---
title: Cyclops (Creature)
author: Mark Cartwright
source: https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops_(Creature)/
format: machine-readable-alternate
license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/)
updated: 2023-03-29
---

# Cyclops (Creature)

_Authored by [Mark Cartwright](https://www.worldhistory.org/user/markzcartwright/)_

A [cyclops](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/Cyclops/) (meaning 'circle-eyed') is a one-eyed [giant](https://www.worldhistory.org/Giants/) first appearing in the [mythology](https://www.worldhistory.org/mythology/) of ancient [Greece](https://www.worldhistory.org/greece/). The Greeks believed that there was an entire race of cyclopes who lived in a faraway land without [law](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/law/) and order. [Homer](https://www.worldhistory.org/homer/), in his *[Iliad](https://www.worldhistory.org/iliad/)*, describes the Cyclopes as pastoral but savage, typical of the strange creatures the Greeks created to represent foreign societies not regarded as civilised as themselves.

The Cyclopes are not without talents, though, and are credited with manufacturing the thunderbolts which [Zeus](https://www.worldhistory.org/zeus/) used as a terrible throwing weapon and as the builders of gigantic fortification walls such as those still seen at [Mycenaean](https://www.worldhistory.org/Mycenaean_Civilization/) sites today. The most famous cyclops is Polyphemus, who captured the [Greek](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/greek/) hero [Odysseus](https://www.worldhistory.org/odysseus/) and his men only for them to escape by blinding the poor giant. Cyclopes, and particularly the Odysseus story, were popular and enduring subjects in all forms of Greek and [Roman art](https://www.worldhistory.org/Roman_Art/).

### Origins & Name

[Hesiod](https://www.worldhistory.org/hesiod/) (c. 700 BCE), [writing](https://www.worldhistory.org/writing/) in his *[Theogony](https://www.worldhistory.org/Theogony/)*, tells us that the Cyclopes were the children of Earth ([Gaia](https://www.worldhistory.org/Gaia/)) and Sky (Ouranos/[Uranus](https://www.worldhistory.org/Uranus/)), making them the generation before the Olympian gods. The Cyclopes were thought to dwell in a faraway land of unknown location or name where there were no laws. There these giant creatures lived a simple pastoral existence herding sheep and goats and living in caves.

Hesiod names three cyclopes as Brontes (Thunder), Steropes (Lightning), and Arges (Bright). This group would go on to father more of their kind although the trio was later killed by [Apollo](https://www.worldhistory.org/apollo/) in revenge for Zeus' murder of his son [Asclepius](https://www.worldhistory.org/Asclepius/), the demigod and master of [medicine](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/medicine/). The ghosts of the three were said to haunt the Mount Etna volcano on [Sicily](https://www.worldhistory.org/sicily/). Indeed, many local Greek traditions associated cyclopes with volcanoes, perhaps because their craters were reminiscent of the cyclopes' one eye, often described in ancient [literature](https://www.worldhistory.org/literature/) as 'burning.' Hesiod also makes the Cyclopes master craftsmen and assistants to the [god](https://www.worldhistory.org/God/) [Hephaistos](https://www.worldhistory.org/Hephaistos/), himself the ultimate blacksmith and ingenious inventor (and sometimes-resident within Mt. Etna).

Hesiod goes on to explain their name, too:

> These were like the gods in other regards, but only one eye was set in the middle of their foreheads; and they were called Cyclopes (Circle-eyed) by name, since a single circle-shaped eye was set in their foreheads. Strength and force and contrivances were in their works.
> (*Theogony*, 142-147)

[ ![The Blinding of Polyphemus](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/r/p/750x750/3356.jpg?v=1767848284) The Blinding of Polyphemus Carole Raddato (CC BY-SA) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/3356/the-blinding-of-polyphemus/ "The Blinding of Polyphemus")The famed historian and expert on [Greek mythology](https://www.worldhistory.org/Greek_Mythology/) Robert Graves makes the following connection between the Cyclopes, fire and metallurgy:

> The Cyclopes seem to have been a guild of Early Helladic bronzesmiths. Cyclops means 'ring-eyed', and they are likely to have been tattooed with concentric rings on the forehead, in honour of the sun, the source of their furnace fires…The Cyclopes were one-eyed also in the sense that smiths often shade one eye with a patch against flying sparks.
> (3b 2)

Hesiod describes the Cyclopes as having 'very violent hearts' (139-140), making them typical of other fantastic creatures in Greek mythology such as the centaurs which represent lawlessness and who are subject to the chaotic forces that an absence of reason brings. Living in isolation, the Cyclopes live solitary and insular lives; they have no government, society or sense of community - deficiencies that civilised Greeks thought abominable.

