All Greek heroes were believed to have supernatural powers after their death that they could use for good or for evil. This belief led to their worship through rituals and offerings
 The works in the exhibition were drawn from museums in the US. |
"The judge would have had to be a hero to have given an acquittal verdict." (Lyudmila Alexeyeva, Russian human rights activist, on former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky being found guilty of embezzlement at his politically charged second trial in Moscow [From Time.com Dec. 27, 2010])
So what makes a hero? The standard definition of a hero is somebody who commits an act of remarkable bravery or who has shown an admirable quality such as great courage or strength of character.
Every year CNN, via its viewers, tries to identify one person whose actions qualify him or her to be chosen a hero (or heroine). The criterion seems to be to help people in need in as inexpensive a way possible. These heroes are living people who in modern society would probably be called saints once they passed on, but with only rare exceptions would anyone expect them to perform miracles afterwards. Not so the original heroes.
The word “hero” is Greek and can be traced back to the time of Homer. In Greek mythology, Hero was a priestess of Aphrodite whose lover Leander swam the Hellespont to visit her every night, and who drowned herself after he drowned in the strait, today’s Dardanelles but sometimes confused with the point at which the Bosphorus empties into the Sea of Marmara where the Maiden’s Tower is.
The Turkish word generally used for hero is “kahraman,” borrowed from the Persian and meaning someone who is valuable in war or in a dangerous situation.
Leaving that aside, a Greek hero had another and more important quality – they became heroes, as “Heroes: Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece” describes it: “because of their ability to transcend death, not just because of virtues demonstrated while they were alive. The lives and deaths of individual Greek heroes and heroines were quite different from one another, but all heroes were believed to have supernatural powers after their death that they could use for good or for evil. This belief led to their worship through rituals and offerings.”
This belief also resulted in an enormous outpouring of artwork from sculptures on buildings to gem stone carvings from the three great periods of Greek art – the Archaic, the Classic and the Hellenistic. The stories we know today, starting with Homer’s epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey, and continuing on even in oral literature from one generation to the next.
All of the ancient Greek heroes were at one time real people who were believed to be of divine or royal parentage. Some of them even had their future glory foretold or their fate might have been influenced by the gods.
Four heroes were chosen as representatives – Heracles, Odysseus, Achilles and Helen of Troy – and all of them have ties to Asia Minor. Heracles was a slave to a queen of Lydia while the other three were key figures in the Trojan War.
If one looks at the artistic representations made of the Greek heroes, one sees that the artists weren’t just satisfied with showing their exploits. They are even shown with family and friends, relaxing after a long day’s exertion, playing games, exercising, persuading an angry husband to not kill his wife and many other such scenes.
These ancient Greek heroes also had many adventures and found themselves facing all kinds of monsters and fabulous creatures. While these are generally thought to represent what frightened the ancient Greeks, some recent discoveries of animal bones suggest that a number of prehistoric beasts of one sort or another were still part of their long-term memory.
The cult of hero worship was a part of ancient Greek religion and many a shrine was erected in the honor of the hero where votive offerings and sacrifices could be made in exchange for help with such as healing, protection or possibly a good harvest.
Heroes also served as role models although not all heroes were good role models. Many displayed exemplary behavior that would be inculcated in the Greek child from a very early age. Since the Greeks were frequently at war with each other or with the Persians and later the Romans, it is not surprising to learn that those who died in battle were particularly seen as heroes.
"Heroes: Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece" was produced as the catalogue for a magnificent exhibition of ancient Greek art but its chapters are devoted to an examination of the role that heroes played in ancient Greece from its origins that have been lost to history through to its establishment as a cult. The articles in the exhibition were drawn from museums in the U.S. and helped by the Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (U.S.). The pity is that it’s unlikely to be put on here in Turkey although there are many examples of Greek art from the same periods stored in the depots of this country’s museums.
