How To Make Poseidon's Trident

Weapon used past Poseidon/Neptune

Poseidon with his trident, Corinthian plaque, 550–525 BC

The trident of Poseidon and his Roman equivalent, Neptune, has been their traditional divine aspect featured in many aboriginal depictions. Poseidon's trident was crafted by the Cyclopes.

Myths [edit]

In Greek mythology, Poseidon's trident was forged by the cyclopes according to Pseudo-Apollodorus's Bibliotheke.^[1] ^[2] ^[a]

Poseidon wields his trident on a number of occasions. He used his trident to strike a rock upon the colina of the Acropolis, producing a well of seawater, in what adult into a contest between him and Athena over possession of Attica. When he lost, Poseidon used the trident to dry out out the state so they had no water. The well was subsequently to be chosen the Erechtheis.^[three] ^[4] ^[v] There is farther myth that Poseidon (Neptune) produced a horse by striking the world with the trident, in order to eternalize his claim,^[6] but there is no testament for this amid Greek writers.^[seven] The declared trident print on a rock and the sea well within the Erechtheion were witnessed by the geographer Pausanias while visiting Athens.^[b] ^[8] ^[3] ^[seven]

In another myth, Poseidon creates a bound or springs with the strike of his trident to advantage Amymone for her run into with him.^[9] In a version of another myth Poseidon wields his trident to scare off a satyr who tries to rape Amymone afterward she mistakenly hits him with a hunting spear.^[9]

There is also a myth where Poseidon touches the island of Delos with his trident, affixing it firmly to the sea floor.^[10] Another myth tells how Poseidon, enraged past sacrilegious behavior of Ajax the Bottom, splits with trident the rock to which Ajax was clinging.

The oldest coins of Poseidonia from the 6th century BC describe trident wielded by Poseidon in his right hand, similar to Zeus'south thunderbolt. An Attic ruby figure kylix from c. 475 BC depicts Poseidon killing the Giant Polybotes with his trident.^[eleven]

Symbolism [edit]

According to the 2d and third Vatican Mythographer, Neptune's trident symbolizes the iii properties of water: liquidity, fecundity and drinkability.^[12]

The trident of Neptune was viewed by Roman scholar Maurus Servius Honoratus as 3-pronged considering "the sea is said to be a third part of the world, or because in that location are three kinds of h2o: seas, streams and rivers".^[12]

Mod scholarship [edit]

The view shared by Friedrich Wieseler, E. M. W. Tillyard and several other researchers is that Poseidon'south trident is a fish spear, typical for coast-dwelling Greeks.^[13]

According to Robert Graves, withal, both Poseidon'south trident and Zeus' thunderbolt were originally a sacred labrys, merely later distinguished from each other when Poseidon became god of the sea, while Zeus claimed the right to the thunderbolt.^[14]

According to a competing proposal by H. B. Walters, Poseidon's trident is derived from Zeus' lotus sceptre, with Poseidon being Zeus in his marine attribute.^[xiii]

Modern references [edit]

In present times Poseidon'due south trident is a recurring symbol. It appears on the glaze of artillery of Liverpool City Quango, on the seal of the Greek Navy and on the crest of the Delta Delta Delta sorority. It is a recurring motif in the US military, being featured on the crest of the United States Navy SEALs and on the badge of USS John Due south. McCain. A series of American fleet ballistic missiles Trident is named after Neptune's trident,^[15] too as Operation Neptune Spear.

The personification of Swell U.k., Britannia is depicted with the trident of Poseidon as a symbol of naval power. The broken tip of the trident appears on the flag of Barbados. In this case, the reference is to its use as Britannia's trident, cleaved to symbolise the end of Britain'southward colonial rule.

The logo of car manufacturer Maserati is based on the trident from the statue of Neptune in Bologna.^[16]

The trident likewise appears multiple times in popular civilisation. Poseidon's trident is owned by Rex Triton (Poseidon's son) in Disney's 1989 animated film The Little Mermaid and its sequels and spinoffs. Poseidon's Trident is a magical antiquity with destructive powers in Michael Livingston's 2015 historical fantasy novel The Shards of Heaven.^[17] ^[18] Jack Sparrow, aided by Henry Turner, seeks the Trident of Poseidon in the film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017).

Run across besides [edit]

Trishula
Tryzub

Notes [edit]

^ The Cyclopes also provided Zeus his thunderbolt according to this passage in Bibliotheke.
^ Pausanias wrote that the sea well gave along the audio of waves when the south current of air blew.

References [edit]

Citations

^ Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheke 1.2. Frazer tr. (1921), one:11;text version via Perseus Project.
^ Schmitz, Leonhard (1870). "Cyclopes". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. p. 909. . "Cyclopes" via Perseus Project.
^ ^a ^b March, Jennifer R. (2014). Dictionary of Classical Mythology. Oxbow Books. p. 115. ISBN978-1782976356.
^ Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheke three.xiv. Frazer tr. (1921), 2:79 and note ii; text version via Perseus Project.
^ Hurwit, Jeffrey Grand. (1999). The Athenian Acropolis: History, Mythology, and Archaeology from the Neolithic Era to the Present. Cambridge Academy Press. p. 32. ISBN978-0-521-41786-0.
^ Virgil, Georgics ane.12ff apud Frazer tr. (1921), 2:79 and note 2.
^ ^a ^b Frazer tr. (1921), 2:79 and note two.
^ Pausanias, Clarification of Greece 1.26.
^ ^a ^b Robin Difficult (2004). The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology: Based on H.J. Rose's "Handbook of Greek Mythology". Psychology Printing. p. 235. ISBN0415186366.
^ Trudy Ring; Robert M. Salkin; Sharon La Boda, eds. (1995). International Dictionary of Historic Places: Southern Europe. Taylor & Francis. p. 180. ISBN1884964028.
^ Roman, Luke; Roman, Monica (2010). Encyclopedia of Greek and Roman Mythology. Infobase Publishing. p. 418. ISBN978-1438126395.
^ ^a ^b Brumble, H. David (2013). Classical Myths and Legends in the Middle Ages and Renaissance: A Dictionary of Allegorical Meanings. Routledge. p. 243. ISBN978-1136797385.
^ ^a ^b Quiggin, Due east. C. (2012). Essays and Studies Presented to William Ridgeway: On His Sixtieth Birthday - 6th August 1913. Cambridge University Press. pp. 189, 191. ISBN978-1107605565.
^ Robert Graves (2014). "46". The Greek Myths. Anne Books. ISBN978-6155530814.
^ "Trident II D-5". Atomic Archive. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
^ "History". Maserati. Retrieved 8 Jan 2016.
^ "The Shards of Heaven past Michael Livingston". Publishers Weekly . Retrieved January 29, 2016.
^ "Review: The Shards of Heaven by Michael Livingston". Kirkus Reviews. September iii, 2015. Retrieved January 29, 2016.

Bibliography

Pseudo-Apollodorus (1921). Apollodorus: The Library. Loeb classical library. Vol. i. Translated by Frazer, J. Yard. New York: G. P. Putnam'due south Sons. ISBN9780674991361. ; Vol. 2 .