Atlas

Greek Mythology: ATLAS

Cesar Aramburo Samano

Art History

                Atlas was not a Greek god but rather a Titan who during the Titanomachy allied with his brother Menoetius who were punished after their defeat at the hands of the Greek gods Zeus and his brothers Poseidon and Hades. It was Atlas’s punishment to be sent to Tartarus with the other titans but instead his punishment was far crueler. He was sent to the edge of Gaia, the earth, and there he was to hold the skies above his shoulders so neither would resume their primordial embrace. It is commonly though that what Atlas is holding on his shoulders is the Earth but it has been proven several times that it is indeed not the global sphere but the celestial spheres he is carrying.

                As most Titans Atlas is assigned one the seven planetary powers instead of how Greek gods are given an Earthly representation. Atlas along with Phoebe governs the moon although Atlas commonly represents strength and endurance due to him being able to carry such a heavy load on his shoulders. One of the most famous stories in which Atlas appears is during the Twelve Labors of Heracles.

Here Heracles must get apples from the garden of Hera but this place is tended to by the daughters of Atlas and a dragon. So in order to get them Heracles grabs the skies from Atlas so he can get the apples. As the Titan came back he intended to leave Heracles there but the hero knowing that this might happen asked if the titan could grab the skies for a while as he fixed his coat to cover his shoulders. Then Heracles grabbed the apples and ran leaving Atlas trapped again with the skies on his shoulders yet again. There are variations where Heracles makes two columns and not only gets the help from the titan but also frees him from his eternal torment just like he did with Prometheus.