Briareus

Briareus, sometimes called Aegaeon (Aigaion), is one of the Hecatonchires, the hundred-handed giants of Greek mythology. The Hecatonchires—Briareus, Cottus, and Gyges—are offspring of Gaia (Earth) and Uranus (Sky). They are typically described as having 100 arms and 50 heads, though the details vary by source. The name Briareus is used for one of the three giants; in some traditions he is the most prominent, and some authors identify him with the epithet Aegaeon, reflecting different local myths.

In the mythic narrative of the Titanomachy, Briareus and his brothers fought on Zeus’s side against the Titans, aiding in the Olympian overthrow by hurling rocks and delivering powerful blows to the Titan hosts. Their role helped secure a victory for the Olympian gods. After the war, Zeus imprisoned the Titans in Tartarus, and in many accounts the Hecatonchires themselves were kept there as warders of the prison.

In later Greek literature, Briareus is used to symbolize immense strength and the primordial power of the older generation that the Olympians supplanted. The Hecatonchires, including Briareus, appear in Hesiod’s Theogony and in later mythographies such as Apollodorus, where their primary function is as the mighty, otherworldly beings associated with the early battles between order and chaos.

References to Briareus are primarily literary, with the figure serving as part of the larger group of the Hundred-Handed Giants within ancient Greek myth.