Athena. The favourite daughter of Zeus. A sister of Ares. But is she the God of War? The answer to this question is no; she is not. She is the Goddess of Wisdom, Battle Strategy and Useful Arts. Her half-brother, Ares, is the God of War.
Because of several factors, it is easy to mistake Athena as the God of War. First, she emerged from Zeus’ head in full battle armour. She also wields a spear or a sword and a shield. Secondly, her Roman counterpart, Minerva (yes, like Minerva McGonagall from Harry Potter), is more militaristic than Athena but without violence.
Minerva is the goddess of wisdom, strategy, justice, law and art. She has no connection to war whatsoever, unlike Athena, who served as a guide to Heracles. Neither goddess has ties to combat, but rather the strategic side of it.
What makes this even more interesting is that Minerva is more authoritative than Athena and is more stern. Athena, meanwhile, shows her emotions more than she should if the Percy Jackson universe is to be believed.
Mars Over Minerva
For those who might not know, Rome was known for its foray into combat. Also, Mars, the Roman form of Ares, is seen as a more critical god than Minerva. If anything, it was only in the second century BC did Minerva and Athena be linked together.
Minerva created olive oil, which was essential to Mediterranean cultures regarding food. This was with Neptune (Roman form of Poseidon) creating the horse, which was the most important form of transport for the Romans.
