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Tantalus- The son of Jupiter and king of Lydia, who, according to some legends, was punished for betraying the secrets of his father. He was placed in a lake whose waters fled from him when he sought to quench his thirst, and amid trees laden with fruit whose boughs avoided every effort he made to seize them. Another version represents him as in dread of a rock hanging over his head and always about to fall.
Tartarus- A dark abyss under the earth in which the Titans were chained when their father feared their strength. The music of Orpheus at one time penetrated its depths and caused the condemned to cease their toil. The name has come to signify the lower regions generally.
Telamon- A son of Ćacus and Endeis, and brother of Peleus. Having assisted Peleus in slaying their half brother Phocus, Telamon was expelled from Ćgina, and came to Salamis, where he was made king. He afterward became the father of Atlas. Telamon himself was one of the Calydonian hunters and one of the Argonauts. He was also a great friend of Hercules, whom he joined in an expedition against Laomedon of Troy, which city he was the first to enter. Hercules, in return, gave to him Hesione, a daughter of Laomedon.
Telemachus- The son of Ulysses and Penelope. He was an infant when his father went to Troy; when Ulysses had been absent nearly twenty years, Telemachus went to Pylos and Sparta to gather information concerning him. He was hospitably received by Nestor, who sent his own son to conduct Telemachus to Menelaus at Sparta. Menelaus also received him kindly, and communicated to him the prophecy of Proteus concerning Ulysses. From Sparta Telemachus returned home; on his arrival there he found his father, whom he assisted in slaying the suitors. See Penelope.
Terpsichore- The muse of dancing and of lyric poetry. The name means "delighting in the dance."
Themis- The goddess of justice and one of the daughters of Uranus and Gća. To her is ascribed the first uttering of oracles, and also the introduction of sacrifices.
Thersites- The ugliest and most scurrilous of the Greeks before Troy. He spared, in his revilings, neither prince nor chief, but directed his abuse principally against Achilles and Ulysses. He was slain by Achilles for deriding his grief for Penthesilea. The name is often used to denote a calumniator.
Theseus- An early heroic king of Athens. Of the many adventures of Theseus, one of the most celebrated was the expedition against the Amazons. He is said to have assailed them before they had recovered from the attack of Hercules, and to have carried off their queen, Antiope. The Amazons, in their turn, invaded Attica, and the final battle, in which Theseus overcame them, was fought in the very midst of the city.
Thespian Maids, The- The nine Muses. So called from Thespia, in Botia, near Mount Helicon.
Thetis- A marine divinity, who, like her sisters, the Nereids, dwelt in the depths of the sea with her father Nereus. She there received Dionysus on his fight from Lycurgus, and the god in his gratitude presented her with a golden urn. When Vulcan was thrown down from heaven, he was likewise received by Thetis. Thetis rejected the advances of Zeus, because she had been brought up by Hera, and the god, to avenge himself, decreed that she should marry a mortal. She became the wife of Peleus and the mother of Achilles.
Thisbe- See Pyramus.
Thor- In Scandinavian mythology, the eldest son of Odin and Frigga. The strongest of the gods, he launched the thunder, presided over the air and the seasons, and protected man from lightning and evil spirits. His wife was Sif, "love"; his chariot was drawn by two he-goats; he had a hammer, called Mjöllnir, and a belt, Medingiard, the wearer of which doubled his strength. His palace, called Thrudvangr, contained 540 halls. Thursday is Thor's Day.
Thunder Bird- A culture god of the North American Indians, represented as a helper of man, and the personification of thunder and lightning.
Titans- Members of the early régime of Greek gods ruled over by Cronus, who with his adherents was overthrown by Zeus, one of his sons.
Tithonus- A son of Laomedon, king of Troy. He was so beautiful that Aurora became infatuated with him, and persuaded the gods to make him immortal; but as she forgot to ask for eternal youth, he became decrepit and ugly, and was, therefore, changed by her into a cicada.
Tityus- A giant, son of Jupiter and Terra. His body was so vast that it covered nine acres of ground. He had dared to offer an insult to Juno and in punishment was chained like Prometheus while a vulture feasted on his liver.
Triton- Son of Neptune, who dwelt with his father and mother in a golden palace at the bottom of the sea. Later writers describe him as riding over the sea on sea horses or other monsters. By a blast on his horn of seashell he roused or calmed the waves.
Trolls- Dwarfs of Scandinavian mythology, living in hills or mounds; they are represented as stumpy, misshapen, and humpbacked, inclined to thieving, and fond of carrying off children or substituting their own offspring for children of a human mother. They are called hill people, and are especially averse to noise, from a recollection of the time when Thor used to fling his hammer after them.
Troy- The city on the west coast of Asia Minor made famous by the Trojan War. It was ruled by Priam at the time of the war, and its chief defender was Hector. The attacking Greeks were led by Agamemnon and Menelaus supported by many heroes, the most famous of whom was Achilles. The city fell after a ten-year siege. Among the inhabitants was escaped was Ćneas. After wandering for some years, he settled in Italy and, according to legend, became the founder of the Roman race.
Tyr- In Norse mythology, a warrior deity and the protector of champions and brave men. When the gods wished to bind the wolf Fenris, Tyr put his hand into the demon's mouth as a pledge that the bonds would be removed. But Fenris found that the gods had no intention of keeping their word, and revenged himself in some degree by biting off the hand. Tyr was the son of Odin and brother of Thor.
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