Earth Shattering Mythology and Crafts
Earth Shattering Myths and Crafts
The Myth of the Giant Turtle
Ever wonder how the Earth moves around the universe? Well ancient people did as well. One mythological explanation for this is that the Earth rests on the back of a giant turtle. This turtle moves very slowly around the universe with each step he takes.
Different cultures added a few different details to the story here and there. For example, it is also sometimes said that there are four elephants that stand on top of the turtle’s shell which hold up the Earth.
Mythology of the Earth
Almost every ancient culture has a story related to the Earth. Some say that the Earth is the shell of a giant turtle that wanders around the universe, some say a giant holds it up on his shoulder, still others personified Earth as a mother-goddess. In fact, the term Mother Earth comes from the ancient Romans and their goddess Tellus, also know as Terra Mater which literally means “Mother Earth” in Latin. Learn more about the ancient origins of celebrating the Earth while you create a fun and easy Earth flower craft. Don’t forget to honor the Earth by focusing on recyclable crafts!
The most interesting thing about this myth is that it occurs in multiple different cultures, from Chinese Mythology to Hindu Mythology and even the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. While it is believed people from Asian came to the Western Hemisphere over an ice and land bridge this probably happened more then 15,000 years ago. For these cultures to share the story of the Earth Turtle means the myth must be VERY ancient indeed! The shared mythology also supports the idea that people from Asia came to the America’s a very long time ago.
The Gaia Myth
Gaia is the Earth Goddess and one of the two original beings in Greek Myth. According to Greek Mythology, Gaia and Uranus were the first two beings in creation. Their children, Titans, were eventually over thrown by the Greek Gods (think Zeus, Hades and Poseidon). If you want to learn more about that story, check out our Staff of the Gods craft.
Gaia is known throughout Greek Myth for causing earthquakes and natural disasters and trying to hinder the Gods and humans from controlling the Universe. One myth where she plays a central role is in the story of Atlas.
The Atlas Myth
The Greek story of Atlas is interesting because it occurs after the Titanomachy. The what? The Titanomachy– which is the overthrow of the Titans in ancient Greek Myth. After Zeus defeated the Titans, he punished them by sending them down to Tartarus, which is essentially a giant pit used as a prison for immortal beings. Trust me, you don’t want to end up there.
Recall that Gaia was the personified version of the Earth. Well, Tartarus was the personified version of the prison-pit. And, they were romantically involved. They had several monster children, including Typhon– a super creepy snake dragon considered to be the father of all monsters. Zeus finally defeated Typhon but he had to keep Gaia and Tartarus from producing any more monster offspring.
As Zeus usually does, he came up with a great idea. Instead of going to the prison-pit with the other Titans, Atlas was punished by being forced to hold up the Earth (Gaia) and keep her away from Tartarus.
Now that you know all about the ancient myths associated with the Earth, learn how make a fun, simple Earth flower craft. Why not make more than one and have a bouquet?
Directions:
- cut slits in your cupcake liner as shown above.
- shape flower petals where those slits are located.
- cut out a circle that will fit in the inside of the cupcake liner
- decorate the earth on the circle, or just make random land masses with green and blue pen.
- attach the circle and the cupcake liner with glue.
- tape a straw to the flower and your craft is complete.
Supplies:
a straw
a cupcake liner
white paper
glue
scissors
green and blue markers or crayons
tape
