Helicon
Encyclopedia
Mount Helicon is a mountain in the region of Thespiai
in Boeotia
, Greece
, celebrated in Greek mythology
. With an elevation of 1749 metres (5,738 ft), it is located just off the Gulf of Corinth
.
, the mountain was celebrated by Hesiod
because two springs sacred to the Muses were located here: the Aganippe
and the Hippocrene
, both of which bear "horse" (ἵππος hippos) in their toponym. In a related myth, the Hippocrene spring was created when the winged horse Pegasus
aimed his hoof at a rock, striking it with such force that the spring burst from the spot. On Helicon too was the spring where Narcissus
was inspired by his own beauty.
In Greek myth, Helicon was sacred especially to the divinely inspiring Muses; in his Aitia, Callimachus
recounts his dream in which he was young once more and conversed with the Muses on Helicon. There had been a temple built on Helicon in their honor which contained statues of these Muses.
The Hippocrene spring was considered to be a source of poetic inspiration. In the late seventh century BCE, the poet Hesiod
sang how in his youth he had pastured his sheep on the slopes of Helicon where Eros and the Muses already had sanctuaries and a dancing-ground near the summit, where "their pounding feet awaken desire". There the Muses inspired him and he began to sing of the origins of the gods. Thus Helicon became an emblem
of poetical inspiration. Callimachus explicitly follows in the footsteps of Hesiod and he placed on Helicon the episode in which Tiresias
stumbles upon Athena bathing and is blinded but given the art of prophecy.
In Hesiod's Theogony Helicon was mentioned:
In the Homeric Hymn to Poseidon
, a brief invocation, the god is hailed as "Lord of Helicon".
The cult centers on Helicon established in the Valley of the Muses
, a fertile valley near Thespiai and Ascra, under the influence of the Hesiodic texts, in Hellenistic times if not before, were visited by Pausanias
in the second century CE. He explored the sacred grove
by the spring Aganippe
thoroughly and left a full description as it then was. He saw images of Eupheme
, nurse of the Muses, and of the legendary poet Linus "in a small rock which has been worked into the manner of a cave". In the temenos
were statues, some by famous masters, of Apollo
and Dionysus
and famed poets. The absence of Homer
at Helicon has been noticed by Richard Hunter (Hunter 2006:18f): "The presence of Homer would spoil the party, for the tendency to see these as rival figures for supremacy in epos
is familiar from the Contest of Homer and Hesiod
, parts of which derive from the classical period". The sacrificial tripod
which Hesiod won at a contest in Chalcis in Euboea was still on view at Helicon in Pausanias' day: the presence of Homer at the festival Hesiod mentions in Works and Days
(650-59) was a later interpolation.
at his castle near Keszthely
. Festetics also named the library he founded Helikon Library, promoting literacy and culture in his home city.
radio arts programme was called Radio Helicon.
Thespiae
Thespiae was an ancient Greek city in Boeotia. It stood on level ground commanded by the low range of hills which runs eastward from the foot of Mount Helicon to Thebes, near modern Thespies.-History:...
in Boeotia
Boeotia
Boeotia, also spelled Beotia and Bœotia , is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. It was also a region of ancient Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, the second largest city being Thebes.-Geography:...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, celebrated in Greek mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
. With an elevation of 1749 metres (5,738 ft), it is located just off the Gulf of Corinth
Gulf of Corinth
The Gulf of Corinth or the Corinthian Gulf is a deep inlet of the Ionian Sea separating the Peloponnese from western mainland Greece...
.
Greek mythology
In Greek mythologyGreek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
, the mountain was celebrated by Hesiod
Hesiod
Hesiod was a Greek oral poet generally thought by scholars to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. His is the first European poetry in which the poet regards himself as a topic, an individual with a distinctive role to play. Ancient authors credited him and...
because two springs sacred to the Muses were located here: the Aganippe
Aganippe
Aganippe was a name or epithet of three figures in Greek mythology.*Aganippe "the Mare who destroys mercifully" was an aspect of Demeter. In this form she was a black winged horse worshiped by certain cults...
and the Hippocrene
Hippocrene
In Greek mythology, Hippocrene was the name of a fountain on Mt. Helicon. It was sacred to the Muses and was formed by the hooves of Pegasus...
