In a first blog post on the arts and crafts that are an integral part of the world of the books, it feels appropriate - if not mandatory - to honour Athene, goddess of wisdom, warfare and arts and crafts. She is not only the patron goddess of arts and crafts, but also of Lindos, where Vangelis Skouras has recently taken up post as chief of police.
In ancient Greece, the island of Rhodes was particularly associated with the cult of Athene. According to myth, when Athene sprang fully grown, armed and ready to do battle from her father Zeus’s head, gold rained down on Rhodes. A famous temple was built on the acropolis at Lindos and Alexander the Great was among those who offered sacrifices to the goddess there. Still today, you can look up from the streets of Lindos and see the temple to Athene Lindia far above, unbowed by the walls of the Knights of St John’s castle that have encircled it since the 14th century.
Athene is the goddess I felt most affinity with reading the Greek myths as a young person. She seemed an independent-minded kind of goddess and I shared her soft spot for Odysseus in The Odyssey. One of the first investments I made in Greek arts and crafts when I started living on Rhodes was this alabaster replica relief panel of Athene that I found in a shop on Socrates Street in Rhodes Old Town. I don’t know where the original panel is that it was copied from and if anyone knows I would be glad to find out. It is a beautiful representation of the goddess with her companion owl and snake and has watched over the writing of the books from pride of place near my desk.