Prometheus
[prəu'mi:θju:s;-θiəs]
Definition
(noun.) (Greek mythology) the Titan who stole fire from Olympus and gave it to mankind; Zeus punished him by chaining him to a rock where an eagle gnawed at his liver until Hercules rescued him.
Editor: Timmy--From WordNet
Definition
(n.) The son of Iapetus (one of the Titans) and Clymene, fabled by the poets to have surpassed all mankind in knowledge, and to have formed men of clay to whom he gave life by means of fire stolen from heaven. Jupiter, being angry at this, sent Mercury to bind Prometheus to Mount Caucasus, where a vulture preyed upon his liver.
Checked by Flossie
Examples
- From clime to clime, from shore to shore, Shall thrill the magic thread; The new Prometheus steals once more The fire that wakes the dead. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- It was not until 1827-29 that John Walker, chemist, at Stockton-upon-Tees, improved upon the idea of Prometheus and Hanckwitz of giving fire to men in a hollow tube. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Prometheus, however, did reappear about 1820-25, when a match bearing the name Promethean was invented. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- That Prometheus stole fire from heaven to give it to man is perhaps as authentic an account of the invention of fire as has been given. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- The old man in his dreams of the past rejoices in his achievements, for he has stolen the fires of Prometheus and forged anew the thunderbolts of Jove for the arts of peace. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
Typed by Aldo