Eagle (Aquila)

The eagle of Zeus (Jupiter). Not only was the eagle a bird sacred to Zeus or his Roman counterpart Jupiter, he often used the Eagle in special errands.

Zeus used his eagle to steal Aphrodite's slipper and give it to Hermes, who was infatuated with the love goddess at that time. In return for giving her slipper back, Aphrodite had to sleep with Hermes.

At Dardania, the Eagle carried off Ganymede, the son of Tros, to become Zeus's lover and the cupbearer of the gods at Olympus. Zeus compensated Tros for the loss of his son by giving him two divine horses and a vine of gold to the king. However, some legends said that Zeus transformed himself into an eagle when he abducted Ganymede.

In the Golden Ass, the eagle helped the heroine Psyche to fill a jar of water from the Styx, which was part of a task from Venus (Aphrodite).

Most of the time, Zeus sent the eagle as a favourable sign for someone who prayed to him.

At Salamis, before Heracles set out to besiege Troy, the hero Telamon was soon to become the father of the future hero, Ajax. Heracles prayed to his father, and Zeus answered his prayer by sending the eagle flying above them. Heracles prayed that his friend's son would be a brave hero. Telamon named his son Aias (Ajax) after the eagle (aietos).

In the Iliad, Agamemnon also prayed to Zeus for a sign that the Greeks would in the end defeat the Trojans after the long war. Again, Zeus sent his eagle as a good omen.

Zeus later placed his eagle as the constellation, Aquila.

Do not confuse this eagle with the Caucasian Eagle, the offspring of Typhon and Echidna.