God of Thunder

                                 

I AM THOR...FEAR MY WRATH.

Smiting his enemies is not an idle boast from Thor the God of Thunder. The powerful son of Woden/Odin, Thor uses his might strength and fearsome hammer Mjollnir to protect the innocent and smash evil ones. Those who survive his wrath will never forget Thor's quick temper and brutal power. Thor's   might and fearless nature ranked him as the second most popular of the Norse Gods. Thors was so popular that enev today we honor him with his own day of the week-Thursday.

The Guardian Wolves of Woden, Geri & Freki

Geri and Freki (the Greedy One and Ravenous) are Woden's loyal companions. Always near him on his travels, the twin wolves are ever watchful for their lord's safety. Their courage, loyalty, watchfulness and fierce demeanor make them excellent companions for the "All Seeing Father." Those who anger them by threatening Woden face a terrible death.

The Norn's-Controllers of the Fates of Gods and Men

                                 

The nightmares of your dreams come to life-or-death, when the Norn's come to visit. Urd ("what has happened"), Verdandi ("what is happening") and Skuld ("what should happen") are three Norns's who create and control the fates of Men and Gods alike. To those who believed in the Nordic Gods, the three Norns were all powerful and unassailable.

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 Be it by casting of wooden lots, the carving and throwing of Runes or the weaving of the cloth of life, the Norn's determined the fate of every human and the gods they worshiped.

Once their fates were decided, no power could change the outcome.

All one could do was decide how they would live their life and face their eventual fate.

Malice was never an issue with the Norn's, theirs was a duty to perform and they were very good at it.

With one fate decide, it is time to cast the lot for the next...a never-ending task for the Norn's.

Loki, the Trickster, is Known by All

                                              

Loki, the Trickster God/Giant of Norse fame. He was "Blood Brother" to Woden (not his son). He was actually the son of the Jotunn Farbauti and the Goddess Laufey.

A devious creature of divided loyalties, Loki could with one hand present the gods of Aesir with fantastic gifts such as Woden's steed Sleipnir. While using the other hand to stab a god in the back. Such as his involvement in the death of the most popular Aesir god-Baldr.

Loki was also a shapeshifter and was forever getting in either others or himself into serious difficulties. The strangest was possibly when he changed himself into an alluring mare to lure away the stallion Svadifari from his giant master. Their union resulted in Loki giving birth to the eight legged and magical Sleipnir who became Woden's steed.   

Though his "marriage" (he had at least three wives) to the Jotunn Angrboda, he fathered three of the deadliest and most horrific monsters in the Norse World. These were the World Serpent Jormungard, who grew so large that his body encircled the World. Fenrir, the terrible Wolf willing to swallow the World during Ragnarok. And Hel, a woman with one side of her body stunningly beautiful while the other side was decayed rotting flesh. It surprised no one that Hel became the ruler of Helheim-the land of the dead.

Small by Jotunn standards, Loki often seemed to overcompensate for this by being at the center of many of the most outlandish adventures/actions in the Nine realms. Some with Thor as a companion, such as when he gave Thor the mighty hammer Mjolnir. But most of his actions vexed the Aesir, such as when he kidnapped the Goddess Idunn. One never truly knew what Loki really had in mind or what side he was on, except his own.

Woden's Eyes

                                           

The ravens, Huginn ("Thought") and Munin ("Memory") are the eyes of Woden and keep him appraised of the activities of the Nine Realms especially Midgard.

Midgard, the human world, with all its wars, monsters, giants, trolls, mysteries, wonders and brave warriors; was always under Woden's watchful eye and the eyes of his ravens.

Each day at dawn, Huginn and Munin, would travel though the Nine Realms and return by breakfast time to report to Woden what they had observed. 

With an insatiable thirst for knowledge, Woden relied upon his ravens to bring him a constant stream of information and news of the happenings, especially battles, that occurred in the Nine Realms.

