Godly Weapons

Today we are taking a dive into the history of Poseidon and his earth-shaking Trident!

Poseidon and his trident have done amazing feats together, whether creating horses when trying to win over what is now known as Athens or creating a spring for Amymone, amazing things have been done with the trident, including causing destructive earthquakes.

The trident was made for Poseidon by the Cyclops, along with Zeus’s Lightning Bolt and Hades’s Helm of Darkness, after the cyclops were freed. The trident’s three prongs are often speculated to mean three things; seas, streams, and rivers. Another version is that the whole trident represents the three properties of water, which are liquidity, fecundity (fertility), and drinkability. 

The trident was famously used in Attica when Poseidon was trying to compete with Athena to become Attica’s patron god. In one version of the myth, he struck a rock upon the hill of Acropolis, creating a well of seawater which would be called the Erechthies. In another version of this myth, he also uses the trident to create the first horse from the earth. Though these feats are impressive, the story famously ends with Athena winning with her olive tree and Attica becoming Athens in her honour. Losing Attica caused the long feud between Poseidon and Athena, which would affect many people from then on, including Odysseus. Poseidon tried to thwart him, while Athena tried to help him on his journey.

However, Poseidon wasn’t the only one to use a trident, Amphitrite and Triton do too. Amphitrite was Poseidon’s wife and the eldest of the fifty nereids. She was the Nereid Queen of the Sea, the female personification of the sea, and the mother of fish, seals, and dolphins. Another trident wielder is Triton, the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, who appeared as a human with a fishtail for legs, He was considered as Poseidon’s herald or messenger and as the demigod of the seas. The trident itself is still used as a universal symbol of the sea and of Poseidon himself.

Fun Facts about the Trident and Poseidon:

• The trident is also used by the US Navy Seals in their logo. It’s also known as the SEAL Trident or The Budweiser. This insignia is worn by those who have completed basic underwater demolition training and qualification tests

• Poseidon’s trident can be seen on the flag of Barbados, but the shaft of the trident is clearly broken. This is said to represent Barbados’s history and how they broke ties with Britan

• Poseidon was in some ways, part of the war against Troy. Poseidon and his nephew, Apollo, planned to overthrow Zeus and become Kings of Olympus. However before Poseidon could do anything, Zeus learned of the plot and foiled their plans. They were instead given the task of building the walls around Troy

That’s all for today! Stay tuned for more weapon history!