birth on the road from Corinth, solved the riddle of the Sphinx and saved Thebes?
OEDIPUS
B1: What man, his own father, did Oedipus kill on the way to Thebes?
LAIUS
B2: Whom, his own mother, did Oedipus marry after arriving in Thebes?
JOCASTA / EPICASTA
Although the name we associate with this Roman god is probably more of a title than a name, this “Heavenly Father” is generally aid to be an equivalent for the Greek god Zeus. Can you name him?
JUPITER
B1. What was the name of Jupiter’s wife?
Answer: JUNO
B2. Much like Zeus, Jupiter had many different titles that reflect different aspects of his power.
Such was Jupiter Stator and Jupiter Feretrius. Which Roman is said to have built temples to
both Jupiter Stator and Jupiter Feretrius?
Answer: ROMULUS
Long ago, on the slopes of Mount Ida, three goddesses presented themselves to a shepherd for a Judgement on their beauty. Who was the shepherd?
Answer: PARIS/ALEXANDER
B1. Now give the Roman name of the goddess who won the contest?
Answer: VENUS
B2. Now give me the Greek name of the other two goddesses.
Answer: HERA, ATHENA
How about them heroes? I mean they really are a courageous lot, going out there, killing monsters, making a name for themselves. What hero’s name do we associate with the defeat of
the Minotaur?
Answer: THESEUS
B1. Like many a hero, Theseus had help. What princess of Crete helped Theseus?
Answer: ARIADNE
B2. What did Ariadne give Theseus that helped him escape from the Labyrinth?
Answer: A (GOLDEN) BALL OF THREAD
Some of the myths are pretty incredible – I mean, who would believe that Zeus would become so angry that he would chain a man to a wheel of fire and send him spinning through the air, or the Underworld forever? Can you name this unfortunate fellow on the flaming wheel?
Answer: IXION
B1. Ixion had been a king in Greece. Where?
Answer: THESSALY
B2. What had Ixion tried to do that so angered Zeus?
Answer: SLEEP WITH/SEDUCE HERA
If the students talk about sleeping with a cloud accept it if they can explain that it is in the form of Hera.
Who was the Roman god of wine?
Answer: BACCHUS/PATER LIBER
B1. What was Bacchus’ Greek name?
Answer: DIONYSUS
B2. What Greek city of Dionysus’ home town?
Answer: THEBES
Although the Romans took many of their myths from the Greeks, some of their gods had no equivalent among the Greeks. Can you name the unique Roman god of doorways?
Answer: JANUS
B1. Janus was also unique in his looks. What was unusual about Janus?
Answer: HE WAS A TWO FACED GOD
B2. According to some legends about Janus, he actually ruled on a hill that was across the Tiber
from the traditional 7 hills that made up Rome. Can you name this hill on which Janus lived?
Answer: JANICULAN
Roses were sacred to this Roman goddess, so I suppose it makes sense that lovers give roses to their beloved. Tell me the names of this Roman goddess of Love?
Answer: VENUS
B1. What was the name of Venus’ son, the god of Love?
Answer: CUPID/AMOR
B2. What was Cupid’s Greek name?
Answer: EROS
Sometimes you get an offer you just can’t refuse. Such was the case for this hero who had to perform twelve labors to cleanse himself of the guilt for a murder. Name this hero.
Answer: HERCULES/HERACLES
B1. In some versions of the myth Heracles had killed his wife and children. Name the wife he is
said to have killed.
Answer: MEGARA
B2. To have done such a deed Heracles must have been insane. What goddess is said to have
driven Heracles mad?
Answer: HERA
Juno is only acceptable if the team said Hercules to begin with. If the goddess Ate is named instead of Hera, grant the points..
Although he was born in Troezen, this son of Aethra made a name for himself by traveling to Athens to claim the throne that was his birthright. Name this hero
Answer: THESEUS
B1. Who was Theseus’ father, the King of Athens?
Answer: AEGEUS
B2. According to some versions it is not Aegeus but a god who is the father of Theseus. Which
Greek god was this?
