13th June: The Muses

The ancient Greeks celebrated this date as the birthday of the Muses. 10 things you might not know about them:

1. In Greek mythology, the Muses are the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory.
2. They are the personification of knowledge and the arts, especially literature, dance and Music. The word "music" is derived from the Greek word for performed metrical speech: mousike, one of the arts the Muses promoted.
3. The muses are: Calliope, representing epic poetry, whose symbol is a writing tablet; Clio, representing history, whose symbol is scrolls; Euterpe, for song and elegiac poetry. Her symbol is an aulos, a type of ancient Greek flute; Erato, for lyric poetry, whose symbol is another musical instrument, a cithara, a type of lyre; Melpomene, for tragedy, symbolised by a tragic mask; Thalia represents comedy and her symbol is the comic mask; Polyhymnia, representing hymns, whose symbol is a veil; Terpsichore represents dance and her symbol is a lyre; and Urania, for astronomy, represented by a globe and Compass.
4. The number of muses has varied throughout ancient history. According to Pausanias in the 2nd century AD there were three, later four were recognised; but big names like Homer stated there were nine and that became the accepted number.
5. In one myth, Osiris recruited the nine Muses, along with the Satyrs or male dancers, while passing through Ethiopia, before embarking on a teaching tour of Asia and Europe.
6. In another, King Pierus of Macedon, had nine daughters and named them after the nine Muses. He believed his daughters were a match for the Muses in skill as well as name, and so he challenged the Muses to a match. The Muses won, naturally, and the nine hapless princesses, the Pierides, were turned into chattering magpies for being so presumptious.
7. Music is not the only English word to derive from the Muses. They also gave us museum, amuse and the verb, to muse upon.
8. When Pythagoras arrived at Croton, his first suggestion to the Crotoniates was that they should build a shrine to the Muses in the middle of the city, to promote civic harmony and learning.
9. In New Orleans, there is an all female Mardi Gras krewe which organises a parade the Thursday before Mardi Gras. They follow the traditional Mardi Gras route, which just happens to cross streets bearing the names of each of the nine Muses.
10. Plato once called the poet Sappho "the tenth muse" which has become a complement commonly given to female poets.