Mount Olympus, << oh LIHM puhs, >> is the highest mountain in Greece. It rises 9,570 feet (2,917 meters) at the eastern edge of the ridge that divides Thessaly from Macedonia. The mountain’s summit is usually covered with snow and hidden in clouds. In Greek mythology, the peak of Mount Olympus was the site of the magnificent palace of Zeus, king of the gods, who was also god of thunder, lightning, and rain.
The ancient Greeks believed 11 other gods and goddesses lived in Zeus’s palace. They included his wife, Hera; his children Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, and Ares; and his brother Poseidon. These and the other deities who lived in the palace were called the Olympian gods. They formed for Zeus a divine family and court, much like the human family and court of such mortal kings as Agamemnon, legendary king of Mycenae. In the palace, the Olympians enjoyed fine banquets and music but had occasional family quarrels. The Muses, nine daughters of Zeus, were thought to live on the slopes of the mountain.
