Clio
Clio, the proclaimer, is one of the nine Muses named by Hesiod (Theogony 77-79), daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne. She becomes the Muse of history in the Hellenistic and Roman handbooks, an association later readers found in Herodotus' proem, which invokes the Muses as a body and does not name Clio.
One of a collective power: the nine are invoked together, the domains are a later allocation, and Clio has no individual temple, priesthood or festival. Her attested cult is the Muses' own - Helicon, the Thespian Mouseia, the Mouseia of the cities that copied them. The planetary, zodiacal, tarot and sabbat values here are modern Western overlays with no ancient basis, and the tradition's own account is primary. The connection with Herodotus is a later reading of his proem, not his own claim.
Correspondences
- Planetary Correspondence
- Mercury
Offerings
- Offerings
- The writing of an accountBay leafWineWaterThe name of someone forgotten spoken
Sacred timing
- Sacred Timing
Symbols and forms
- Alternate Names
- KleioClio the ProclaimerMuse of HistoryOne of the Nine Muses
- Gender Expression
- Feminine
- Titles
- The ProclaimerMuse of HistoryShe Who Makes FamousOne of the Nine Muses
- Symbols
- The scrollThe water clockThe lyreThe laurel
Practice
- Invocation Approach
- TonePlain and exactAddressClioProclaimerMuse of HistoryRelationshipThe record that outlasts the one who lived itWarningShe keeps what was done and not what you would preferResonanceHistorians archivists and witnesses
- Modern Practice
The Muse of the record: invoked before an account is written, an archive started, or testimony given. The practice is accuracy - the Muses know how to say many false things that look like truth (Theogony 27), and Clio is the one asked to prevent it.
Nature and meaning
- Domain
- HistoryThe recordMemoryThe naming of deedsThe written accountFameWhat is worth keeping
- Mythology Summary
Clio, the proclaimer, is one of the nine Muses named by Hesiod (Theogony 77-79), daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne. She becomes the Muse of history in the Hellenistic and Roman handbooks, an association later readers found in Herodotus' proem, which invokes the Muses as a body and does not name Clio. Like her sisters she is a figure of collective cult, not an individual goddess: the sanctuary on Helicon and the Thespian Mouseia are the attested worship (Pausanias 9.29-30).
Details
- Correspondences
- ColorsWhiteGreyGoldScentsCedarBay leafMetalsBronzeSilverAnimalsOwlEagle
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