But “Heroes: Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece,” by Sabine Albersmeier with contributions by Michael J. Anderson, Jorge J. Bravo III, Gunnel Ekroth and others, is available through Amazon.com. The 328-page book is illustrated with color and black-and-white photos that are beautifully presented and clearly identified. The various chapters are well-written and provide a wealth of information about the ancient Greeks for those who are interested.
So what makes a hero? The standard definition of a hero is somebody who commits an act of remarkable bravery or who has shown an admirable quality such as great courage or strength of character.
Every year CNN, via its viewers, tries to identify one person whose actions qualify him or her to be chosen a hero (or heroine). The criterion seems to be to help people in need in as inexpensive a way possible. These heroes are living people who in modern society would probably be called saints once they passed on, but with only rare exceptions would anyone expect them to perform miracles afterwards. Not so the original heroes.
The word “hero” is Greek and can be traced back to the time of Homer. In Greek mythology, Hero was a priestess of Aphrodite whose lover Leander swam the Hellespont to visit her every night, and who drowned herself after he drowned in the strait, today’s Dardanelles but sometimes confused with the point at which the Bosphorus empties into the Sea of Marmara where the Maiden’s Tower is.
The Turkish word generally used for hero is “kahraman,” borrowed from the Persian and meaning someone who is valuable in war or in a dangerous situation.
Leaving that aside, a Greek hero had another and more important quality – they became heroes, as “Heroes: Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece” describes it: “because of their ability to transcend death, not just because of virtues demonstrated while they were alive. The lives and deaths of individual Greek heroes and heroines were quite different from one another, but all heroes were believed to have supernatural powers after their death that they could use for good or for evil. This belief led to their worship through rituals and offerings.”
This belief also resulted in an enormous outpouring of artwork from sculptures on buildings to gem stone carvings from the three great periods of Greek art – the Archaic, the Classic and the Hellenistic. The stories we know today, starting with Homer’s epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey, and continuing on even in oral literature from one generation to the next.
All of the ancient Greek heroes were at one time real people who were believed to be of divine or royal parentage. Some of them even had their future glory foretold or their fate might have been influenced by the gods.
Four heroes were chosen as representatives – Heracles, Odysseus, Achilles and Helen of Troy – and all of them have ties to Asia Minor. Heracles was a slave to a queen of Lydia while the other three were key figures in the Trojan War.
If one looks at the artistic representations made of the Greek heroes, one sees that the artists weren’t just satisfied with showing their exploits. They are even shown with family and friends, relaxing after a long day’s exertion, playing games, exercising, persuading an angry husband to not kill his wife and many other such scenes.
These ancient Greek heroes also had many adventures and found themselves facing all kinds of monsters and fabulous creatures. While these are generally thought to represent what frightened the ancient Greeks, some recent discoveries of animal bones suggest that a number of prehistoric beasts of one sort or another were still part of their long-term memory.
The cult of hero worship was a part of ancient Greek religion and many a shrine was erected in the honor of the hero where votive offerings and sacrifices could be made in exchange for help with such as healing, protection or possibly a good harvest.
Heroes also served as role models although not all heroes were good role models. Many displayed exemplary behavior that would be inculcated in the Greek child from a very early age. Since the Greeks were frequently at war with each other or with the Persians and later the Romans, it is not surprising to learn that those who died in battle were particularly seen as heroes.
"Heroes: Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece" was produced as the catalogue for a magnificent exhibition of ancient Greek art but its chapters are devoted to an examination of the role that heroes played in ancient Greece from its origins that have been lost to history through to its establishment as a cult. The articles in the exhibition were drawn from museums in the U.S. and helped by the Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (U.S.). The pity is that it’s unlikely to be put on here in Turkey although there are many examples of Greek art from the same periods stored in the depots of this country’s museums.
But “Heroes: Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece,” by Sabine Albersmeier with contributions by Michael J. Anderson, Jorge J. Bravo III, Gunnel Ekroth and others, is available through Amazon.com. The 328-page book is illustrated with color and black-and-white photos that are beautifully presented and clearly identified. The various chapters are well-written and provide a wealth of information about the ancient Greeks for those who are interested.
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