Circe

In Greek Mythology, Circe was a goddess of magic, though she was sometimes depicted as a nymph, a witch or an enchantress.

In any case, she was associated with magic. She knew a lot about potions and herbs, and sometimes used this knowledge against her enemies and people who offended her, turning them into wild animals. She also had a wand or staff called the rhabdos which she also used to channel her magic. In fact, this was the earliest mention of a “magical wand or staff” in Western writings; it was referred to in Homer’s epic poem, the Odyssey, when Circe used it to turn Odysseus’s men into beasts.

Circe was the daughter of Helios, a Titan who represented the Sun, and Perse, an ocean nymph. She was one of three thousand of her kind, daughters of Titans Oceanus and Tethys. In another version, Circe was the daughter of Hecate, a goddess of sorcery.

She had two brothers. One was named Aeetes, and he looked after the Golden Fleece, a fleece that was the property of royalty. It was made from the wool of a golden ram with wings. Her second brother was Perses.

Pasiphae was her only sister, and she was the queen of the Greek island, Crete, and also the wife of King Minos. It was also said that she gave birth to the Minotaur, a creature that was half man, half bull, with the head and horns of a cattle and the body of a man.

In some stories, Circe was exiled by her father Helios to live alone on Aeaea, a fictional island, as punishment for killing the prince of Colchis, who was her husband at the time.

She later had children with Odysseus, the king of Ithaca from Homer’s writings. Her three sons were Ardeas, Latinus and Telegonus.