The Myth of Porphyrion the King of the Giants Who Challenged Zeus
Porphyrion was known as one of the greatest Giants in Greek mythology who dared to challenge Zeus during the Gigantomachy. He has different adaptations such as with Percy Jackson and even with the Olympians. To know more about the giant Porphyrion and his fight with Zeus, keep reading.
Who Was Porphyrion?
Porphyrion was born when the King of the Titans, Uranus, was castrated by his son Cronus and his blood fell to the earth. Other versions also state that Porphyrion was the son of both Gaia and Uranus. He was a brave giant who wasn’t afraid to challenge Zeus.
The Myth of Porphyrion
The Family of Porphyrion
As already stated, Porphyrion was one of the Giants (known in Greek as Gigantes) who came from the blood that spilled when Uranus was castrated. Uranus was the King of the Titans who took his mother, Gaia, as his wife and had 18 children with her. Out of the 18 children, 12 were Titans, three were Cyclopes and the rest were known as the Hecatoncheires. However, Uranus didn’t like all his children thus he concealed them in Gaia.
Gaia hated the idea, therefore, she plotted with her children to teach their father a lesson. She made a sickle from diamond and urged her children to punish their father whenever he came to sleep with her. All the children were unwilling to take up the challenge except Cronus, the last born of the Titans. When it was time for Uranus to come to sleep with Gaia, she hid Cronus and gave him the diamond sickle.
Once Uranus got there, Cronus came out of his hiding and castrated him. Cronus then threw the testicles of his father, Uranus, into the sea with some of the blood spilling onto the earth. This gave rise to the Furies (goddesses of vengeance), Meliae (tree nymphs) and the Gigantes of which Porphyrion was chief. Cronus then became the King of the Titans but was overthrown in the Titanomachy by his son Zeus and the Olympian gods.
Porphyrion and the Gigantomachy
The Titanomachy was not the only war that Zeus had to fight to establish his status as King of the gods, he was involved in another war known as Gigantomachy. The Gigantomachy was the war between the Gigantes, led by Porphyrion and Alcyoneous, and the Olympian gods led by Zeus. The Gigantes started the war when Alcyoneous stole the cattle of Helios, the god of the sun. The Olympians were informed through a prophecy that the only way they could win the war was to involve mortals so they conscripted Heracles to help them.
During the Gigantomachy, Gaia searched for a plant that would make the Porphyrion and the Gigantes invisible. Zeus got wind of Gaia’s plan and commanded the dawn, the sun and the moon to not shine so that Gaian would be plunged into total darkness. Thus, she couldn’t come to the aid of the giants which caused the death of most of the Giants.
Porphyrion Vs Zeus
With the Giants losing the battle against the Olympians, Porphyrion had to do something quick to salvage the day. So, he aimed for Heracles and Hera because he thought that by killing Heracles, he would weaken the ranks of the Olympians. Zeus realized the plan of Porphyrion and countered it by causing Porphyrion to lust after Hera instead of wanting to kill them. Zeus’ action made Porphyrion lose focus and he decided to rape Hera.
Porphyrion and Hera engaged in a brief scuffle before Zeus threw his lightning bolts at the Giant while Heracles shot his arrow into him and killed him. However, the Greek lyric poet, Pindar, narrates that it was Apollo that killed Porphyrion with his bow and arrow. Either way, the Olympians won the war and buried the Gigantes under various islands. The ancient Greeks then alluded earthquakes to as the movement of the Giants in their tombs.
Other Greek Characters Named Porphyrion
The King Sisyphus of the Corinth-state Ephyra had a son named Porphyrion with one of the Pleiades named Merope.
Modern Adaptation of the Porphyrion Myth
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
In Rick Riordan’s book series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Porphyrion is a main antagonist alongside his mother Gaia. Porphyrion powers include immense strength, electrical resistance, teleportation, sharp reflexes, gravitational pull and Giant invincibility. Porphyrion Percy Jackson is taller and bulkier than any of the Giants and humanoid in the upper part of his body. His legs are green and dragon-like with green locked hair.
Gods Unchained
The game, Gods Unchained, also features the character of Porphyrion. Porphyrion Gods Unchained is a neutral god and possesses a legendary rarity.
Blood of Zeus
The character Porphyrion also makes an appearance in the animated series Blood of Zeus. Porphyrion Blood of Zeus is described as a Giant with two poisonous snakes sticking out of the back of his shoulders.
Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40k is a miniature tabletop war game that features the Porphyrion Warhammer. Porphyrion 40k known as Acastus Knight Porphyrion is the most heavily-armed Warhammer of Imperial Knight.
Pronunciation and Meaning
Porphyrion is pronounced as |paw-fee-ree-ohn| and it can mean surging, gleaming darkly, or purple coot.
Summary:
So far, we’ve studied the Greek mythology of the Porphyrion the Giant and how Zeus defeated him during the Gigantomachy. Here is a summary of all that we’ve discovered:
- Porphyrion was born when the blood of Uranus spilled onto the earth after he was castrated by his son Cronus with Gaia’s help.
- Porphyrion led the Giants to fight against the Olympians led by Zeus in a war known as the Gigantomachy.
- During the war, Porphyrion attacked Hera and Hercules but Zeus made Porphyrion lose focus by making him sexually desire Hera.
- In his attempt to rape Hera to fulfill his lustful desires, Zeus threw several lightning bolts at Porphyrion while Heracles shot an arrow at him which killed him.
- Porphyrion and the Giants died during the war and were buried under various islands across the Greek states.
Thus, the Greeks attributed earthquakes to the movement of the Giants in their tombs. The myth of Porphyrion has been adapted into modern books and games with most of them still retaining his giant nature.
