Clio

In Greek mythology, Clio (or Kleio / Κλειώ ) was the Muse of heroic poetry and history. She had one son, Hyacinth, with the King of Macedonia, Pierus.

Some sources say she was also the mother of Hymenaios.

She is often represented with a parchment scroll or a set of tablets. She is also known as the Proclaimer.

The name is from the root κλέω/κλείω, meaning "recount" or "make famous".

Clio was one of the nine muses. She is the daughter of Zeus. She is often seen with a scroll and a chest of books. A genus of polar pteropods was named after her.

Clio - detail from "The Allegory of Painting", Vermeer

Clio has lent her name to several entities:

• the asteroid 84 Klio;
  
• the family of sea butterflies Clioidae.
  
• the ships HMS Clio (1806) and HMS Clio (1858).
  
• "Cliology," an offshoot of psychohistory, described in Michael Flynn's essay, "An Introduction to Cliology."

Mythology Images

Archelaos: The Muses and the Apotheosis of Homer

Muses on Stamps