Trident of Poseidon

File:SNGANS 606.jpg of Poseidonia, c. 530–500 BC. Poseidon is seen wielding a trident with a chlamys draped over his arms.]]

In Greek mythology, Poseidon's trident was forged by the Cyclopes according to Pseudo-Apollodorus's Bibliotheke.Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheke 1.2. {{harvp|Frazer tr.|1921}}, 1:11;{{URL|1=http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0548.tlg001.perseus-eng1:1.2|2=text version}} via Perseus Project.{{Refn|group="lower-alpha"|The Cyclopes also provided Zeus his thunderbolt according to this passage in Bibliotheke.}}

Poseidon wields his trident on a number of occasions. He used his trident to strike a rock upon the hill of the Acropolis, producing a well of seawater, in what developed into a contest between him and Athena over possession of Attica. When he lost, Poseidon used the trident to dry out the land so they had no water. The well was later to be called the Erechtheis.{{cite book|last=March |first=Jennifer R. |author-link= |title=Dictionary of Classical Mythology |publisher=Oxbow Books |year=2014 |page =115 |isbn=978-1782976356}}Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheke 3.14. {{harvp|Frazer tr.|1921}}, 2:79 and note 2; {{URL|1=http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0548.tlg001.perseus-eng1:3.14|2=text version}} via Perseus Project. There is further myth that Poseidon (Neptune) produced a horse by striking the earth with the trident, in order to bolster his claim,Virgil, {{URL|1=http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0690.phi002.perseus-eng1:1.1-1.42|2=Georgics 1.12ff}} apud {{harvp|Frazer tr.|1921}}, 2:79 and note 2. but there is no attestation for this among Greek writers.{{harvp|Frazer tr.|1921}}, 2:79 and note 2. The alleged trident print on a rock and the sea well within the Erechtheion were witnessed by the geographer Pausanias while visiting Athens.{{efn|Pausanias wrote that the sea well gave forth the sound of waves when the south wind blew.}}Pausanias, {{URL|1=http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0525.tlg001.perseus-eng1:1.26|2=Description of Greece 1.26}}.

In another myth, Poseidon creates a spring or springs with the strike of his trident to reward Amymone for her encounter with him.{{cite book | author=Robin Hard| title =The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology: Based on H.J. Rose's "Handbook of Greek Mythology"| publisher =Psychology Press| year =2004| page =235| isbn =0415186366}} In a version of another myth Poseidon wields his trident to scare off a satyr who tries to rape Amymone after she mistakenly hits him with a hunting spear.

There is also a myth where Poseidon touches the island of Delos with his trident, affixing it firmly to the sea floor.{{cite book |editor1=Trudy Ring | editor2 = Robert M. Salkin | editor3= Sharon La Boda| title =International Dictionary of Historic Places: Southern Europe| publisher =Taylor & Francis| year =1995| page =180| isbn =1884964028}} Another myth tells how Poseidon, enraged by sacrilegious behavior of Ajax the Lesser, uses the trident to split the rock to which Ajax was clinging.

The oldest coins of Poseidonia from the 6th century BC depict a trident wielded by Poseidon in his right hand, similar to Zeus's thunderbolt. An Attic red figure kylix from {{circa|475 BC}} depicts Poseidon killing the Giant Polybotes with his trident.{{cite book|last1=Roman |first1=Luke |author-link1= |last2=Roman |first2=Monica |author-link2= |title =Encyclopedia of Greek and Roman Mythology |publisher=Infobase Publishing |year=2010 |page=418 |isbn=978-1438126395}}

According to the second and third Vatican Mythographer, Neptune's trident symbolizes the three properties of water: liquidity, fecundity and drinkability.

The trident of Neptune was viewed by Roman scholar Maurus Servius Honoratus as three-pronged because "the sea is said to be a third part of the world, or because there are three kinds of water: seas, streams and rivers".{{cite book|last=Brumble |first=H. David |author-link=| title=Classical Myths and Legends in the Middle Ages and Renaissance: A Dictionary of Allegorical Meanings |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |page=243 |isbn =978-1136797385}}

The view shared by Friedrich Wieseler, E. M. W. Tillyard and several other researchers is that Poseidon's trident is a fish spear, typical for coast-dwelling Greeks.{{cite book|last=Quiggin |first=E. C. |author-link=E. C. Quiggin |title=Essays and Studies Presented to William Ridgeway: On His Sixtieth Birthday - 6th August 1913 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2012 |pages=189, 191 |isbn=978-1107605565}}

According to Robert Graves, however, both Poseidon's trident and Zeus's thunderbolt were originally a sacred labrys, but later distinguished from each other when Poseidon became god of the sea, while Zeus claimed the right to the thunderbolt.{{cite book | author=Robert Graves | author-link=Robert Graves | title =The Greek Myths |publisher=Anne Books |year=2014 |chapter=46| isbn =978-6155530814}}

According to a competing proposal by H. B. Walters, Poseidon's trident is derived from Zeus's lotus scepter, with Poseidon being Zeus in his marine aspect.

