Mythological Gods: Apollo
Wikimedia CommonsApollo and his lyre
Greek: God of music, poetry, plague, oracles, sun, medicine, light, and knowledge
Parents: Zeus and Leto
Consorts: too many to list, like his father before him
The Greek god Apollo, son of Zeus and twin to Artemis, seems like a friendly and lovable god at first. Then you get to know him.
He is the god of the arts and protector of humankind, but Apollo is notorious for his uncontrollable temper — a trait he no doubt got from his father.
If he was having a rough day, Apollo was known to throw around punishments like plague and illness (he shot arrows infected with plague into the Greek camp during the Trojan War).
He also liked to transfigure women who spurned him or got in the way of his sexual advances.
He turned the beautiful nymph Daphne into a laurel tree and his lover Clytia became a sunflower.
Cassandra, daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy, suffered one of the worst punishments for refusing Apollo: The nasty god gave her the ability to see the future — but only the tragedies and no one could believe her.
Wikimedia CommonsThe chariot of Apollo