Answer: POSEIDON
The goddesses Themis and Gaia both ruled in this Greek city famous for its oracle before Apollo took over the shrine
Answer: DELPHI
B1. Apollo is said to have killed a monster at Delphi when he claimed it for his own. What was
the name of the monster dragon he slew?
Answer: PYTHON
B2. With what god did Apollo share Delphi?
Answer: DIONYSUS/BACCHUS
According to Ovid, Jupiter traveled the earth testing mortals to see if they were offering proper hospitality to others and honoring the gods. What son of Jupiter joined him in this journey?
Answer: MERCURY
B1. All that day Jupiter and Mercury were turned away by people, even though they had plenty.
It was only when they came to the house of a poor, old couple that the gods were finally
offered hospitality. Name one of these pious mortals.
Answer: BAUCIS/PHILEMON
B2. The gods offered to grant any wish of the old couple, who then ask to be priests of the gods
and for their house to become a temple. What last wish do they ask for?
Answer: TO DIE AT THE SAME TIME1
1
If the students tell the story of the two becoming trees, try to prompt the correct answer
Who are the twin children of Latona and Jupiter?
Answer: APOLLO AND DIANA
B1. On what island were these two born?
Answer: DELOS
B2. What is Latona’s Greek name?
Answer: LETO
According to Ovid, it all took place in the East, where a boy met a girl and their parents refused to let them marry because of a feud between the parents. Name these star-crossed lovers of ancient myth.
Answer: PYRAMUS AND THISBE
B1. The pair resolved to leave the city and marry anyway. Near what did they plan to meet?
Answer: A MULBERRY TREE/ TOMB (OF NINUS)
B2. This story happens in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. What metamorphosis happens in the story?
Answer: MULBERRIES CHANGE FROM WHITE TO RED/BLOOD COLORED
Poor Helen of Troy. For all time she is known for the city she destroyed rather than the city of her birth. In what city was Helen born?
Answer: SPARTA
B1. Who was Helen’s mortal mother?
Answer: LEDA
B2. Helen’s divine father was Zeus, but her mortal father ruled Sparta. Who was Helen’s mortal
father?
Answer: TYNDAREUS
What hero traveled to the Underworld in order to ask the seer Teiresias questions about his future?
Answer: ODYSSEUS/ULYSSE
B1. Who had advised Odysseus to do this?
Answer: CIRCE
B2. Who was the first ghost to appear to Odysseus in the Underworld?
Answer: ELPENOR
Which son of Zeus was punished in the Underworld for testing the wisdom of the gods by serving his own son as a meal to the gods.
Answer: TANTALUS
B1. Who was Tantalus’s son who was served to the gods?
Answer: PELOPS
B2. Zeus was the father of Tantalus, but who was his mother, a daughter of Cronus?
Answer: PLUTO
What gigantic fellow with one eye trapped the hero Ulysses in a cave?
Answer: POLYPHEMUS
B1. Ulysses blinds Polyphemus, of course, and then escapes. How?
Answer: BENEATH THE RAM
B2. Ulysses uses wine to confuse Polyphemus as well. Who had given Ulysses the wine?
Answer: MARON
What mortal tried to drive the chariot of the sun, an act that led to his death?
Answer: PHAËTHON
B1. Who a Phaëthon’s mother?
Answer: CLYMENE
B2. What friend of Phaëthon had goaded the young man into searching for his father?
Answer: EPAPHUS
What deity is easily identified in art because he carries the Caduceus?
Answer: HERMES/MERCURY
B1. What is Hermes said to have invented on the day of his birth?
Answer: LYRE
B2. Hermes gave the lyre to Apollo to repay him for stealing Apollo’s cattle. Why had Hermes
stolen Apollo’s cattle?
Answer: TO MAKE A SACRIFICE TO ZEUS/THE GODS
What mortal woman, daughter of Leda and Zeus, was destined to be the cause of the Trojan war?
Answer: HELEN
B1. Paris stole Helen away from her husband in Greece. Who was Helen’s husband?
Answer: MENELAUS
B2. As it happened, Paris abandoned a nymph to run off with Helen. Name the nymph.