As was the nature of ravens, Huginn and Munin would feast on the bodies of dead warrior after a battle. So prevalent was Huginn at such feasting that warriors were commonly referred to as "those who make Huginn's claws and break red," and blood was often called "the drink of Huginn."

I Am Woden-the God of Wednesday

               

Mounted on his powerful and mystical warhorse Sleipnir and armed with his matchless rune encrusted spear Gungnir, is the leader of the Aesir-Woden the All Father. Woden was known for his many skills including master of magic, seeker of knowledge, Rune Lord and the God of Victory, Poets, Fury and Madness.  

Be he Odin, Wotan or Wuidan; Woden, was a god of over 100 names. Most were descriptive such as Yggr-the Terrible One, Sigtyr-God of Victory, Runatyr-God of Runes, Hoarr-One Eyed or Aldafaor-Father of Mankind. But to the peoples of the British Ilses he was most often called Woden and they gave his name to the middle day of the week Wednesday.

His steed was Sleipnir, the eight-legged horse that could run on land air and water and cross the divides into all of the Nine Realms was a gift from his Blood Brother Loki. By the way, Sleipnir was also one of Loki's offspring. To be exact, Loki was Sleipnir's mother (see World Historyprof: All Know Loki! for this strange story).

His thirst for knowledge was insatiable to such an extent that he ripped out one of his own eyes to gain knowledge and see the forbidden future. A future that showed his own doom, on the fangs of Fenir, the destruction of his people (including the deaths of 14 of his 15 sons) and the ruin of the world in the final battle between Gods, Monsters, Men and the Jotunn- Ragnarök! For this final battle he strove to create an army of the greatest warriors and sent the Valkyrie to every battlefield to bring back the bravest, most worth warriors to his great hall in Valhalla in Woden's realm of Asgard, where they would feast and prepare for Ragnarok. A battle they could not win, but a battle that must be fought to the bitter end.

Greek and Norse Goddesses Power to Rival any Male God

  Throughout history, humans have looked to their Goddesses for guidance, protection, knowledge and beauty.  Here is a small sampling of some of the most powerful of the Norse and Greek Goddesses. For a more complete description of each goddess and her powers check the link below each one's name.

Athena Knowledge

World Historyprof: Athena-Minerva

Queen Frigg

World Historyprof: Yes, Friday is Named for ME

Artemis the Hunt

World Historyprof: Goddess of the Hunt

Skadi the Hunt

World Historyprof: Skadi, Hunting her Passion, Revenge Her Goal

Aphrodite Love

World Historyprof: Aphrodite Goddess of Love

Frejya Passion

World Historyprof: Frejya Mistress of Love, Fertility, Wealth, Seidr and WAR

Hekate Magic

World Historyprof: Need Magic, Call Hekate

Idunn Youth

World Historyprof: My Golden Apples Restore Youth

Queen Hera the Family

World Historyprof: Hera Queen of Revenge

Angrboda "Mother of Ragnarök Monsters"

World Historyprof: Mother of Monsters of Ragnarok

Echidna "Mother of Greek Monsters"

World Historyprof: Echidna Greek Mother of Monsters

Gaia Mother Earth
World Historyprof: Never Mess with an Irate Gaia

Hel Ruler of the Dead

World Historyprof: Welcome to Hel, Helheim that is!

              All are plastic pieces from Monolith that I have painted over the years.

Thoth-the Recorder of Lives

Thoth the scribe of the gods, creator of magic, writing, laws, religion, science and the recorder of the results of the judgement of the dead souls attempting to enter Osiris' realm of the Afterlife.

With the head of an Ibis or Baboon, his sacred animals, Thoth accomplished his duties with honesty and truth.

As one of the Major Egyptian Gods, he was critical to the maintenance of the Universe.

Thoth and his baboon are plastic pieces

All Crows are White, Right?

 

The God Apollo used his white crows (ravens) to give messages to and spy on humans.  When Apollo fell in love with the Thessalian Princess Coronis and made her pregnant he had his crows watch over her. 

