Cyclops, also spelled Cyclops, are described as great men or giants with one eye in the center of the forehead. The single eye is the best known attribute of the Cyclops, although some of the early Cyclops stories do not focus on the single eye; Instead, it is their enormous size and ability that is considered most remarkable: they are known to be physically very strong. It is also said that they may be goldsmiths.
Since they only have one eye, Cyclops are easily blinded. Odysseus blinded one so he could rescue his men from being consumed by the Cyclopes.
The lineage
Cyclops are born from Uranus and Gaea. Usually there are three of them, Arges the Shiner, Brontes the Thunderer, and Steropes, The Maker of Lightning. But there are other groups of Cyclops. The best known Cyclops from Homer’s Odysseus story was named Polyphemus and was said to be the son of Poseidon and Thoosa.
The history of the Cyclops
The Cyclops were imprisoned by jealous and insecure Uranus, who imprisoned these overly powerful sons in Tartarus, a disgusting region of the underworld. Cronos, a son who overthrew his father Uranus, released them but repented and put them back in jail. They were finally freed forever by Zeus, who overthrew Cronos. They paid Zeus by going to work for him as a goldsmith and keeping him well supplied with bronze rays, occasionally branching out to provide Poseidon with his trident and an invisibility cap for Hades.
These particular Cyclops were killed by Apollo in revenge for the death of Asclepius, although it was Zeus himself who was actually guilty of the act.
In Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus lands on the island of Cyclops during his journey home. Unknown to them, they find respite in the cave of Cyclops Polyphemus and eat his sheep that are roasted over the fire. When the Cyclops discovers Odysseus and his men, he traps them in the cave with a rock. But Odysseus devises a plan to escape. When Cyclopes Polyphemus realizes that he has been tricked, he throws large rocks at the men’s ship.
Cyclops today
When you visit Greece, you will be surrounded by the stories of Greek mythology. On the coast of Makri, near the town of Platanos, is the Cave of the Cyclops. The large rocks at the main entrance are said to be the rocks that the Cyclops Polyphemus threw at Odysseus’s ship. Stalactites fill the three spacious chambers, one of which is on the upper level that can be accessed through a narrow hole in the wall. This Neolithic cave settlement was lived in during prehistoric times and later became a place of worship.
The Cyclops are said to have built “cyclopean” walls with large stones at Tiryns and Mycenae, where they also built the famous Lion or Lioness Gate. There was a sanctuary for the Cyclops near Corinth, which is not far from these two cities.