, both of which bear "horse" (ἵππος hippos) in their toponym. In a related myth, the Hippocrene spring was created when the winged horse Pegasus
Pegasus
Pegasus is one of the best known fantastical as well as mythological creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine horse, usually white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. He was the brother of Chrysaor, born at a single birthing...
aimed his hoof at a rock, striking it with such force that the spring burst from the spot. On Helicon too was the spring where Narcissus
Narcissus (mythology)
Narcissus or Narkissos , possibly derived from ναρκη meaning "sleep, numbness," in Greek mythology was a hunter from the territory of Thespiae in Boeotia who was renowned for his beauty. He was exceptionally proud, in that he disdained those who loved him...
was inspired by his own beauty.
In Greek myth, Helicon was sacred especially to the divinely inspiring Muses; in his Aitia, Callimachus
Callimachus
Callimachus was a native of the Greek colony of Cyrene, Libya. He was a noted poet, critic and scholar at the Library of Alexandria and enjoyed the patronage of the Egyptian–Greek Pharaohs Ptolemy II Philadelphus and Ptolemy III Euergetes...
recounts his dream in which he was young once more and conversed with the Muses on Helicon. There had been a temple built on Helicon in their honor which contained statues of these Muses.
The Hippocrene spring was considered to be a source of poetic inspiration. In the late seventh century BCE, the poet Hesiod
Hesiod
Hesiod was a Greek oral poet generally thought by scholars to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. His is the first European poetry in which the poet regards himself as a topic, an individual with a distinctive role to play. Ancient authors credited him and...
sang how in his youth he had pastured his sheep on the slopes of Helicon where Eros and the Muses already had sanctuaries and a dancing-ground near the summit, where "their pounding feet awaken desire". There the Muses inspired him and he began to sing of the origins of the gods. Thus Helicon became an emblem
Emblem
An emblem is a pictorial image, abstract or representational, that epitomizes a concept — e.g., a moral truth, or an allegory — or that represents a person, such as a king or saint.-Distinction: emblem and symbol:...
of poetical inspiration. Callimachus explicitly follows in the footsteps of Hesiod and he placed on Helicon the episode in which Tiresias
Tiresias
In Greek mythology, Tiresias was a blind prophet of Thebes, famous for clairvoyance and for being transformed into a woman for seven years. He was the son of the shepherd Everes and the nymph Chariclo; Tiresias participated fully in seven generations at Thebes, beginning as advisor to Cadmus...
stumbles upon Athena bathing and is blinded but given the art of prophecy.
In Hesiod's Theogony Helicon was mentioned:
- "From the Heliconian Muses let us begin to sing,
- Who hold the great and holy mount of Helicon,
- And dance on soft feet about the deep-blue spring
- And the altar of the almighty son of Cronos, and,
- When they have washed their tender bodies in Permessus
- Or in the Horse's Spring or Olmeius,
- Make their fair, lovely dances upon highest Helicon
- And move with vigorous feet"
In the Homeric Hymn to Poseidon
Poseidon
Poseidon was the god of the sea, and, as "Earth-Shaker," of the earthquakes in Greek mythology. The name of the sea-god Nethuns in Etruscan was adopted in Latin for Neptune in Roman mythology: both were sea gods analogous to Poseidon...
, a brief invocation, the god is hailed as "Lord of Helicon".
The cult centers on Helicon established in the Valley of the Muses
Valley of the Muses
The Valley of the Muses was the site of an ancient Greek sanctuary to the Muses and the Mouseia festivals held in their honor. It is presently an open-air historical site open permanently to the public. It is located at Thespies on the eastern slopes of Mount Helicon in the Greek prefecture of...