Homer, in his 8th-century BCE *[Odyssey](https://www.worldhistory.org/Odyssey/),* like Hesiod, stresses the lack of [civilization](https://www.worldhistory.org/civilization/) amongst the Cyclopes:

> No laws, no councils for debate have they;
> They live on the tips of lofty mountains,
> In hollow caves; each man lays down the law
> To wife and children, with no regard for neighbour.
> (Bk. 9, 112-115)

This exact same passage is repeated in [Plato](https://www.worldhistory.org/plato/)'s *Laws* (Bk. III, 680b). The philosopher, writing this later work in the mid-4th century BCE, has his characters discuss the virtues and faults of existing political systems as they search for the ideal form of government, and the Cyclopes are held up as one of the poorer examples of communal existence.

[ ![Head of Polyphemus](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/r/p/500x600/2218.jpg?v=1728898807-1728898834) Head of Polyphemus Carole Raddato (CC BY-NC-SA) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/2218/head-of-polyphemus/ "Head of Polyphemus")Perhaps not surprisingly, due to their status as lawless monstrosities rather than gods, the Cyclopes did not play very much part in [Greek religion](https://www.worldhistory.org/Greek_Religion/). There was one place where the one-eyed [giants](https://www.worldhistory.org/Giants/) were worshipped, though, that was the Isthmus of [Corinth](https://www.worldhistory.org/corinth/), perhaps because of a connection with [Poseidon](https://www.worldhistory.org/poseidon/), often seen as the father of the cyclops Polyphemus (see below). The Isthmian Games were held here every two years in honour of Poseidon, and there was an altar which received sacrifices for the Cyclopes.

### Master Craftsmen & Builders

The Cyclopes helped the Olympian gods led by Zeus to defeat the Titans in their ten-year [battle](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/battle/), known as the Titanomachy, for control of the universe. The Cyclopes, in gratitude for their release after Uranus had imprisoned them in [Tartarus](https://www.worldhistory.org/Tartarus/) for unruly behaviour, made the thunderbolts that Zeus used as a weapon to strike down his enemies. Victims hit by Zeus' well-aimed thunderbolts included Asclepius when Zeus considered that his medical skills had become so wonderful that he was a threat to the eternal division between humanity and the gods. The Cyclopes also made the helmet of Hades which made the wearer invisible, the trident of Poseidon, and the silver bow of Artemis.

Another area of expertise the Cyclopes excelled at was building walls. Large Mycenaean fortification walls were credited to them; such was the huge size and irregular shape of the blocks used. The [acropolis](https://www.worldhistory.org/Acropolis/) of [Mycenae](https://www.worldhistory.org/mycenae/) and [Tiryns](https://www.worldhistory.org/tiryns/) still have today long stretches of these 'Cyclopean walls.'

[ ![South Tower, Tiryns](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/r/p/500x600/473.jpg?v=1615491903) South Tower, Tiryns Mark Cartwright (CC BY-NC-SA) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/473/south-tower-tiryns/ "South Tower, Tiryns")### Odysseus & Polyphemus

The most famous encounter between humans and a cyclops was during the long voyage home from the [Trojan War](https://www.worldhistory.org/Trojan_War/) endured by the hero Odysseus. The story is recounted most famously in the *Odyssey* by Homer. Mid-journey at an unknown location, the hero stops at an island for supplies. Unfortunately, the island was also inhabited by the cyclops Polyphemus, the son of the [nymph](https://www.worldhistory.org/nymph/) Thoosa and Poseidon, and the giant took a distinct fancy to the travelling Greeks. Trapping them in his cave by blocking the entrance with a huge boulder only a giant could move, he swiftly ate two as an appetizer and then later a couple more of the hapless travellers.

