Euterpe was born as one of the daughters ofMnemosyne, Titan goddess of memory, and fathered byZeus, god of the gods. Her sisters includeCalliope (muse of epic poetry),Clio (muse of history),Melpomene (muse of tragedy),Terpsichore (muse of dancing),Erato (muse of erotic poetry),Thalia (muse of comedy),Polyhymnia (muse of hymns), andUrania (muse of astronomy). Sometimes they are referred to as water nymphs having been born from the four sacred springs on Helicon which flowed from the ground afterPegasus, the winged horse, stamped his hooves on the ground. The mountain springCassotis on Mount Parnassus was sacred to Euterpe and the other Muses. It flowed between two high rocks above the city ofDelphi, and in ancient times itssacred waters were retained for the use of thePythia, the priests, priestesses, as well as theoracle ofApollo.[2][3]
Euterpe Pérez Galdós
Along with her sister Muses, Euterpe was believed to have lived onMount Olympus where she and her sisters entertained their father and the other Olympian gods with their great artistry. Later on, tradition also placed them onMount Helicon in Boeotia where there was a major cult center to the goddesses, or onMount Parnassus where the Castalian spring was a favorite destination for poets and artists.[4]
Some people believe that she invented theaulos or double-flute, though most mythographers creditMarsyas orAthena with its invention. Some say she also invented other wind instruments. Euterpe is often depicted holding a flute in artistic renditions of her.
Pindar and other sources (the author of theBibliotheca[5] andServius[6]) describe the Thracian kingRhesus, who appears in theIliad, as son of Euterpe and the river-godStrymon; Homer calls him son ofEioneus.[7]
Rome mint. Laureate head of Apollo right; two crossed tibiae behind / Euterpe, the Muse of Music and Lyric Poetry, wearing long flowing tunic and peplum, standing right, supporting her head with her left hand by resting her elbow on column, and holding two tibiae in right hand; Q • POMPONI downwards to left, MVSA downwards to right.Quintus Pomponius Musa
Euterpe's role, alongside her sisters, was to entertain the gods on Mount Olympus. She was said to have sparked the development of liberal and fine arts in Ancient Greece, serving as an inspiration to poets, dramatists, and authors such as Homer.
Traditionally, musicians would invoke Euterpe to inspire, guide, and assist them in their compositions. Such petitions might take the form of a prayer for divine inspiration from the muse.[8]
Euterpe statue (St. Petersburg, Pavlovsk, Old Sylvia, Central area)
Teatro Juárez
The bronze "Quadriga with Apollo and Euterpe" (the muse of lyric poetry) on the Teatro Politeama (1867–1874) in Palermo (Italy) by sculptor Mario Rutelli with riders on the sides fashioned by Benedetto Civiletti
^Cancik, Hubert; Schneider, Helmuth (2006).Brill's New Pauly: Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World. Classical tradition.
^Hoffman, D.; Schelling, Felix E. (1993). "Muse". In Brogan, T.V.F.; Preminger, Alex (eds.).The New Princeton encyclopedia of poetry and poetics (3rd ed.). Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. pp. 802–803.ISBN978-0-691-03271-9.
Euripides,The Rhesus of Euripides translated into English rhyming verse with explanatory notes by Gilbert Murray, LL.D., D.Litt., F.B.A., Regius Professor of Greek in the University of Oxford. Euripides. Gilbert Murray. New York. Oxford University Press. 1913.Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
