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The Genealogy of Greek Mythology: An Ilustrated Family Tree of Greek Myth from the First Gods to the Founders of Rome
A stunning, fully illustrated and comprehensively annotated genealogical map of the universe of Greek myth, presented in a unique, easy-to-use format. From the television hit Xena, to the Oscar-winning box-office smash Gladiator and to Broadway's Medea, the sagas of antiquity continue to attract avid audiences. Now the lore and legend of Ancient Greece have been distilled into one spectacularly illustrated resource. The Genealogy of Greek Mythology brings to life the complete cast of characters, mortal and mythic alike. Accompanied by more than 125 captivating full-color photographs of art and artifacts, the narratives and bloodlines mapped out in The Genealogy of Greek Mythology are wonderfully user friendly. Beginning with Chaos-the period before the Earth was born-Vanessa James traces the succession of gods and titans through to the first generations of historically verifiable people of the ancient Aegean. Packed with over 3,000 entries, this incredibly detailed resource also features a star chart, regional map, and who's who guide to the Olympian gods. Each side of the book's unique accordion-paged design can be perused section-by-section or fanned out to reveal the entire genealogy in more than seventeen elegant feet.
208 pages, Unknown Binding
First published September 15, 2003
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About the author
Vanessa James
23 books41 followersaka Sally Beauman
Sally Kinsey-Miles graduated from Girton College, Cambridge (MA in English Literature) She married Christopher Beauman an economist. After graduating, she moved with her husband to the USA, where she lived for three years, first in Washington DC, then New York, and travelled extensively. She began her career as a journalist in America, joining the staff of the newly launched New York magazine, of which she became associate editor, and continued to write for it after her return to England. Interviewed Alan Howard for the Telegraph Magazine in 1970 in an article called 'A Fellow of Most Excellent Fancy'. (Daily Telegraph Supplement, May 29th.) Apparently a very long interview. The following year they met again, and the rest is history. After a long partnership Sally and Alan married in 2004. She has one son, James, and one grandchild.
Sally had a distinguished career as a journalist and critic, winning the Catherine Pakenham Award for her writing, and becoming the youngest-ever editor of Queen magazine (now Harper’s & Queen). She has contributed to many leading newspapers and magazines in both the UK and the USA, including the Daily Telegraph ( from 1970-73 and 1976-8 she was Arts Editor of the Sunday Telegraph Magazine), the Sunday Times, Observer, Vogue, the New York Times and the New Yorker. She also wrote nine Mills & Boon romances under the pseudonym Vanessa James, before publishing her block-buster novel Destiny in 1987 under her real name. It was her article about Daphne du Maurier, commissioned by Tina Brown, and published in The New Yorker in November 1993, which first gave her the idea for writing Rebecca de Winter’s version of events at Manderley – an idea that subsequently became the novel, Rebecca’s Tale. In 2000 she was one of the Whitbread Prize judges for the best novel category.
Sally Kinsey-Miles graduated from Girton College, Cambridge (MA in English Literature) She married Christopher Beauman an economist. After graduating, she moved with her husband to the USA, where she lived for three years, first in Washington DC, then New York, and travelled extensively. She began her career as a journalist in America, joining the staff of the newly launched New York magazine, of which she became associate editor, and continued to write for it after her return to England. Interviewed Alan Howard for the Telegraph Magazine in 1970 in an article called 'A Fellow of Most Excellent Fancy'. (Daily Telegraph Supplement, May 29th.) Apparently a very long interview. The following year they met again, and the rest is history. After a long partnership Sally and Alan married in 2004. She has one son, James, and one grandchild.