 

Unfortunately for all, the crow witnessed Coronis have an affair with Ischys a mere MORTAL!

When informed of this infidelity Apollo flew into a god like rage and had his sister Artemis shower plague arrows on Coronis' palace, dooming her and her retainers to horrible deaths. 

He sent a white crow to see the result. When the crow retuned, he gleefully reported on Coronis' suffering, her begging Apollo's forgiveness and asking the god to save their child.  The crow ended his report with a laughing HA, HA, HA. Apollo was so angry with the glee the crow had for the pleas of Coronis that he cursed all white crows and turned them black. Apollo then raised Coronis into the heavens where she became the constellation "Corvus the Crow."

Since that day all ravens/crows have been black, and their once melodic voices turned into harsh cry's. Apollo did save his child, a son Asclepius who was a great healer, but that is another story.

I painted these two plastic pieces in 2022.

Hera, Queen of the Gods-and Revenge

 

Hera Queen of Revenge

Hera, Queen of the Gods, Daughter of Kronus and Rhea, wife of Zeus, Goddess of Women, Childbirth and Marriage and one very, very jealous wife.

Nothing angered her more than catching her over sexed husband having his way with humans, gods, immortals or any female period (seeing as Zeus had over 100 children that were not Hera's, she had a very busy time getting her revenge).

Even heroes like Herakles were victims of Hera's anger towards Zeus' philandering. 

Hera is a large plastic piece from Mystic Battles that I painted last July.

Prometheus, the Giver of Fire

 

The Titan Prometheus, son of Iapetus & Clymeme, was one of the few titans to support the Olympian Gods in the massive and terrible conflict, the "Titanomachy.  The "Titanomachy" was a ten-year war between the Olympians under Zeus vs the majority of the Titans led by Kronos (as well as loads of monsters) for the control of the World.

With the aid of Prometheus, his brother Epimetheus, the Gigantes and the Cyclopes, Zeus and the Olympians won the war. As the Titan of forethought and crafty advice, Prometheus was given the task of molding mankind out of clay. From this time on he referred to mankind as his children and took particular care of them.

Zeus initially rewarded Prometheus for his loyalty and support, but when Zeus learned that Prometheus had given mankind the gift of fire, against Zeus's expressed orders, Zeus feared that with fire mankind would eventually rise up to challenge the gods themselves! Zeus went into a fierce rage at this betrayal by his favored Titan. Zeus's revenge was to be both complex and painful, the complex part included Pandora and a Jar (not a box), but that is another story. 

 

The everlasting pain Zeus ordered for Prometheus involved a hungry eagle, a Titans liver and eternal suffering. Prometheus was bound to Mount Kaukasos/Caucasus where an eagle came to daily tear out and eat the Titans liver, which would regrow overnight so the pain and suffering could continue forever.  Eventually Prometheus was rescued by Zeus' son Herakles/Hercules when the rage of Zeus had finally subsided.

This is a plastic model of Prometheus in all his "Titanomachy" warlike majesty that I painted in July of 2022. 

Hekate, Goddess of Magic

 

Well known as the goddess of magic and witchcraft, Hekate also held sway over the night, Moon, necromancy and ghosts. While she claimed Perses and Asteria as her parent's, rumors abounded that Zeus, Nyx, Demeter and Aristaios might actually have been her true parents. Known as a virgin goddess, rumors also suggested that Shylla, Kirke, Medea, and Aigialeus were her "secret" offspring. Well, what do you expect from the goddess of witchcraft! As a Master of Plant lore Hekate, knew those that could save life, as well as those that are deadly poison.

With three faces to better see the workings of the World, it was natural that Hekate was also the goddess of city walls, doorways, gates and roads. Hekate remained a popular goddess in the Pre-Christian Era of the Mediterranean for her benevolent relationship with her human followers.

Hekate is a plastic piece that I recently painted.