West Pavilion
Lower Level
Antiquities Galleries Greek Vases

ATTRIBTUES – CLUES AS TO WHO’S WHO

Myths are stories, and artists can be great storytellers. To recognize the characters in a story, artists show them with unique clothing, weapons, or other identifying objects. These objects are called attributes—they tell us who is who. 

#1	READ about the four mythical characters below.
#2	HUNT through the gallery of ancient Greek vases to find at least one example of each character.  
#3	CHECK your answers by reading the labels.

Athena
The Goddess of War and Wisdom
 
Look for a woman, usually dressed for battle with a helmet, shield, and spear. Instead of body armor, she wears a protective cape of scales called an aegis.

Attributes
•	Woman, sometimes with an owl
•	Helmet, shield, spear
•	Cape with scales (aegis)

Dionysos
The God of Wine

Look for a bearded man with long hair who wears a crown of ivy leaves. He often holds a cup and a branch of ivy or a grapevine.

Attributes
•	Beard and long hair
•	Crown of ivy
•	Holding a drinking cup, ivy, or grapevine

Hydra
A Monster

Look for a monster with many snake heads. Who is it fighting?

Attribute
•	Many snake heads

Herakles (also called Hercules)
A Hero Known for Strength

Look for a powerful man with short, curly hair. He is often shown wrestling a lion or wearing a lion’s skin over his head and shoulders. He may also carry a club.

Attributes
•	Short, curly hair
•	Wrestling a lion, or wearing a lion’s skin
•	Holds a club

WRAP UP: 
Together as a group, share what you found. How were the characters similar and different? What were they shown to be doing? Knowing about attributes can help you recognize Gods, Goddesses and heroes throughout the Museum. As you leave this room and go into the next, see if you can find other examples of these characters!