Govert Flinck (1615-1660) is attributed with painting this darkly-colored copy of an earlier artwork by Carel Fabritius (1622-1654). Both the original and the copy by these Dutch artists feature a curious view of the Greek goddess, Hera, cowering on the floor of a cave, presumably in fear of some nearby threat. Museums and galleries usually title the artwork in a way that clarifies the setting of the mythological scene. Such titles often assert that Hera is hiding from hostile giants during a time of divine war. For instance, the Rijksmuseum, which houses the Govert Flinck copy, lists the title of the artwork as “Hera Hiding during the Battle of the Gods and Giants.” Yet, after perusing the myths associated with Hera, one may wonder which war with the giants the artwork references. After all, Hera was involved in at least three major conflicts with giants, and in all three she had reasons to be fearful.
In Greek mythology, Hera was the queen of the gods and wife to the high-god, Zeus. Powerful in her own right and well-protected by her kin in their heavenly abode, Hera rarely faced any serious threat. As such, it took truly apocalyptic danger for Hera to be reduced to fear. With that in mind, three doomsday-level events stand out in Hera’s storyline: (1.) the war between the gods and the Gigantes, (2.) the march of the Aloadae giants against Olympus, and (3.) the reign of terror waged by the gigantic monster, Typhoeus, against the gods.
Gigantes
The Gigantes, after a coalescence of differing myths and legends over time, came to be commonly known as a tribe of giants who were formed from the blood of the primordial sky god, Ouranos, and the soil of the primeval earth deity, Gaia. They remained unintrusive until the era when the storied hero Heracles walked the earth, at which point the Gigantes waged war on the gods in a conflict known as the Gigantomachy. Physically strong and protected with various forms of innate blessings, the Gigantes were a formidable army of giants. Their prowess and appearance were described by the scholar, Pseudo-Apollodorus (c. 1st and 2nd century), as “unsurpassable in size, unassailable in strength, and fearful to behold because of the thick hair hanging down from their head and cheeks; and their feet were formed from dragons’ scales” (Apollodorus, Library, 1.6.1). Zeus, Hera, and the gods, with the help of Heracles, waged a truly epic war against the Gigantes. Divine powers were employed in all their glory, and huge mountains and landmasses were launched as projectiles, crashing on top of giants to form islands and volcanoes.
Hera did not shy away from the fight. During the battle, she slew the giant, Phoitios, and engaged another named Porphyrion. For unexplained reasons—perhaps so he and Hera’s estranged stepson could subsequently swoop in and save the day—Zeus was said to have manipulated the mind of Porphyrion to cause the giant to attempt to ravage Hera. Apollodorus wrote: “In the course of the fighting, Porphyrion launched an attack against Heracles and Hera. But Zeus inspired him with a lust for Hera, and when he tore her clothing and tried to rape her, she cried for help; and Zeus struck the Giant with his thunderbolt, and Heracles killed him with a shot from his bow” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, Library, 1.6.2). Hera’s scary encounter with Porphyrion and the Gigantes certainly qualifies as a battle between the gods and giants. Yet, whereas the painting depicts Hera cowering in a cave, the ancient tales contrastingly describe Hera as fighting on the battlefield during the famous Gigantomachy between the Gigantes and the gods, making it an imperfect match for the painting.
The Aloadae
The Aloadae (or Aloads) were a pair of gigantic demigod brothers blessed with overwhelming growth rates. Ephialtes (a title alluding to nightmares) was the name of one brother, while the other was called Otos (likely derived from “doom” or “horned owl”). Truly gigantic, they had already grown to be around double the height of a two-story house by the time they were nine years old. Their incredible height was dangerously matched by godly strength and unbridled ambition. While they were still youths, the Aloadae vowed to usurp power from the gods, and they plotted to use their stature and might to lift and stack mountains in order to reach the realm of the gods. The Aloadae planned, once they got there, to take prominent goddesses as their wives, with Ephialtes intent on seizing Hera, while Otos wanted to grab Artemis. The gods could not ignore such threats, especially while the Aloadae were growing larger and stronger each year. A divine preemptive assault was launched, but the giants were able to defeat Ares in a battle of brawn. They were more susceptible, however, to Apollo’s arrows and Artemis’ tricks and traps. As told by Pseudo-Apollodorus, “Ephialtes sought to win Hera, and Otos to win Artemis; they also imprisoned Ares. But Hermes freed him surreptitiously, and the Aloads met their death on Naxos as the result of a subterfuge by Artemis; for she changed herself into a deer and leapt between them, and in their desire to hit the beast they struck one another with their javelins” (Library, 1.7.4). This incident is another potential inspiration behind the artwork; yet, as Hera never faced any true up-close danger in this episode, it is unlikely that Ephialtes and Otos caused the reaction seen in the painting.
Typhoeus
Typhoeus (often called Typhon) was a humongous giant that nearly destroyed the gods. With a serpentine lower half and a back fitted with wings, Typhoeus grew to tower over the earth to such an extent that his head (or multiple heads, depending on the account) nearly reached the stars. In addition to his supermassive size and strengths, Typhoeus also wielded great power over certain elements of nature. He particularly had an affinity for sea storms, such as hurricanes and his namesake, typhoons. Although he was a single giant, he posed a much greater threat to the gods than the Gigantes army or the Aloadae brothers. Unlike the others, Typhon truly made the gods cower in fear. Ovid (43 BCE-17 CE), a Roman poet, described the sense of terror:
“The monstrous Typhon, sprung from the deepest bowels of the earth,
had struck such fear in the heaven dwellers, that all in a body
were put to flight, until in exhaustion they found a refuge
in Egypt, close to the banks of the Nile with its seven mouths.
…the earth-born giant had followed them even there,
so forcing the gods to conceal themselves under alien guises.”
(Ovid, Metamorphoses, 5.321-326)
Despite being forced to flee and hide, the gods soon counterattacked. Zeus engaged Typhoeus in an epic battle spanning multiple regions around the Mediterranean, with other gods appearing here and there to assist their leader in the fight. After shifts of momentum back and forth, Zeus finally emerged victorious and trapped Typhoeus under a mountain (which subsequently became a volcano due to the giant’s elemental affinities). In regard to the painting, nothing scared Hera quite like Typhoeus. So, even though the “Battle of the Gods and Giants” title seems to reference the Gigantes and the Gigantomachy war, it is more likely that only the hellish pursuit of monstrous Typhoeus could have made Hera cower fearfully in a cave.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Sources:
- Apollodorus, The Library of Greek Mythology, translated by Robin Hard. New York, Oxford University Press, 1997.
- The Odyssey by Homer, translated by E. V. Rieu and edited by D. C. H. Rieu. New York: Penguin Classics, 2009.
- Metamorphoses by Ovid. Translated by David Raeburn. Penguin Classics; Revised Edition, 2004.
- https://topostext.org/work/150
- https://www.theoi.com/Olympios/HeraMyths.html#Gigantes
- https://www.theoi.com/Gigante/Typhoeus.html
- https://www.theoi.com/Gigante/GigantesAloadai.html
- https://www.theoi.com/Gigante/Gigantes.html
- https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/20027882