Answer: OENONE
What deity searched the Earth for her daughter after she had been kidnapped by Hades?
Answer: DEMETER (not Ceres)
B1. What was Demeter’s daughter’s name?
Answer: PERSEPHONE
B2. Give the Roman equivalent of Persephone.
Answer: PROSERPINA
What is in a name? Quite a bit if you are in Rome instead of Athens. What would the Romans call Athena?
Answer: MINERVA
B1. Artemis was also worshipped in Rome, what did they call her?
Answer: DIANA
B2. Dionysus was sometimes called Bacchus in Rome, but because his gift of wine loosened a
man’s lips and inhibitions he was more properly named this in Rome.
Answer: (PATER) LĪBER
Cadmus is is the well-known patriarch of Thebes, but the foundation of that city was not his original mission. Name the sister he was sent to find.
Answer: EUROPA
B1. Cadmus’ father sent him to find his sister Europa. Who sent him to establish a city?
Answer: APOLLO/DELPHIC ORACLE
B2. What does the oracle order Cadmus to do
Answer: FOLLOW A HEIFER/COW AND ESTABLISH A CITY WHERE IT LIES DOWN
It is said that you must walk in another man’s shoes before you really understand him. Perhaps that is what Aegeus had in mind. For whom did Aegeus leave his sandals?
Answer: THESEUS
B1. Theseus had to move a great stone to get at those sandals. What else did he find left for him?
Answer: (AEGEUS’) SWORD
B2. Theseus faced several villains on the road to Athens. Name the one that he beat at wrestling in Eleusis.
Answer: CERCYON/KERKYON
Some people claim to make their own luck, but only one person in myth can claim to have made his own beloved. Name the man from Cyprus who fell in love with the statue he sculpted.
Answer: PYGMALION
B1. What diety changed the statue into a woman?
Answer: VENUS/APHRODITE
B2. Now name this statuesque woman and the child she had with Pygmalion.
Answer: GALATEA, PAPHOS
Many of the heroes of myth seem to begin their lives as great hunters. The hero I am thinking of had his first great success when he killed the lion of Thespis. Soon after that he led his fellow Thebans to success in war against the Minyans and was rewarded for his success with a marriage to the Theban princess, Megara. Name this lionskin clad hero.
Answer: HERACLES/HERCULES
B1. Heracles was driven mad and killed his wife, Megara. What deity drove him insane?
Answer: HERA/JUNO
B2. When Heracles comes to Delphi to try and be purified of the murder, the Pythia refused to
speak to him at first. What does Heracles do that forces her to give him a way to be purified?
Answer: STEALS THE SACRED TRIPOD
What princess buries her brother despite the order of the ruler of Thebes not to do so
Answer: ANTIGONE
B1. Name the brother that Antogone buries.
Answer: POLYNEICES
B2. Name Antigone’s parents
Answer: OEDIPUS AND JOCASTA/EPICASTA
It must have been confusing for a Roman in Athens, what with those odd looking letters and different names for the gods. What Greek name would a Roman look for in Athens if he wanted to worship Vulcan?
Answer: HEPHAESTUS
B1. A Roman might also call Vulcan by some other name. What?
Answer: MULCIBER
B2. Vulcan or Hephaestus, the story that he was cast out of Olympus is still the same. Where did he land?
Answer: (the island of) LEMNOS
Sons and mothers! Sometimes they are separated and sometimes they are together. The two I have in mind, however were put both in a box and cast into the sea. Name this mythical mother and son.
Answer: DANAË AND PERSEUS
B1. Perseus married a girl and she became a mother herself. Name Perseus’ bride and one of her six sons with Perseus.
Answer: ANDROMEDA; PERSES,
ALCAEUS, MESTOR, ELECTRYON,
STHENELUS, HELEIUS.
B2. Perseus kills Medusa, of course, but she gives birth to two children anyway. Name one.
Answer: PEGASUS, CHRYSAOR
Which of the following was NOT a member of the crew of the Argo? Castor, Zetes, PHINEUS, Heracles, Orpheus
Answer: PHINEUS
B1. Name the treacherous uncle of Jason who set the quest of the Golden Fleece for Jason?
