The son of Zeus when he raped Alcmene, Hera delayed his birth to trap Heracles into being forced to undertake his 12 labours, then tried to kill the infant by putting serpents into his cradle.
narrative
First he fights a beggar, then plans how to get rid of his wife’s many suitors by killing them all. He then fears his son will kill him, but succumbs to the venom in a stingray spine.
He swam ashore naked and fell asleep in a pile of leaves, When he awoke the following, he walked in front of princess Nausicaä, and had to ask for her father’s help.
Two sets of triplets fight outside the city of Rome acting as proxies for two warring cities. One survivor at the end demonstrates his loyalty by patriotic sacrifice. But which side was David on?
A classic legend of self-sacrifice, in which a single Roman soldier defended a bridge against a whole army until it was demolished, and Rome was saved from the Etruscans.
Odysseus is warned about the Sirens, who lure ships’ crews to their deaths. After negotiating their threat, they sail past Scylla and Charybdis, but all his crew are lost in shipwreck, and he ends up with Calypso for 7 years.
After escaping from Polyphemus, Odysseus’ crew release a bag of winds, resulting in all except for his ship being eaten by cannibals. They then reach Circe’s island, where she wants to turn them all into pigs.
More paintings of Russian and Slavic legends and folk tales, including Bogatyrs, Ivan Tsarevich and the Grey Wolf, Sleeping Beauty, and the Frog Princess.
King of Ithaca, he first feigns madness to dodge going to war against Troy, but then uses his cunning and ingenuity to design the Trojan Horse and conquer the city. Runs into trouble with Polyphemus during the return journey to Ithaca.
A prolific painter of Russian and Slavic folk tales. Includes a battle from the epic of Rus, Ivan Tsarevich the Firebird and the Grey Wolf, and Baba Yaga.
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