File:Flag of Barbados.svg

In present times, Poseidon's trident is a recurring symbol. It appears on the coat of arms of Liverpool City Council, on the seal of the Greek Navy, and on the crest of the Delta Delta Delta sorority. It is a recurring motif in the US military, being featured on the crest of the United States Navy SEALs and on the badge of USS John S. McCain. A series of American fleet ballistic missiles Trident is named after Neptune's trident,{{cite web | url =http://www.atomicarchive.com/Almanac/TridentD5.shtml|title=Trident II D-5|publisher=Atomic Archive| access-date = 19 March 2015}} as well as Operation Neptune Spear.

The personification of Great Britain, Britannia is depicted with the trident of Poseidon as a symbol of naval power. The broken tip of the trident appears on the flag of Barbados. In this instance, the reference is to its use as Britannia's trident, broken to symbolise the end of Britain's colonial rule.

The logo of car manufacturer Maserati is based on the trident from the statue of Neptune in Bologna.{{cite web| url =http://www.maserati.com/maserati/en/en/index/about-us/history.html| title =History| publisher =Maserati| access-date =8 Jan 2016| archive-date =4 June 2016| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20160604222500/http://www.maserati.com/maserati/en/en/index/about-us/history.html| url-status =dead}}

The trident also appears multiple times in popular culture:

• Poseidon's trident is owned by King Triton (Poseidon's son) in Disney's 1989 animated film The Little Mermaid and its sequels and spinoffs.
• Poseidon's Trident is a magical artifact with destructive powers in Michael Livingston's 2015 historical fantasy novel The Shards of Heaven.{{cite web |url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-7653-8031-9 |title=The Shards of Heaven by Michael Livingston |work=Publishers Weekly |access-date=January 29, 2016}}{{cite web |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/michael-livingston/the-shards-of-heaven/ |title=Review: The Shards of Heaven by Michael Livingston |work=Kirkus Reviews |date=September 3, 2015 |access-date=January 29, 2016}}
• Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise also featured tridents. The Trident of Poseidon first appears in the Jack Sparrow prequel book series by Rob Kidd, and later in the fifth film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, as a powerful artifact that bestows upon its possessor total control over the seas. In Dead Men Tell No Tales, written by Jeff Nathanson, Poseidon's Trident was sought after by Jack Sparrow, Hector Barbossa, Armando Salazar, and Henry Turner, with Henry using the artifact to break every curse and free Will Turner from the Flying Dutchman.{{Cite web |last=Rebecca Ford |date=February 17, 2015 |title='Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales' Plot, Casting Announced as Production Begins |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/pirates-caribbean-dead-men-tell-774657 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150220152443/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/pirates-caribbean-dead-men-tell-774657 |archive-date=February 20, 2015 |access-date=February 18, 2015 |website=The Hollywood Reporter}}[https://d23.com/a-pirates-life-for-them-meet-the-characters-of-pirates-of-the-caribbean-dead-men-tell-no-tales/ A Pirate's Life for Them—Meet the Characters of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales - D23] Following the film's theatrical release in 2017, Rossio released his unproduced screenplay on his website Wordplay, which featured the Trident of Neptune, which contains the three Pearls of Neptune that each have a different power: Rhysis, which commands the winds of the sea; Tyrah, pearl of the tides; and Miro, which commands the creatures of the sea. It would also be revealed that Rhysis was hidden twice over inside a sapphire in the hilt of the Sword of Triton, only identified as Blackbeard's or Barbossa's sword in Rossio's script, with the power being revealed to control the wind, as well as a ship's rigging, and would not be used to release the Black Pearl from the bottle.{{Cite web|url=http://www.wordplayer.com/archives/PIRATES5.cover.html|title=Wordplayer.com: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES by Terry Rossio|website=www.wordplayer.com}} The Sea of Thieves crossover "A Pirate's Life" featured the Trident of Dark Tides.[https://screenrant.com/sea-thieves-find-trident-dark-tides/ Sea of Thieves: Where to find the Trident of Dark Tides - Screen Rant]

• Trishula
• Tryzub

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{{Cite DGRBM|last=Schmitz |first=Leonhard |authorlink=Leonhard Schmitz |title=Cyclopes |volume=1 |page=909 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IKvCdTbIugkC&pg=PA909|short=}}. "{{URL|1=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0104:entry=cyclopes-bio-1|2=Cyclopes}}" via Perseus Project.

{{cite book|last=Hurwit |first=Jeffrey M. |author-link= |title=The Athenian Acropolis: History, Mythology, and Archaeology from the Neolithic Era to the Present |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1999 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0pQ4AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA32 |page=32 |isbn=978-0-521-41786-0}}

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• {{cite book|ref={{SfnRef|Frazer tr.|1921}}|author=Pseudo-Apollodorus |author-link=Pseudo-Apollodorus |translator-last=Frazer|translator-first=J. G. |translator-link=J. G. Frazer |title=Apollodorus: The Library |volume=1 |place=New York |publisher=G. P. Putnam's Sons |year=1921 |series=Loeb classical library |isbn=9780674991361 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GKcNAAAAIAAJ }}; {{URL|1=https://books.google.com/books?id=PqQNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA79|2=Vol. 2}}.

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Category:Mythological weapons

Category:Objects in Greek mythology

Category:Poseidon

Category:Tridents