Greek Mythology: Monsters Baldwin’s Mythology Top 10 Monster in Greek Mythology Cyclopes

◉ The Cyclopes (singular: Cyclops) were gigantic, one-eyed monsters.

◉ They were generally considered the sons of Uranus and Gaea. Sphinx ◉ A sphinx was a mythical monster, which had the head of a human and the body of a lion.

◉ Sphinxes also appeared in Egyptian mythology; the two cultures had tight links and had considerably influenced each other.

◉ In Greek mythology, the sphinx was considered to be a woman. Apart from the human head and the body of the lion, she also had the wings of an eagle and the tail of a serpent. According to the myth, she dwelt outside the city of Thebes and asked a riddle to all travellers in order to let them pass. Hydra ◉ Hydra is an ancient Greek mythical beast that was mentioned in the tale of the twelve labors of Hercules (also called Heracles).

◉ Hydra is a gigantic water-snake-like monster with nine heads (the number varies in some versions), one of which was immortal.

◉ Anyone who attempted to behead the Hydra found that as soon as one head was cut off, two more heads would emerge from the fresh wound. Scylla

◉ Scylla was a monster in Greek mythology that lived on one side of a narrow water channel. On the other side resided another infamous monster called Charybdis. The channel was so narrow that if sailors tried to avoid Scylla, they would sail too close to Charybdis and vice versa. Cerberus

◉ Cerberus was a three-headed dog that guarded the entrance of the Underworld, allowing the dead to enter but letting none out.

◉ Apart from his three heads, he also had a serpent's tail, a mane of snakes and the claws of a lion.

◉ Cerberus was the twelfth and final labour that was given to Heracles in his twelve labours. Medusa

◉ Medusa was a monster and one of the Gorgon sisters.

◉ She had the face of an ugly woman with snakes instead of hair; anyone who looked into her eyes was immediately turned to stone.

◉ She was originally a golden-haired, fair maiden, who, as a priestess of Athena, was devoted to a life of celibacy; however, after being wooed by Poseidon and falling for him, she forgot her vows and married him. For this offence, she was punished by the goddess in a most terrible manner.