Goddess of wisdom, knowledge, reason, intelligent activity, literature, domestic arts, handicrafts, science, defense and war. Athena, goddess of war, boasts a combination of divine intellect and extraordinary strength. Her legend claims that she emerged fully grown and clad in armor from the head of Zeus, and of all his children, he chose her to be the bearer of his shield and thunderbolt.

A fierce enemy of Troy, she fought alongside the Greek warriors and was said to have grieved over the death of Achilles. But when Troy fell and the Greeks defiled her temple there, Athena sought revenge. She had Poseidon unleash a storm that wreaked havoc on the returning Greek ships.

Courageous in war, she also understood the supreme value of peace and was known as the protector of the home and domestic arts. Unlike her fellow goddesses who preferred to call nature her home, Athena was devoted to cities, her favorite was Athens which bears her name, and where her temple the Parthenon still stands, as one of the greatest wonders of the world. Her symbols include the owl and the olive tree, which was a gift she gave to mankind. She also invented the chariot and the loom. Her Roman counterpart is Minerva.