, a fertile valley near Thespiai and Ascra, under the influence of the Hesiodic texts, in Hellenistic times if not before, were visited by Pausanias
Pausanias (geographer)
Pausanias was a Greek traveler and geographer of the 2nd century AD, who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius. He is famous for his Description of Greece , a lengthy work that describes ancient Greece from firsthand observations, and is a crucial link between classical...
in the second century CE. He explored the sacred grove
Sacred grove
A sacred grove is a grove of trees of special religious importance to a particular culture. Sacred groves were most prominent in the Ancient Near East and prehistoric Europe, but feature in various cultures throughout the world...
by the spring Aganippe
Aganippe
Aganippe was a name or epithet of three figures in Greek mythology.*Aganippe "the Mare who destroys mercifully" was an aspect of Demeter. In this form she was a black winged horse worshiped by certain cults...
thoroughly and left a full description as it then was. He saw images of Eupheme
Eupheme
Eupheme was the ancient Greek female spirit of words of good omen, praise, acclaims, shouts of triumph, and applause. Her opposite was Momus and her sisters were Euthenia, Eucleia, and Philophrosyne. Along with her sisters, she was regarded as a member of the younger Charites...
, nurse of the Muses, and of the legendary poet Linus "in a small rock which has been worked into the manner of a cave". In the temenos
Temenos
Temenos is a piece of land cut off and assigned as an official domain, especially to kings and chiefs, or a piece of land marked off from common uses and dedicated to a god, a sanctuary, holy grove or holy precinct: The Pythian race-course is called a temenos, the sacred valley of the Nile is the ...
were statues, some by famous masters, of Apollo
Apollo
Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...
and Dionysus
Dionysus
Dionysus was the god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness and ecstasy in Greek mythology. His name in Linear B tablets shows he was worshipped from c. 1500—1100 BC by Mycenean Greeks: other traces of Dionysian-type cult have been found in ancient Minoan Crete...
and famed poets. The absence of Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
at Helicon has been noticed by Richard Hunter (Hunter 2006:18f): "The presence of Homer would spoil the party, for the tendency to see these as rival figures for supremacy in epos
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
is familiar from the Contest of Homer and Hesiod
Contest of Homer and Hesiod
The Contest of Homer and Hesiod or simply Certamen is a Greek narrative that expands a remark made in Hesiod's Works and Days to recount an imagined poetical agon between Homer and Hesiod, in which Hesiod bears away the prize, a bronze tripod, which he dedicates to the Muses of Mount Helicon...
, parts of which derive from the classical period". The sacrificial tripod
Sacrificial tripod
A sacrificial tripod was a type of altar used by the ancient Greeks. The most famous was the Delphic tripod, on which the Pythian priestess took her seat to deliver the oracles of the deity. The seat was formed by a circular slab on the top of the tripod, on which a branch of laurel was deposited...
which Hesiod won at a contest in Chalcis in Euboea was still on view at Helicon in Pausanias' day: the presence of Homer at the festival Hesiod mentions in Works and Days
Works and Days
Works and Days is a didactic poem of some 800 verses written by the ancient Greek poet Hesiod around 700 BC. At its center, the Works and Days is a farmer's almanac in which Hesiod instructs his brother Perses in the agricultural arts...
(650-59) was a later interpolation.
Since the Renaissance
The poetical image of Helicon established by the Roman poets became once more an emblem of cultural inspiration with the Renaissance and is often referred to in poetry. Helicon was the inspiration for the balls held by the Hungarian composer Leó FesteticsLeo Festetics
Count Leó Festetics de Tolna , was a patron of music and an amateur composer, from a prominent Hungarian family, Festetics....
at his castle near Keszthely
Keszthely
Keszthely is a Hungarian city of 21,100 inhabitants located on the western shore of Lake Balaton. It's the second largest city by the lake after Siófok....
. Festetics also named the library he founded Helikon Library, promoting literacy and culture in his home city.
Modern references
During the 1980s an Australian Broadcasting CorporationAustralian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
radio arts programme was called Radio Helicon.
Sources
- Richard Hunter, The Shadow of Callimachus: Studies in the Reception of Hellenistic Poetry at Rome (Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
) 2006:16ff "De Monte Sororum: In the Grove".