Hephaestus - God of craftmanship

Hephaestus, the god of smithing, metalworking, and craftmanship, was born of the rivalry between Hera and Zeus. Hera, furiously jealous when Athena burst out of her husband's head, decided that if he could do it, so could she.

So Hera resolved to bear her own child without his help. Sadly, the child, was born sickly and lame. Hera disgusted and embarrassed by her creation, threw the child out of heaven. Hephaestus landed on the Greek island of Lemnos, where he worked at his craft and become a brilliant artisan.

Punishing Hera

Having become a master craftsman, Hephaestus won his way back into heaven by forging a magnificient golden throne for his decidedly unmaternal mother. He was not hoping to win her favor, however, but rather to punish her for her ill treatment of him. As soon as she sat in it, the chair held her tight.

The gods and goddess pleaded with Hephaestus to forgive his mother and even invited the exile back to Olympus. Still he would not release her. Finally, Dionysus got him drunk and persuaded him to let his mother go.

Ingenious Artist

Welcomed back to Olympus, Hephaestus quickly made himself indispensable. An ingenious artis and artisan, he created countless beautiful, intricate, and often indestructible objects such as:

• All the palaces of the Olympian gods
• The shield of Achilles
• Pandora, the first woman

Some say that he constructed many mechanical creatures of gold - including the world's first robots - to help him in his work. He also built three-legged tables with golden wheels that moved themselves around the workshop. Whenever the Olympians met, these tables would run to the metting place and then run back again afterward.