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Hercules (also known as Alcides) was the name in Roman mythology of the hero Heracles from Greek mythology, the Roman name being a metathesis of the Greek name. He is the son of Jupiter (also known as Jove), the Roman counterpart to the Greek god Zeus and the mortal Alcmene. Hercules made the choice of a life of virtue offered to him by Athene, in preference to a life of pleasure offered by Aphrodite, in his youth. He was made to perform twelve great tasks, called The Twelve Labours of Hercules and became a god; the Romans adopted the Greek version of his life and works essentially unchanged.

Hercules can be identified by his attributes, the lion skin and the club. He is often compared to the biblical strong man Samson, who also possessed vast superhuman strength and performed similar feats such as wrestling a lion. The later Roman Emperors, in particular Commodus and Maximinus, often identified or compared themselves with Hercules.

The Great Altar of Hercules, housed within the Forum Boarium, has been dated to the 6th or 5th century BC.

What is believed to be an Egyptian Temple of Hercules in the Bahariya Oasis dates to 21 BC.

Contents 1 Origin of the legend 2 The Greek Legend of Heracles 3 Movie and television adaptations 4 Spoken-word myths - audio files 5 Namesakes

Origin of the legend

The cult of Hercules may have been the first foreign one to be adopted in Rome; his most important shrine, the Ara Maxima, was in the original Palatine settlement. He became popular with merchants, who customarily paid him a tithe of their profits.

Hercules is said to have founded an altar where the Forum Boarium, the cattle market, was later held. One possible origin for the myth of the Cattle of Geryon, one of The Twelve Labours of Herakles, has been attributed to an older Milky Way myth which associates the Milky Way constellation with a herd of dairy cattle, where each cow is represented by a star.

A mosaic discovered in the ruins of Pompeii vividly depicts Hercules as a black man ([1], [2]).

There is also an ancient tradition of killing a lion to earn entry into manhood among the Maasai, who are further known for their deeply-rooted tradition of cattle-grazing. But no firm connection between the Maasai and the legend of Hercules has ever been established.

The Greek Legend of Heracles

Heracles was born in Thebes to Queen Alcmene of Tiryns and Zeus (who took the guise of her husband Amphitryon). Heracles was conceived over three nights and upon his birth was his father's pride and joy. This resulted in Hera's hatred and jealousy of the young boy. Ironically, Heracles name means "Hera's Glory". At eight months old, Hera sent two snakes to kill him in his crib. The infant grabbed the snakes and strangled them to death.

After killing his music tutor with a lute, he was sent to tend cattle on a mountain by Amphitryon. Here, he was visited by two nymphs - Pleasure and Virtue - who offered him a choice between a pleasant and easy life or a severe but glorious life. He chose the latter.

One of Heracles challenges was put to him by King Thespius of Thespia who wished him to impregnate each of his 50 daughters. According to the legend, Heracles did this in one night.

Later in Thebes, Heracles married King Creon's daughter, Megara. However, Hera drove Heracles into a fit of madness during which he killed his wife and children. Upon realizing what he had done, he fled to the Oracle of Delphi. Unbeknownst to him, the Oracle was guided by Hera. He was directed to serve King Eurystheus for 12 years and perform any task which he required, thus resulting in the The Twelve Labours of Hercules.

After completing these tasks, Heracles joined the Argonauts in the search for The Golden Fleece, rescued heroines, conquered Troy, and helped the Gods' fight against the Gigantes. He also fell in love with Princess Iole of Oechalia. Heracles advances were spurned by the King and his sons, except for one - Iole's brother Iphitus. Iphitus became Heracles best friend. But once again, Hera drove Heracles mad and he threw Iphitus over the city wall to his death. Once again, Heracles purified himself through servitude - this time to Queen Omphale of Lydia.

Heracles later married Deianira. When travelling with her, he came to a river where the centaur Nessus made some money by carrying people across. Heracles decided to make his own way but entrusted his wife to the Centaur. However, Nessus attempted to rape Deianira and Heracles shot him with a poisoned arrow. Nessus, as he was dying, gave Deiranira his coat which he stated would stop Heracles from ever being unfaithful. He did not however mention, that as it was stained with his blood - it would poison whoever wore it.

Heracles later decided to elope with Princess Iole, and realizing he was not dressed for the occasion requested that his wife send him a coat. Deianira, who knew more about Heracles' relationship with Iole than he thought, decided to send Nessus' coat in order to keep him faithful. However, when Heracles put on the coat it burned his skin, and he was unable to remove it. Heracles begged Zeus to save him, but his calls went unanswered. He eventually ordered his attendants to light fire to him in order to put him out of his misery. Upon hearing this, Zeus decided that his son's brave deeds had made him worthy of Immortality. Zeus brought him to Olympus and made Heracles a God.

Movie and television adaptations

The legend of Hercules has been described in many movie and television adaptations.

• Steve Reeves starred in a number of 1950s movies as Hercules
• A syndicated TV series The Sons of Hercules, which repackaged Italian Maciste films
• Hercules appears as a character in the movie Jason & the Argonauts
• Arnold Schwarzenegger's 1969 film debut, Hercules in New York
• The Disney movie Hercules and its spin-off animated TV series
• The syndicated TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
• Young Hercules, a television series based on the hero's youth
• The Mighty Hercules, an animated series that ran in the 1960s
• Hercules, a public domain character appearing in several comic books
• Howard Waldrop's novella A Dozen Tough Jobs, in which 12 labors are performed by a black man named "Herka Lee" in the Depression era American South.

Spoken-word myths - audio files

Hercules myths as told by storytellers
1. Hercules and Hylas, read by Timothy Carter
Bibliography of reconstruction: Homer, Odyssey, 12.072 (7th c. BCE); Theocritus, Idylls, 13 (350 - 310 BCE); Callimachus, Aetia (Causes), 24. Thiodamas the Dryopian, Fragments, 160. Hymn to Artemis (310 - 250? BCE); Apollonios Rhodios, Argonautika, I. 1175 - 1280 (c. 250 BCE); Apollodorus, Library and Epitome 1.9.19, 2.7.7 (140 BCE); Sextus Propertius, Elegies, i.20.17ff (50 - 15 BCE); Ovid, Ibis, 488 (8 CE - 18 CE); Gaius Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica, I.110, III.535, 560, IV.1-57 (1st c. C.E.); Hyginus, Fables, 14. Argonauts Assembled (1st c. CE); Philostratus the Elder, Images, ii.24 Thiodamas (170 - 245 CE); First Vatican Mythographer, 49. Hercules et Hylas

Namesakes

As a word associated with legendary strength, Hercules has been used for a variety of products:

• Hércules CF A football team based in Alicante, Spain.
• Hercules, a constellation
• The lunar crater Hercules
• Băile Herculane, a spa town in Romania where Hercules supposedly rested during his travels
• Hercules, a 1907 built steam tug now preserved in San Francisco, California.
• Hercules, a small town in California named after the Hercules Powder Company
• Hercules Motorcycles, built by aviation pioneer Glenn Curtiss
• HMS Hercules, several ships of the Royal Navy
• The Bristol Hercules, an aircraft engine
• The C-130 Hercules, a transport aircraft
• USS Hercules, a hydrofoil formerly operated by the U.S. Navy.
• Hercules, an IBM mainframe emulator
• Hercules Graphics Card
• Hercules, a bomb-detecting robot at Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport
• The Tower of Hercules (La Torre de Hércules), an ancient lighthouse dating from ca. the 1st century C.E., in A Coruña, Galicia, Spain.
• Elton Hercules John

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