Hephaestus

The class of artisans is consecrated to Hephaestus and Athene; the makers of weapons to Ares and Athene: all of whom, remembering that the Gods are their ancestors, should be ashamed to deceive in the practice of their craft.

The class of craftsmen who have furnished human life with the arts is dedicated to Hephaestus and Athene; and there is a class of craftsmen who preserve the works of all craftsmen by arts of defence, the votaries of Ares and Athene, to which divinities they too are rightly dedicated.

The palace of King Alcinous is richly adorned with gold and silver, and its grounds include enchanted dogs made by the god Hephaestus.

For example, Thetis helps Zeus and Hephaestus and provides magical items or advice to mortals like Achilles.

A great part of huge earth was scorched by the terrible vapour and melted as tin melts when heated by men’s art in channeled crucibles; or as iron, which is hardest of all things, is softened by glowing fire in mountain glens and melts in the divine earth through the strength of Hephaestus.

Hephaestus: God of blacksmithing and fire, sometimes said to be a child of Zeus and Hera (or only Hera, depending on the myth).

Crafted by Hephaestus: Hephaestus, the god of fire, metalworking, and craftsmanship, was known for his extraordinary skill in creating beautiful and powerful objects.

The golden basket crafted by Hephaestus can be seen as a symbol of divine craftsmanship, family legacy, and connection to the gods.

Since Hephaestus often made objects with magical or significant properties, the basket represents Europa's ties to the divine and her future importance.

The basket is a work of Hephaestus.

Hephaestus gives it to Libya on the day Poseidon takes Libya to his bed.

Now Europa’s basket was of gold, an admirable thing, a great marvel and a great work of Hephaestus, given of him unto Libya the day the Earth-Shaker took her to his bed, and given of Libya unto the fair beauteous Telephassa because she was one of her own blood; and so the virgin Europa came to possess the renownèd gift, being Telephassa was her mother.

Hephaestus made it.

The fuller ekphrasis and heritage reading already live on the golden basket crafted by Hephaestus.

Golden basket crafted by Hephaestus: Moschus gift trail from Libya through Telephassa to Europa.

For example Poseidon was allotted Atlantis, while Athena and Hephaestus were given Athens.

Significance: Hephaestus, the god of blacksmiths, fire, and metalworking, was believed to have his forge under Mount Etna.

Source: Hephaestus' forge is referenced in Homer's Iliad (Book 18, lines 369-376) where the god works beneath the earth, and in Theoi Greek Mythology: "Hephaistos, the divine blacksmith, is said to work his forge beneath Mount Etna, where the fire and smoke from the mountain's vents were believed to be evidence of his labor" (Theoi Greek Mythology).

In Greek mythology, Mount Etna was believed to be the forge of Hephaestus (known as Vulcan in Roman mythology), the god of fire and blacksmithing.

According to the myth, Hephaestus had his workshop beneath the mountain, where he crafted weapons and armor for the gods.

The eruptions of Etna were thought to be the result of Hephaestus working at his forge, with the sparks and flames seen as evidence of his divine craftsmanship.

The ancient inhabitants of Sicily worshiped various deities associated with the volcano, including Hephaestus and the local god Adranus.

The idea of Mount Etna as the forge of Hephaestus has also persisted through the ages, influencing how people perceive the mountain’s eruptions.

The twelve Olympians included Zeus (king of the gods), Hera (queen of the gods), Poseidon (god of the sea), Demeter (goddess of the harvest), Athena (goddess of wisdom and war), Apollo (god of the sun and arts), Artemis (goddess of the hunt), Ares (god of war), Aphrodite (goddess of love and beauty), Hephaestus (god of fire and metalworking), Hermes (messenger of the gods), and Hestia (goddess of the hearth).

Ptah (Hephaestus): Considered one of the creator gods, Ptah was worshipped as the god of craftsmen and architects.

Herodotus indeed mentions a timeline spanning from Menes, the first king of Egypt, to Sethos, a priest of Hephaestus who became king.

Menes is credited with constructing the temple of Hephaestus (Ptah) in Memphis, reflecting his contributions to religious and architectural development.

And after he had dammed off the river from the town, he first founded in the place where it used to run, and which is now the lake of Moeris, the temple of Hephaestus" .

Sethos, according to Herodotus, was a priest of Hephaestus (the Greek name for the Egyptian god Ptah) who rose to become the king of Egypt.

The Greeks associated Ptah with their god Hephaestus, the god of fire and metalworking.

Sethos was originally a priest of Hephaestus.

"There was a priest of Hephaestus named Sethos who obtained the kingdom".

He prayed earnestly to Hephaestus in a temple, seeking the god's aid against the Assyrian invasion.

"After this the Egyptian king, returning home in triumph, raised in the temple of Hephaestus a statue of himself, holding in his hand a mouse, and bearing the following inscription: 'Look on me and learn to reverence the gods".

"They say that from Menes to this priest of Hephaestus, whose name was Sethos, was a period of 341 generations" (Histories, Book 2, 2.142).

"The priest of Hephaestus…says that they were once independent" (Histories, Book 2, 2.147).

A priest of Hephaestus who became king.

"Sethos, a priest of Hephaestus" (Histories, Book 2, 2.141).

A priest of Hephaestus who later became king.

"Sethos, a priest of Hephaestus" (Histories, Book 2, 2.141).

Artisans and Craftsmen could be compared to Kothar-wa-Khasis, though not an Anunnaki but a Canaanite deity of craftsmanship, similar in characteristics to the Greek god Hephaestus.

For instance, the Greeks associated Ptah with their god Hephaestus, the god of fire and metalworking.