Sally had a distinguished career as a journalist and critic, winning the Catherine Pakenham Award for her writing, and becoming the youngest-ever editor of Queen magazine (now Harper’s & Queen). She has contributed to many leading newspapers and magazines in both the UK and the USA, including the Daily Telegraph ( from 1970-73 and 1976-8 she was Arts Editor of the Sunday Telegraph Magazine), the Sunday Times, Observer, Vogue, the New York Times and the New Yorker. She also wrote nine Mills & Boon romances under the pseudonym Vanessa James, before publishing her block-buster novel Destiny in 1987 under her real name. It was her article about Daphne du Maurier, commissioned by Tina Brown, and published in The New Yorker in November 1993, which first gave her the idea for writing Rebecca de Winter’s version of events at Manderley – an idea that subsequently became the novel, Rebecca’s Tale. In 2000 she was one of the Whitbread Prize judges for the best novel category.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 10, 2021
Well researched and laid out but I deducted one star for two reasons:
1. Typos, mostly minor but the most egregious of which lists Aphrodite's symbols as fire, hammers and others pertaining to Hephaestus, obviously the result from the position of the two being switched at some point, without the accompanying info being updated
2. Data which seems incorrect to me, including the repetition of Cerberus having two heads and the statement that Artemis killed Orion because she was tempted by him. I know sources can vary wildly but I've read a lot of them - original scholarly and popular - and felt that I was often aware of the 'prime' source, yet still surprised by the version laid down.
Side note: I found it odd the author strongly identifies Hercules's descendants with the Doric invasion but calls it the only such identifiable historical event, without extending the same sureness to Minos and the Minoan civilization
Still this book is indispensable for wrapping ones head around the dynasties, relations and figures in greek mythology.
Still though, this map/ fold-out could be considered indispensable for wrapping one's head around the tangled generations of gods and mortals which comprise greek mythology.
1. Typos, mostly minor but the most egregious of which lists Aphrodite's symbols as fire, hammers and others pertaining to Hephaestus, obviously the result from the position of the two being switched at some point, without the accompanying info being updated
2. Data which seems incorrect to me, including the repetition of Cerberus having two heads and the statement that Artemis killed Orion because she was tempted by him. I know sources can vary wildly but I've read a lot of them - original scholarly and popular - and felt that I was often aware of the 'prime' source, yet still surprised by the version laid down.
Side note: I found it odd the author strongly identifies Hercules's descendants with the Doric invasion but calls it the only such identifiable historical event, without extending the same sureness to Minos and the Minoan civilization
Still this book is indispensable for wrapping ones head around the dynasties, relations and figures in greek mythology.
Still though, this map/ fold-out could be considered indispensable for wrapping one's head around the tangled generations of gods and mortals which comprise greek mythology.
July 17, 2013
More a visual reference work than a book, this is a fabulous piece of research, utilizing all the various myths and legend of ancient Greece to build a fully realized family tree that traces both the deities and the mortal lineages we've all read about. Want to know the ancestors of Agememnon or the descendents of the Pleiades this is for you. While a serious scholarly accomplishment, reading through the descriptions and stories the Greeks claimed as their divine origins, they were really claiming to be a bunch of inbred rapists, for the most part. You'd think they'd all look like Deliverence babies.
December 11, 2012
This is a fabulous resource for mythology fans. It folds out to one large family tree, making it that much easier to trace this convoluted genealogy. And when you're not using it, just tuck back into it's case and stick it on your bookshelf. All the primary gods are included, of course, but you'll also find minor and lesser-known gods. Plus, on the reverse, you'll find a genealogy of all those demigods like Herakles and Achilles. I always keep it available for a quick reference, and it's proven well-worth the money I paid for it.
March 21, 2008
This is a great foldout book; on one side is a genealogy of Greek gods, and on the other is a genealogy of mortals involved in the Greek myths. If genealogical charts help you understand relationships, then this is a book for you!
January 13, 2008
This is a very fun fold out. Excellent to just read or display. Love it
March 31, 2014
(a few typos aside) is everything a genealogy of Greek mythology should be - thorough and vast with summaries on all the most notable stories.
June 14, 2014
Neat little find. It's not as informative as I was hoping, but it's still a fun little treasure. I like it.
January 3, 2015
This is not really a book. It's a big chart in binding. But a fabulous resource if you're interested in Greek mythology and literature.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews