Athena was the air goddess of the Greeks, or, in Ruskin's phrase, "the
queen of the air." She was known also by the name Pallas, and among the
Romans as Minerva. As the air comes to us from out the great dome of the
sky, so Athena was said to have sprung fully armed from the head of her
father Zeus. The old Homeric hymn tells how
"Wonder strange possessed
The everlasting gods that shape to see,
Shaking a javelin keen, impetuously
Rush from the crest of [ae]gis-bearing Jove."[5]
[5] In Shelley's translation.
Her eyes were blue, the color of the sky; her hair hung in ringlets over
her shoulders. Her dress was
"A gorgeous robe
Of many hues, which her own hands had wrought."[6]
[6] Iliad, Book viii., lines 483, 484.
When arrayed for war she wore a golden helmet and carried a shield, or
_[ae]gis_. In the centre of this shield was fastened the gorgon's head
which Perseus had cut off with her aid. In her hand she wielded a mighty
spear.
The owl was her symbolic bird, and she was called _glaukopis_, or
owl-eyed, because her wisdom gave her sight in darkness. The serpent was
the emblem of her command over the beneficent and healing influences in
the earth. Her favorite plant was the fruitful olive, valued by the
Greeks both for the beauty of its foliage and for the usefulness of its
oil.
In the fortunes of war, when it was for defensive aims, Athena took an
intense interest and an active part. In the war between the Greeks and
the Trojans, she was on the side of the Greeks, who sought to recover
from their enemies their queen Helen, whom the Trojan prince had
captured. When the Greek army assembled before the walls of Troy--
"Among them walked
The blue-eyed Pallas, bearing on her arm
The priceless [ae]gis, ever fair and new,
And undecaying; from its edge there hung
A hundred golden fringes, fairly wrought,
And every fringe might buy a hecatomb.
With this and fierce, defiant looks she passed
Through all the Achaian host, and made their hearts
Impatient for the march and strong to endure
The combat without pause,--for now the war
Seemed to them dearer than the wished return
In their good galleys to the land they loved."[7]
[7] Iliad, Book ii., lines 549-560 in Bryant's translation.
As the air gives us the breath of life, so Athena gave inspiration to
the heart of man. It was her friendly mission to fill with "strength and
courage" the hearts of those who were beset by difficulties of many
kinds.[8] To Achilles, lamenting the death of Patroclus, she came with
nectar and ambrosia, that his limbs might not grow faint with hunger.[9]
It was because of her aid that Diomed could proudly declare, "Minerva
will not let my spirit falter;" and when he cast his spear, "Minerva
kept the weapon faithful to its aim."[10]
[8] See the Iliad, Book v., line 2, and the Odyssey, Book i., line 396.
[9] Iliad, Book xix., lines 427-429.
[10] Iliad, Book v., lines 309 and 352.
[Illustration: D. Anderson, Photo. John Andrew & Son, Sc.