Seeing the gravity of the situation, Odysseus, known for his intelligence and quick wits, developed a cunning plan of escape. Tempting Polyphemus with wine until the cyclops was drunk, the hero ordered his men to turn Polyphemus' olive-wood staff into a spike, this they then hardened in a fire and then used it to blind the cyclops while he slept. Unable to see and understandably livid at his treatment, Polyphemus tried to catch the still trapped travellers by feeling his sheep as they left the cave for their grazing. Odysseus then instructed his men to tie themselves to the bellies of the sheep whilst he chose a ram for the purpose, and thus they escaped to continue their voyage. However, the cyclops, after unsuccessfully hurling a boulder to try and smash the fastly-disappearing Greek ship, cursed Odysseus, predicting the loss of his men, a wearisome voyage home, and disaster when he finally arrived there. Calling on the help of his father Poseidon, Polyphemos ensured that it would be many a storm and ten long years before Odysseus reached Ithaca.

[ ![Odysseus Blinding the Cyclops](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/r/p/750x750/999.jpg?v=1740820685) Odysseus Blinding the Cyclops Dan Diffendale (CC BY-NC-SA) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/999/odysseus-blinding-the-cyclops/ "Odysseus Blinding the Cyclops")### The Cyclopes in Literature & Art

The Cyclopes are both the title and subject of a [satyr](https://www.worldhistory.org/satyr/) play by [Euripides](https://www.worldhistory.org/Euripides/) (c. 484-407 BCE), the great writer of [Greek tragedy](https://www.worldhistory.org/Greek_Tragedy/). The plot is much like Homer's *Odyssey* but with the added character of the elderly satyr named [Silenus](https://www.worldhistory.org/Silenus/), who gives additional help to Odysseus and his men as they battle wits with Polyphemus. Another traditional story of Polyphemus involves him hopelessly trying to woo the sea-nymph Galatea, a tale popular with ancient pastoral writers and an early prototype for the Beauty and the Beast fairytale. In the better-known version, Polyphemus sings a love song to Galatea but without any effect, except to surprise the nymph's actual lover Acis, who tries to swim away but is crushed and drowned after the cyclops employs his weapon of choice and throws a huge rock at him. In the lesser-known version, Polyphemus is more successful in his ambitions and he and Galatea have a son called Galas (or Galates) who became the ancestor of the Gauls.

The struggle between Odysseus and Polyphemus was a popular subject for painters of [Greek pottery](https://www.worldhistory.org/Greek_Pottery/) with the blinding of the cyclops being by far the most common and enduring scene chosen. Appearing on the [black-figure pottery](https://www.worldhistory.org/Black_Figure_Pottery/) of many different Greek [city](https://www.worldhistory.org/city/)-states, the earliest known instance of this terrible deed is on the neck of a 7th-century BCE Proto-attic [amphora](https://www.worldhistory.org/Amphora/) from [Eleusis](https://www.worldhistory.org/Eleusis/). Odysseus and two men carry the spiked pole above their heads and, curiously, one figure is painted white, a colour usually reserved for [women](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/women/) but perhaps here an attempt to pick out Odysseus as the group's leader. The vase can be seen today in the archaeological museum at Eleusis. In this and other such scenes, Polyphemus is typically seated on the floor, probably to show his collapsed drunkenness - he sometimes holds a cup or a wineskin suggestively hangs from a tree in the background - although it may also be an artistic necessity to fit the giant and men on the same horizontal plane. In some of these scenes, Polyphemus does not always have just one eye, or at least not obviously so. The blinding scene and also the escape tied to the sheep of Polyphemus appear on vases for the next two centuries, although this part of the *Odyssey* story ceased to be a popular subject with later [red-figure pottery](https://www.worldhistory.org/Red-Figure_Pottery/) painters.

[ ![The blinding of Polyphemus](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/r/p/750x750/3354.jpg?v=1751706009) The blinding of Polyphemus Carole Raddato (CC BY-SA) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/3354/the-blinding-of-polyphemus/ "The blinding of Polyphemus")### The Cyclopes in [Roman](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/Roman/) [Culture](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/culture/)

The Cyclopes in general remained a popular subject in art well into Roman times. The Romans often depicted the giants as having a single eye in the centre of the forehead and two normal eyes which are closed, the love story between Galatea and Polyphemus being an especially popular subject. Represented in paintings, mosaics and [sculpture](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/Sculpture/), surviving renditions of a cyclops in the latter medium include an impressive stone head of Polyphemus from the [amphitheatre](https://www.worldhistory.org/amphitheatre/) of [Salona](https://www.worldhistory.org/Salona/) (1st century CE) in Croatia and the sculptural group of Odysseus and friends blinding their foe from the villa of [Tiberius](https://www.worldhistory.org/Tiberius/) at Sperlonga (also 1st century CE). The Romans, too, sometimes used a cyclops as the face of a stone mask which adorned outdoor swimming pools and functioned as a decorative fountain. Again, these often have three eyes, and an outstanding 1st-century CE example can be seen in the archaeological museum of Orange, France.