Answer: PELIAS
B2. Phineus actually helps the Argonauts by explaining how to get past the Symplegades. What
do the Argonauts do for Phineus?
Answer: DRIVE AWAY/SAVE HIM FROM THE HARPIES
Capturing Troy was a long hard business, and not simply because of the fighting. It seems as though the Greeks were forever fulfilling one prophecy or another in order to do it. What did the Greeks need from Philoctetes?
Answer: THE BOW (and arrows) OF HERACLES
B1. Name the two warriors they sent to bring back the bow
Answer: ODYSSEUS, NEOPTOLEMUS/PYRRHUS
B2. What Trojan prophet had told them that they needed the bow of Heracles?
Answer: HELENUS
As I am sure you know, Heracles performed twelve labors to atone for the murder of his wife and children. Name the king who set these tasks for Heracles.
Answer: EURYSTHEUS
B1. Eurystheus sent Heracles to a certain Diomedes. What was Heracles to bring back from
him and what was unusual about them?
Answer: HORSES (mares), MAN-EATING
B2. At whose house does Heracles stop on his journey for the Horses of Diomedes?
Answer: ADMETUS’ HOUSE
Which god was thrown from Mt. Olympus by Hera because of his physical deformity?
HEPHAESTUS
B1: On what island did Hephaestus land?
LEMNOS
B2: What god convinced the enraged Hephaestus to return to Olympus by getting him
drunk?
DIONYSUS
Whose deaths caused the mulberry to change from white to red?
PYRAMUS & THISBE’S
B1: Where did Pyramus and Thisbe live?
BABYLON
B2: Who was queen of Babylon in the time of Pyramus and Thisbe?
SEMIRAMIS
What mythological ship was the first to navigate the Symplegades?
THE ARGO
B1: Who was originally chosen to lead the Argo?
HERACLES / HERCULES
B2: Jason of course led the expedition of the Argo in order to retrive the golden fleece from what king of Colchis?
AEETES
Which of the Titans was forced to hold the world on his shoulders?
ATLAS
B1: Who were the parents of Atlas?
IAPETUS & CLYMENE
B2: Who turned Atlas into stone by using the head of Medusa?
PERSEUS
What queen welcomed Aeneas to her native city of Carthage?
DIDO
B1: Dido was originally from what Phoenician city?
TYRE
B2: What sister of Dido consoled the queen and attempted to prevent her suicide?
ANNA
Who plunged into the sea after his wax wings melted in air?
ICARUS
B1: Who told Icarus not to fly too close to the son?
HIS FATHER DAEDALUS
B2: What hero found Icarus’ body and buried it?
HERACLES
What son of Aethra and Aegeus slew the Minotaur?
THESEUS
B1: Which of the bandits that Theseus killed on the way to Athens was also called “Pityocamptes”?
SINIS
B2: Which of the bandits that Theseus killed was also called Damastes?
PROCRUSTES
Who killed the Calydonian Boar?
MELEAGER
B1: Which huntress drew first blood in the hunt?
ATALANTA
B2: Artemis sent the boar to punish what king of Calydon for failing to sacrifice to her?
OENEUS
During which of his labors did Heracles receive help from his nephew Iolaus?
(LERNEAN) HYDRA
B1: During which of his labors did Heracles receive help from the Alpheus and Peneus rivers?
AUGEAN STABLES
B2: Because of this, Eurystheus added what two labors to Heracles’ original ten?
APPLES OF THE HESPERIDES & CAPTURING CERBERUS
Complete the following mythological analogy: Priam : Hecuba :: Agamemnon : _______.
CLYTEMNESTRA
B1: …Atalanta: Hippomenes :: Hippodamia: ___________.
PELOPS / PIRITHOUS
B2: …Perseus : Andromeda :: Hector : __________.
ANDROMACHE
Of the five races of man, which was ruled by Cronus and, after they died, became the guardian spirits of mortal men?
GOLDEN
B1: Which race was extremely warlike and destroyed itself?
BRONZE
B2: Which race will be destroyed by Zeus when its babies are born old?
