Cyclops – Mythological and Fantastic Beings

Cyclops. Image by Jarrod Owen

Cyclops are one-eyed giants, very strong, stubborn, and abruptly emotional.

Its only eye is large and located in the center of the forehead. This eye is credited with special powers, as it is capable of disintegrating almost anything with a glance.

According to Greek mythology there are two generations of Cyclops:

  • The first generation was formed by three brothers, who have been called the «Main Artisans».
  • The second is made up of a group of Cyclops who lived in Sicily.

The first generation cyclops it was made up of brothers; Arges (radiance), Brontes (thunder) and Steropes (lightning). These 3 Cyclopes were, along with the Titans and the hundred-handed giants, the children of Gaia and Uranus. They became the blacksmiths of the Olympus of the Gods due to their great aptitude for handling metal. They also forged Zeus’ thunderbolt.

Uranus, who hated his descendants, kept the Cyclops imprisoned inside Gaia (the goddess Earth) until he was killed by another of his children: Cronus (a Titan). Cronus feared the power of the immense cyclops so he locked them up again. Zeus rescued the Cyclops and they with their lightning helped Zeus defeat the Titans.

The second generation cyclops they were the descendants of Poseidon and did not possess the skill for metallurgy that their ancestors had. They were engaged in herding in Sicily, where they lived under no law.

Cyclops tracking. Image by Tribehou Nicolas

The most famous of these cyclops is Polyphemus, one of the protagonists of Homer’s The Odyssey. In the story it is said that Polyphemus was especially cruel and managed to catch Ulysses and his twelve companions, whom he locked in a cave to devour alive. Day after day members of the group were falling until Ulysses got the cyclops fool drunk with sweet wine until he left him asleep. At that moment he attacked him and injured his only eye. The next day, with the cyclops practically blind, they managed to escape by leaving camouflaged with the herd of goats.

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