#### Editorial Review

This human-authored definition has been reviewed by our editorial team before publication to ensure accuracy, reliability and adherence to academic standards in accordance with our [editorial policy](https://www.worldhistory.org/static/editorial-policy/).

## Bibliography

- Bagnall, R. (ed). *The Encyclopedia of Ancient History.* Wiley-Blackwell, 2012
- [Boardman ,J. *Athenian Black Figure Vases.* Thames and Hudson, 1974.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0500181446/)
- [Boardman ,J. *Early Greek Vase Painting, 11th-6th Centuries BC.* Thames & Hudson, 1998.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0500203091/)
- [Carpenter, T.H. *Art and Myth in Ancient Greece.* Thames & Hudson, 1991.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0500202362/)
- [Graves, R. *The Greek Myths.* Penguin Classics, 2012.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0143106716/)
- [Hesiod. *Theogony, Works & Days.* Harvard University Press, 2018.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0674997204/)
- [Homer. *The Odyssey.* Penguin Classics, 1999.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0140268863/)
- [Hornblower, S. *The Oxford Classical Dictionary.* Oxford University Press, 2012.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0199545561/)
- [Plato. *Complete Works by Plato Hardcover.* Hackett Publishing Co, Inc (1 May 1997), 2019.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/B013IMESUY/)

## About the Author

Mark is WHE’s Publishing Director and has an MA in Political Philosophy (University of York). He is a full-time researcher, writer, historian and editor. Special interests include art, architecture and discovering the ideas that all civilizations share.

## Timeline

- **c. 1600 BCE**: First construction stages of the [Tiryns](https://www.worldhistory.org/tiryns/) citadel.
- **c. 800 BCE - c. 700 BCE**: [Homer](https://www.worldhistory.org/homer/) of [Greece](https://www.worldhistory.org/greece/) writes his *[Iliad](https://www.worldhistory.org/iliad/)* and *[Odyssey](https://www.worldhistory.org/Odyssey/)*.
- **c. 412 BCE**: [Euripides](https://www.worldhistory.org/Euripides/)' [satyr](https://www.worldhistory.org/satyr/) play [Cyclops](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/Cyclops/) is first performed.

## Questions & Answers

### What kind of creature is a Cyclops?
A Cyclops is a giant one-eyed man from Greek mythology. 

### What are Cyclopes known for?
Cyclopes are known for having a single eye and being master craftsmen capable of making formidable weapons and fortifications.

### What is Cyclops the god of?
A Cyclops was not a god but a creature from Greek mythology. Giant men with just a single eye, the Cyclopes represented the strange people and animals the Greeks only vaguely knew outside the Mediterranean region. 

### Who are the 3 Cyclopes in Greek mythology?
Hesiod names three Cyclopes as Brontes (Thunder), Steropes (Lightning), and Arges (Bright). A famous Cyclops is Polyphemus who tried to capture and eat the Greek hero Odysseus. 


## External Links

- [Everything you need to know to read Homer's "Odyssey" - Jill Dash](https://ed.ted.com/lessons/everything-you-need-to-know-to-read-homer-s-odyssey-jill-dash)

## Cite This Work

### APA
Cartwright, M. (2019, November 13). Cyclops (Creature). *World History Encyclopedia*. [https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops\_(Creature)/](https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops_(Creature)/)
### Chicago
Cartwright, Mark. "Cyclops (Creature)." *World History Encyclopedia*, November 13, 2019. [https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops\_(Creature)/](https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops_(Creature)/).
### MLA
Cartwright, Mark. "Cyclops (Creature)." *World History Encyclopedia*, 13 Nov 2019, [https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops\_(Creature)/](https://www.worldhistory.org/Cyclops_(Creature)/).

## License & Copyright

Submitted by [Mark Cartwright](https://www.worldhistory.org/user/markzcartwright/ "User Page: Mark Cartwright"), published on 13 November 2019. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/deed.en). This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. When republishing on the web a hyperlink back to the original content source URL must be included. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms.