The Muses were born of the Titaness Mnemosyne and Zeus. There was a total of nine female Muses who specialized in the fine arts such as history, comedy, dance, poetry, and song. They are generally associated with Apollo imbued with the form of inspiration peculiar to the god of oracles. The Muses may owe their prominence to poets, who identified them as the sources of their inspiration. Before the invention of writing, all knowledge was dependent on memory for preservation, as is music today to those who do not read it. This way the Muses were patronesses of memory, and the bards honored them.

      The Muses's defeated the Sirens in a musical contest and were often referred to as the queens of songs. It is often said that no Olympian banquet was complete without their presence.

ACTIVITIES:
Muses activity

KEY TEST WORDS:(Know the material behind these items.)
All names, titles, and symbols of the Group Deities,

The Group Deities

The Underworld

Footnotes:The Muses, the black-haired nine:

1. Clio, the muse of History, appeared seated wearing a laurel wreath, and holding a half opened scroll. Beside her was a cylindrical box that contained more scrolls. Sometimes she appeared standing, holding a scroll in one hand, and an instrument for writing in the other.
2. Melpomene, the muse of Tragedy, stood serious and dignified with her left foot raised on a rock, and held a mask in her right hand. She wore a long, girtted tunic that fell in wide folds, and from her shoulder a "peplos" fell carelessly.
3. Thalia, the muse of Comedy, stood clad in a tunic with a fringed mantle thrown over the left shoulder. In her right hand she held a shepherd's hook, and a satyrical mask in the other.
4. Calliope, the muse of epic poems, appeared seated holding a writing tablet and "stylus," or stood wearing a wreath, and holding a scroll, or a "tuba" entwined with a laurel branch.
5. Urania, the muse of astronomy, appeared seated beside a globe, holding a compass in one hand, and pointing toward the heavens, or wearing a crown of stars, and holding a lyre, with her eyes turned toward the stars, and pointing to a place on the globe beside her.
6. Euterpe, the muse of the art of music, stood playing on a double flute.
7. Polyhymnia, the muse of song and oratory, who represented contemplation, appeared with one finger raised to her lips. She also appeared quiet, attentive, and observant, leaning forward on a pillar, with her arms sleeved.
8. Erato, the muse of love and marriage song, wore a wreath, and played on a large lyre.
9. Terpsichore, the muse of dance, wore a wreath, and played on a lyre. Sometimes she held cymbals, and danced with her "stola" girtted up.

SOURCES:
Jane Smith
Edith Hamilton's Mythology
Bulfinch's Mythology
"Manual of Mythology" by Alexander S. Murray.