Top 10 Greek Gods and Goddesses

The twin sister of Apollo, Artemis let her brother pluck the strings of the lyre; she was far more interested in plucking the strings of the bow. In addition to being Goddess of the Hunt, she was also a goddess of fertility and childbirth – a neat trick for someone known as a virgin goddess. Artemis was happiest away from Olympus, when she could run around the forest, hunting with her virgin nymphs. Works for us.

The messenger of the gods, Hermes was quite a trickster. As a baby, he enraged his big brother Apollo by sneakily stealing all his cattle. Fortunately, Hermes created the lyre for Apollo, which smoothed things over. Later, Hermes took on the job of accompanying dead souls to the underworld. He was known for his distinctive style, usually sporting a winged cap and carrying a caduceus – y’know, that stick with the wings and snakes wrapped around it.

Born out of the foam of the sea, Aphrodite was, to put it bluntly, a hottie. So hot that Zeus quickly married her off to his son Hephaestus, to keep the rest of the gods from fighting over her. But this Goddess of Love much preferred her brother-in-law, Ares, the God of War. Must have made for some interesting family dinners.

It’s a good thing Aphrodite liked Ares; somebody had to. With his mean streak and war-like disposition, the other Olympians tended to find him a little hard to handle. He usually hung out with some of the less sociable gods – like the gods of fear and terror and the goddess of discord. Proving that love is stronger than war, the child of Ares and Aphrodite is Harmonia – the goddess of Harmony.

The handsomest of the gods, Apollo kept his hand in everything; in addition to music and light, he’s also associated with prophecy, medicine, plague, poetry and a lot more. Busy guy. The Greeks held the Pythian Games every four years in Apollo’s honor; these eventually became what we know as the Olympics. So if you want your country to bring home the gold, a little sacrifice to Apollo may be in order.

The Queen of the Olympian Gods, Hera was the Goddess of Marriage – but that didn’t stop her husband Zeus from cheating on her every time she turned her back. Hera was vindictive and mercilessly punished the women Zeus dallied with – and their kids, too. But she was revered by the Greeks, who honored her prominence in Olympus and her importance as a symbol of the family.

The ruler of the dead, Hades is not one of your life-of-the-party Gods. Hey, if you spent most of your time in a dark, sunless realm with moaning souls as company, you’d brood too. Still, there were some cool things about being Hades: he had all the gold and silver he wanted and this awesome helmet of invisibility – take that, Harry Potter!

Like Aphrodite, Athena had an unusual birth: when Zeus complained of a fierce headache, Hephaestus split his head open with an axe – and out popped Athena, Goddess of Wisdom. Now that’s how to make an entrance! Athena was the patroness of the city of Athens, to which she gave a most precious gift: the olive tree. Greek cuisine would have been much poorer without her.

Much like the sea over which he was the God, Poseidon was one moody character. One day he’s happily creating little islands in a smooth-as-glass sea, the next day it’s all hurricanes and earthquakes. Poseidon was one dude you did not want to have as your enemy; after all, it wouldn’t have taken Odysseus 10 years to get back from the Trojan War if he hadn’t blinded Poseidon’s son – and then bragged about it!

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:
- Hephaestus (God of Fire)
- Hestia (Goddess of the Hearth)
- Demeter (Goddess of the Harvest)
- Dionysus (God of Wine)

Zeus, the King of the Gods, was even more powerful than his brother Poseidon. And also someone you didn’t want to get in a snit: he had a tendency to hurl thunderbolts. Zeus ruled over Olympus with a firm hand and loved his wife Hera – but couldn’t seem to keep things in his toga. The number of illegitimate children he fathered is titanic. Fortunately, his kids treated him better than Zeus did his own father: after overthrowing him, Zeus had him castrated.

Do you agree with our picks? What other mythological deities should we have added to this list? For more enthralling top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.