MYTHS & LEGENDS EXPLAINED Neil philip
Previously published as Annotated Guides: Myths & Legends
LONDON, NEW YORK, MELBOURNE, MUNICH, AND DELHI Art Editor Sasha Howard Project Editors Antonia Cunningham and Fergus Day Senior Art Editor Heather McCarry Senior Managing Editor Anna Kruger Deputy Art Director Tina Vaughan Production Controllers Meryl Silbert and Manjit Sihra Picture Researcher Jo Walton US Editor Chuck Wills
Contents Introduction 6
Artemis and Actaeon 36 Apollo and Daphne 38 King Midas 40 Pan and Syrinx 42
For Ruth and Michael First published in the United States in 1999 This revised edition published in 2007 by DK Publishing 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014 07 08 09 10 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 MD391 – 05/07 Copyright © 1999, 2007 Dorling Kindersley Limited Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. Published in Great Britain by Dorling Kindersley Limited. A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. ISBN: 978-0-7566-2871-0 DK books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, or educational use. For details, contact: DK Publishing Special Markets, 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014 or
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Cupid and Psyche 34
Zeus and Danaë 44 Perseus and Andromeda 46 Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys Detail from page 17
Egypt The Creation 12 Re, the Sun God 14 Osiris, Isis, and Horus 16
The Tragedy of Oedipus 48 The Labors of Hercules 50 Jason and the Golden Fleece 52 Theseus the Hero 54 The Minotaur 56 Dionysus and Ariadne 58
Sumeria
Leda and the Swan 60
The Epic of Gilgamesh 18
The Judgment of Paris 62 Odysseus Returns Home 64
Iran
Dido and Aeneas 66
Ahura Mazda and Ahriman 20
Greece and Rome Gods of Olympus 22 Prometheus 24 Bellerophon
Detail from page 47
Aphrodite and Ares 26 The Rape of Persephone 28
Color reproduction by DK India, India and GRB, Italy Printed and bound by Toppan Printing Co Ltd, China Discover more at
Orpheus and Eurydice 30 Aphrodite and Adonis 32
Venus
From page 32
Voodoo Symbols Detail from page 91
Northern Europe
Polynesia
The Norse Gods 68
Maui-of-a-Thousand-Tricks 106
The World Tree Myth 70 Sigurd the Dragon-Slayer 72
The Carribean
Lohengrin 74
The Voodoo Gods 90
The Story of Väinämöinen 76
India The Churning of the Ocean 108 The Avatars of Vishnu 110
North America
Shiva and His Family 112
Mountainway 92
Rama and Sita 114
Lone Man 94 Myths of the Arctic Circle 96
Central America
China The Ten Suns of Heaven 116 The Eight Immortals 118
Legends of Quetzalcoatl 98 The Hero Twins 100 Japanese Dragon
Australia
Detail from page 120
The Dreamin