IRON
What mythological group included Cottus, Gyes, and Briareus?
HECATONCHEIRES / HUNDRED HANDED (ONES)
B1: What mythological group included Deino, Enyo, and Pemphredo?
GRAIAE / GREY WOMEN
B2: What mythological group included Allecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone?
FURIES / ERINYES
What man was thrown from the Acropolis by his uncle Daedalus out of jealously?
PERDIX / TALUS
B1: What did Perdix invent that caused Daedalus’ jealousy?
THE SAW / POTTER’S WHEEL
B2: Into what kind of bird was Perdix transfromed as he fell from the hill?
PARTRIDGE
What king of Lydia was punished in the Underworld with eternal hunger and thirst?
TANTALUS
B1: What son of Tantalus was given an ivory shoulder after Demeter ate it at a banquet?
PELOPS
B2: What daughter of Tantalus married king Amphion of Thebes and had fourteen children?
NIOBE
Aeaea was the island home of what witch who turned Odysseus’ men into swine?
CIRCE
B1: Calypso, who detained Odysseus for seven years, lived on what island?
OGYGIA
B2: On what island did Helius graze his cattle which were eaten by Odysseus’ men?
THRINACIA
What fisherman found a chest washed up on the shore of his home which contained Danae and her infant son Perseus?
DICTYS
B1: What island was this?
SERIPHOS
B2: What brother of Dictys ruled Seriphos?
POLYDECTES
What king tried to avoid service in the Trojan War by pretending he was mad?
ODYSSEUS
B1: Name one of the ways in which Odysseus showed his “madness.”
YOKED AN OX AND A HORSE OR SOWED HIS FIELDS WITH SALT
B2: What son of Nauplius revealed that Odysseus was not actually mad?
PALAMEDES
Who was forced to marry a man named Hippomenes after he defeated her in a footrace?
ATALANTA
B1: What Roman goddess gave Hippomenes the golden apples which he used to defeat
Atalanta?
VENUS
B2: Who was the father of Atalanta?
IASUS / SCHOENIUS
What king of Phrygia was granted the power to turn everything he touched into gold?
MIDAS
B1: What god granted Midas this power?
DIONYSUS
B2: Midas was greated kindly by Dionysus after the king gave hospitality to what travelling
companion of the god?
SILENUS
What king of Argos was the leader of the Seven Against Thebes?
ADRASTUS
B1: What son of Poseidon and Demeter was Adrastus’ horse?
ARION
B2: Who was the only one of the Seven Against Thebes to survive?
ADRASTUS
VISUAL TOSS UP. Pass out visual question to all players.
The following toss up question is a visual. We are currently providing each
player with a copy of the visual. Please do not turn over the visual until
instructed to do so. Also, please be mindful that this is a toss up question,
so do not consult or communicate with your teammates. Please turn over the visual; you will have 10 seconds to examine it (wait 10 seconds). Here is your question:
You are looking at vase paintings which depict various labors of Hercules. Which labor is represented by letter “A”?
STYMPHALIAN BIRDS
B1: Which labor is represented by letter “C”?
ERYMANTHIAN BOAR
B2: Besides Hercules, what other person is represented in letter “D”?
IOLAUS
What bronze giant was created by Hephaestus to guard the island of Crete?
TALUS
B1: Talus had a single vein of what substance which flowed through his body?
ICHOR
B2: What sorceress killed Talus when the Argonauts passed by Crete?
MEDEA
What king of Thrace was married to the Athenian princess Procne, but fell in love with her sister, Philomela?
TEREUS
B1: Tereus abducted Philomela and then cut out her tongue. How did Philomela reveal Tereus’ misdeeds to her sister?
WOVE THE STORY IN A TAPESTRY
B2: Tereus was transformed into a hoopoe. Into what type of birds were Procne and Philomela transformed?
NIGHTENGALE & SWALLOW
Who was dressed as a girl by his mother Thetis in order to prevent him from fighting at Troy?
ACHILLES
B1: At the court of what king of Skyros did Thetis hide Achilles?
LYCOMEDES
B2: By what name was Achiiles known as a girl?
PYRRHA
