“Our god was born on Mount Cyllene from (for a change) Zeus and Maia. His mother lovingly laid him in a basket, but the child turned into an adolescent and ran off in search of trouble. Nearby, in the region of Pieria, Apollo owned a herd of cattle. The young Hermes could not resist the impulse that seized him and decided to steal those cows. Naturally gifted with undeniable talent and imagination, he made special sandals for the animals so that they would leave no tracks.
He drove the herd far away into a cave and then returned to the place where he had been born, resuming the appearance of a newborn. The next morning, Apollo realized the theft and scoured the region from west to east, finding no trace. In the end he decided to offer a reward to anyone who could provide information about the herd. Silenus and some satyrs followed the tracks of the cows, but they too failed to achieve much.
That is, until they heard a sound coming from a cave in Arcadia—a sound never heard before. It was a melody played by the nymph Cyllene using an instrument made from a tortoise shell and seven strings crafted from animal gut. Seeing two cowhides stretched inside the cave as well, the satyrs asked for an explanation. The nymph replied that everything had been given to her by an extraordinary child of whom she was the nurse.
Apollo, once informed, rushed to the cave to question Maia. Meanwhile Mercury, who had once again turned into a newborn, pretended to be dozing. Apollo confirmed that the hides shown to him belonged to animals from his herd and without delay dragged Mercury up to Olympus. Hermes, who in the meantime had taken on adult form, was pressed until he confessed the theft. He told Apollo—his half-brother, in every sense—that he had sacrificed only two cows and had divided them into thirteen portions, allotting twelve to each of the twelve Olympian gods.
Apollo then asked who the thirteenth portion was for, and Mercury, with great cheek, declared that the thirteenth was for himself. So the two returned to the cave on Mount Cyllene. Mercury took out the lyre and began to sing, accompanying himself masterfully with the instrument, performing a song in Apollo’s honor. Apollo did not take long to forgive him.
They set out toward Pylos, at the far western edge of the Peloponnese, and Mercury prepared to return what remained of the herd to Apollo. The latter, to everyone’s surprise, offered him a trade: the herd in exchange for the lyre. Mercury agreed, and thus the lyre became Apollo’s distinctive instrument.
At this point, while the cows were grazing peacefully, Hermes fashioned a reed flute (the fellow was truly ingenious!). Apollo once again wanted to trade—the staff he used to gather the cattle for the flute. This time Mercury said that the flute was worth more than the staff and demanded, in addition, the ability to foresee the future. Apollo told him he could not grant that, but that Hermes could learn the art by visiting the Thriae, his old nurses, and thus this exchange also took place.
They returned to Olympus in great harmony, and Father Zeus, at Mercury’s rather impudent request, appointed him his herald, and in time our friend became the messenger of all the gods. He promised never again to lie, though with a smirk he added that he could not always tell the whole truth!
The duties entrusted to him by Zeus included the protection of commerce, travelers, and treaties. As a psychopomp, he was tasked with guiding the souls of the dead to the underworld. Even more fitting to his nature, however, was his role as protector of all tricksters and thieves, a duty he found particularly pleasing!
His attributes were: a brimmed hat called the petasos, a staff called the caduceus in his role as herald, and two winged sandals (alipes) that carried him anywhere. His cult originated in Arcadia and spread to Athens and later throughout Greece. Sacred to him were the palm tree, the number four, and many fish. He had many children, and with Aphrodite he fathered Hermaphroditus and Eros. Autolycus, grandfather of Odysseus, was also his son—and that says a lot about the cleverness attributed to the latter!”
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